Your top pick car for skiing? - Page 9

^ have you checked out the VW Touareg? it might be a bit small, but it'll get you to your destinatin no matter what. and if you arn't scared to put stuff on the roof then it is good. mabey a Chevy Tahoe, Subaru Outback, Toyota 4Runner, Toyota Seqoia (<idk spelling) and last its only fair to add the Honda Pilot my dad has one, i don't like it because it is just a raised minivan, and not as capable as all the others i mentioned except maby the Subaru both of them don't have a true 4X4 system its AWD

i dont know about reliability with these, but those trucks are comparable, i dont know about true perfomance either. but it might be wworth ypur time to check some of them out.

Touareg is our next vehicle. I am selling a 2001 Yukon denali XL & replacing it with the Touareg. Still need to tow the boat & have snow going vehicle. the touareg seems to really fit the bill with the 310HP V8 with over 300 Lbs. Ft. of torque. This should be a nice compliment to my '05 S4 Avant!

I completely forgot that I have a subscription to Consumer’s Report!

Here’s CR’s evaluation of AWD on all season tires vs FWD with Winter tires vs FWD on all season tires

How much difference can winter tires make? We compared four of our test cars--the all-wheel-drive Volkswagen Passat GLX 4Motion and its front-wheel-drive sibling, the Passat GLS, and the all-wheel-drive Volvo Cross Country and similar front-drive Volvo S60.

The tests: We gauged traction by measuring the distance it took to accelerate from 5 mph to 20 mph over packed snow. Because cold-weather stops can be especially challenging, we also tested braking from 10 mph over smooth ice. We drove the all-wheel-drive cars with their factory-issue all-season tires, which should get these vehicles through most conditions. Front-drive models were tested two ways--with standard all-season tires and with winter tires. Our results:

1. Best were the all-wheel-drive cars, which reached 20 mph 21 feet sooner, on average, than the front-drive cars equipped with winter tires.

2. Winter tires yielded the biggest snow-traction gain for the buck, however. Using them helped the front-drive cars reach 20 mph nearly 28 feet sooner than they did with all-season tires. Cost: about $300 for the four winter tires plus another $160 or so for an extra set of wheel rims to ease the switch to winter tires.

3. Better traction won't guarantee shorter stops. Braking distances on ice were about the same for the all-wheel- and front-wheel-drive cars. But the antilock braking systems (ABS) helped significantly; both Volvos stopped some 14 feet sooner with ABS than they did when we turned it off.


Our advice: Consider an all-wheel-drive vehicle if you live in a snowy area or want added peace of mind. For maximum traction, equip it with winter tires. In less-snowy areas, front-wheel drive and a set of winter tires should suffice. Mount winter tires on all four wheels for balanced handling. Remove them after winter, since these tires wear quickly on dry roads (plan on about three winters of use). And be sure to opt for ABS on any vehicle.

can you get the V10 Turbo Diesel. Better fuel mileage and WAY more power. ther reeason i ask is because we can't get them in Cali until 2007.

Cheers!

Yeah but another $8K makes it cost prohibitive! Lots more torque but same horsepower!

Laughing at what A-Man? I don't get it. :

V-10 diesel and touareg=Massive Pwnage

that v-10 is awsome huge torque, horspower, and bette mpg's then cars with half the power-weight-awsomeness

Quote:
Originally Posted by Atomicman
Touareg is our next vehicle. I am selling a 2001 Yukon denali XL & replacing it with the Touareg. Still need to tow the boat & have snow going vehicle. the touareg seems to really fit the bill with the 310HP V8 with over 300 Lbs. Ft. of torque. This should be a nice compliment to my '05 S4 Avant!




Yeah, great choice, especially with the S4 for fun. Drives great and gets along OK with the V8 although the V10 is an incredible engine. They did have a lot of relaibility issues, especially electrics, to start with but hopefully they have cleared these up by now

They quit making them for 3 months to get the bugs worked out in mid '04. One of my best friends owns and Audi/VW dealership. The late 04's & 05's are fine! Just the early 04's were problematic!

I thought Garrett was trying to say "This is your Dad's Ford" Get it?

Torque is where its at...

The V8 has over 300 Lbs. Ft. the V10 diesel over 500, I think 300+ (that is alot) is plenty!

Oh yea, I think I remember an ad campaign a while back, something like "This isn't your dads Ford", trying to promote a new image.

Anyway,,,,,,,,,,, I'm finally getting back to the mountains and exploring the purchase of suitable wheels, thus the interest in this thread. I have access to discount purchase programs in Ford, Volvo and Land Rover that are hard to pass up. I like the Volvo's a lot, but noticed this new Ford Freestyle that has pirated its AWD system from Volvo (Ford owns Volvo) and sells for multi thousands less. Just looking for someone that might have some mountain experience with one. Can't test it in snow or on hills here.

LOL, actually I was talking about my dad in the literal sense. Pretty funny though when read that way.

SnowSnake: The Consumer Reports test proves what should be blatantly obvious: an AWD car propels you ahead more quickly. It doesn't seem to address whether or not the handling limits are increased for an average driver (i.e., the 99 percent of people that press the brake pedal instead of the go pedal when oversteer begins)
-Garrett

Yeah, from what I remember there were some transmission issues. What did you get - tip or 6spd?

What do you think of the new B7 design?

The add was "It isn't your dad's Oldsmobile", and the really sad thing was that my dad's oldsmobile would have blown the doors off the car they were trying to sell.

Hmmmm - 442 maybe? ; )

Yeah it was this ain't your Father's Oldsmobile, I think.

If you are talking about the Touareg I am not sure what the early problems were.

My S4 is a TIP. I think the B7 looks great. I am sure there will be many improvements. The cars always look better in person than in the photos.

The S4 problems the origianlly had were due to a supply using the wrong material in the valves. they were eating valves which blows the engine. I have about 3K on mine now no problems whatsoeve, but it is early!

I have a Honda Element with big BF Goodrich all terrain tires on it. I got it just to take skiing and it's great. It's extremely functional and at 20K fully loaded a good buy. It has a flat floor inside like a van, no carpet, but a tough plastic floorcovering that can be sponged out. I put my skies inside and put the boots in a plastic rubbermaid bin- the two rear seats swing up and out of the way easily and there's more legroom in the rear than in my Chevy Suburban- the mountain crowdhauler.
The rear tailgate will support tons of weight and you can sit on it to put your gear on- unlike a Subaru.
It handles well in deep snow with the AWD but not quite as well as a Subaru- my decision was between the WRX and the Honda and I chose the Honda for sheer utility- can't beat it. The WRX wagon has the Impreza body and it's lousy for cargo and dogs and the skis ride outside- but it's more fun to drive- no argument there. If highway driving was my thing, i.e. I drove to Tahoe from S.F. or something, - I'd think Subaru. Funny, having lived in NYC for years, the Element would be the ideal city car. Buy the 16k bare bones version with no radio. It's got the haulage of a van, the turning radius of a motorcycle, and is perfect for weekenders.

....And has the plastic body cladding to protect you from "rubbin is racin" NYC driving, lol.

I have no idea how people can stand to buy nice cars and drive them in NYC.
-Garrett

Heard that. Back in the day my p.o.s. 85 honda civic was sideswiped in heavy traffic on Broadway by six cops shoulder to shoulder in a yellow cab, sneakin' up on someone. They all gave me the same hard look and drove on- no big deal, it just added to the collection of dents and dings. I drove it out to Utah and must have looked like some kind of urban hillbilly with skis on top.

LOL. Im no city boy, but I too have made that trek. Good stuff.

Ford Freestyle? Yeah, i drove it. Ford uses the same platform as the Volvo, P2. The basis is the same, but the materials are lower grade, it feels like margarine to Volvos butter. There IS a difference

A few comments to too lazy to cross reference and quote, but:

I was questioned on the Audi RS6 Avant, no one specified that the car has to be a US market car .

Cayenne Vs. Tourag, Its not jsut the lights and the badge, drive them and you will see.

Car and Driver did a snow tire comparison test. Short: A FRD w/ 4 snows is better than a AWD w/ All season.

All Wheel go does not mean all wheel stop. What attatches you to the ground and how the power gets to the ground in the key.

For real world, give me AWD over 4WD any day.

Good stuff. Other than interior materials, how is the Freestyle? Do the controls have good feel, and is the drivetrain good in this implementation?

My dad doesn't care about the interior much, so it may just be the car for him. He drives an Escape right now, to give you a clue as to how little materials quality matters.
-Garrett

edit: While I would love for him to buy any number of Japanese made, low total cost of ownership vehicles, he's one of these guys that thinks it actually matters that he buys a US vehicle.

It is a nice step up from the Escape. I would still suggest a Highlander over it.

Coming soon, last I checked. Undoubtedly based on the 4matic components.

Thanks Phil, I would too. Like the edit says, it just ain't gonna happen.

edit again: Did a post just disappear, or am I going nuts?

Tell him that the Highlander is made in Kentucky, it is. And the Freestyle is based of a Swedish platform and you know how sneaky those Swedes are. Plus, IIRC, the Freestyle is built in Canada and all those Canadians do is drink beer and eat fatback.

All very true and all of it would per...suede. me. I'll give it my best shot.

Thanks SkiingMan

Yep looked at the Dodge web site and they have two AWD versions. Even has a cold weather option with an engine block heater. A “Nice to have” feature if I am in some of that really cold stuff in Utah etc.

Was really surprised that the mileage did not go up much and that the towing capacity is so low. I guess I expected more advances in the last 10 years of automotive advancement. But I still like it. With a coffin-box on the roof to carry the ski's and son's snowboard etc. we would do OK.

Starts at 33k and then a few extras and tax takes it up some. A little less than the VW Tourog and more of a car for the city part of my life.