Best 4x4 for ski trip

[joshcowin]

SlimJim16v said:

If it was me, Pajero Evo
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?t=15...

Ideally 7 seats but cool

[joshcowin]

nickfrog said:

It's essentially about the tyres IME, rather than the number of driven wheels.

I have no experience so happy to be wrong but surely body clearance can be an issue?

[nickfrog]

Indeed it can be the limiting factor but I was talking from a friction perspective.

[caelite]

popeyewhite said:

caelite said:

Depends where you are. Which is briefly what I mentioned on my original post.

...which is actually irrelevant - the OP doesn't ask which resorts have good snow clearing facilities (in heavy snow, none, even Cham gets snowbound) he asks specifically:

joshcowin said:

Theoretical question, what 4x4 would be best for driving TO the ski resorts in Europe and capable when there.

Must seat 5 minimum , 7 is a bonus
Ideal carry ski's inboard (may not be possible)
Good on the snow
Reliable

I'm still going for the D4 or RR - both have got me to, and around, the Alps countless times

Love how I literally mentioned PH pedantry in one post... and there it is. You pick apart my choice of wording then make the same recommendation I did? Sorry but 'capable' and 'good on' are vague terms. There are many on here who will say a FWD fiat panda is the be all and end all of snow traversal, that is what they define as capable/good, others will recommend a big german bus on 295/30r22 pirelli scorp summer tyres.

If the OP had said he wanted to be able to traverse a 30degree incline on 10cm of powder snow with a gravel base then that is a closed brief of criteria, however he specified an open brief, which is why I qualified my recommendation with some vagueness as well as defining my own definition of what is capable.

[CABC]

caelite said:

Love how I literally mentioned PH pedantry in one post... and there it is. You pick apart my choice of wording then make the same recommendation I did? Sorry but 'capable' and 'good on' are vague terms. There are many on here who will say a FWD fiat panda is the be all and end all of snow traversal, that is what they define as capable/good, others will recommend a big german bus on 295/30r22 pirelli scorp summer tyres.

If the OP had said he wanted to be able to traverse a 30degree incline on 10cm of powder snow with a gravel base then that is a closed brief of criteria, however he specified an open brief, which is why I qualified my recommendation with some vagueness as well as defining my own definition of what is capable.

I feel your pain.
someone highlights 'good on snow' then ignores 'reliable' while recommending a Range Rover.

I suggest an 730i with an occasional boot of the throttle on corner exit.

[popeyewhite]

caelite said:

Love how I literally mentioned PH pedantry in one post... and there it is. You pick apart my choice of wording then make the same recommendation I did?

Think you'll find I did that prior to whatever you're waffling about now

caelite said:

... which is why I qualified my recommendation with some vagueness as well as defining my own definition of what is capable.

Okay..

[Pig benis]

Absolutely no doubt in my mind here, a Toyota Land Cruiser 4.2. I'm a Defender nut job through and through, but nothing can beat a Cruiser for long range road driving and they're off road capability is superb.

[Bill]

An LC is in a different class (not worse, necessarily...) to a D4. You'd be sipping a G&T in the resort when the LC was just starting to wobble its way up the mountain.

[caelite]

Bill said:

An LC is in a different class (not worse, necessarily...) to a D4. You'd be sipping a G&T in the resort when the LC was just starting to wobble its way up the mountain.

Remember Toyota do 2 types of LC, the 'work' type and the 'comfort' type. The former being Defender-esque the latter being Discovery-esque. I don't see how the comfort model with its big V8 wouldn't fit the bill.

[Bill]

Fair point, I'd forgotten about the V8, but he did say the 4.2... I suspect that although the V8 is better on road it's still somewhat short of a D4.

[TurboHatchback]

Picking between Landcruisers and Landrovers is splitting hairs, when the snow is 2ft deep they will both be excellent on the right tyres. The simple fact is in those conditions the best 4x4 won't help you at all as the roads will be closed due to avalanche risk and/or blocked by stuck vehicles. In the conditions you will actually encounter (packed snow, ice, maybe a few inches of powder occasionally) the enormous weight, slow steering and high COG make large 4x4s rather alarming to drive and frankly more dangerous than a regular car. If you actually go to the alps all the locals drive little hatchbacks or AWD versions of regular cars as they are just more suited to the job, the only people in Range Rovers, Discoverys, Cayennes etc are tourists.

[Ranger 6]

joshcowin said:

Ideally 7 seats....

Thinking about this, you don't need a 4x4, you need a mini bus. So arguing semantics about a Range Rover or a Land Cruiser is pointless.

These buses plod up and down the mountains from airport to resort day in day out. Snow tyres and a set of chains will get you about in the resort.

Taking a step back - have you tried to get more than a couple of pairs of skis into a car/SUV, AND then put 5 people, their luggage and detritus in for a skiing holiday? You won't be able to do it. Then get two more people in? Yeah, right......

ETA: Cancel that - you need two vehicles for 7 people and skis. I just found this and it's not big enough: http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2017...

Edited by Ranger 6 on Sunday 18th February 10:00

[popeyewhite]

TurboHatchback said:

If you actually go to the alps all the locals drive little hatchbacks or AWD versions of regular cars as they are just more suited to the job, the only people in Range Rovers, Discoverys, Cayennes etc are tourists.

Earth calling TurboHatchback...Oh come on you don't seriously think that's the reason why locals who work in a fairly low pay tourism crucial environment don't drive expensive (bar the odd LC, although they're not cheap) luxurious fuel guzzling tax sapping hard to park SUVs do you? Most of the locals don't drive if there's any snow in the high resorts and in the low resorts unless there's bad snowfall (which has happened a lot this year) they let local authorities clear it up with their ploughs first. I'm fairly sure any Frenchman living in a resort would love a big 4x4 Benz on winters parked underneath their flat if they could justify the enormous cost!

[CABC]

popeyewhite said:

Earth calling TurboHatchback...Oh come on you don't seriously think that's the reason why locals who work in a fairly low pay tourism crucial environment don't drive expensive (bar the odd LC, although they're not cheap) luxurious fuel guzzling tax sapping hard to park SUVs do you? Most of the locals don't drive if there's any snow in the high resorts and in the low resorts unless there's bad snowfall (which has happened a lot this year) they let local authorities clear it up with their ploughs first. I'm fairly sure any Frenchman living in a resort would love a big 4x4 Benz on winters parked underneath their flat if they could justify the enormous cost!

when they do buy new it's a Dacia Duster!
A good choice really.

[popeyewhite]

CABC said:

when they do buy new it's a Dacia Duster!
A good choice really.

Absolutely. Very cheap but practical 4x4 SUV available from Renault with Renault parts. Tres bon.

[Hackney]

PugwasHDJ80 said:

You'd be best off looking at what the swiss drive!

Mix of 4x4s and "quattro" vehicles. 4matic mercs are always popular, lots of scoobies where i lived- not so many big 4x4s (they usually came up from the valleys)

The very best for me would be a v8 allroad, of course the most critical thing are tyres- a summer tyred range rover will be walked all over by a polo with winter tyres (or even studs )

So basically "Mix of 4X4s and 4X4s.4X4 Mercs are always popular, lots of 4X4 Scoobies where I lived,,,,,"

[anonymous-user]

In the budget you mention, you will have to rewind the Disco 4 to a Disco 3. I have one, with AT2s and it's amazing.

[TriumphStag3.0V8]

Did the same type of trip in my Hilux Surf last year on ATRs. No issues at all.
Tyres are your friend in this. Decent winters or all terrains are what you want. Normal road tyres are a no no..... on my ATRs I didn't even need the snow chains I took with me. I drove through a lot of snow and ice.

[Bill]

RogerDodger said:

In the budget you mention, you will have to rewind the Disco 4 to a Disco 3. I have one, with AT2s and it's amazing.

D4s are below £15k now.

[E34-3.2]

I have just moved into a skiing station and not really surprised at what the locals are using. Cheap old 4x4 and generally on the small side such as Pajero and other Japanese smaller 4x4 and an awful lot of Dacia Duster!
No one seems to really care about their car. It is just about making it to the other side of the mountain safely. from what I have heard over here, lighter cars are preferable when very heavy snow.