That's enough 4x4 bashing... winter's here.

["Aaron Bohnen" <bohnen@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Hi everyone,

Has anyone noticed how silly we sound bashing SUVs and their owners? Now 
don't get me wrong - I have no respect for the mentality that purchases a 
SUV for fashion. I likewise have little respect for the very weak driving 
skills of some of those whom we frequently find behind the controls of 
these machines.

Having said that, let's look at the brighter side of this issue 
for a moment - there seem to be many short-in-stature, fashionable-looking 
people behind the wheels of flashy new SUV's. I don't see much else in the 
way of physical commonality between the drivers of these machines besides 
those traits - they seem to be of all nationalities and backgrounds, 
equally male and female, etc. but generally they seem short in stature and 
fashionable. Perhaps the added height of an SUV allows them to see the road 
and surrounding conditions better...

But here's the real point of my little diatribe - we sound silly heaping 
abuse on them. In fact we sound really stupid doing this. Regardless of 
whether we think each one deserves a bucketload of scorn, we sound really 
dumb dumping it on them. We drive classy cars (hopefully in a classy way - 
safe, fast, etc...) and should do whatever we can to reverse some of the 
bad stereotype images that exist of BMW drivers. One way to do that is come 
off of our high horses about other drivers.

Now - onto their vehicles... I personally have a history of 4WD vehicles. I 
was a 4x4 guy for many years. In fact, between my father and I we have 16 
different 4x4's. I remember learning to drive standard in a 1981 4-speed 
no-power-steering diesel 4-cylinder LandCruiser wagon with 10.5" wide tires 
on it. Driving that vehicle well took a peculiar combination of brute force 
and finesse. The rewards were worth the battle of actually driving the 
thing when the nasty weather arrived or when the road disappeared.

Now that I spend most of my time in the city I mostly drive my E28 533i BMW 
(which I love) and the only 4x4 left in the family is a 1988 LandCruiser 
wagon. This is a great truck with a nice fuel-injected straight-six and 
31x10.50" ATA's on it with a 4" lift. A custom winch bumper and custom rear 
bumper round out the package. This machine is a dream to drive on-road and 
a delight when off-road. It particularly shines on snow. *For the record* - 
I am proud to drive that truck. It is a technically superb piece of 
automotive engineering that is lovingly maintained by a cogent and 
experienced owner.

I can pretty well guarantee that every year I'll wind up winching at 
least a half dozen or maybe even a full dozen various cars (BMW's 
included!) out of all kinds of winter-time trouble. It happens every year. 
That LandCruiser has never let me down - not once, not ever - which is 
unfortunately much more than I can say for my beloved 5er!

I firmly believe that driving skill and technique are the most important 
features of the vehicle/driver package. A BMW is an admirable machine 
for winter driving, particularly when outfitted with quality winter tires, 
etc. etc... It's really almost perfect from a non-4wd CAR perspective. A 
skilled winter driver can do marvels with a well-equipped BMW. 

Nevertheless, in winter conditions the skilled driver with good technique 
can do better with a better vehicle. I'd guess I'd accept a challenge from 
any BMW driver in any factory-equipped BMW (perhaps except the new SUV) to 
a general winter-access and winter-survivability contest. By this I don't 
mean to rub anyone the wrong way. I have decent experience but for sure I'm 
no world-class driver, neither on nor off the road, in winter conditions 
nor in fair-weather ones. Nevertheless, in winter conditions the vehicle 
makes a huge impact on access and survivability.

An experienced driver in a good 4x4 outfitted with a careful eye to 
off-road and snow conditions will be able to clean up BMW's (and most 
other cars for that matter) all day long in winter conditions.

SO - let's all have a little more respect for 4x4's. I *know* most SUV's 
and 4x4's are bought for city/highway use only and then mainly for fashion 
reasons. I *also know* that as a class they handle terribly (there are some 
exceptions; for example the PC-1 police package Tahoe is notably better 
than many of the rest, etc...) and in fact are downright unsafe in the 
hands of clueless/unskilled drivers with lousy technique. Nevertheless, we 
look very elitist bagging them all the time - and there really is no excuse 
for that. Additionally, in the hands of a skilled driver a decent 4x4 set 
up for winter use will be able to drive circles around all of us with our 
BMW's in winter conditions. A little more respect is definitely in order.

To any whom this total WOB may have offended, I offer humble apologies...

Aaron

'84 533i RL/BB,BL/SS,Bilsteins,bars,750 bushings,iS trim,lots more... 
'88 Toyota LandCruiser 4x4, 31x10.5" ATA's, 4" lift, WARN 8000, etc... 

I don't usually post cars, mods, etc. but here it is just in case 
anyone thinks I'm an evil shill or an insidious SUV-lobby plant :>
___________________________________________________________
Aaron Bohnen                     email: bohnen@domain.elided
- -Ph.D. Student, Civil Engineering Department, U.B.C.
- -Technicraft Engineering Services

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