riverc0il
New member
"Ideal" is different things to different people. But for skiers, we know some facts that should generally translate into ideals. Skiers tend to drive long distances in the winter and often through the snow. Skiers tend to have varying amounts of gear depending upon number of people and quiver size but all skiers have minimum gear hauling needs. Due to longer travel, higher MPG is preferred but often MPG is sacrificed for space considerations due to family and gear needs. I think Hatch/Wagon style is more functional but not necessarily an ideal for all people, so we can disregard that item.
So three different sized vehicles would be needed: small and sporty for solo or couple with minimal gear, moderate sized for a family of four, and mega gear hauler for family of more than four or a group with massive amounts of gear.
Ideal vehicle would have superior fuel efficiency, good gear hauling nature, and all wheel drive. Unfortunately, in today's market, all wheel drive always means sacrificing fuel efficiency. Subaru Impreza 2012 addresses that with a reported 36 MPG highway but it is a small hatch and a family of four would require a gear box and still might barely fit. Perhaps a good ideal option for solo or couple, maybe a threesome. But also low on MPG compared to other cars that get 40 MPG or better. The Elantra has more space and better MPG! Still trade offs all over the place...
So why no diesel AWD or hybrid AWD? VW/Audi already have both diesel and AWD in some cards but never in the same car. Subaru has the AWD but not with hybrid or diesel. A few other manufacturers have both hybrid and AWD technologies but don't combine them. Is there a technological problem with combining high MPG tech with AWD? Or is it a demand issue? Will the tech required push prices too high? Why do auto makers see the need for AWD, hybrid, and diesel separately but don't combine them?
Cavet: I firmly believe that 4 snow tires is all any skier every truly needs. But it is hard to argue that 4 snows and AWD is the pinnacle of winter driving. But hardly an ideal when suffering at the pump. I don't see any AWD option right now being worth the long term financial fuel penalty.
So three different sized vehicles would be needed: small and sporty for solo or couple with minimal gear, moderate sized for a family of four, and mega gear hauler for family of more than four or a group with massive amounts of gear.
Ideal vehicle would have superior fuel efficiency, good gear hauling nature, and all wheel drive. Unfortunately, in today's market, all wheel drive always means sacrificing fuel efficiency. Subaru Impreza 2012 addresses that with a reported 36 MPG highway but it is a small hatch and a family of four would require a gear box and still might barely fit. Perhaps a good ideal option for solo or couple, maybe a threesome. But also low on MPG compared to other cars that get 40 MPG or better. The Elantra has more space and better MPG! Still trade offs all over the place...
So why no diesel AWD or hybrid AWD? VW/Audi already have both diesel and AWD in some cards but never in the same car. Subaru has the AWD but not with hybrid or diesel. A few other manufacturers have both hybrid and AWD technologies but don't combine them. Is there a technological problem with combining high MPG tech with AWD? Or is it a demand issue? Will the tech required push prices too high? Why do auto makers see the need for AWD, hybrid, and diesel separately but don't combine them?
Cavet: I firmly believe that 4 snow tires is all any skier every truly needs. But it is hard to argue that 4 snows and AWD is the pinnacle of winter driving. But hardly an ideal when suffering at the pump. I don't see any AWD option right now being worth the long term financial fuel penalty.
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