You sit in front of your TV catching up on the day’s news and of course, the all-important weather report. “Snow showers down to sea level across the country” it says, but they never get it right, or do they?
You wake up the next morning to find fluffy white stuff covering the roads, but you have to get to work. You’re not anxious about your imminent journey because, of course you’ve done this before!
You begin to drive, confident in your driving ability; you crawl back up to your usual speed. The driving conditions could be worse but you’ve got everything under control.
As you make your way over the brow of the hill and try to catch that green light, it turns red. You apply the brakes but instead of coming to a gentle stop, your vehicle carries on.
The scene above is played out numerous times on our roads as our unpredictable weather patterns continue and our streets are covered in snow. While some cars do exceptionally well in wintery conditions, others struggle to make it out of the front drive.
We’ve compiled a list of the top 3 SUV’s which are bound to serve you well in the curve ball that we call weather, offering numerous safety features and driver assistance. Of course, due diligence is always required when driving in adverse weather conditions.
This large family SUV recently recorded one of the highest scores ever posted in the Euro NCAP safety tests, in fact, it happens to be one of the safest cars that the experts over at Euro NCAP have ever tested. It’s packed full of safety features
The XC90’s city safety technology stood out as the first car to score full points in Euro NCAP Autonomous Braking Autonomous Emergency Braking Car to Car rear-end tests (AEB City & AEB Interurban) so it’s likely to come in handy in wintry conditions.
The Volvo XC90 also features a Run Off-Road System which senses if you leave the tarmac and special energy absorbent seats that’ll reduce the impact force.
The intelligent four wheel drive system put most of the power through the front wheels however it can supply power to the rear wheels when conditions demand.
All these plus the standard safety kit e.g. airbags etc. make the XC90 one of the best SUVs on the market for all weather driving.
The Q7 has been a popular choice among the SUV enthusiasts ever since it was first conceived, it has been so popular that it’s gave birth to the small Q5 and Q3 variants. The most technologically advanced Audi ever, it is able to accelerate, brake and even steer itself at speeds of up to 37mph. The Q7 boasts of the Quattro four wheel drive system, which constantly monitors grip from each wheel and delivers power to each of them as required.
The Q7 also features the Audi pre sense city which scans the road for vehicles and pedestrians at speeds of up to 52.8mph. If the system detects a threat of a collision, it alerts the driver with a series of warnings and applies the brakes if necessary.
The Q7 also features hill descent control and hill hold assist on specific models, all of which make the Audi Q7 a great choice for winter driving.
Land Rover is renowned for cars that can withstand tough weather conditions. Of course, who could forget the Land Rover Discovery that Jeremy Clarkson drove up a Scottish mountain, albeit that was the older model. However, it does go to show that these machines are nothing short of extraordinary.
Land Rover Discovery features Terrain Response which reconfigures its engine, transmission, throttle response and traction settings in order to provide you with the optimal drive, whether it’s on snow, tarmac or any other surface.
While the XC90 remains unmatched in terms of the safety features, the Discovery does feature electronic stability program as well as emergency brake assist feature which should also come in handy on winter roads. It also has built in sensors in the doors mirrors to let you know when you’ve reached the maximum wading depth.
Let us know if you’ve had any cars which have been which have been really good in wintry conditions and take care on the roads!
