Z4 vs Landrover Discovery

S

sk93

Veteran
 Nottingham
So this morning the snow has landed quite well (about 3 inches I'd say here).
But, it didn't stop me digging out the zed from its snowy cocoon and driving to work.
However, as I jumped in and started the 4th gear marathon to get off the drive, I noticed my next door neighbour performing a rather excellent 4 wheel burnout on his slightly slanted drive.

It did take me 15 minutes to get off my drive and onto the gritted road, but by this time, he'd given up and gone back inside.
The ironic thing is two days ago we were talking about the zed and his words were "..but I guess you'll be wanting a lift to work when we get the slightest snow dusting though right?"


If its still around tomorrow, I think I'll offer HIM a lift 8)
 
Really surprised to hear this. I thought the Discovery was pretty much the best there is for off-road/snow etc.
 
Z4 Beemer said:
Really surprised to hear this. I thought the Discovery was pretty much the best there is for off-road/snow etc.
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I think you still need to know what you're doing... suspect they had standard road tyres on too and just tried to pull away normally rather than in a higher gear... once the traction goes it's just making compact ice. That said it would be nice to have a 4x4 at the moment... a little too hairy in the Z4 just now.

All the same, good work SK93! When I was digging a way into the car park this morning I had a number of people stopping to tell me how bad my car is in the snow, really... and yet you're walking :?

EDIT - am aware there is probably just a 50 / 50 chance of my getting home tonight!
 
Should I give up my Z4 for a X5 just for the freezing Winter? Can X5 really handle most untreated B roads? My route to work is mainly B roads, so I have to work from home today. I was almost hit by a truck last month (only inches from disaster). :( I think CJ can advise me on this. :)
 
i left my Z4 on the drive and jumped in my landrover discovery 1995 cost me £1400 quid i use it for off roading and took grate pleasure in driving past an x5 and a 4wd audi stuck in no more than about 6" of snow!

i dont believe that the modern 4x4 aint built like they should be look and that X6 they had on top gear, it couldnt even get up a grassy hill, im sticking with my disco untill the snow is gone that way i no im safe and can get home when i need to. ( and also have some fun down the back roads) i'll keep the Z4 for the sun! :thumbsup:
 
Thought the clip of the X6 on Top Gear was quite funny :D

£1400 for a Disco seems like a bargain, especially in this weather.
 
Z4Tim said:
i dont believe that the modern 4x4 aint built like they should be look and that X6 they had on top gear, it couldnt even get up a grassy hill, im sticking with my disco untill the snow is gone that way i no im safe and can get home when i need to. ( and also have some fun down the back roads) i'll keep the Z4 for the sun! :thumbsup:
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"Off Roaders" nowadays are built for women to take their kids to Kensington schools in, not for off roading!

X3/X5's etc are designed to look nice and drive well on the roads, they're not off-roaders.

It's been hinted at elsewhere but 4x4 does not mean that the car is good in the snow, it just increases the possibility of the car being able to pull away. The type of tyres will make a much bigger difference. Stick a decent pair of winter tyres on an X3/X5 and they're probably quite good off-road - though not as good as a Range Rover or Disco', for sure.
 
Funny enough I was discussing 4x4 vs Z4 with my boss (X5 & M3 owner).

He said getting traction in straight was better in 4x4 but when it came to steering, it added little advantage. He ended up abandoning his car last night on top of a small hill as two cars just skidded off the road at the bottom of the hill where they just couldn't kill the speed & steer.

Still, rear wheel drive skiddy country is too exciting for me :)
 
Hmmm....i was thinking about buying a 300 tdi discovery for around £2.5k or less...

Probably nextyear, as my house is on an incline and also the council refuses to grit the 3 roads leading up to my house.
 
I have both the X5 and the M, and the X5 is obviously thousand times better on roads then the M as I can not even get off the drive if I wanted to. Last snow in February I used the M and it was freightening. The X5 on the other hand was great, no problems what so ever.

I have bought winter wheels / tyres for the X5 which I am picking up on saturday weather permitting. The X5 was good on the way back from the continent on sunday though where in Belgium they only cleared 2 tracks on the motorway. The X never skidded or anything, so still managed to get an avarage of about 60 mph over 400 miles.
 
It's all about the tires and the weight distribution in the vehicle, and of course the driver. If you want to drive in deep nasty snow you need skinny, aggressive SNOW tires and a good weight balance. If it's icy, you need "studded" snow tires or the new ones with special compounds for ice. All season tires are OK for a couple of inches, not plowing 8" of wet stuff. Summer tires, forget it, park the car.

Most , if not all of the current crop of "SUV's" are what I call Mall Assault Vehicles, they can get you to the shopping mall but that's about it, but I would like to try out a new X5M with good grip tires on it, that might be fun..... :D :D


( I have been driving /hunting in 4x4's in the mountains & the prairies since the mid 1970's. Had most types, Bronco's, Jimmies, F-250's, Chevy's, a couple of XC70's but the best of all was the FJ45 One ton Toyota Landcruiser. Unstoppable !! )
 
he does have "road tyres" on the disco, and i'm not sure about what ratio he was in (or if he'd locked the center diff or not), but he wasn't going anywhere fast.

I think the vast majority of the problems arise from drivers not knowing the first thing about driving in snow.
I will admit i got a bit stuck in the carpark, but I just worked out what was going on and adjusted my tactics for moving to compensate and was moving again in no time...
 
I overlook a roundabout and there was a guy getting it sideways around the roundabout last night in a Discovery, He was doing it on purpose as he had 3 attempts at speed in 10 minutes.

It looked really good seeing a Discovery drifting :D
 
A colleague at work reckoned that in snow pulling away in 2nd gear helps, as less torque is going to the wheels. Have to say its not something I've ever tried as I'm not totally convinced... :?
 
Z4 Beemer said:
A colleague at work reckoned that in snow pulling away in 2nd gear helps, as less torque is going to the wheels. Have to say its not something I've ever tried as I'm not totally convinced... :?
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totally correct :thumbsup:

if that dont work, try third or even higher...
 
gannet said:
Z4 Beemer said:
A colleague at work reckoned that in snow pulling away in 2nd gear helps, as less torque is going to the wheels. Have to say its not something I've ever tried as I'm not totally convinced... :?
Click to expand...

totally correct :thumbsup:

if that dont work, try third or even higher...
Click to expand...
X2 My XC70's had a "W" switch next to the shift lever that started the tranny in 2nd for winter driving. It worked quite well when I bothered to use it. :oops:
 
Another colleague has just informed me that on his Jaguar XF the winter mode on the gearbox actually starts it in 2nd gear :oops: :D
 
I have a Disco4 and your neighbour must be a numpty. Stick the thing in "snow and ice" mode and away you go. No drama :driving:
 
I'm not sure if its less torque, but more about the potential speed of wheel rotation, i.e. the gearing itself.

I've been pootling around in deep snow today in my Nissan 4x4 and the optimum for really slippery conditions - and especially pulling away - has been 4WD low, where you can't go faster than about 50mph as you hit the rev limiter, but the amount of torque being delivered means you can drive up a 45 degree slope as if it weren't there. Last night in an empty car park I was powersliding it in 4WD high with no drama, very easy to lose traction by blipping the throttle, but in 4WD low it just wouldn't play. Childish? Moi? .....GUILTY!!!! :evil:

And as Eurohooner says, on the Disco I think the S&I mode is probably just that, pulls it away in a higher gear. Either that or an electronic "pull yourself together!" device. :)
 
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