Guide to the best 4x4 estate cars

Choice is something that you can often be spoilt for in this day and age, but when it comes down to running the rule over the almost immediately exhaustible selection of all-road estate cars currently vying for our attentions, we revert to a wartime principle of rationing and the viewing of everything in black and white.

The pitched battle is in familiar territory well known to estate buyers, with Audi and Volvo the predominant protagonists in the ensuing mêlée, and not for the first time. different battle it may be, yet the same ongoing conflict is raging between the old estate car adversaries, so it’s up to MT to pull the warring factions apart, dust them down and see if there’s anything interesting and/or different to pick between them.

With this in mind, the genre can be routinely summed up in the following short words; Audi Allroad, Volvo XC70 and Subaru Legacy Outback. And that’s about as good as it gets.

But it’s a market that MT feels is going to explode in the not too distant future as car buyers reach the end of their tethers with extortionate fuel costs, sky-rocketing vehicle taxation bands and the over-riding fact that they’re fast becoming a bit strapped for cash.

So what better time than to take a butcher’s at the current crop and apply some form of rudimentary judgment, before arriving at an unbiased conclusion.

Audi A6 Allroad

The Audi Allroad is where we pick up the story, as like many times before it was the Ingolstadt-based manufacturer that took the allroad initiative, after taking Volvo’s 1997 concept that little further. Back in 1999, Audi looked long and hard at its A6 Avant to see where it could go with it next.

Appreciating that although space might be the final frontier in ultimate estate car terms, there wasn’t much more stretching it could do to the already versatile A6 before it took on the extra demands of a 4X4. And this is when the Deutschemark dropped. Why not configure an estate car with off-road presence and capabilities, yet maintaining its on-road manners and poise, especially as more and more of potential Audi buyers were edging toward the lifestyle-orientated remit of the emerging SUV.

Air suspension, larger wheels, all terrain tyres and unpainted, flared bumpers differentiated what became known as the Allroad from its more humble and unabrasive A6 sibling. Paired with the ubiquitous Quattro four wheel drive system for greater off-road persistence, sources close to Audi hinted that the Allroad was the solution to the perceived threat from the Far East, and namely the Subaru Outback that was making useful spaced strides of its own at that time.

That said, Audi’s response was traditionally Germanic, with bigger and better being keywords. Larger platform and larger, more powerful engine.

Whilst a car-derived SUV might have been ridiculed had another car manufacturer applied both the logical, yet lateral thinking, Audi was always to be taken seriously in automotive circles; hence observers watching intently to see just where Audi would go with this Allroad theory.

What Audi couldn’t afford to do was loose sight of its on-road credibility as it wrestled with its pseudo off-road pretensions at this critical juncture, so it focused on giving the Allroad the best of both worlds. The air suspension was adjustable, and could rise a maximum of 8” off the ground at the touch of a button, enough to encounter and circumnavigate the most hostile of sceneries.

Conversely the same assemblage could drop the Allroad’s suspension to within 6” touching distance of the road surface, stiffening the spring and damper rates that would offer a profoundly sporty driving dynamic.

The original Allroad was replaced by the existing one in 2006, with the genre-inventing Audi changing its name to the Audi A6 Allroad Quattro at the same time. A new tiptronic transmission that converts high-torque engine power quicker, combined with a host of other new under bonnet units was made available, whilst its transient off road styling cue remain firmly in our sights.

The introduction of the out-and-out off-road Audi Q7 hasn’t affected sales of the Allroad as some critics initially thought would be the case. So what makes the Audi A6 Allroad such a big, sorry, medium-sized hit in a gladiatorial arena still in its relative infancy? The Allroad is quicker out of the traps, less vocal in its endeavours, handles with more confidence and is universally versatile. The Bose sound system is in its own league and has onboard toys galore. You can’t help feeling that the Audi is screwed together with more conviction. Although some buyers are a little irate that the automatic transmissions fail, there’s a catalogue of air suspension problems and the brake pads wear out with an unnerving regularity

Volvo XC70

The Volvo XC70 began its urban on road life as the Volvo Cross Country XC back in 1997, but in 2000 had its fate sealed by being discontinued. The king might have been dead, but as history itself would have it – long live the king. Whilst the Cross Country might have lost its title rather than abdicated it - a decent ding-dong and slanging match with the equally vociferous Audi allroad had ensued prior – it wasn’t long before Volvo was back in the thick of it with its new XC70.

The XC70s brief – see what Volvo did there? Dropped the words Cross Country and replaced them with a far trendier initialization - remained the same as ever, to all its drivers to go forth off the beaten track with intentions to multiply, whilst the traditionally roomy vehicle concentrated on accommodating all the resultant occupants in luxuriating surrounds.

Lots of folk reckon this is a genuine piece of real estate to counter Audi’s claims that it’s the manufacturer with more going on inside, and it’s difficult to disagree with these confident claims when greeted with its sumptuous interior spaces.

From its inception, the XC70 excited the virile Volvo driver by offering a much sleeker estate car with less militarily-angles and robust ergonomics than ever before, which instantly went down a storm with American baby-boomers still holding on to some form of ‘lifestyle’ pursuit interests in which to regale friends with at dinner parties in Tribeca.

With its trailing skirts hiked up to clear 210mm of terra firma and a water resistance of 300mm, the XC70 could more than dip its toes in the great outdoors, supported by the underlying fact its descent approach, departure and ramp angles were around the 19 – 24 degree mark.

Whilst Audi defends its urban on road honour with its air suspension, the Volvo XC70 again sought acronyms to front its edgier altitudinal attitude, with its AWD, HDCl and DSTC systems.

Volvo’s AWD system effectively gripped the land with Audi’s Quattro earth-grappling tendencies, and wouldn’t let go. Normally a front wheel drive vehicle, all four corners hung on for dear life once the XC70 left suburbia. Dynamic Stability and Traction Control (DSTC) and Hill Descent Control (HDC) kicked in when asked to ensure it could do all that its arch-rival the Audi Allroad could do and then some.

Of course, in the unlikely event of an abortive mission, you’re reminded it’s a Volvo by receiving cushioning blows left, right and centre care off SIPS, WHIPS, crumple zones and every other safety effect that keeps your features featuring.

On the outside the XC70 sported a series of heavy-duty protection panels and graze inserts, chunky body mouldings and chromed scuff plates, a curious mix of somewhere between stylish refinement and Duplo-spec protection blocks. For all intense and purpose the XC70 was a Volvo V70 on steroids, a beefed up teen sick of constant ridicule for its weedy frame, whilst the Audi A6 Allroad by this stage took on the appearance of a production car far more comfortable in its new, morphed skin that didn’t seem to need to spell out to the world what it was all about.

So in a nutshell, although basically summarizing both vehicles, it still leaves customers with a monumental dilemma. With three grand difference in starting price not really amounting to much - £28K for the Volvo and £31K for the Audi – it’s going to take an awful lot to plug for one over the other. So for once MT isn’t going to stick its oar in, leaving an verdict of distinguished equality between the two.

Subaru Legacy Outback AWD

A carbon copy of the Subaru Legacy which has been doing the estate car business since the year dot amongst hill farmers, the Outback was latterly named to capitalize on its perceived ability to wrestle with the most uninviting of territories. This didn’t occur until 1996, when the Legacy load-shifter also sprouted chunkier bumpers, bigger tyres with deeper tread patterns and a slightly raised ground clearance. And tweed seats, which Subaru considered outdoorsy types would go for. Again it was in American markets that this new concept first took off, seen as an all terrain alternative to bulky and cumbersome SUVs that generations of yanks had grown up on.

Today’s version of Outback events is different again though, as it loses its gruesome plastic body wraps for starters. There’s still cladding of sorts, but mercifully far more discreet-looking. Similar to the Volvo’s set-up, the Outback’s AWD system deploys the lion’s share of the traction to the corner and wheel that needs to recruit it most at any particular time. Throughout the transmission range the torque is directed to the area of the vehicle that shouts loudest, other than when in first gear and reverse, when the spread is 50/50.

Aside from the mechanical nouse to cope with the rigours of the harshest of climates, the Outback is equipped to afford drivers peace of mind in the conurbation too. Not least thanks to its EyeSight system. Consisting of two cameras located on either side of the rear view mirror, EyeSight empowers human like stereoscopic vision to judge distances, and acts in unison with the manufacturers’ lane departure warning system that not only alerts drivers should they falter but highlights the vicinity of pedestrians. Its 2.5-litre petrol engine is incredibly quiet – with one Subaru big-wig once suggesting it was more discerning than a Rolls – but what is saves the driver by way of noise pollution, it sadly makes up for in terms of economy. No matter how it’s driven, the Outback struggles to better 30mpg on any journey.

That said, its auto box is packed with electronic aids to make the whole driving experience easier than ever before, with the choice of three different mapping programs laid out in front of you. Intelligent, Sport and Sport Sharp.

As it says – albeit in a roundabout sort of way – the Sport Sharp is prickly and responsive, with the gearbox kicking down and the revs screaming their intentions, whilst the Intelligent offers a sedatory drive affording the driver time to take in the vistas that surround him should they have wandered off-road. Or at least down an unadopted road.

In retrospect a useful vehicle in its own right that gives the driver and occupants every bit as much as either the Audi or the Volvo on paper, yet when behind the wheel just seems that little bit, well, wet behind the ears. Lacking that certain something. The something that would tip the scales in its favour.

MT can’t help but feel that both Audi and Volvo wrote the all road rule book and it’s going to take something pretty special to come along and rewrite it any time soon. Nice try though Subaru, who we award points to for sticking the boot in, it’s just that we think the Outback will continue to be seen as more of an afterthought than a starting point for a typical all-road adventure, and providing it’s not overlooked entirely, buyers are making a fair point.

Which just leaves us to remind you that Renault tried to gatecrash the very select all-road soiree back in 1999 too with its RX-4, but finally got the message that it wasn’t welcome in 2004 and gave it up as a bad job. Which the Renault Scenic-based black sheep was in comparison.

A-Z reviews of SUVs and 4x4s

Comprehensive list of SUV reviews, pictures and stats

A-Z of estates

Our comprehensive list of specs, pictures and reviews of all the estate models on UK roads.

Top five small SUVs

Larger SUVs are making way for a new generation of small SUVs that boast similar eco credentials to saloons and don't incur the hatred of all mankind.

All new Land Rover Freelander 2 review

The all-new Land Rover Freelander 2 is going to become Britain’s best-selling 4x4 by a long way. The small SUV is a class act.

New Mitsubishi L200 Double Cab Pick-Ups

UK Sales of the new range of Mitsubishi L200 single and double cab pick-ups started in March with prices from £12,249 through to £19,999.

Name

Comments

Validation	Please enter the text to the left (case sensitive)
Reload