Driving in Snow
Last weekend we stripped the old animal shelter of rusted corrogated iron roofing and wood roof beams. In my head I knew this may be a bad idea but I decided to get the Jeep and trailer to collect the iron and rotted wood from the lower field. I made it down ok and loaded up the trailer and promptly got the trailer stuck in the mud on the way back. Unhooking the trailer got the Jeep out of the fields but I had to borrow next doors Quad bike to rescue the trailer.
What has this got to do with driving in the snow? Well we went to Inverness yesterday to test drive the Mitsubushi L200 Warrior and Toyota Hilux (next weekend the Nissan Navara) Obviously because we had 120 miles to drive to Inverness, it snowed like a bastard on Fri night. So we set off in the Jeep down the Crask road (single track until Bonar Bridge) on ice and snow covered roads. The Jeep was superb in the snow and even reached 55 mph at one point. The road had been driven over by the snow plough but it made the surface almost smooth and perfect for the tryes to grip into the snow. There were a few hairy moments when we power slid round a few corners but it just added to the fun. We kept on stopping for Caro to take some cracking photos of hinds and stags that were so close to the road.
Anyway we tested the L200 standard model (they sold the Warrior that morning) and it was shit. Far to hard suspension, the interior was too plastic and the load bed was not large enough for our needs. We endulged ourselves with a Subway for lunch and then tracked down the illusive Toyota dealer. The Hilux HL3 was very good. Good suspension, clean lines in the double cab with all mod cons etc. The gearbox was suprisingly smooth for such a large wagon and the only down side was the engine noise but it is a 3L diesel. After that we found out there is a 6 month waiting list for a Hilux ?!?!?! The other problem is that the all the 4x4 we are looking at getting will be too high for my Mum to get into, so Caro, will be looking for a new car too as she also wants to upgrade the VW. After that we set off to Halfords for screen wash and oil, endulged ourselves again at McD's (Inverness is the closest fast food place to us, hence we treat ourselves when in town) and bought some birthday presents for my mum and Elizabeth next door - Crabtree and Evelyn smellies.
Drive back was much easier due to most of the snow having melted but still a few hairy moments when I forgot how fast I was going into a couple of corners.
Next weekend, we test the Nissan Navara and we have been promised a test of a L200 Warrior to see the difference from the standard model. Think we will have a Burger King or even KFC.....
What has this got to do with driving in the snow? Well we went to Inverness yesterday to test drive the Mitsubushi L200 Warrior and Toyota Hilux (next weekend the Nissan Navara) Obviously because we had 120 miles to drive to Inverness, it snowed like a bastard on Fri night. So we set off in the Jeep down the Crask road (single track until Bonar Bridge) on ice and snow covered roads. The Jeep was superb in the snow and even reached 55 mph at one point. The road had been driven over by the snow plough but it made the surface almost smooth and perfect for the tryes to grip into the snow. There were a few hairy moments when we power slid round a few corners but it just added to the fun. We kept on stopping for Caro to take some cracking photos of hinds and stags that were so close to the road.
Anyway we tested the L200 standard model (they sold the Warrior that morning) and it was shit. Far to hard suspension, the interior was too plastic and the load bed was not large enough for our needs. We endulged ourselves with a Subway for lunch and then tracked down the illusive Toyota dealer. The Hilux HL3 was very good. Good suspension, clean lines in the double cab with all mod cons etc. The gearbox was suprisingly smooth for such a large wagon and the only down side was the engine noise but it is a 3L diesel. After that we found out there is a 6 month waiting list for a Hilux ?!?!?! The other problem is that the all the 4x4 we are looking at getting will be too high for my Mum to get into, so Caro, will be looking for a new car too as she also wants to upgrade the VW. After that we set off to Halfords for screen wash and oil, endulged ourselves again at McD's (Inverness is the closest fast food place to us, hence we treat ourselves when in town) and bought some birthday presents for my mum and Elizabeth next door - Crabtree and Evelyn smellies.
Drive back was much easier due to most of the snow having melted but still a few hairy moments when I forgot how fast I was going into a couple of corners.
Next weekend, we test the Nissan Navara and we have been promised a test of a L200 Warrior to see the difference from the standard model. Think we will have a Burger King or even KFC.....