You and I think a lot alike. Another Oregon holiday trip candidate I've had my eye on is our 2009 Audi A4 Avant. But I reluctantly had to dismiss this one even before the FX50's arrival. And the reasons are the same.
Rear cargo space with 4 aboard? Not good enough for 10-day, 2,000 mile trip with luggage and presents aboard. Only 17.3 cubic feet are available here -- less than the FX50 by a fair margin. Heck, the trunk of the Pontiac G8 GT sedan is fractionally larger at 17.5 cubic feet. This isn't a big wagon.
And like the FX50, our A4 wears summer tires in the form of the Bridgestone RE050A. They're damn good tires in the dry and wet, but they aren't intended for snow-covered roads. Even quattro can't save you if the tires don't have good snow traction.
It's a pity, I know. I really like wheeling this one around town and I'd like to stretch its legs on a road trip.
Just not this road trip.
Dan Edmunds, Director of Vehicle Testing @ 4,203 miles
cah11705 says:
03:16 PM, 12/19/08
what kinda of tires does the x5 have?
i think your options are running low
maybe the flex would work
MS3lvr92 says:
03:24 PM, 12/19/08
Hmmm.... sounds like a job for the.... dun dun dun..... Grand Caravan... gasp
actualsize says:
03:27 PM, 12/19/08
The X5 rides a bit rough in the back seat for the kids. They've already vetoed it on other trips.
I have not looked at the tires yet, but it's a moot point. I think it has summer tires, as well. And the luggage space is but 21.9 cubes, also less than the FX.
As for the Flex, yeah, it has risen to the top of my list.
felonious says:
03:43 PM, 12/19/08
Yep, the Flex gets my vote as well. I really have to get around to a test drive one of these days...
huyracing says:
04:06 PM, 12/19/08
not sure what kind of AWD the flex has, but i'd sooner trust quattro (which is arguably one of the best awd systems) than that.
billt9 says:
04:32 PM, 12/19/08
huyracing, it has the FWD kind of AWD... on all-season Hankook Optimo H725
...at least it's all-season, and all-season FWD beats summer AWD!
compliance says:
06:54 PM, 12/19/08
weird that this car comes with summer tires
firstwagon says:
07:11 PM, 12/19/08
If your car comes with summer tires, the easy solution is to buy another set of rims and buy some good winter tire. That way you have the best in both seasons instead of a compromise like all seasons.
bimmerjay says:
07:15 PM, 12/19/08
"not sure what kind of AWD the flex has, but i'd sooner trust quattro (which is arguably one of the best awd systems) than that."
But the Flex doesn't have summer tires. AWD, regardless of how good, will be completely worthless in the snow on summers.
"weird that this car comes with summer tires"
All of its competitors' sport packages also come with summer tires.
bimmerjay says:
07:16 PM, 12/19/08
"That way you have the best in both seasons instead of a compromise like all seasons."
+1. All seasons basically suck in all seasons, lol.
huyracing says:
01:48 AM, 12/20/08
all i know is racing slicks in rain still work if you got good awd... and summer tires still grip fine in loose dirt and gravel with good awd. i've also raced in mud and that is tough, but only because i was driving all out.
anyways, if snow were so bad, i'd recommend chains...
kurtamaxxxguy says:
09:12 AM, 12/20/08
Wow. I guess Audi Cachet means a lot as A4's half the cargo space of the 5-inch shorter Subaru Forester. Then again, the Audi interior's nicer.
But best to stay away from Oregon for now with your Audi's summer rubber. Lots of AWD's up here are skidding around on theirs, Audis included.
billt9 says:
09:12 AM, 12/20/08
The A4 is a tiny car anyways, it has less usable storage than a Nissan Altima. Less passenger room too.
mopar424 says:
12:00 PM, 12/20/08
Just suck it up and take the Grand Caravan. This is the kind of work it was built for, and fulfills all of your requirements; 140 cu/ft, fuel econ., nav, heated seats, FWD for snow, etc, etc..
hondanut says:
05:20 PM, 12/20/08
The A4 is a great road trip car. Just tell the wife and kids only one bag per person. You can always pick up gifts at a truck stop along the way:) It's about driving pleasure.
dragonflight says:
12:41 AM, 12/21/08
Grand Caravan or Flex seem to be your only remaining options...
ahightower says:
05:28 PM, 12/22/08
Agree they should not put summer tires on it, even with the sport package. Most people buy quattro specifically for bad weather. There has got to be some sort of compromise/all-season tire that's sporty enough yet capable enough to handle a little snow. It's not even the V6, come on, nobody's taking this thing to the race track.
As for cargo space, how about a nice roof-mounted cargo box? Some of those new Yakima things look kinda cool to me. We had the big ugly white Sears box on top of our Olds Cutlass Cruiser when I was a kid. No other way to bring luggage for a family of eight in a station wagon.