What is the best car to drive around the world?
A weekend trip to grandma’s, this is not. Mountainous terrain, flood-prone paths and extreme weather are in store for the intrepid few who dare drive around the world.
Finding a vehicle with the right balance of reliability and durability is the key to picking the best vehicle for your trip. Members of the online question and answer community Quora.com have compiled a few suggestions for the journey, and the dream garage, as it were, is as diverse as the cultures a driver would experience along the way.
The obvious choice
Sometimes it’s best not to overthink it. That is the prescription of Quora user Mark Baker, who argues that the vehicle needs to be simple, capable of moving even when damaged and easily repaired when it comes to rest. Citing the Royal Geographical Society Expedition Handbook (yes, it’s a thing) Baker cautions against capable but massive vehicles such as Humvees or 6x6s because they can’t be unstuck with a good push or towed by local vehicles.
Sometimes it’s best not to overthink it. That is the prescription of Quora user Mark Baker, who argues that the vehicle needs to be simple, capable of moving even when damaged and easily repaired when it comes to rest. Citing the Royal Geographical Society Expedition Handbook (yes, it’s a thing) Baker cautions against capable but massive vehicles such as Humvees or 6x6s because they can’t be unstuck with a good push or towed by local vehicles.
Instead, he defaults to a smaller vehicle with an outsize reputation. “The Land Rover Defender has been a leading expedition and military vehicle for many years and would be my first choice if going off road,” Baker writes. The latest Defenders can tackle hill gradients up to 45 degrees, have 250mm (10in) of clearance between the ground and the axles, and make short work of rugged terrain. And more often than not, with their 3,500lbs of towing capacity, they’re the ones helping motorists out of a jam.
(Credit: Jaguar Land Rover)
The former owner of an Audi Q7 and a Toyota Land Cruiser, Baker notes the Land Rover would be best-suited to drive across the world. “High performance 4x4s will tend to be highly stressed and lack both ground clearance and suitable approach and exit angles – things that the Land Rover excels in.”
The Toyota lovers
But Toyota has a long history of tacking the planet’s toughest driving environments as well, and Philippines-based Quora user Webin Manzanathinks the latest version of the Land Cruiser is still up to the job. “If you are going to drive around the world in comfort and in a highly reliable vehicle that can go through any terrain, temperature, rain, flood, snow, ice, on-road or off-road... the best choice is none other than the Toyota Land Cruiser 200,” he writes, referencing the current model of the SUV available in the Asia-Pacific region. (A more luxurious version is sold in North America and Europe.)
But Toyota has a long history of tacking the planet’s toughest driving environments as well, and Philippines-based Quora user Webin Manzanathinks the latest version of the Land Cruiser is still up to the job. “If you are going to drive around the world in comfort and in a highly reliable vehicle that can go through any terrain, temperature, rain, flood, snow, ice, on-road or off-road... the best choice is none other than the Toyota Land Cruiser 200,” he writes, referencing the current model of the SUV available in the Asia-Pacific region. (A more luxurious version is sold in North America and Europe.)
(Credit: Toyota Australia)
While the 200 may not be as rough around the edges as its forebears – the latest Sahara version comes with a built-in drink cooler – Manzana says the balance of durability and comfort are what make it the best choice.
But that’s not the only Toyota in the running. Pradeep Amaresan says the Toyota Hilux – a pickup truck sold in most every corner of the world besides the US – would do the trick. He cited Top Gear’s infamous trek to the North Pole in 2007, and its excursion to an active volcano among the highlights on the truck’s CV. “Enough said!” he added.
Toyota Hilux. Not afraid of a little snow. (Credit: Toyota)
The wild cards
Of course, there are many parts of the world where one doesn’t have to climb rocks or pick through shallow rivers. So for those looking to stick to the pavement, Quora users offered up a couple suggestions.
Of course, there are many parts of the world where one doesn’t have to climb rocks or pick through shallow rivers. So for those looking to stick to the pavement, Quora users offered up a couple suggestions.
Baker says he’d ditch his Land Rover for a Dodge Challenger if there were enough paved roads along the journey. “If you just want something simple… this packs more fun per mile and per kilo than anything else around,” he argues.
(Credit: FCA Group)
And if muscle cars aren’t your cup of tea, there are other unconventional rides to choose from. “Let me present to you the Bentley Continental GT,” Kushal Shrinivas writes. “Nothing beats her majesty. It's a monster in terms of speed yet calm and comforting.”
(Credit: Bentley Motors)
He says its all-wheel-drive platform makes it perfect for all kinds of flat surfaces, with superior safety to boot – and as Top Gear’s James May proved in Series 19, it isn’t afraid of a bit of mud:
Most readers will stick to purpose-built off-road vehicles if a country-hopping expedition were on their calendar. In a pinch, however, the Bentley’s optional jewel fuel-filler cap would make a good bartering chip for an extra tank of gasoline.
Driving on the other side of the road
Living or travelling abroad offers a unique set of adventures, as well as challenges. Aside from new foods, languages, mores and etiquette, many people experiencing a new country also have to contend with driving in an unfamiliar environment – and sometimes on another side of the road.
Below you'll find some of the best anecdotes from Quora.com, the question and answer community, of drivers from across the world braving new roads, getting acquainted with reversed shift patterns and committing unfortunate lane changes.
Fake it 'till you make it
Rather than make a slow transition, some travellers would rather just learn their new driving environment on the fly. That's exactly what Quora user Sed Chapman did when he moved from the left-hand-drive US to right-hand-drive Japan. Chapman says he bought an old beater for a can of beer and a plate of yaki-soba, and then tried to drive his friend around town that same day.
"The light changes, and I pull out intending to turn right and my buddy suddenly says, 'Left, left.' I dutifully turn left into the worst of the four possible lane choices." After a near miss with a bus, Chapman's friend asked him to take several more left-hand turns… leading them straight back to his apartment to be dropped off. "We get to his corner and he says shakily, "This is good enough, I'll walk the rest of the way."
Other drivers, upon arrival in a new country, were effectively forced to learn in the moment. Bill Bell had to follow his friend down busy London streets to return a vehicle, just after arriving in the city. "I believe the first thing I did was to pass the passenger-side wheels over someone's lawn. No one seemed to notice and we carried on." Though Bell added that many London motorists "seemed to check the operation of their horns as I passed."
While on his honeymoon in Hawaii, Briton Dale Thomas quickly learned how to drive on the opposite side of the road, in addition to mustering the courage to let the vehicle do all the gear changes for him. "Not only was it was my first time driving on the right hand side, it was also my first time driving an automatic car. It was one of the most stressful times in my life. My brain kept screaming at me, 'Where the hell is the clutch, we're going to die! Arrgghh!!!’"
Retrain your brainOf course, the hardest part of all this is reconditioning the brain to control driving movements in a seemingly counterintuitive way. When driving in Japan, American Patrick Wallace had a difficult time with the stick shift, but his biggest problem was a bit more fundamental. "I was forever trying to get into the passenger side of the car," he writes.
And Briton Glyn Williams's wife found that driving in Spain offered its own set of difficulties. "She came to an intersection and needed to stop completely and pulled on the handbrake. Except the handbrake was on the other side, and she actually pulled on the seat release. Which promptly allowed her seat to hinge backwards so she was lying flat."
Other drivers take their learning curve to a wholly unexpected level. American John Harris says driving on the opposite side of the road was never really a problem for him – until he came back home. "It took me months to adjust back. I was constantly looking at parked cars to remember what side of the street I needed to be on, and having to say left [and] right to myself, while squeezing each hand, and saying to myself 'drive right, drive right'."
Fortunately, all of these Quora users made it through their opposite-side-of-the-road experiences unscathed. Here’s hoping that Harris finally learned how to stay on the right-hand side without mumbling to himself.
Lorenzo takes critical MotoGP™ victory
The Monster Energy Grand Prix de France was host to another dominating Lorenzo victory while an intense battle for fourth burned.
Fortunately rain was nowhere to be seen in Le Mans, setting the stage for an exciting and eventful MotoGP™ race. The French GP comes after a post race test in Jerez and many riders arrived in France with new confidence, direction and parts. Bradley Smith was one such rider, running new front forks this weekend and leading FP2 on Friday. Marquez and Crutchlow both also had new swing arms.
Round five of the MotoGP™ World Championship also saw Repsol Honda’s Dani Pedrosa return to the grid, the Spaniard having missed three rounds after having surgery to cure arm pump issues. Returning for Jerez had been a possibility, but a test on a Supermoto bike had Pedrosa and his Repsol Honda crew air on the side of caution and wait till Le Mans.
Lorenzo had appeared strong again this weekend, as he had done in Jerez, despite feeling his third on the grid was one of the worst results of his career. A lightning start allowed the Spaniard to break away early, quickly able to pass Andrea Dovizioso on the Ducati and focus on riding his own race. One of Lorenzo’s strongest areas is his ability to run at the front and set incredibly consistent lap times when not having to battle with other riders. As in Jerez, Lorenzo demonstrated this incredible skill and was nearly untouchable. “I could overtake Dovizioso early and stay in the lead. I had to manage the one second gap and I had to push really hard even though the front feeling wasn’t great,” he said.
This makes it back-to-back wins for Lorenzo and reignites his championship hopes after many had begun to doubt the Spaniard. The MotoGP™ paddock heads next to Mugello, a favourite track of Lorenzo and one that has seen several outstanding rides from the Movistar Yamaha rider. On his current form he will be difficult to match.
While Lorenzo was surging ahead, Marc Marquez had a difficult start to the race, dropping as low as sixth before finding his form in the closing stages.
The Spaniard quickly caught Andrea Iannone and Bradley Smith ahead, leading to a fiery battle between Marquez and Iannone. The duo swapped positions at nearly every corner, giving spectators flashbacks of their Moto2™ days. The performance of Iannone was particularly impressive as he dislocated his left shoulder less than a week ago at a private Ducati test at Mugello. Marquez eventually came out on top as Iannone’s lap times dropped off significantly in the final three laps, no doubt feeling the pain in his shoulder.
While the battle tore on behind, Andrea Dovizioso and Valentino Rossi had a brief battle, the Yamaha rider coming out on top. Issues in Jerez saw Dovizioso finish off the podium for the first time this year, this third at Le Mans is important for the Ducati rider’s championship as he sits in third with 83 points. “The grip after ten laps was not great, I struggled a bit. I couldn’t gain much in the braking. I didn’t have Lorenzo’s pace though. To return to the podium is important for the championship and us,” reflected Dovizioso after the race.
Charging through the field, Rossi seemed as though he may be able to catch his teammate but the gap never dropped below one and a half seconds. It had been a less than ideal start to the weekend for the Italian as he and his Movistar Yamaha MotoGP team struggled with finding a good setting. Big risks in changes to the set up of Rossi’s M1 paid off come the race as he once again extended his championship lead, now 15 points ahead of teammate Lorenzo. “We suffered a lot during practice because I couldn’t’ ride to the limit. We risked more with the set up for the race and I felt very good. It took a couple of laps to understand it fully,” said Rossi
Le Mans was a difficult race for many of the British riders, both Cal Crutchlow and Scott Redding fell from the race in what was an overall disappointing weekend for many of the Honda bikes. The higher track temperatures on race day having a negative impact for the Honda riders who struggled for front end feel. Bradley Smith did well to finish in sixth behind the dueling pair of Iannone and Marquez after a strong showing earlier in the week. There were also reasons to celebrate for rookie Eugene Laverty, the Irishman scoring his first MotoGP™ points as he finished in 14th and as the second Open Honda bike.
The Open category was led by Nicky Hayden, the American also qualifying as the highest Open rider. He and Jack Miller had battled during the early stages of the race, but the Australian fell as he existed Turn 4. Local rider Loris Baz also finished in the points in 12th, taking his best ever MotoGP™ finish in front of a cheering crowd.
Miller was not the only rider to fall as he existed Turn 4, returning Dani Pedrosa also took a tumble there. The Spaniard was unhurt and remounted to finish in 16th, some 15 seconds out of the points. Stefan Bradl was another early faller as he continues to adapt to the Yamaha Forward machine. Both Aleix Espargaro and Karel Abraham were forced into the pits with technical issues, ending their races early.
Registration now open for the Moto3 Northern Europe Cup
The first race of the new Moto3 Northern Europe Cup will coincide with the GoPro Motorrad Grand Prix Deutschland.
A supporting event to the MotoGP™ World Championship, the Moto3 Standard / Moto3 GP race will be the absolute highlight of the German season. And what's more, with the approval of FIM Europe the race was declared the first race of the Moto3 Northern Europe Cup only a few weeks ago. The Moto3 Northern Europe Cup is intended as a platform for the best young riders from Central and Northern Europe to demonstrate their skills and develop them further.
The all-new concept was designed to help promote young talent and prepare them for higher racing classes. Like the IDM Moto3, the Moto3 Northern Europe Cup will include both a standard classification and a GP classification.
In the 2015 season, the Moto3 Standard / Moto3 GP will start at the SUPERBIKE*IDM and at the German Speedweek. After the premiere of the new Moto3 Standard / Moto3 GP at the Lausitzring, the Nürburgring will host the second racing weekend (12 to 14 June). The supporting race to the GoPro Motorrad Grand Prix Deutschland at the Sachsenring is the season's highlight. Further races will follow at the Hungaroring (3 to 5 July), at the Schleiz Triangle (31 July to 2 August), in Assen (7 to 9 August), in Oschersleben (20 to 23 August) and in Hockenheim (25 to 27 September).
The all-new concept was designed to help promote young talent and prepare them for higher racing classes. Like the IDM Moto3, the Moto3 Northern Europe Cup will include both a standard classification and a GP classification.
In the 2015 season, the Moto3 Standard / Moto3 GP will start at the SUPERBIKE*IDM and at the German Speedweek. After the premiere of the new Moto3 Standard / Moto3 GP at the Lausitzring, the Nürburgring will host the second racing weekend (12 to 14 June). The supporting race to the GoPro Motorrad Grand Prix Deutschland at the Sachsenring is the season's highlight. Further races will follow at the Hungaroring (3 to 5 July), at the Schleiz Triangle (31 July to 2 August), in Assen (7 to 9 August), in Oschersleben (20 to 23 August) and in Hockenheim (25 to 27 September).
APPLE WATCH
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)