@Riff Raff:

Maybe you misunderstood my post. What I was saying is 4-Low is for true off-road but in a crossover you don't really need it. This was in response to your assertion that a crossover must have Low Range otherwise it "ain't squat".

There are plenty of fine crossovers out there that don't have 4L. The smart people who design them know most buyers aren't interested in bashing rocks on the Rubicon. They just want to do light-duty stuff like get to their favourite trout stream at the end of a rutted forest service road - so why add 500+ lbs of transfer case and beefed up drivetrain if you don't need it? My boss's new Acura MDX has enough power and traction to go anywhere my VX will go - it not only apportions torque front and back like the VX but also side to side. What it lacks is ground clearance - but what it gives up in ground clearance, it gains in handling. I guarantee you - he uses the MDX's good handling a lot more often than I use my VX's 4L!

Not sure what to say about the haul@ss in high gear/crash into a tree thing. I tend to think of momentum as a friend who keeps me OUT of trouble more often than getting me INTO trouble. Throttle control man! Just because that loud pedal goes all the way to the floor doesn't mean you have to put it there when you're in a tight spot!


@blacksambo

Well, I've driven a Miata and I've driven a VX and I can tell you, my VX is no Miata. It handles quite well considering its height and mass - but it's no low to the ground, 2500 lb sports car that's for sure. As far as Tone's success at autocross I think there may be a few other factors at work besides handling. AWD traction comes to mind. The autocrosses I've been to had really tight turns connected by short straights so RWD cars were at a disadvantage. Oversteer looks good to the spectators but wastes time. Corner speed was important (as with just about any type of racing) but the ability to put the power to the pavement and get to the next corner as quickly as possible was what separated the winners from the also-rans. (there's that throttle control again) This is where the VX would have an advantage over a Porshe or Miata. Also - did you consider that maybe Tone was a very good driver? He probably could have beaten some of those Porsches if he were driving a clapped out Country Squire. Not to insult any autocrossers here but that sport seems to have a lot of appeal to the weekend warrior type who doesn't have the skills to keep from wadding his expensive sports car up at the track so he runs over cones instead. Some really get into it and have serious skills but alot of the ones I saw lacked knowledge and precision - they were playing - basically just there to have fun and show off their car - and Tone would trounce someone like that no matter what he was driving.