Car for Outdoors in the PNW?
Posted by illuminato8@reddit | askcarguys | View on Reddit | 10 comments
I'm debating which car to buy: a RAV4 or a Prius AWD.
Both cars are 2021 with AWD and 60k miles. Rav4 is gas version. Price tag is $26k for RAV4 and $24k for Prius.
I really prefer the Prius because it saves money on commuting to work, but I’m wondering if all trailheads will be accessible with the Prius, especially in the winter. I plan to put all-weather tires / snow tires on whichever vehicle I choose. And I will buy chains / snow socks.
I’m also planning to drive on some access roads and forest roads for camping and hiking.
Do I really need a car with more clearance, or should the Prius be enough?
imothers@reddit
Have you been to the trailheads before, if yes what were you driving? If you want extra ground clearance, look at a Subaru Crosstrek, Forester or Outback. Last time I checked they had better ground clearance than RAV4, CRV etc.
spinonesarethebest@reddit
Worked for Toyota for 14 years. Buy the Rav.
Admiral_peck@reddit
Rav 4 for sure, but personally I'd get something with the ground clearance of a full size truck and part-time 4x4
Motogoodboy@reddit
PNW = Subaru
Signal-Confusion-976@reddit
Neither one is a off road vehicle. But if those are your only choices then go with the Rav-4. The Prius doesn't have the ground clearance.
right415@reddit
As long as you are not looking for a car for the indoors
umrdyldo@reddit
Throw Falken Wildpeaks on either and you have a great year round vehicle for 98% of the time.
silbergeistlein@reddit
As someone with a 2022 AWD-e Prius, and have ridden in multiple recent RAV4s. The RAV is great, but the Prius just feels better built and is more comfortable to me at least. My only two side notes are if you go for the Prius, I’m glad to see you won’t stick with the OEM tires. They’re thin because they’re designed for optimal mileage, because of that they puncture easily. There’s an aftermarket lift kit for the 4th gen Prius that you can get. Google, “Prius Off-road” and it looks like a relatively simple install, and it’s relatively affordable too. The only negative thing I have to say about the Prius is that it’s named a Prius. People hate the car for no reason besides its’ name. Besides that, it’s an awesome little car. It’s spoiled/jaded me on fuel costs, and I’ve slept in the back with my German Shepard on road trips. It’s surprisingly spacious. Good luck with your choice, and hope this helped.
Aloha-Eh@reddit
Unless you're going to buy dedicated snow tires, get good all season tires and get them siped. Siping makes a huge difference.
The ground clearance shouldn't be a problem for most of the time in the PNW. I wouldn't take a car down a road that hasn't been plowed or drove on, you can high center a car pretty easy driving in too deep a snow.
Having lived there, I'd be ok with the Prius. If you're going to be doing real outdoorsy stuff in the winter and going into real sketchy areas, then yeah, Rav4 would probably be your best bet.
I had a Jeep Cherokee when I lived there, I went wherever I wanted whenever I wanted, no matter the weather.
A guy did did get stuck up a closed road in the winter with a similar Cherokee. Learn how to drive in the muck and learn how to drive off road and you shouldn't need a super truck to get where you want to go.
theshagmister@reddit
I'm not familiar the PNW. But a few times I went traveling with my family we were able to access alot of trailheads out in the rockys and blackhills with a Ford escort and Ford focus. Although this was never during the winter. I'd say if you plan on alot of wintertime backroading the ground clearance would definitely be a benefit.