Last year, SUVs made up half of all vehicles sold in New Zealand, which is not really surprising when you consider the draw of the practicality and accessibility of the modern day SUV.

We take dozens of calls from AA Members each month who have the following dilemma - they have found a suitable SUV, but are questioning whether or not they should pay the extra money for the more premium AWD model variant.

Here are some of the things to consider that will help you make an informed decision if you’re considering buying an SUV.

There are a lot of terms out there in the SUV scene that our AA Members ask us about, such as:

2WD, FWD and 4X2

These are all terms that mean the car uses two wheels, rather than four.

4X4, AWD and 4WD

Most SUVs tend to opt for AWD rather than 4WD as it implies the majority of use will be on road instead of rough off roading. The terms 4X4 and 4WD are more often used in the context of off-roading.

Initial price and running costs

The 2WD variants of SUVs are often the more appealing choice based on price alone. If we look at new SUV models in New Zealand, the lower cost options tend to be 2WD, for instance, the most popular SUVs available on the NZ market currently; Mazda CX-5, Toyota RAV4, Mitsubishi ASX Mitsubishi Outlander, Kia Stonic and Kia Sportage.

Once you start venturing into AWD territory, not only do the prices increase, but so do the capacities of the engines. If we look at the Toyota RAV 4 GLX, for example, the AWD variant costs an additional $4,000 over the price of the 2WD variant, but it also boasts an additional 500cc in engine size. This has an adverse effect on running costs, and consumes one additional litre of fuel every 100kms. Based on each model traveling 14,000km and fuel costing an average of $2/litre, it would use an additional $280 over the year.

Of course, there are other factors to consider, such as an additional differential that will require servicing in most conventional AWD vehicles, along with an increased number of components and complexity to the driveline.

Another factor to consider is tyre wear - driving all four wheels can increase the wear on the tyres, although these differences are marginal in most cases.

Performance

The main benefit of an AWD vehicle is the performance, so you need to ask yourself if it’s something your lifestyle requires. Remember, you won’t really notice a difference in normal driving conditions, or even when you accelerate hard or corner on dry roads.

However, in situations where traction is reduced such as on wet or icy roads, then AWD cars have a huge advantage over 2WD cars, as these vehicles are able to put power to the road more efficiently, especially once slipping starts.

Of course, the same advantage is also experienced when off-roading, even if lots of these modern small or mid-sized SUVs are generally not primarily designed as hard core off-road vehicles. Of course, a 2WD SUV can be used for off-road driving on occasion due to its increased ground clearance, however, an AWD is always far more capable.

If you plan to be towing your boat or caravan, then its better you do this with an AWD, especially during those occasions where you may be pulling a boat up a ramp or manoeuvring on uneven or loose surfaces. For this reason, AWD models tend to have larger towing capacities.

So what do I choose?

It’s important to think about what you really need from your vehicle. Will it rarely be leaving suburban streets and are you essentially using your SUV as a regular passenger vehicle? If so, then a 2WD model should be just fine. However, if you really do need AWD capabilities, then don’t let the stance of the 2WD SUV fool you about its true abilities to tackle tougher terrain with less traction.

Find out more on how the AA can help you when buying a new car:

• AA Money - aa.co.nz/money
• AA Insurance - aa.co.nz/insurance
• AA Car Reviews - aa.co.nz/car-reviews
• AA Running Cost Reports - aa.co.nz/runningcosts

Vehicle experts you can trust