The "hard-core off-road vehicle" is not an official vocabulary. It is a general term for people who can climb the mountains and fight against the road. The SUV model takes into account the comfort of the car and the passing performance of the off-road vehicle, but how much difference does the urban SUV have compared to the traditional off-road vehicle in terms of off-road capability?
Body Structure
The off-road vehicle uses a non-loaded body similar to a truck, and the SUV uses the same load-bearing body as the sedan. The non-loaded body car has a rigid frame, also known as a chassis frame. These frames are generally rectangular or trapezoidal and are placed at the very bottom of the body to provide the vehicle with a strong rigidity. In the wild, it can provide better protection for the vehicle structure and people in the car, and can also bear more loads. The load-bearing body has no frame, and the body serves as the mounting base for the engine and chassis assemblies. The body has both the frame and the full load. Such a structure is widely used in cars because of its lower cost, lighter weight, lower body, suitable for road driving, and lower center of gravity and fuel consumption. In a nutshell, if the entire body is removed, the load-bearing body will fall apart and the non-bearing car will still be able to drive normally. The structure of the body is very critical, and it is also the most easily overlooked, but in the off-road, the two bodies are very different.
Suspension Structure
The SUV uses a MacPherson suspension, and the off-road vehicle uses a double wishbone independent suspension. The MacPherson suspension is the mainstream suspension system for cars and SUVs. It has the advantages of comfort and small size, but because of its straight-line structure, it is very fragile when dealing with lateral and lateral impact forces. This is why some SUV owners have a very high SUV body, but after rushing to the road with a faster speed, there will be a steering wheel jitter, which is caused by the fragile front suspension. The double wishbone type independent suspension has two upper and lower fork arms, and the lateral force is absorbed by the two fork arms at the same time. The pillar only carries the weight of the vehicle body, so the lateral rigidity is large. And it can adapt to the road surface, the tire has a large grounding area and good grounding. The double wishbone suspension is sporty and is used by off-road vehicles and supercars such as Ferrari and Maserati.
Power System
More and more SUVs start to carry T, while most off-road vehicles are naturally aspirated engines. In recent years, turbocharging has become very popular, as if it has become synonymous with fuel-saving force, and has become a propaganda point for many manufacturers. Turbocharging can greatly increase the power of the vehicle, and in particular, allows the occupant to feel an instant burst of propulsion. However, due to the increased pressure in the engine compartment, the stability and service life of the engine are sacrificed. For off-road vehicles, the continuity requirements for engine power output are much higher than those for explosive power, and the stability and reliability of engine operation under harsh conditions are also pursued. During off-roads, the engine may remain in high-load operation for a long time, and the drawbacks of turbocharging are also more likely to be exposed. Therefore, most off-road vehicles will use naturally aspirated engines. It is not the manufacturer that does not have this technology, and it is not the cost of off-road vehicles, but the actual consideration for the use of off-road vehicles.
Four-Wheel Drive System
The powerful four-wheel drive system is arguably the most well-known feature of off-road vehicles, but do you really understand the difference between the off-road vehicle and the SUV's "full-road" four-wheel drive system? First of all, the off-road vehicle must have a four-wheel drive function, whether it is a full-time four-wheel drive or a time-sharing four-wheel drive. Most SUVs on the market only have four-wheel drive in their high-end versions, and some even have no four-wheel drive in the entire series. Secondly, the four-wheel drive system of the off-road vehicle should have strong ability to remove the trap and high reliability. Off-road vehicles are required to have a low-speed four-wheel drive (commonly known as the lower four) that can amplify the torque, which can greatly amplify the torque of the vehicle. The off-road vehicle generally provides nearly 2 times magnification, and the Wrangler Rubicon model can even provide 4 times. This will play a key role in vehicle getting out of trouble and climbing steep slopes. Finally, the off-road vehicle has a hard-wired central differential lock and a rear axle differential lock. SUVs, even if they have a central differential lock in some models, use silicone oil viscous coupling, which is likely to fail in difficult road conditions.
Through the above analysis and comparison, it can be clearly understood that although some urban SUVs are also equipped with a four-wheel drive system, they still have great differences from the four-wheel drive system of professional off-road vehicles, and cannot cope with the harsh driving environment. .
Coupled with other differences in load-bearing form and suspension, the off-road capability of urban SUVs is extremely limited. Although the city SUV looks good, high chassis, big wheels, four-wheel drive system, but like a tomboy with short hair wearing a men's clothing, just looks like it. If you want to really experience the fun of exploring nature, look for a pure man-style hard-core off-road vehicle!
