Corolla versus Range Rover: Brake dancing on ice

In this corner, our posh-and-pricey Lucerne Green 2008 Range Rover Sport. In that corner, with the silver trunk, our stick-shift 2009 Toyota Corolla. (See our Range Rover Sport and Corolla road test videos.) The 5,500-pound Rover has full-time all-wheel drive and beefy Continental Cross Contact low-profile, ultra-performance tires mounted on 19-inch alloy rims. The front-drive Corolla nudges 2,850 pounds and hunches over 15-inch all-season Firestone Affinity tires on painted steel wheels. The Rover had set us back $61,900. The Corolla $16,400. This unlikely paring was perfect for answering the age-old question, is a car or SUV better in foul weather?

The arena: A stretch of snow-covered, icy road at our test track.
The contest: Come to a dead stop from 30 mph.
The score to be settled: Which vehicle can brake better and stop shorter?

The stakes were high. The Range Rover Sport is furnished like a men’s club; the Corolla, well, more like a lunch room.

In the run-up, we’d already established that stopping distances from 60 mph on normal dry and wet pavement were pretty close. On dry pavement, the Rover stopped in 136 feet, five feet better than the Corolla. On wet pavement the Rover stopped in 145 feet, beating the Corolla by a mere 12 inches.

Now to the rubber match, a winter trial where we stop from 30 mph instead of 60 mph. We lined up the vehicles on a surface of hard-packed snow with an icy under-layer, the sort of horrid road conditions every driver faces in the course of a New England winter.

The moment of truth. The Range Rover stopped from 30 mph in 141 feet, which isn’t too bad. But the Toyota Corolla ate up only 124 feet—17 feet less than the Rover. That’s more than a car-length—a huge difference.

What does this tell us? First, that the big, sporty-looking tires you see on modern SUVs don’t necessarily cut it in the cold. Second, it demonstrates once again that four- or all-wheel drive may help you accelerate but won’t do a thing for stopping on icy roads and may even breed a false sense of security.

Since one of the main draws of an SUV is the promise of safety and peace of mind, you might think that original-equipment tires would play to those strengths. They don’t. If you ever have to stop short on an icy road, ultra-performance SUV tires don’t come close to the ordinary tires on a regular car. 

When it comes time to replace your original equipment tires, check our tire ratings to find the tires best deliver on the performance factors that matter most to you.

Read: "Tested: Snobootz winter traction aid for car tires."

Learn about safe winter driving, and see our complete tire guide with buying advice and ratings—including winter tires.

—Gordon Hard and Jake Fisher, photo by Mike Leung

Comments

[david]

So, does this imply that we are going to see a winter test (ice and snow braking, below freezing temperature but clear roads on dry braking) of all-seasons, summer and winter tires soon? :-)

Hoping, but not holding my breath.

[David Allen Parizek Jr]

Does it make a difference that you have professional drivers? I would think the rover has features that might help it stop quicker for non-pro drivers, but that a pro driver could outperform that.

[Michael]

I'm not quite sure just how much this proves. I can see how it proves that size and 4WD aren't everything when it comes to traction. But where I live, winter tires are required by law, and nobody in their right mind would drive in severe winter conditions with original-equipment performance tires anyway.

[Ben]

Do you really think a having a professional driver versus using an amateur would make a huge difference in the outcome of a braking test with two ABS equipped vehicles?

[Vince]

The mass of the vehicle goes against it. The main problem are the tyres. Big fat tyres are great on dry roads or on sand but in mud or on ice or snow it is often better to cut down through the surface.
Of course if another vehicle crashes into you which is quite common on icy roads I would far rather be in the Land Rover!

[David Allen Parizek Jr]

yes, I guess professional vs amateur does not make a difference in that case.

Does the 4 wheel drive on the rover help it steer better and have a greater chance of missing the potential obstacle so it is ok anyway even if it cannot stop in as short a distance?? or is it the same traction issue? I thought the point of range rover is you lose traction on one wheel you still got it elsewhere. wonder if the test was done on uneven ground what kind of difference it makes or not?

[Kevin Calvert]

When the Range Rover rear ends the Corolla, I can tell you which vehicle I would much rather be in.

[Rick]

id prefer to be in the corolla. cause range rovers are made by Tata motors now.... a corolla. front the rear... ur def safe! unless they are trying to push u off the road. then thats a diff story.
FYI. more mass is harder to stop in snow. Im impressed with that number on the Range Rover.