I was due to travel to Geneva for work reasons most illogically via Antwerp in Belgium on the way out, and two separate locations in France on the return journey, so driving made far more sense than flying. Having already booked my trip, hotels en route, and so on, a suitable vehicle to get me safely through the frozen wastes of Northern Europe at the time, never mind the initial shorter leg down to the Kent coast to cross the Channel, was key, and frankly my own little Italian bomb would not realistically have been up to the challenge.
Cue the light bulb moment, and a few hours later, roll forth the switchable 4x4 Nissan X-Trail that GRR currently has on long-term evaluation. The car was available to use for the my 10-day Continental jaunt, and ideally-suited to the atrocious weather conditions that potentially faced me over the next 1,600+ miles or so, from the low lands of the Benelux, to the heights of the Jura mountains surrounding Geneva.
Having quickly loaded the X-Trail’s commodious boot with enough luggage, ‘road trip’ provisions and winter weather gear to see me through this long trip, I glugged many, many litres of diesel into the very empty-tanked Nissan – almost melting my credit card in the process – and set off Kent-bound for the car ferry far earlier than usual, expecting to encounter major snow and congestion, none of which thankfully materialised, despite all of the hype by various media channels warning motorists of the perils of travelling in the snow. I arrived at Dover over two hours early, as there was virtually no traffic on the roads, and even less snow!
When I arrived in Dunkirk, the snow was considerably heavier and deeper than it had been on the British side of the Channel, but with most of the road surfaces, main or otherwise, far better treated than they had been over here. I left the X-Trail in its ‘Auto’ mode, the SUV automatically switching from 2WD for all-wheel-drive as and when needed, much to my relief when I arrived at a few unexpected untreated snowy stretches on the Belgian motorway.
Venturing mildly off-road briefly to get to my hotel venue, the Nissan’s 4x4 system inspired real confidence, which a feeling of full control on the icy and very slippery snow-covered surface, despite the steering feel being far too light and over-assisted, just as it is in regular everyday driving conditions, as with so many other modern cars, especially SUVs.