Battle of the SUV's

[niky]

it actually lead to a lower ground clearance
technically it should lessen its real off-road capacities

but still we saw the the Pajero racing and winning in the Paris Dakar Rally

though that kind of rally is only one dimensional as per 4X4 use, pang sand and road-less flat surfaces lang

Ground clearance is based solely on suspension design. The only reason you'll see a lower ground clearance is if the manufacturer lowers the vehicle around the suspension, because the unibody allows tighter packaging than a ladder frame.

There were some who were complaining that the unibody is less tough off-road, but I've heard of suspension tower failure on ladder-frames used in off-road duty, also. It all depends on how well-made the vehicle actually is, rather than how it's made.

But yeah, there is an advantage off-road for ladder-frames... having the frame-rails exposed underneath everything provides protection for mechanical components tucked up under the rails... and provides a solid mounting point for skid-plates. And ladder-frames can carry some pretty heavy loads...

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The thing with the Paris-Dakar Pajeros is... they're not unibody... they're space-frame buggies.