Can medium SUVs be 2WD as well as 4WD?
Lower import duty for four-wheel drive (4WD, or 4×4 four-by-four) vehicles until recently meant that the vast majority of Medium SUVs sold in Australia were 4WD, since they cost virtually the same or even less than any 2WD (two-wheel drive) variations of that particular vehicle that may have existed. As the levy between 4WD and 2WD evaporates, Medium SUVs with the latter have gained ground. Today most Medium SUVs are offered in rear-wheel drive (RWD) or front-wheel drive (FWD) guises, with the option of going to a part-time 4WD setting for greater off-road ability and traction. Medium SUVs with front-wheel drive usually have a transverse mounted engine, which makes for a more space efficient and lighter package. FWD Medium SUVs are also almost always monocoque bodied, without the heavy ladder-frame chassis of more off-road orientated 4X4s.
