The Best Crossover 4×4 For Sports Enthusiasts

The smallest of Volvo’s impressive XC range, the XC40 crossover SUV is much like its siblings when it comes to performance, practicality, superb build quality, and its incredible safety rating, again, proving to be one of the safest cars on the road. Available with all-wheel drive for tackling tough weather conditions, it’s a fantastic all-rounder for daily city use and for countryside adventures no matter the time of year. For lovers of the great outdoors, equip the XC40 with a bike rack or a roof rack for canoes and they won’t look out of place against the car’s stylish exterior. And for carrying your camping gear or golf clubs, you get a good size boot, offering 460 litres with the seats in place, or 1,336 litres with the rear folded down.

As a budget SUV, there’s nothing quite like the Dacia Duster available on the car market. And for its very low and affordable starting price, you sure get a lot of car. It has a practical 475-litre boot, which can increase to over 1,000 litres with the rear folded down, and it can tow a tonne and half trailer for carting bikes or canoes to the starting point of your outdoor pursuits. Furthermore, it is even available as a 4×4 that is way better at off-roading than its cheap price would suggest. It’s a great looking car too, which suits a trio of bikes on the back, ready to go into the wilds for a cross country or downhill mountain bike race.

As you’d expect from Land Rover, this crossover SUV can handle itself rather well on or off the road, tackling the harshest conditions Mother Nature can throw at it. As a crossover 4×4, it’s a class leader for off-roading. As a crossover on the tarmac, it has Land Rover’s unmistakable seal of quality, with a premium design, a luxury cabin, and a good driving experience. It’s no wonder the car is a best seller for the company. For sporty types, the Range Rover Evoque offers you genuine go-anywhere capabilities, as well as 591 litres of space in the boot, which expands to 1,383 with the rear seats down. And that’s plenty of room for golf equipment or any other sporting wares.

Once the definitive crossover and one of the first to truly cement the popularity of this type of car, the Nissan Qashqai is still up there with the best. It also continues to be one of the bestselling cars in the UK. And whether you go for a used or a new model, the Qashqai is great value for money with some excellent deals available. It is good to drive and it offers a comfortable cabin and decent levels of practicality too. The 4×4 variant is also great for poor road conditions and for winter flurries of snow, with good traction and control. For storing sports equipment, you get a 430-litre boot to play with, and for day-to-day driving around town, the Qashqai won’t break the bank either, thanks to an economical range of engines and good miles per gallon (MPG).

The stylish Seat Ateca is a superb crossover with a sporting edge, in looks and performance. In fact, it’s one of the best cars to drive in the crossover segment, and one of the best looking in our opinion. It handles really well and if you go for a 4Drive four-wheel drive variant, the Ateca is quite the performer off-road. Brilliantly, 4Drive also provides front-wheel drive for everyday motoring, lowering fuel consumption, yet at the push of an ‘off-road’ or ‘snow’ button, the car transforms into a 4×4 capable of tackling whatever’s thrown at it. For storing your gear, the Seat Ateca offers 510 litres of boot space as well.

The Skoda Karoq is a larger crossover with a grown-up quality to it, from its sensible looks, to its high-levels of practicality, and spacious cabin fit for the entire family. Surprisingly, it is good to drive, aided by a great selection of standard equipment, and it is affordable too. In fact, the Karoq is one of the best crossovers on the market, standing shoulder to shoulder with those mentioned above. It has a leading 521-litre boot, up there with the Range Rover Evoque, and it can tow between 1,500kg and 2,000kg depending on the engine – perfect for carrying all sorts of equipment, from kayaks to a full team’s worth of training kit. Whilst the front-wheel drive models offer better fuel efficiency, the 4×4 version of the Karoq is well-equipped for going off the beaten track, although its lower ride height limits it to more light to middling off-road adventures. Nonetheless, it’s fantastic in adverse weather conditions.

Available as a four-wheel drive, the Mini Countryman is a stylish crossover and an all-round great family car. It’s the perfect vehicle for taking your kids to football or rugby practice, with a practical 450-litre boot, extending to 1,390 litres with the rear seats down – that’s plenty of space for dirty kit and training equipment. It’s also room for camping gear when going on a British family adventure. And whilst the 4×4 version won’t take you off-road, it will help keep you on the road in heavy rain or snow, so you can travel safely no matter the weather. Finally, it also offers good driveability and a host of personalisation options to get the right car feel for you.

With handling more akin to a hatchback, the Volkswagen T-Roc offers a fun driving experience, which matches its unique and sporty look. These two points help the T-Roc stand out in a crowded market, so if you’re looking for a crossover with a bit of a difference it is well-worth considering the T-Roc. For sports enthusiasts, there is an all-wheel drive model too, though it does reduce the boot from 445-litres to 392-litres. Furthermore, whilst the 4×4 variant is useful for heavy snow and other harsh weather conditions, it is more suited to light off-roading rather than a full-on mud monster. But if you plan on a daytrip to the countryside, it’ll more than meet the demands. Also, it can tow between 1,300 to 1,900kg depending on the model and engine, which is more than enough for a trailer stacked with mountain bikes for you and your friends.

Partly based on the Mazda 2 supermini, the CX-3 is a compact crossover that’s all the more fun to drive and steer because of it. It also enjoys sleek styling and a spacious cabin, with good levels of comfort. Additionally, there is an all-wheel drive version for tough tracks and steep hills. It won’t take you off-road, but it will provide extra security whilst driving with the family in rough weather. For carrying kit, it has a generous 503-litre boot which puts it up there with the class leaders. It also comes with a great level of starting equipment, and even entry-level models come with a touchscreen infotainment system, cruise control, and more.

Available as a two or four-wheel drive car, the Renault Kadjar is one of the better crossovers to drive, providing good practicality at an affordable price. It’s an all-rounder type crossover, which puts it into a very competitive market, with lots of rivals that stand shoulder to shoulder. However, the Kadjar makes a strong case for itself, with muscular styling, a roomy interior, and a practical 472-litre boot. Again, like a number of crossovers on this list, the 4×4 version of the Kadjar is best suited to ill weather conditions and steep, rough tracks, rather than going fully off-road. However, the Kadjar is well-suited for everyday use with an economical range of engines and good MPG. In short, it’s an excellent car for going on outdoor pursuits with the family, but also for taking the kids to sports practice.