On target for off-road experience

LONG POND, Pa. - Despite car company advertisements that feature mud, snow, and gravel-slinging to sell four-wheel- and some all-wheel-drive vehicles, real off-road driving involves a degree of delicacy.

The sport's mantra is: As fast as necessary, as slow as possible. A left foot applied to the brake, even as gas is applied with the right - to allow for the tender dropping of tires off rocks or sharp edges, not to keep rpms up for a sudden surge of speed.

Every year we go to Pennsylvania's Pocono Raceway to test cars, trucks, SUVs, and minivans on the NASCAR track/road course. But we also set aside a day to travel over a series of rated trails on a local ski slope. The trails, designed by Land Rover, are meant to take various vehicles to the edge of their performance capabilities.

Trail ratings were green, orange, and pink, with pink designating the toughest off-road experience. Up and down the spectrum, we had some fun. Here's what we found out:

2008 NISSAN TITAN 4x4 pickup - I expected rear-end bounce, sloppiness over an orange trail where washouts and loose boulders were the biggest challenge. Instead, I had a tight, smooth and confident ride over double pink where it climbed a hill so steep I could only see the sky out the windshield. Remarkably, the truck bed held firm over an articulated series of bumps and dips. In my book, an underrated truck.

2008 VOLKSWAGEN TOUAREG - By using the brake and gas at the same time, the Touareg could be "walked" through pink course climbs and dips so softly that there was really no tangible sense of the trauma occurring outside. And with a hill descent program that held it back in first gear even as driver and passenger strained against seat belts because of the incline, it wasn't necessary to brake. Another underrated vehicle because it gets lumped in with the Porsche Cayenne and Land Rover's best. It will run with either of them.

2008 HUMMER H2 - This hulking SUV's soft agility was surprising. This model is far more practical than the now defunct H1, but it's still a beast that will draw glares on the road. Off-road, the H2's enormous tires stepped nimbly and gently through articulating dips, its bulk proved no problem during steep descents, and the interior remained remarkably quiet, even as brakes and gas groaned simultaneously.

2007 MERCEDES-BENZ G55 AMG - How about a SUV with Teutonic military roots that sits low, is equipped with chrome-tipped dual exhausts that extend in pairs beneath each running board, and was most at home on the green trail? This Mercedes is a cult favorite, known in civilian form as the Gelaendewagen. The version we drove had bling on the outside, and leather and comfort inside. It was outfitted with a 469-horsepower V-8.

2008 HONDA RIDGELINE - It's been called the gentle pickup truck. The Ridgeline is an odd-looking but superb blend of truck utility and car-like handling. Even though it initially confused some folks, this may be the perfect suburban pickup truck. It's not a hard off-roader, and was never meant to be. But as it proved here, it will get you to the ski chalet, the trout stream, or the hiking trail. And it will serve you well on weekends when its time to do mundane errands.

2007 JEEP WRANGLER UNLIMITED RUBICON - No surprise here, except the Rubicon proved more agile than I remembered from my experience driving it on California's tortuous Rubicon Trail. This model is the first available with four doors. You swap some turning capabilities for easier, roomier rear access. But this family approach is working - Jeep says the model is selling beyond expectations. If you don't mind the occasional three-point-turn in the woods, this is a serious off-road crawler worth considering.

2007 LAND ROVER LR3 V8 HSE - This is, quite simply, a monster wrapped in elegance. It features a 300-horsepower V-8, superb off-road capabilities, and a hill descent program that will not let it slip into a skid even on the slipperiest of slopes. Too bad so many of these cars only find their way to the Hamptons or Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket.

Royal Ford can be reached at ford@globe.com.