The 1999 Avalanche Sniper Test Drive
By: John Nutter - 5/2000
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| 4x4Wire's John Nutter behind the wheel of the 1999 Avalanche Sniper |
Driving the Sniper can be summed up in three words: Point And Shoot.
It was a bit of a climb to get into the Sniper, but once inside I felt at home. The driver sits in a Beard racing seat, the same type of seat I have in my CJ7. The steering wheel and pedals were also comfortably placed. The foot well was small, but not bothersome. The view from the driver's seat was great, a spotter would rarely be needed with the kind of outstanding visibility provided by the purpose-built rock buggy. Only the shifter location felt different and a bit awkward, but this side effect was the result of having the drive train tucked up high for maximum ground clearance.
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| John pilots the Sniper through a notch |
Driving the Sniper was unbelievably easy. Even in pouring rain, which can really reduce traction on slick rock, the Sniper was able to be driven up virtually any existing line with no tire slippage. I expected to notice the hydraulic steering system, but the brakes, steering and automatic transmission all worked together so well that I soon forgot they were there. It was just too easy.
I decided to try some steep off-camber hills to see how it felt. No problem. The body roll that I would have expected from a machine with this kind of extreme articulation just was not there.
I know what I'm writing doesn't sound terribly exciting -- the simple reason is that the Sniper makes almost anything that would otherwise be high-pucker seem like a routine walk in the park. Driving the Sniper raises the bar on what is considered an obstacle and what isn't, just like a machine meant to take on the most extreme situations should.
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