You need all-wheel drive and decent ground clearance in addition to the other commuting virtues.

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Overall, if driven responsibly, a vehicle with all-wheel drive, decent ground clearance and a relatively low center of mass is best, confirms Champion.

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The initial images the SUV-size rover sent back to Earth were black and white and grainy, but one showed its wheel resting on the stony ground, and the vehicle's shadow appeared in another.

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The wheel on the right side of the image is the tiller wheel, used to steer the airplane on the ground.

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Knowing how far it has traveled is important for measuring any wheel slippage that may have occurred, for instance due to high slopes or sandy ground.

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"If you got a heavy vehicle trying to change a wheel then, instead of the vehicle being jacked up, the jack sank into the ground, " said Mr Yeadon.

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