Freefaller, thanks for that. I was going to bring that up - one of the reasons I specified high ground clearance earlier on was for my benefit and not the benefit of my my flatmate. Driving in London is hard work, but it's not impossible. However, life is made very difficult if one doesn't have a lot of ground clearance.
In central London, where I live, road surfaces range from normal to seriously awful. There are speed bumps everywhere, and in many places forward parallel parking (i.e. kerbing) is often the easiest way to park quickly in moving traffic.
A friend has an M3 - it's a fast car and he likes to throw it around the odd corner, but it so isn't built for London. At all. The ride is too firm and the ground clearance has caused him plenty of problems. On the other hand, I know a chap who drives a range sport (my old boss) and he's had the luxury of being able to own a large number of expensive cars in a short period of time, and he says that based on his experience a car with soft suspension and high ground clearance makes the most sense in London (regardless of whether it's a 4x4 or not).
I liked the freelander, it made sense, for London. Seriously. But I prefer the defender because of its offroading credentials. Both however are a bit too expensive so I'm still searching.
Test driving a VW Tiguan soon - I see it as a cheaper version of the Freelander...but I probably won't like it.
So far I can't come up with a car that suits my needs. The search continues.
PS: I wish the small 2dr shogun diesel autos emitted less than 225 - that strikes me as the exact car I'm after.
