Question

the sportwagen has lower ground clearance, which is better suited to the tarmac"

Answer 1

Ground Clearance (also known as ride height) is one of the most basic but very important general dimensions of a vehicle. It is defined as the minimum distance between the lower end of the vehicle body (or chassis) and the road. In other words, it indicates the height of the lowermost part of the vehicle with respect to ground. Generally, most of the manufacturers specify this dimension in unladen vehicle condition i.e. without any load of cargo or passengers. That is why, when you load the vehicle with passengers and cargo; the available ride height is always lower than specified in the actual running condition.