It seems to be the general consensus in Australia that if a road has gravel on it you need a 4wd in order to drive on it!
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At least there is very little in the way of ice and snow for months on end every year.
Used to see VW Kombis in some remarkable places.
Some time ago a Mazda 929 was driven up to the Cape York and back the on ly mod was it was fitted with larger wheels and a mate that is a member of the Mazda MX5 club has told me that an MX5 also did the trip
The VW Kombi was low geared, had very good ground clearance and approach, departure and breakover angles. Depending on loading, it could have good traction, although I remember once on a very steep track in the Blue Mountains, having to add about 3-400kg of rocks right at the back to climb the track.
(I eventually traded that Kombi, actually a ute, not a van, on my first Landrover in 1962)
A beetle lives in birdsville that has crossed the simpson.
Just about any RWD can cross the Simpson, so long as it is properly loaded, has decent ground clearance and the conditions are good. I was one of a party of four P76's which crossed the Simpson in September 1996. Two were pretty close to stock. Different in high summer of course.
In the bar of the Birdsville Pub was a photo of the then relatively new Falcon Longreach ute, getting air over Big Red. 2WD adds to the challenge.
Not only RWD - I heard of a project to cross the Simpson in the 1960s in Citroen D series. (I owned one at the time) While the project never came off, they would be quite suitable, with a high proportion of weight on the front wheels and ground clearance adjustable up to 300mm.