I seem to remember (while ago now) the Westwind would give us 350 to 4 mile final, allowing us to slot a lightie into the sequence via a right or left base before the next jet arrival. The 727 was also good at keeping the speed going to a shortish final. Just like in ATC (with separation assurance), pilot standard operating procedures have been dumbed down to cater for the lowest common denominator.
If you can't do 160 to 4, just say I can do 160 to 5 or 6 - it will make bugger all difference to the sequence.