What to Drive in Winter

When it snows, driving can be awfully dangerous, but the right car can provide an edge over the elements

by Jim Henry

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Experts' best advice for driving on snow and ice: Don't, if you can possibly avoid it.

The Washington State Transportation Dept. advertises this catchier jingle: "Ice and snow, take it slow, or just don't go." It's safe to assume they know all there is to know about snow up in the Cascade Mountains, but most of the time, "just don't go" isn't realistic advice. On weekdays, most people need to reach the workplace, or at least the train station, regardless of bad weather. On weekends, a gallon of milk or that one missing ingredient for pumpkin pie can take us out of the house and onto slippery roads.

Fortunately, there are plenty of good choices for winter driving. These include a cross-section of vehicles from most product segments—cars and trucks; luxury and nonluxury brands; small, medium, and large. For obvious reasons, we didn't consider convertibles. Most of our winter driving choices have all-wheel drive, for extra peace of mind, despite added cost and a gas mileage penalty.

Subarus are a popular choice in snow country, and Subaru (9632) only offers all-wheel drive. Nationwide, Subaru has a market share of just over 1%. That rises to around 4% in New England, 5% in Colorado, and 6% in Alaska, according to spokesman Dominick Infante. In Vermont, where Subaru has close to an 8% share, Infante jokes that, "Subarus are standard issue when you arrive."

Wait for the Plow

Most of the cars Audi sells in the U.S. have the company's optional Quattro all-wheel-drive system. Many of Audi's (NSUG) more expensive cars are only offered with Quattro, including the A6 Avant station wagon, which is one of our winter choices. Overall, AWD accounts for 85% of Audi's U.S. sales, according to spokesman Chris Bokich.

For most people in most regions of the country, once the roads have been plowed, front-wheel-drive vehicles with winter tires provide enough traction, according to David Champion, director of Consumer Reports' auto test department. Note the two important caveats: "once the roads have been plowed" and "with winter tires." Champion estimates the additional cost for snow tires at around $800 for a set of four.

It's best to wait for the plows. For those who can't wait, we included the ground clearance for each vehicle. Keep in mind how much snow is on the ground, since it's best to avoid using the underside of the vehicle as an ersatz snowplow.

All-Wheel-Drive Overconfidence

Champion allows that many people opt for AWD, "if you live in a part of the country where it snows, and it's just something you don't want to be bothered about." He adds: "If you really have to go out and it's really critical—if you're a police officer, or a medical worker, say—then you really need it," Champion says all-wheel drive costs an additional $1,000 to $2,000 on average, plus a mileage penalty of 1 mpg to 2 mpg.

But even all-wheel drive isn't 100% guaranteed against skidding out over black ice. Several experts cautioned against getting overconfident in an all-wheel-drive vehicle, including engineer Aram Setian. Setian, who is now retired, conducted cold-weather testing for Mercedes-Benz USA for many years, sometimes in weather so cold that traces of moisture in the gasoline could freeze and disable a vehicle. The glass in a competing vehicle once "exploded" because it got brittle in the cold, he says.