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I would look for a good dealership in your area and buy what they offer. Rural Wisconsin you’re probably looking at Ford or Chevy.
In most Snow Belt areas it's usually: 4WD trucks, and AWD or 4WD vehicles. Front drive cars with winter tires are often just fine for living in more populated areas on paved roads. For much more rural areas, 4WD trucks or Subaru is the way to go as extra ground clearance becomes more of a factor with deeper snow depth on roads, gravel roads, and less consistent clearing of snow of the roads in a more timely fashion.
In most Snow Belt areas it's usually: 4WD trucks, and AWD or 4WD vehicles. Front drive cars with winter tires are often just fine for living in more populated areas on paved roads. For much more rural areas, 4WD trucks or Subaru is the way to go as extra ground clearance becomes more of a factor with deeper snow depth on roads, gravel roads, and less consistent clearing of snow of the roads in a more timely fashion.
Perhaps that's the case where you live at, but not in the interior of Alaska. In here there is a combination of every drive system, even some RWD trucks and cars. I can take a photo of a crowded parking lot of a supermarket, and the photo will show lots of cars, trucks, and SUV's. A great number of side roads in the interior of Alaska are graveled, not paved. Some of the "highways" we have are partially paved, too. For example, the Steese Highway is paved 80 miles out of Fairbanks; the Denali Highway is paved part of the way. We drive on the snow-packed side roads and graveled highways.
The said, I also drive a 2001 Silverado when we have snow storms, not necessarily because my Toyota car can't make it, but because the truck is quite safer, the seat is up high, and with lots of visibility. The snow "rooster tail" from the vehicle in front of you reduces visibility, specially if you are sitting in a small car instead of a truck.
If i were moving to a new location I would get to know the locals and pick their brains of what is working for them.
I would want a vehicle that there are parts for locally .not just a dealership .
I would want 2 sets of wheels and tires for summer and tires for winter . its easy enough to change them at home.
I would want to know where i have to park both work and home and how the house is situated front facing south or west ideally. driveway on a hill , snow shoveling challenge .
I tarp my vehicle in snow seasons , makes it easier to clear and easier to start and frostless windows and locks that receive their key with out argument. If the car battery dies how much of a hassle is it to charge or replace .
Definitely not a white car, snow ploughs cannot see them .trust me.
What does the city use for grit on the road ,cinders , walnut shells , salt , sand , Salt will attack the under carriage unless it's coated to resist it . look for your self, never assume .
If you are not skilled in snow , before it snows find a big clear parking lot you can practice in , then some snowy night no cars around practice breaking traction in a turn and straitening out. do it till it becomes natural , don't stop till it is natural .the investment is worth it.
Cary chains for the tires and a tow rope for getting help or being help , food that can tolerate freezing ,blankets and other survival gear for your self.
In a desperate situation where the vehicle is stuck in the middle of no where, i'd use the tarp to cover the vehicle leaving the exhaust pipe clear . Even if the engine is not running you will stay warmer than without it .
Sandwiching the fabric in the door jamb will keep it from flying away.
Perhaps that's the case where you live at, but not in the interior of Alaska. In here there is a combination of every drive system, even some RWD trucks and cars. I can take a photo of a crowded parking lot of a supermarket, and the photo will show lots of cars, trucks, and SUV's. A great number of side roads in the interior of Alaska are graveled, not paved. Some of the "highways" we have are partially paved, too. For example, the Steese Highway is paved 80 miles out of Fairbanks; the Denali Highway is paved part of the way. We drive on the snow-packed side roads and graveled highways.
The said, I also drive a 2001 Silverado when we have snow storms, not necessarily because my Toyota car can't make it, but because the truck is quite safer, the seat is up high, and with lots of visibility. The snow "rooster tail" from the vehicle in front of you reduces visibility, specially if you are sitting in a small car instead of a truck.
You can also run studded tires if you want, game changer.
You can also run studded tires if you want, game changer.
Don't need them with the truck, but have a set of Blizzack on my car during the winter months. These winter tires are very popular in the interior of Alaska where the roads get quite icy, and handle the snow well. The truck has all-season tires with semi-aggressive tread, and a slightly softer rubber compound.
Jeep (any of them)
Toyota 4Runner
Toyota Highlander
Toyota Land Cruiser
I had a 2009 Subaru Forester that I bought so my wife would drive it, but she didn't like it at all. The traction was good, but so was the traction offered by a 2010 RAV4 V6 4WD I traded the Subaru for. I handed the key to my wife, of course, and she loves it. During the winter months it wears a set of Blizzak, and the rest of the year a set of all season Toyo tires. While the Subaru traction system is quite good, I prefer a traction system such as the RAV4 and most SUVs, where the front wheels are engaged and the rear come into play when a skid or spin at the front is sensed by the computer, plus and extra mode where the drive system is put on 4WD.
The Silverado I drive sometimes, like most trucks, can be set so that the rear wheels are engaged all the time, plus a couple of other modes where the front wheels are engaged when a difference in wheel spin at the rear is sensed by the computer. The other mode is 4WD, but this one is seldom needed. If the truck is parked in deep snow or sleek ice, and I want to move it, then the 4WD is quite useful.
The traction/stability control incorporated in newer FWD automobiles makes a big difference when driving on ice or snow, since it helps the driver maintain control of the vehicle on lateral skids such as the ones at sharp turns. In this case both the motor and the ABS assist the driver, although the only control on the rear wheels is done by the ABS. Before traction/stability control, skids and things like that was left to the driver alone. But without the proper tires for road conditions, everything is left to the driver's experience, regardless if the vehicle has AWD and the rest.
Chevy Tahoe, hands down. Mine went almost 300,000 miles on and off road, and through water, completely submerged in the Florida swamps, twice. That's a long story though, one best told over beers.
SS
My 2001 Silverado has 203,000 miles, and running strong.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by RayinAK
Perhaps that's the case where you live at, but not in the interior of Alaska.
I think the key is the poster stating 'in the snow belt'. Having lived in the Lake Erie snowbelt in a past life, Alaska snow and lake effect snow are quite different in makeup, intensity, and ultimate depth. I remember one storm where we got 7 feet of snow in a little over 36 hours. 3 footers were pretty normal. When I lived in Fairbanks I never once saw a storm like that. And only a couple of times since I've had a house in Homer.
In most Snow Belt areas it's usually: 4WD trucks, and AWD or 4WD vehicles. Front drive cars with winter tires are often just fine for living in more populated areas on paved roads. For much more rural areas, 4WD trucks or Subaru is the way to go as extra ground clearance becomes more of a factor with deeper snow depth on roads, gravel roads, and less consistent clearing of snow of the roads in a more timely fashion.
Most of New Hampshire lives in the suburban southeast corner of the state. It’s flat. Roads are paved. Roads are plowed. Everything is cancelled if it snows heavily. Most people drive sedans and rarely have snow tires. A 4wd pickup is a $45k redneck status symbol in that part of the state just like the expensive crossover is the suburban housewives status symbol. Sure, there are a few people with jobs where they have to be there but that’s infrequent. There are more who have winter plowing businesses where a pickup is a work tool. For just about everyone else, it’s not essential. It’s a status symbol.
Much of New Hampshire is in the rain shadow of the Vermont green mountains. It doesn’t get much snow. I winter at a ski resort in Vermont where I get 200” of snow in my driveway. The only road in New Hampshire that sees that much snow is the Mount Washington toll road and it’s closed all winter. With 200” in my driveway, I might have 3 or 4 days per winter where I’d need 4wd and some ground clearance to get in and out on a big powder day. Otherwise, it’s a convenience so I don’t have to shovel and so I can get to the parking lot for first chair on a powder day. I had VW GTIs with Nokians as my daily driver for 15 years. It was pretty unusual to have to take my SUV because the GTI wasn’t moving until the plow guy showed up. In mud month, I could always get the GTI in and out.
If you’re driving the Roxbury Gap every day to get to work at Sugarbush, by all means drive a lifted pickup. That road is awful during mud month. That might be 1% people in the state of Vermont with those kinds of conditions.
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