Snow driving Minivan's (Moscow, Sandpoint: house, to buy, school)

[DESERTRYDER]

With our pending move to Idaho a question has come up regaurding my wife's car.
We need to replace it and was wondering if a front wheel drive miniVan with studded tires would work or do we need to get a 4x4 for getting around in the ice and snow??
The minivan would be great for us but moving to Moscow is a bit more snow and Ice than we ever drove in before.
Tell us what you think.

Thanks

[Sage of Sagle]

Front wheel drive with studded tires will do ya. With studded tires, it hooks up really well. And Moscow isn't bad for driving...especially if you're between the college and the mall area...

[DESERTRYDER]

what about if we live 10 miles in from Moscow in troy or Viola??
Will my wife auger in a ditch without 4x4 ?
I will be wise enough to buy a house on a school bus route.

[Sage of Sagle]

We're 12 miles outside of Sandpoint, give or take. We're about a mile on dirt road from the pavement. We DID choose a place with mostly FLAT dirt road for that exact reason. And in REAR wheel drive cars with studded tires we're fine. A ditch or steeper pitch could present a problem, yes. If your property is accessed via bad road then all bets are off, and you should ditch the minivan idea and look at an SUV since that will also get you good increased ride height.

Yes, it's good to buy on a school bus route, but if your driveway is 500' long and not plowed, you still have issues....

[magellan]

Living in a heavy snow area ourselves (Southwest Michigan), we have a front wheel drive Honda Odyssey that works fine in the snow. Having 4WD, I learned, does not help at all with driving in snow, and may actually be worse (too much power on all 4 wheels). The only time it helps is if you land in the ditch or a snowbank, which shouldn't happen if you are driving properly for the conditions.

[janab]

I have lived in the high Sierra Nevada, Reno/Tahoe area and now here in ID. I have always had either front wheel drive or 4 wheel drive and both handle fine. If you hit black ice you just hit it. That can happen anywhere. Smart safe driving is the thing to know and use in any terrain or weather.

[FunkyPioneer]

I have a Suburban 4x4 and a Dodge mini van I like the Suburban much much better than the mini van when the roads are bad. In fact the mini van is for summer and long trips and the Suburban is for winter driving.