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Old 11-14-2016, 12:47 PM
 
5 posts, read 6,897 times
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I am visiting the city for 4 days in December. I am trying to decide on a rental car. Would I need to get All wheel or 4 wheel drive to be safe driving around the city? I did not know if there will be snow/ice on the ground by then. We plan on making it as far north as Cranberry TWP also...
Thanks!
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Old 11-14-2016, 05:06 PM
 
Location: Squirrel Hill PA
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You probably don't need 4x4 in December. We do sometimes get snow/ice but in general snowfalls are light and roads will be fine. It is possible to have more challenging driving conditions for part of a day but very unlikely we will have something requiring 4x4. I would make the decision just before you come and get a look at the weather forecast for that coming week. We have had a very mild autumn so far and it is not impossible for us to go without measurable snowfall well into December or even January.
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Old 11-14-2016, 05:23 PM
 
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A front wheel drive car can do 90% of winter driving.
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Old 11-14-2016, 05:24 PM
 
Location: Manchester
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I have lived here 13 years and only needed to use 4WD once and it was because I refused to go slightly out of my way to take a flatter street....
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Old 11-14-2016, 05:37 PM
 
Location: Pittsburgh, PA
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I have only owned compact cars in my life and live on a steep hill as well and have always done ok.
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Old 11-15-2016, 07:35 AM
 
Location: Western PA
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I used to have 4WD and never used it in the ten years I had the vehicle. We don't get crushing snowstorms (maybe once every decade or so - 1993 and 2010 were the only two since I've lived here). It generally doesn't snow very much until after Christmas, and snowfalls are usually pretty light.
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Old 11-15-2016, 07:36 AM
 
Location: Close to Pittsburgh, but NOT Pittsburgh ('cause I don't pay CoP taxes)
252 posts, read 236,315 times
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I think only you know the answer to that question. The folks above are correct -- there probably won't be terribly difficult conditions, but we live here and deal with it (and we still complain about the craziness we see with the first snowfall).

If your peace of mind is worth the difference in cost between a four-wheel drive and a front wheel drive, then I think the upgrade is probably well worth it.
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Old 11-15-2016, 07:59 AM
 
Location: Pixburgh
1,214 posts, read 1,457,963 times
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depends where you live. even in mild winters there are times when i wouldn't be able to get home in my vw and have to take my old 4wd that otherwise sits there all year.

recent years that has been after the new year though, and supposedly this is the hottest year of all time o.O so id gamble on being ok.
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Old 11-15-2016, 08:06 AM
 
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There's no real downside to renting an AWD, so I would say why not? That way you're covered if we happen to get snow.
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Old 11-15-2016, 08:50 AM
 
3,595 posts, read 3,394,276 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by prnlvsxy View Post
There's no real downside to renting an AWD, so I would say why not? That way you're covered if we happen to get snow.
Awd and 4x4 can be hundreds more a week.
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