What new car would you suggest for someone who commutes in winter?

[Evoman]

My fiancee is looking to buy a new car that she could use to safely commute in the cold, snowy Canadian winter. Today she test drove a Subaru Impreza and she absolutely loved it. It's got 4 wheel drive, so I'm pretty sure it would be nice to drive in winter. Only problem is that it's a bit on the pricey side.

What do you guys think of the Impreza?

We don't want or need an SUV, and we would rather have something with pretty good fuel economy.

Any car suggestions? Are you happy with a new car you have bought lately?

[a la izquierda]

1. Try the 4wd CX5 from Mazda.

I just bought a FWD manual transmission and it does about 35mpg highway.

[denbot]

2. Anything all wheel drive.

Better traction equals better safety come winter.

[Evoman]

4. any particular recommendations ? nt

[femmocrat]

3. I used to have a Subaru. It went anywhere in the snow. Great small SUV.

My SIL used to have a long commute through the western PA mountains. She had a Honda Pilot that she swore by. During a blizzard, she was the only one who could get to work and she lived the farthest away.

I wouldn't be without 4-wheel drive in PA. Where we live is all hills and winding two-lane roads. Of course, the state road crews consider us low-priority, so a lot of mornings we drive at our own risk!

[NYC_SKP]

5. Impreza is the entry level price Subaru, and hard to beat.

Link: http://rumors.automobilemag.com/the-top-10-cheapest-awd-cars-190667.html/0/

How about one that's got a year or two on it but still under warranty?

Even a few months old, a car will cost thousands less!

[awoke_in_2003]

6. A junker...

when I lived in Cleveland, which uses salt, it was prudent to have a beater car so your good one didn't rust out in three years.

[Evoman]

9. we have a junker

Problem is, my partner commutes to a small town and I'm afraid of it breaking down on her. I'd pay anything to keep her safe.

[awoke_in_2003]

11. I owned a couple of cars...

that were tanks but looked like crap. My 78 LTD, in 1990, ran like a top.

[NightWatcher]

7. A moving truck...come to crazy Florida

The weather makes the crazy people tolerable.

[Evoman]

8. ha...and give up my good Canadian healthcare? Not likely!

[ConcernedCanuk]

20. yep - I got that part! - never leaving Canada.

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Check my profile if you wish

I'm a licensed Auto and Truck mechanic in Ontario (retired)

Don't know about now, but 30 years ago Subaru was one of the most reliable vehicles.

I think one of the main things to consider is service -

Do you live close enough to a dealer than can effect repairs?

That in my opinion is a major consideration of what to buy.

Whatever you buy will eventually need service/repairs.

Buy something, even if it is not your preference,

that can be maintained close to home.

CC

[newcriminal]

10. My husband loves his jeep.

We have both a wrangler and a liberty.

[jakeXT]

12. How often do they clean the roads?

You could damage the car in snow drifts, a SUV would be better for uncleaned roads.

[ConcernedCanuk]

21. Subarus come in 4 wheel drive

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and they are tough

I worked on them.

CC

[jakeXT]

33. I'm talking about ground clearance, there is a SUV version of the Impreza.

Anyone who lives where an eight-inch dump of snow doesn’t raise a frost-covered eyebrow knows that all-wheel drive isn’t enough: if you want to get through deep snow you need ground clearance, too.

That is the point of the 2013 Subaru XV Crosstrek, which is basically a modified Impreza compact hatchback operating at, well, a higher level. While the Impreza has 5.7 inches of ground clearance, the Crosstrek has 8.7 inches. That’s nearly as much as the Chevrolet Tahoe, a conventional S.U.V.

Those extra three inches seriously reduce the chance of bogging down in deep snow, whether on an unplowed road or while clambering over the mounds left by snowplows in front of side roads and driveways.

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/03/automobiles/autoreviews/not-so-quiet-or-quick-but-it-scoots-over-snow.html?_r=0

[laundry_queen]

35. The problem is you don't want to be too heavy

when you have a lot of deep fluffy snow on the roads - not just the roads, but parking lots too - a heavier vehicle tends to sink. At my kids' school a few years ago, when we were dealing with record snowfalls, everyone who had a minivan without all-wheel-drive got stuck dropping of their kids for the Christmas concert. I was lucky, I got out because I have AWD, but just barely. Anyone with a small car, even if it was just FWD was okay too - they didn't sink into the deep snow as much. As a young adult, I had a tiny little chevy sprint and had no issues with really super deep snow - I just floated on top of it, LOL. But yeah, the mounds left by the snowplows are even a challenge for my AWD minivan (it's an Uplander, so it looks SUV'ish).

I have heard really good things about the particular vehicle the OP was talking about.

[jakeXT]

36. I did the floating in a BMW RWD this year,

the sounds it made driving over chunks of ice and snow made me cringe. I wished it had X-Drive, but even more I wanted a higher ride .

[cliffordu]

13. ANY Subaru.

I believe they could be the best bang for the buck in the world.

[Agschmid]

18. Yup.

I call my legacy the "tank" and I don't usually have to put snow tires on it either.

[Tab]

14. I would have said a Saab

but sadly they are no more now.

It seems to me that if you want something that runs in snow you should buy it from a company that lives in snow (e.g.: Sweden) and not Asia or whatever.

Sadly, my Saab 9-5 is probably the last Saab I'll ever own.

[JanMichael]

15. get a 2008 or 2009 Subaru with a 3 year extended policy.

do not pay 900 for two years. tell them you will pay 50 bucks over their cost which will be about 850 for three years. We did this last year.

and outback or legacy sedan would be great. they are tanks, seriously they are, and subaru has been making all wheel drive a lot longer than the newcomers.

[westerebus]

16. Subaru.

Solid well made and dependable. Their gas millage is pretty good too for AWD. I get 22/30 with an automatic legacy sedan.

[Agschmid]

19. My 2012 legacy gets me about 31.5 on average...

I do mostly highway but where I am that means alot of stop and go, I have a manual.

Love it.

[Bunnahabhain]

17. Audi has

probably the best AWD system in a car. It is so dominating that it has been banned by some racing bodies in the past.

Whatever you decide on remember snow tires are the key.

[ConcernedCanuk]

22. As I mentioned to the OP

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SERVICE should be the main criteria.

Not too many up here know squat about an Audi,

although I have worked on a couple in the past, LONG before all the computerized shit came along.

Audis are well engineered cars, but ya gotta be near a dealer for repairs with this computerized shit.

Gotta have service close.

CC

[Bunnahabhain]

23. Not knowing exactly where you live

I of course had no idea you were not near an Audi dealership. They're all over GTA.

[ConcernedCanuk]

27. Ok - TO - go for it then

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I live in a small town 70 klicks from North Bay

If you'd checked my profile, you would know exactly where.

I used to live in TO.

Islington, then North York, and after that my parents lived in Mississauga after we all left the "nest"

But I would then prefer a Subaru over Audi - Subaru been doing AWD for over 3 decades.

Even Kia, Toyota, Honda, Mitsubishi have good 4x4s/SUV/AWD stuff.

Myself, I got a monster old gas-gobblin 79 F150 4x4

I don't put much mileage on, being retired and all,

and I can repair it myself, don't need a computer to figure out what's going on.

And us ole mechanics just HATE the idea of paying some young buck $100/hr to mess with our vehicles.

So I'm keeping it - my labour is free, and I know how to get deals on parts:

More than pay for the extra gas I use.

Don't know if it's on-line now, probably is though - way back when I would buy a book called "Lemon-Aid" for cars.

It was a book that would tell you the repair history of used vehicles going back 5 years or so.

I suggest checking that out - it was pretty accurate.

It's only August - take your time.

Snow is a few months off,

hopefully!

CC

[Bunnahabhain]

31. As I said earlier

Audi's is industry leading AWD. Back in the 80s and 90s their Quattro was banned from road racing as it was too dominating. This was a suggest for the OP, of course, who said he did not want an SUV. He said he wanted to keep his wife safe at any cost so I suggested the best AWD I know of in a car (we drive SUVs).

[Tab]

24. Although I answered earlier with a specific car that you can't get anymore :(

As someone who has driven his whole life in Vermont and New Hampshire.... (and, yes, near the Canadian border and into Canada)

- At a minimum you want front wheel drive. Fortunately, that's nearly all current cars.
- Four wheel drive helps you get out of trouble, but it doesn't always keep you from getting into trouble. Which leads to my next point...
- Four wheel drive can also instill a sense of overconfidence
- An SUV is counter productive - you are right to avoid SUVs, economics aside. They have a higher center of gravity, thus more tipping.
- A low center of gravity is your friend, snow-wise
- Something with high weight over the (front) drive wheels is your friend. Saabs excelled at this, but sadly you can't get them new anymore.
- If a Subaru is out of your price range, I suspect a Volvo is too (or an Audi), but that would be my next go-to car
- The last Subaru I owned was a 1980, and we had a number of them over the years (topping off at 1980) and they were boxy little things and everything would go to hell all at once, it seemed - it'd be fine, then it'd all break down over a 3 month period.
- That said, I've heard nothing but good things in the years since.
- Personally, as an overall car, I like my Honda.

- And finally, and YMMV, skip studded snow tires but just go with a darn good snow tire. The tire is the one point of failure between your car and the road. If the tire sucks, the rest of the car doesn't mean anything. If you just have a cheesy-assed all-weather, you've thrown the value of the car away.

-And finally, finally - keep some jumper cables in the car and know how to use them.

(and for why I say skip studded snow tires, they're okay if you have to drive on ice the whole time, but for regular snow driving the snow tends to collect around the stud, making it, IMHO, actually worse than a regular tire without studs).

On edit: I'd probably prefer a used car and invest in snow tires, than get a new car with everyday tires. Snow tires aren't necessarily more expensive, but they're a second set that you'd have to keep around. On the other, after the initial purchase, you just swap them out twice a year. If I had to pick a single safety point, I'd pick the tires.

[Tab]

25. And hey

I didn't even notice the name on the post. How you doing, man? Stay safe in the snow.

[ConcernedCanuk]

29. Have you ever driven a car with studded tires?

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I have

and the handling of the car, never-mind ice, which I rarely experienced, they give superior traction and steering, and are amazing at cornering on packed plowed (or unplowed) snowy roads by stopping the ass end of the vehicle from sliding sideways.

Taxi drivers up here swear by them on their regular 2 wheel/rear wheel drive cabs.

"the snow tends to collect around the stud "

Where the hell did you ever get that idea?

Cannot happen, tires flex - what you are suggesting is impossible.



sheesh

CC

[Tab]

30. Yes I have

and that is exactly where I formed my opinion from.

Maybe I had shit tires, or shit studs, I don't know, however I did get them at a reputable place, and maybe the snow/ice ratio is different here, but yes, I had crappy traction and I found the studs worn and rounded, with snow collecting around the base of the stud, giving me a slipperier drive than I had without them.

Don't be so quick to sheesh.

[Bunnahabhain]

32. In deep snow

ground clearance is also your friend. SUVs have > ground clearance, and as you're probably not doing sharp corners at 70 mph in the snow, I would relax on the thought of tipping. Additionally all good SUVs have sophisticated electronics that help prevent tipping as well as improve handling from preventing body roll. If you manage to tip an SUV you are probably doing something stupid so no matter what you're driving you're going to end up in trouble.

[Tab]

37. In thinking about it

a key question is, do you live in a well plowed area? If not, an SUV is your friend, as you say. The bigger question is, are you looking for a machine to get you out of trouble (as in a poorly plowed area) or to keep you from getting into trouble in the first place (spinouts and such in a well-plowed area).

[flvegan]

26. For the money, you'll find nothing better.

I love the hatch version (personal choice). Reliable, good resale value (though I'll parrot another poster and suggest one a year or so old, let someone else eat the depreciation), excellent value for money.

Make sure it's got good tires for the weather. AWD is only half the battle there. Though I'd have to assume that if it's being sold in Canada, that's a foregone conclusion already.

Of course, if you REALLY wanted her to be safe, the Impreza WRX/STi is the better choice. Practically a rally car. Yup, that would be my excuse for buying one. Safety first!

[Taverner]

28. As an EV owner, let me say NOT AN EV OR HYBRID!!

Seriously, weather really affects the mileage on those

[LWolf]

34. I love my mom's Subaru Outback Sport.

It's a '97.

It's got good acceleration, handles well, and still gets good gas mileage...in the 30s. It handles snow and ice, except for the 2 times she tried to take it into the forest down a forest service road into snow that was just too deep. Yes, twice. She didn't learn the first time.

My '04 4wd Tacoma handles ice and deeper snow quite well, but the mileage, at about 20 mpg, is not great. It has to haul hay, firewood, etc., though, so it's a good compromise.

I'm going to read through all the responses, as I've been wondering the same myself. I keep waiting for a small hybrid wagon with awd, but it looks like I'll be waiting for some time to come.

[Arugula Latte]

38. Another vote for a Subaru.

Love ours!