If you don't live up in the foothills or mountains, you probably think that you need a lifted 4x4 or a very sophisticated four wheel drive to get any where when there is a millimeter of snow on the ground or when it is raining very hard. Well truth is, you don't. The famed British TV show, Top Gear, has showed the world several times over that all you need is some good tires and you can go just about anywhere. However there are some cars that will make you trip to the mountains when it is snowing a little bit easier. Of course, there are the SUVs like the Nissan Xterra, Toyota FJ Cruiser, and Jeep Wangler which are meant to be off the beaten path more then on it. There is a wide variety of affordable, economical cars that do well in snow, but those cars are boring so I am going to cover the more expensive, flamboyant cars. The three flamboyant cars are the Audi A8, Toyota Land Cruiser, and the Bentley Continental V8. The Audi A8 is the top of the line AWD of Quattro Audi has to offer. It has a AWD system that is proven in both in the Rally and normal world. A8 has 60-40 split AWD that offers supreme traction. The car itself is quite flamboyant with leather seats and a wood trimmed interior. You can get a W12 with 500 hp and 436 ft-lb torque. With that massive engine it can go 0-60 mph in 4.4 seconds and has a top speed of 155 mph and mpg at 14/21 its not completely out of the bucket until you get to the $72,200 base price.
Next is the Toyota Land Cruiser which might seem like its not flamboyant enough, but I think when it starts at $78,225 it is quite flamboyant. The Land Cruiser evolved from a work mule in the 60's called the FJ40. Over time it got more and more luxurious and eventually turned in to what we know to day. With very advanced traction control systems and a center diff lock, this fluffy mule is hard to get stuck. You will also be in maximum comfort with minimum work in evolved in hard off road situations. The Land Cruiser comes with a 5.7 liter, V8 with 381 hp and 401 ft-lb of torque. Its 0-60 time is a monumental 11.6 seconds and a top speed of something I could not find. It may only get 13/18 mpg but what do you suspect from a 5765 lbs mule.
Finally there is the Bentley Continental V8. Now this is a vehicle that I would never suspect to be decent on the snow, but with good tiers this monster is actualy prety good for a sports car. It does have an advanced permanent AWD that makes it possible to control all 500 hp and 487 ft-lb of torque in a slippery situation. The V8 can switch to run on only 4 cylinders to save gas. But when all 8 cylinders are ponding away the Continental can do 0-60 mph in just 4.4 seconds and go all the way up to 180 mph. The Bentley Continental V8 cost only $176,275 with 17/24 mpg.
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