[venturaII]

The 86, with 4 good snows and a reasonably skilled driver, is perfectly fine in the snow. Is it as good as an Audi Quattro Coupe with locked diffs and studs? No..and no one is saying that. If we're having this discussion it's because you daily drive this car, so you need to weigh benefit and penalties for having that level of traction. The few times a winter that you ACTUALLY need to engage maximum traction capabilities is few compared to the amount of time the rest of the season (and the rest of the year) where you're driving on roads that have been cleared and the 86 is at no disadvantage whatsoever. In those cases, 4 snow tires and some common sense can get you anywhere you'd ever want to take this car. Id rather have the 86 any day over having to drag around the poor handling and weight associated with an AWD system.