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Originally Posted by hammer  How much does ground clearance factor in to getting around in the snow? I remember talking to a few people at the auto show about the Toyota Prius and they said that the car didn't have much ground clearance, which made it trickier to drive in the snow. Not that the ground clearance of a large SUV or Jeep is needed... |
Snow tires are more of an issue, IMO, in most conditions. Depends on the type of snow too. I have easily drove right through over half a foot (above my ground clearance on a small coupe) of very dense and heavy snow. More of a concern would be junk in the snow getting up in the under carriage. Certainly big snow totals would favor a higher ground clearance vehicle with snows, but below critical clearance levels, snows are more important as it won't matter that the higher ground clearance vehicles are above the snow if the tires are not gripping. How often do people need to drive through more than 6" of untouched snow aside from backing out of a parking space? Not really a factor for most drivers in my mind.