"Everyone always says"

and remember, "most people are freakin' stupid".

It ALL depends on the tires, and the balance of the car. RWD Volvos are well balanced and handle very well in the snow, with the appropriate tires.

With good tires, ABS brakes, locking differential, I'm pretty happy in the REALLY bad ice and snow. And believe it or not, I shame a lot of SUVs especially out on the highway. And it isn't even a challenge for me--I'm just cruising at a very comfortable speed, while they're tryin to keep their battleships lined up in the slush and snow tracks.

My last RWD Volvo wagon, a 240 (w/ABS brakes) was a fantastic car to have in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, in the winter. I never got stuck anywhere, once. I drove up all the ski hills, all across the U.P., and traveled some of the forest roads even. No scary moments that I can remember.

My mom was horrified when she drove her 240 wagon without the Gislaved Nord Frost II tires that she used to have. That car was virtually unstoppable. She also had a Mercury Cougar that felt like someone greased the tires when it snowed. It was not very good in the snow. That was a RWD car too... but a different animal.

But if you dump a set of performance tires on it and expect it to be worthy of 2" of snowfall... it won't be.

Most of the people who talk about RWD remember some of the light, ill balanced, high powered Detroit RWD cars. Those would be pretty bad in snow.
--
Chris Herbst, in Wisconsin.