Top ten winter cars that can help you get through the upcoming sleet and snow may surprise you. If you are someone that drives in snowy winter conditions you already know the importance of having a vehicle that can get you through the weather safely.

In fact, your very life can depend on the car that gets you through the snow.

I grew up and learned to drive in Minnesota and I know the importance of having a vehicle that can get your through the deep snow. The car you drive through in-climate weather determines whether you arrive at your destination or get stuck for hours on end.

It’s no fun to be stuck in the cold wintry weather so let’s review the top 10 winter cars:

Suzuki Sx4

This crossover costs around $17,000. This all-wheel drive and its 4 cylinder engine will hold 5 passengers. Because of the 4-wheel Anti-lock Brake System (ABS) with Electronic Brake-Force Distribution (EBD) function, this vehicle will carry you safely through the snowy winters.

Kia Sportage

This crossover SUV runs around $18,500. Here you have a reasonable inexpensive all-wheel drive that helps hold traction. The Sportage has heated front seats to warm you up during the winters as well as a leather-wrapped steering wheel. This SUV carries 5 passengers.

Ford Fusion AWD

This 4 door all-wheel drive will set you back about $20,000. The all-wheel drive works well on slippery roadways. It boasts a 6 speed transmission and 18″ aluminum wheels and high performance tires as well as agile handling.

Subaru Impreza

Here is a 4 door hatchback which will cost around $17,500. It has a 4 cylinder Subaru Box engine with symmetrical all-wheel drive. Subaru’s Vehicle Dynamics Control helps to keep this vehicle square on the ground through rough, snowy weather.

Mazda CX7

This sporty looking crossover will cost you around $21,900. It has 5 speed automatic transmissions with 161 horsepower and front wheel drive. In addition it has Dynamic Stability Control to help the vehicle stay solid on the roadway.

BMW 328ix

This 4 door sedan will run around $36,600. With BMW you get one of the most comfortable rides with the one of the safest structures in the auto industry. Brake drying and brake stand-by features added to Dynamic Traction Control will keep this baby safe on the road.

Subaru Forester XT

This premium SUV costs about $27,095. With its turbo charged Subaru Boxer engine has 224 horsepower. In addition it has 8.9 ground clearances which helps get through the snowy conditions more easily.

Acura MDX

With around $42,930 you can own this luxury SUV. It has a V-TEC V-6 engine with 300 horsepower and comfortable 7 passenger seating. Its super handling all-wheel drive and performance breaking will help get you through any weather conditions.

Mercedes E-Class Sedan

This 4-door sedan begins at $50,490. It holds a direct injected V-6 engine and twin turbo V-8 makes this car both smooth and green-smart. The suspension boasts of a more comfortable ride as well as adjusts the damping in accordance to the road making this sedan safe for winter conditions.

Audi A6 4.2

For starting at around $50,575 you can own this classy car. This car has direct injection and super charging that allows the engine to maximize full power at almost any speed. It has an all-wheel drive system self-locking center differential to allow the car to hug the road, even in unfavorable weather.

A quad bike is a four-wheeled bike which is great for sporting enterprises as they are rough and they can act upon any kind of surface. These bikes give you much refreshment and titillation. If you are looking forward to buy your own quad and searching for the most suitable one for you then this article would be very useful. You will get to know distinctive types of quads for sale.

The leading types of a quad include sport, on road, and off road ones. Quads used for beneficial directions usually consist of a four wheel drive and are more bulky as compared to the bikes used for amusement. They are available with firm suspensions and they also have ability to bear a weight of approximately 250 pounds. They are specifically designed to be used on rough areas. The choice of buying such bike is quite ideal if you are attached with carrying heavy loads with you as they can help you do so! Most of the quads have skid plates fixed.

Off road quads are manufactured while keeping unbalanced lands in mind. It does not contain a horn, headlight and mirror which makes it illegal to be driven on the road as the name shows “Off road”. The On road ones are fully capable to be driven on road as it comes with all of the above things. So, making a choice of buying an on road bike is better as it can be driven on the road as well as off the road.

The sport bikes are usually smaller. These have a really nice pick-up hence can be instantly accelerated. This is the reason they are titled “Sport Bikes”. They are two wheel drive vehicles able to expeditiously machinate, they have quick movement which fascinates the driver. They mostly are used in racing.

At times you are searching for quad bikes, keep it in mind that miniature vehicles are usually given less powerful engines such as 50cc whereas the vehicles that are quite big have 1000cc engines or more.

Less powerful engines are suitable for children as they should not speed up in order to be safe.

You must test drive the bike you are going to buy to see whether it satisfies your needs or not. Be sure to be under expert supervision as the larger vehicles can be dangerous. Also be sure to take all of the safety measures!

One of the most recognised and plagiarised car designs in the World, immortalised in films such as The Italian Job, the Mini became an icon of British design during the swinging sixties in London and around the globe.

The Mini was the brainchild and end product of a two year research project by the chain-smoking Sir Alec Issigonis for the British Motor Company (BMC) started in 1957 and launched to an astounded public in 1959.

The Mini was born out of economic necessity and demonstrated the differences in the mindsets of US and British car owners at the time.

In America, multi-laned freeways were springing up everywhere and the 1950′s was a time of indulgence in classic muscle cars and massive engined saloons. Fuel and economy was not a consideration.

However in Europe the mindset and zeitgeist was totally different, with the first two lane UK motorway not opened until 1959.

In 1956 petrol rationing had been reintroduced in the UK due to the Suez Crisis. When Egyptian leader General Nasser shut the Suez Canal, Britain’s largest oil supplier of the time, Burmah Oil, which operated out of Persia, had to find alternative and much longer routes.

Demand for sales of small economic to run cars soon outstripped supply and this gap was filled by the famous two seater ‘bubble cars’ and other strange machines of German origin like the gull winged doors on the three wheeled Messerschmitt Kabinenroller (cabinscooter) KR175 and KR200.

Against this background, BMC commissioned Issigonis to come up with a world-beating small car to replace its aging Morris Minor, a previously untested idea.

The Mini’s ingenious concept and design meant it offered a staggeringly large amount of interior space for what was essentially a 10 foot long car. The short wheelbase meant the Mini was extremely maneuverable and the car only weighed just 587 kg.

When Issigonis set to work he imagined an ultra compact cube to house four passengers, fronted by a space-saving front wheel drive system. However in a flash of genius he positioned the engine transversely across the engine well with the gearbox underneath it, to keep the drive-train super compact and outside his cube, and in doing so he invented the transverse engine.

The prototypes were fitted with a 950cc Morris Minor engine which could reach speeds of 92 mph, but the production car was first released with a more limited 848cc BMC engine that had a top speed of 72 mph.

Every available space was utilised in the design of the BMC Mini.

The car had tiny ten inch wheels in very tight wheel arches. Inside the car was basic with novel storage drawers in the doors but nowhere to put a radio on a small dialled facia. Issigonis did however include an ashtray!

Issigonis couldn’t have possibly known that his cube car would go on to be voted in 1999 the second most influential car ever built, behind the Model T Ford.

BMC launched the first Mini Mark 1 in August 1959 under the brands Austin Seven Mini and Morris Mini Minor. They were manufactured at the respective Austin and Morris plants at Longbridge in Birmingham and Cowley down the road in Oxford.

The basic Mini cost just £496 when it was launched, the cheapest car in Britain.

Despite rapidly developing a cult following, and the car being driven by Stars such as Steve McQueen, Paul McCartney and Margot Fonteyn, initial sales were extremely slow and by the end of 1960 only 116,000 Minis had been sold, way below BMC’s production capacity.

The car didn’t reach its peak sales for another eleven years when in 1971 318,475 new Minis were sold.

It was also rumored by competitors Ford that the basic BMC Mini cost more to produce than it was sold for.

BMC responded by saying that the profits were made by having additional extras to the basic model, such as a radio, but on inspection the records show that the Mini did not make a profit for the company until 1982.

As a nationalised company with considerations of employees and trade unions, coupled with the investment in technology, BLMC as BMC became, could not halt a slightly loss making production.

So Mini production continued until 2000 and over 5,380,000 cars were built, making the Mini the most successful all British car ever made.

Dave Healey is a specialist motor underwriter who has been underwriting Classic Mini Insurance since his career began. Is is now a simple process to compare Mini Insurance online, as there are many specialist classic car insurance providers who offer exclusive Mini Insurance schemes.