I drove a Rabbit in the snow during th 1970s with all season radials and never had problems. Well, once I got stuck when I tried to drive through a 3 or 4 foot high snow drift, but I backed up and drove on.
I agree with Insightful, get the car your wife likes, problem solved, you’ve killed two birds with one stone. Rocketman
It it wasn’t for the kids and the wife, the economy and seating, I would recomend a truck.
FYI - Got a 2006 Buick Lucerne with an apparent steering fluid leak for $3900… has 216,000 miles but has been garaged and 1 owner that took meticulous care of it. The car looks 1 year old inside, outside and underneath.
You may have done well. In his book “What You Should Know About Cars” published in the early 1960s, Tom McCahill made the following statement “If I were buying a low priced used car,I would check the body and and chassis. Everything else is cheap by comparison. Bodywork is expensive and a bent frame is,impossible”. In today’s unit construction cars, a rusted underbody is impossible.
melott wrote:
Why is that, for a rear-wheel drive car?
Cars don’t just go. They also turn and stop. If you want to turn without losing control and stop in the shortest possible distance, then you want winter tires on all four corners.
Congratulations @spudmuffin. Either monitor the steering fluid leak or get it fixed immediately. If you know there is a leak, you may have had it inspected befor you bought it. If not, pay about $100 now and get the inspection done. Then prioritize repairs and work the list down to zero. This will also confirm you have a steering leak.