Anonymous wrote:You need an SUV (for clearance) with 4WD and top quality snow tires. We like Blizzeks.

Depending on how remote you are, check on number of dealerships in area and base your choice on that. For example, where we are, we have a Suburban because the GM dealership is the main one. Toyota and lots of European cars are difficult to service

Lol. If OP is moving to the front range she doesn’t need any of this. And lol at Toyotas being difficult to service.

Anonymous wrote:I grew up in Colorado. Any car is fine. They treat the roads and plow. My best Colorado advice for you is to NOT buy or rent a house facing North. Snow melts quickly on your driveway and sidewalk unless your house faces north.

Also a Colorado native and generally agree, except for rear wheel drive cars. They are decidedly NOT fine in the snow. No need for AWD/4WD for the most part. It only helps if you have to power your way out of significant snow. If you live in a city, which most people in Colorado do, this is not going to be an issue for you. Any front wheel drive car will be just fine. Know if you are driving anything like a pick up, you will likely need some weight in the back in the winter unless you want to be all over the road. Snow tires nice and helpful in the winter but solid all season tires with good traction are fine too.

The beauty of Colorado is its sunny almost every day. It snows, roads get plowed, and they are completely clear the next day after the sun comes out. You don't really get snowed in for multiple days. Heck, when I lived there (through college) we didn't even get a single snow day from school from middle school until my senior year of college. Its not the arctic tundra most people seem to think it is.

You need an SUV (for clearance) with 4WD and top quality snow tires. We like Blizzeks.

Depending on how remote you are, check on number of dealerships in area and base your choice on that. For example, where we are, we have a Suburban because the GM dealership is the main one. Toyota and lots of European cars are difficult to service

How big is your family?
Where in Colorado?

What kind of vehicle do you currently have? You probably only need to buy some tires.

A new Ford Bronco would be my mountain west dream ride.

Otherwise, a Subaru (Outback, Forester), Toyota (4 Runner or RAV-4), or Jeep (any) would fit the bill and are quite popular in Colorado.

Pickup trucks are also very popular in Colorado.

Anonymous wrote:I grew up in Colorado. Any car is fine. They treat the roads and plow. My best Colorado advice for you is to NOT buy or rent a house facing North. Snow melts quickly on your driveway and sidewalk unless your house faces north.

Where did you grow up? I grew up in the mountains and that wasn't true for me. If you live in a larger city and mostly just drive around town, yes. But otherwise it really is helpful to have a vehicle that can handle winter weather. Then you don't wind up having to make choices like "Well, we'd love to join you in Estes Park this weekend but I worry about our car on the roads this time of year."

Maybe a saab or a ford probe?

I grew up in Colorado. Any car is fine. They treat the roads and plow. My best Colorado advice for you is to NOT buy or rent a house facing North. Snow melts quickly on your driveway and sidewalk unless your house faces north.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The best question is where in Colorado is the OP planning on living?

That's really true, but realistically, if OP gets some kind of AWD/4WD vehicle with good all weather tires, it will work for any part of the state.

Snow tires are very helpful. It sounds like OP isn't experienced with winter driving at all and winter tires could prevent some unpleasant or dangerous situations.

Snow tires are a pain. You are really not supposed to drive on them all year, which means switching out every year. And they can be pricy. You can manage the price a bit if you just buy two and then rotate them, but it's still annoying.

AWD/4WD plus all weather tires is more than adequate for someone living on the Front Range. And then you just have to be smart -- check road conditions before you drive in the mountains, and don't get cocky. Driving over a mountain pass in a snowstorm or icy conditions is no joke and you have to be really careful even if you have snow tires or chains. But it's easy to avoid if you need to.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The best question is where in Colorado is the OP planning on living?

That's really true, but realistically, if OP gets some kind of AWD/4WD vehicle with good all weather tires, it will work for any part of the state.

Snow tires are very helpful. It sounds like OP isn't experienced with winter driving at all and winter tires could prevent some unpleasant or dangerous situations.

Anonymous wrote:The best question is where in Colorado is the OP planning on living?

That's really true, but realistically, if OP gets some kind of AWD/4WD vehicle with good all weather tires, it will work for any part of the state.

The best question is where in Colorado is the OP planning on living?

Anonymous wrote:Check out Jeep and Toyota, honestly. But the reason people recommend Subaru is because of the all-wheel drive. It's really useful in Colorado. So look for something with AW drive or 4W drive, and also invest in all weather tires (you likely do not need snow tires or chains unless you are living in one of the high altitude mountain towns).

And for the record, the Eastern plains of Colorado are the Midwest -- just ask the farmers and small town folks out there. The Front Range and much of the Western Slope are the Mountain West. But Southwest Colorado is part of the Southwest and has more in common with New Mexico/Arizona.

Thank you for explaining the geographic terms of Colorado!

—-OP

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here, thank you all. I’m not really a fan of Subaru, are there any other brands anyone would recommend?

I think the reason people are recommending Subaru is that it checks all of your boxes. This is based on their/our experience with mountain terrain and car ownership.

What kinds of cars do you usually like?

I’d like something similar to a Jeep Renegade or Toyota Forerunner

Check out Jeep and Toyota, honestly. But the reason people recommend Subaru is because of the all-wheel drive. It's really useful in Colorado. So look for something with AW drive or 4W drive, and also invest in all weather tires (you likely do not need snow tires or chains unless you are living in one of the high altitude mountain towns).

And for the record, the Eastern plains of Colorado are the Midwest -- just ask the farmers and small town folks out there. The Front Range and much of the Western Slope are the Mountain West. But Southwest Colorado is part of the Southwest and has more in common with New Mexico/Arizona.