My Uncle Mark my dads brother thinks his 2005 subaru outback awd would do better in snow

[djfllmn]

some other things to consider...

I have an AWD Edge, and it handles semi plowed/ unplowed roads (under 6 inches of snow) much better than my Ranger on 31" tires and 4wd. the best thing about the Edge is as Lil Blue mentions, is the weight distribution. And I don't have to think about what I am doing. press the gas and go, turn the wheel to where I want and it goes. no brain power. Ice on the other hand can be a bit more tricky, but even on ice the Edge handles better.

The Ranger, you have to use your brain. coming to a stop sign and the grade in the road is a bit uphill, you gotta think and have the 4wd engaged. without extra weight in the back, the back end can kick out on you. No traction control or ABS, so that makes a difference. LSD makes it better though. Now as for having fun, the Ranger beats the Edge hands down in playing in the snow. and for the most part, if it is in 4wd, the truck usually goes where the front wheels are pointed, even if the back end is all over the place.

AJ

what year edge? My wife’s 2013 is a tank in the snow

 

[97RangerXLT]

what year edge? My wife’s 2013 is a tank in the snow

2020. it is a tank in the snow. wide and defintely sure footed. i just get in and go.

AJ

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

My wife's 08 Edge was a beast in snow... until it wasn't.

The state plows three lanes of snow across the end of our gravel road which comes uphill to meet the highway.

More than once I had to leave work and come back home so I could drag the turtle out of the snow with my dumb 4wd F-150 and drive her to work.

Somewhere where they kinda try to keep up plowing it would be great. In the sticks where it takes the county 2-3 days to make their rounds it wasn't super great.

It might have handled better i dunno, used to manual 4wd i didn't push it knowing the automatic AWD would mask actual road conditions thar my 4wd would tell me about.

 

[rusty ol ranger]

My wife's 08 Edge was a beast in snow... until it wasn't.

The state plows three lanes of snow across the end of our gravel road which comes uphill to meet the highway.

More than once I had to leave work and come back home so I could drag the turtle out of the snow with my dumb 4wd F-150 and drive her to work.

Somewhere where they kinda try to keep up plowing it would be great. In the sticks where it takes the county 2-3 days to make their rounds it wasn't super great.

It might have handled better i dunno, used to manual 4wd i didn't push it knowing the automatic AWD would mask actual road conditions thar my 4wd would tell me about.

My wife has called me a bunch of times to rescue her from work when it snows....the parking lot goes up an incline to the road where there is yet another incline.

Ive climbed it leaving in the snow in my 2wd ranger (2nd gear, dubious amounts of throttle, and good tires help here)

But of the times shes called...id say 90% of the time its because she forgets to shut the traction control off. Her escape (2wd) seemed worse then the fusion....but most times i climb in it, shut it off, stand on it and zig zag the wheels and it comes on up

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

My wife has called me a bunch of times to rescue her from work when it snows....the parking lot goes up an incline to the road where there is yet another incline.

Ive climbed it leaving in the snow in my 2wd ranger (2nd gear, dubious amounts of throttle, and good tires help here)

But of the times shes called...id say 90% of the time its because she forgets to shut the traction control off. Her escape (2wd) seemed worse then the fusion....but most times i climb in it, shut it off, stand on it and zig zag the wheels and it comes on up

Her TC was rather crude, it actively tried to ditch me when we made a wrong turn and the gravel road switched to mud.

It kept pulling power, it was my first experience with TC so it took me a bit to realize what the heck was going on. It crawl out and then slide back in, crawl out and slide back in. Once it clicked what it was doing I waited until it clawed out, mashed the brake and neutralized the TC. Then I turned around and just drove it back out. Also rammed a 1/2" steel rod thru a tire right before I got it back on gravel so I got to roll around in the muddy gravel while it was snowing and figure out how to change the tire in the dark. That car earned many brownie points that night..

I was really used to my old trucks that just did as they are told. TC on my 2016 and our Bronco is much more seemless.

 

[pentode]

If your hobby is doing head gaskets, the Subaru wins by a country mile.

j/k I have a soft spot for Subaru too. As bobbywalter and others have said, it really depends on the circumstances. Winter rally stage, Subaru wins every time. Winter rock crawl, Ranger.