Sporty winter cars

Audi's robust quattro all-wheel-drive system started life on its winning rally-race cars, so there's no question it works wonders on the street. The RS5 is an extreme take on the suave S5 coupe, with a high-revving 450-horsepower V8 engine plucked from the R8. But unless you hammer it, the RS5 is oddly gentle and quiet, and incredibly comfortable. Plus, the large, blacked-out grille looks like a menacing plow.

2013 Audi S5

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You don't need a Cayenne SUV to brave the average winter. An all-wheel-drive 911 will run just fine and prompt many more stares in snowstorms. When equipped with heated seats and a heated leather steering wheel, a Porsche coupe can really make sense if you delay some of the sillier options, such as the PDK automatic transmission. Make sure to order the sport exhaust to drench your ears in flat-6 fury.

2013 Porsche 911

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For the crazy person to whom a Bentley or a Range Rover is too old-hat for trudging through slush, the Ferrari FF is the only solution. With Ferrari's ultralightweight all-wheel-drive system and a special snow mode, the FF can truly dig through powder, its Formula One-derived V12 engine screaming sweet mercy. If a 651-horsepower sports car with a hatchback and fold-down back seats sounds weird, believe us, it's a weird feeling you could easily learn to love.

2012 Ferrari FF

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Introduced in 2003, the Continental GT signifies everything great about a modern Bentley: speed, luxury, reliability and standard all-wheel drive. These huge coupes and convertibles pack unbridled torque, whether with the W12 engine or the more efficient V8. They're swankier than five-star hotels and seal shut with the weight of a Brinks truck. They're almost as heavy as an armored car, too, but thanks to the air suspension, they never feel like it.

2012 Bentley Continental GT

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These compact Subaru sedans are thirstier than a Porsche and about as nice inside as a U-Haul. If you can get past that, the WRX STI will deliver the most winter fun on this list — and at the best price. Subaru's geeky all-wheel drive comes straight off its rally cars, with the ability to incrementally adjust the torque split front to rear. Whatever the setting, the STI makes you feel like Superman.

2012 Subaru Impreza WRX

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A few years ago we'd have included the Golf GTI on this list. But now that the Golf R is here, why bother? This is the only Golf with all-wheel drive, so its 256 horsepower is more contained and easier to handle than the slower, front-wheel-drive GTI. At $34,000 it's pricey for a little hatch, but like most German compacts you get a lot of solid car for the money.

2013 Volkswagen Golf

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We'll confess to secretly loving the beautifully hideous G-Wagen, the ultimate 4-wheel drive, which flips a long middle finger to the modern world and its low parking garages (do not attempt). The standard G550 is already too fast for its own good. On the G63, Mercedes installs a race-bred, 544-horsepower V8 engine that sends this 33-year-old army truck from zero to 60 mph in five seconds. Consider Old Man Winter annihilated.

2013 Mercedes-Benz G-Class

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We're sad that the superpowerful 300 SRT8 comes only in rear-wheel drive, so we can't recommend it on this list. However, the standard V8 and V6 iterations with all-wheel drive are still quick and have enough bad-boy street cred to keep winter at bay. We especially love the 300's heated steering wheel and — no lie — heated cupholders.

2013 Chrysler 300

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Jaguar's rear-wheel-drive sedans, with their fat tires and prodigious torque, were always poor performers in the snow. Now we have new all-wheel-drive models of the XJ and smaller XF. With more efficient supercharged 6-cylinder engines and smooth 8-speed automatic transmissions, these Jags can actually get out of your snowy driveway, and look the absolute business doing it.

If you don't look at the price, this little twin-turbocharged BMW may be the most practical and fun winter car around. Even with 300 horsepower and all-wheel drive, the 335i xDrive can return up to 33 mpg. Its unmistakable styling and brilliant handling can't be matched, either.

2013 BMW 3-Series

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This is the best BMW 3-Series alternative that sells at a more reasonable starting price. For $42,000, the G37x packs all-wheel drive, either a 6-speed manual or 7-speed automatic transmission, and some seriously dapper looks. No one will call you a BMW copycat in this Infiniti, which more than holds its own on reliability and performance. Thankfully, a snow mode keeps some of that tingling 330 horsepower in check.

2013 Infiniti G Coupe

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This all-wheel-drive 4-door MINI Countryman ALL4 may add some heft and weight to the classic Cooper, but it's worth it when you need to take three friends along in comfort. The zippy, turbocharged 4-cylinder engines and manual transmissions remain, as does the zany interior with the clock-tower speedometer. As with all MINIs, the Countryman rides a bit stiff, yet it steers with the aplomb of a go-kart.

2012 MINI Countryman

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When a Volvo sedan looks this sexy and drives this well, you'd be silly not to consider one. With adjustable steering feel ranging from light to tight — not to mention 325 horsepower and all-wheel drive — the S60 T6 is like an Audi S4, only prettier. Even better is the standard emergency auto-braking and one of the safest body structures in its class; seriously, check out how the S60 performed in the new Insurance Institute for Highway Safety offside frontal crash test.

2013 Volvo S60

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Duh, right? The Nissan GT-R has the world's most complex all-wheel-drive system, one that transfers torque and grip so fast that it turns this big, heavy sports car into a ballet dancer, albeit one that can spin to 60 mph in less than three seconds. Snow shouldn't be any problem. Figure this: For the price of one Porsche 911 Turbo, you could have two GT-Rs. That's one for the ski retreat and the other for your daily driver back home.

2013 Nissan GT-R

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Forgotten among the talk of the 556-horsepower Cadillac CTS-V is the regular CTS, with its 318-horsepower V6 engine and available all-wheel drive. While the CTS Coupe is getting on in age — especially next to the trimmer, more technically advanced Cadillac ATS — driving one is like stealing a concept car off the auto show stand. Its razor-edge styling is brilliant from any angle, and the tight chassis is a thrill when the road finally clears up.

2013 Cadillac CTS

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For more information on the vehicles in this slideshow, click the links below:

-Audi S5
-Porsche 911
-Ferrari FF
-Bentley Continental GT
-Subaru Impreza WRX STI
-Volkswagen Golf
-Mercedes-Benz G550
-Chrysler 300
-Jaguar XJ
-BMW 335i
-Infiniti G37x
-MINI Countryman ALL4
-Volvo S60 T6
-Nissan GT-R
-Cadillac CTS

Compare: All Available Vehicles

Clifford Atiyeh has spent his entire life driving cars he doesn't own. Based in Boston, he is the senior news editor for MSN Autos and contributes to The Boston Globe, Car and Driver and other publications.