I live in Michigan - the U.P. (Upper Peninsula). We have about 6 inches of snow and I put my car away before they salted the roads. If you drive up here during the winter and don't wash your car every day it starts to rust. But if you were leasing I guess it wouldn't matter. I love my car too much to take the chance up here. Until you have driven on ice, in slush, with snow, there is nothing to compare it to.