I spent spring break in NH, and we got about 4 feet of snow. My bimmer didn't like it much. Had lots of trouble getting out of the driveway, and getting anywhere on badly plowed hills. I have all season tires. Safety wise I didn't run into any problems. The braking was fine, and being rwd it had less tendancy to understeer than fwd cars. Don't bother with a BMW without traction control or an LSD. If it's going to be your only mode of transportation, you'll probably be better off in the winters with something other than a BMW.