In January I was getting 15 e-mails a day from readers suddenly wanting to buy 4x4s because we had a bit of snow. And, of course, any dealer with any used 4x4s and any sense put his prices up by £2,000. The best solution for ice and snow is a separate set of wheels fitted with softer winter compound tyres that expel the hard packed snow and ice from the treads. That is more effective than four-wheel drive. The warning to be made is don't expect ESP to save you on ice. It actually makes things worse, so if you drive into a skid it will counter what you do and put you off the road. ESP best left OFF in ice and snow. In the hope this weather won't last, probably the best answer for most Brits is a set of 'autosocks' (www.autosock.co.uk) to temporarily put over the car's standard tyres in bad conditions. But if you really want a 4WD, a British built Honda CR-V is the most comfortable, while the new Land Rover Freelander II white or black at £19,500 and the new Hyundai ix35 4WD diesel at £18,995 are very sensibly priced.