Ice Driving! Which engine layout is best?

FWD has a small advantage in the snow. As most everyone noted, you've got more weight on the wheels with FWD, so you have better traction. You're pulling instead of pushing, so the front of the car is easier to control. And, your steering is better because the wheels are driven, as long as you're not spinning them. Start spinning them and you lose all of that advantage and then some. So, you have more traction, which is good, but if you break traction, you're worse off.

But, as always, the driver behind the wheel is more important. So is a properly equipped car (good tires, brakes, etc.). On ice you're pretty much boned either way. Giving your mother a FWD car will not change her driving ability. In fact, if she's used to driving a RWD car, it might make it WORSE. Driving a RWD vehicle in low traction conditions you can get away with overpowering and spinning your rear wheels, since you can still steer. Do this in a FWD and you can't.

And obviously, AWD/4WD wins over either. But don't forget that stopping, which is the biggest problem anyway, is the same. Everyone has 4 wheel brakes. The biggest advantage is having more driving traction. And, in the case of real 4WD's with lower gear ranges, being able to drive slower while maintaining RPM and traction.