Roland Perry gurgled happily, sounding much like they
were saying:

I agree that to some extent the 4x4 part is a red herring; the same
vehicle with 2WD would normally be as good (except in the snow - and
some people do live where it snows a lot in the winter).

The right tyres make damn near as much difference to traction on snow as
4wd does, though - and much more difference in cornering and braking.

I've been using winter tyres the last couple of years, for my (2wd)
commute across some reasonably exposed back lanes - and getting up and
down unploughed/ungritted reasonably steep hills with little drama.