I live in Michigan and got the G37s RWD. Was difficult to even find one in Michigan.

I test drove the AWD and the salesman really pushed the AWD (cause that is all he had) but my last 4 cars have been RWD and seemed much more nimble feeling than the AWD G37 I test drove. My last 4 cars were 07 CTS, 04 CTS, 02 Lincoln LS, 00 BMW 323. All RWD - all Manual Trans except the LS.

When the G37s came in the dealer told me that it was the first RWD manual sedan that they had sold - ever. And this car rips. 3rd gear from 5000-7000 is mighty impressive. For performance the sedan, RWD, manual trans is good.

As with all my other cars I put Blizzaks on for the winter. In all those years and all those cars I have never been not able to go in the winter here in Metro Detroit.

Now if you live in the mountains or where they get tons of snow AWD AND Blizzaks would be the way to go.

So I vote for the RWD as it is faster and handles better and stops quicker. All this is simply because it weighs less. Remember that all cars have All Wheel Brakes. BUT if you live in a snowy area you will want snow tires. Not all season. SNOW tires.

So if performance is you main concern then RWD all day. But if you want the extra security in the snow and don't want to hassle with snows than AWD is fine too.