What kind of affordable Car/SUV can we buy that will work well in the winter in Fort Richardson, Anchorage, Alaska?

Please - be very careful. Learn about Snow Tires - studded tires and so on. Then watch some videos of people driving in the snow. It ain’t easy!

For someone with no snow experience a good AWD SUV or cross over is perfect. My wife and I have driven Explorers, Expeditions, and Suburbans with great success.

BUT! A few rules to keep in mind:
1) All wheel drive does not mean all wheel Stop. It takes 5 times the distance to stop! 5x!
2) The 3 second following rule is more like 6-10 seconds. Keep a good gap, always have an escape route in mind, the unthinkable happens.
3) Find a large, unobstructed parking lot and practice losing control. Steer into the skid. If the back end breaks left, you steer left.
4) ABS helps a lot. Wheels lock very quickly and you become a sliding mass of metal at that point.

Remember to plug your car in when you park. It keeps the oil pan and radiator warm enough to not sludge or freeze. Not needed as much near Anchorage but is a must up in the interior, like Fairbanks.

After all of that - relax and have fun!

Denali national Park in the spring! The fireweed hills are a site to behold. Later in the summer in the same park find the crow berry bushes to harvest. Excellent berries and makes a great jam. The Dall sheep are also a great site. Head south onto the Kenai Peninsula and go to Portage Glacier. Walk the trails there. Trees have limbs on one side only. Near Anchorage International Airport is Earthquake Park. Well worth the few hours walking through there. If you can find public access to Campbell Creek (also near the airport), some great salmon fishing. Or head over to the Russian River for King Salmon fishing (seasonal). Don't be surprised to see moose walking about. Look for the Fur Rendezvous Festival in Feb/March.

Get something that is either 4WD or AWD, and if you are new to driving in snow, I definitely recommend getting snow tires. When looking, I recommend getting something low mileage, and get it from a reputable dealer. Make sure that you have it completely checked out, and before winter hits, make sure to winterize it. They should give you briefings on winterizing, and there will be plenty of people around who have done it. Also, I don't know if they still do it, but when I was there, they had a winter driving course held by base safety on the Elmendorf side, I would recommend signing up for that if they offer it.