Ultimate AW Tire for Subaru Outbacks?

[Brave Ulysses]

In advance... I have searched the forum(s) for several weeks now and have done extensive research. I have looked at dozens of threads here, and ultimately, none have been conclusive, and many of them are old and may no longer still be accurate.

I am looking at replacing the OEM tires on my recently purchased 2008 Subaru Outback 2.5i Limited. I am looking for the best All-Season/All-Weather tire available, especially the one that provides the best bang for the buck. Winter performance is important but I'm not naively expecting winter tire performance. I want a tire that will be safe in the snow and ice. This seems to be a very popular request but i've yet to see a general consensus on the best option.

As far as I can tell, there are 5 highly recommended options: (updated in rank as feedback comes in)
1. Michelin Primacy MXV4
2. Goodyear Triple Tread All-Season
3. Nokian WGR2
4. Yokohama AVID ENVigor
5. Falken Ziex 912


What is the best? Reading Tire Rack reviews and threads on here has driven me crazy, it seems for every glowing review, there is a horror story of how terrible the tire is. The Triple Tread seemed like the best option for a while but reading the poor reviews at Tire Rack was very disconcerting and even the tire store manager insisted I would be foolish to buy them as they wear terribly and provide a very rough ride.

So... is there any possibility of a consensus on this? I know some may think it has been beaten to death, but as far as I can tell, it really hasn't been determined. If you feel it has, please share.

[obsolete]

Goodyear Assurance Triple Tread.

I have been doing the summer/winter tire thing, but my dad has over 70k on the Triple Treads on his Forester. He puts on over 30k miles a year, never rotates them, and the car hasn't had an alignment since it left the factory. The tires look fantastic; they have never been obnoxiously loud and he's gotten 30+ MPG with them one some trips. They would easily have another 10k in them if it were summer, but he plans to put on a new set for winter as he feels he's gotten his money's worth out of these already.

Great tires.

[AWDFTW]

If you need true "all-weather" you option would be the Nokian WRG2. Not cheap, but for snow and ice performance I think they would be the best of that set. All the others are "all-seasons".

I'd avoid the Yoko's...not a tread pattern that would do well in snow/slush/ice.
No experience with the Falken tires...no comment.
GYTT...decent but noisy as they wear and quality control seems hit or miss.
MXV4...I have them and they do well enough. Good snow, decent slush, minimal on ice.

tl;dr
1: WRG2
2: MXV4
3: GYTT
4: AVID

No information: Falken.

[obsolete]

I ran the Falken 912s on a smaller, sportier FWD car and they were garbage. To be fair, I was expecting more of a performance all-season tire with some cornering grip, but they did not deliver. They always felt greasy and broke loose easily. They were noticeably inferior to Primewell PZ900s, which are among the cheapest of the cheap Chinese summer tires, so that's pretty bad.

[Glennda5id]

Michelin Hydroedge is great tire, and has a 90k warranty. They also have Michelin GreenX which means it is supposed to get good gas mileage. Great reviews on tirerack. Great wet and dry and decent snow performance. Michelin makes great tires.

[Glennda5id]

Just noticed that they don't make the Hydroedge in your size....

[Glennda5id]

I would go either Primacy or Triple Tread

The primacy is $180 a tire with a 60k warranty
Triple tread is $170 a tire with 80k warranty.

I'm more of a michelin person, but seems like better bang for the buck with the Triple Tread.

It also looks like Goodyear has just released a new version of the TripleTread, the TripleTread All Season. Probably an upgrade on an already very good tire.

[Brave Ulysses]

I will update the rank in my original post based on feedback... maybe that way we can ultimately come to a consensus.

I have heard great things about the Primacy and the Triple Thread.... but, I have heard the Primacy collects debris in its narrow treads very easily and that after the first 10-20K, the rubber hardens and the grip and traction is not nearly as good. Anyone experience that?

As for the triple tread, I have heard that they wear uneven, have to be rotated constantly to avoid that, and that they are a rough/noisy ride. Anyone agree or disagree?

Everyone seems to like the Nokian WRG2 but I have seen little discussion about their summer performance and I have seen a lot of mention of short lifespan/fast wear.... which for the price is a bit concerning.

[yellowmc]

I just put on a set of Hankook Optimo H727 tires on my 02 outback. So far they are handling very well on the Outback. I have 13k on the same tires on my AWD 2000 Town and Country Minivan and they are great in all conditions. I only did 1 snow storm in them but they were awesome in that storm. They have a 100k warranty but I have yet to see any tire get close to the warranty except in all highway driving. Just my 2 cents.

[tddockery]

I've got Pirelli P4 Four seasons on mine in 225/55/17 - and absolutely LOVE these tires. Fantastic in the wet, dry and snow (SEPA here). Have gone the last two winters on them, without the need for snow tires.

One of last winters snows - and the tires were fantastic:





After buying them 2 years ago at a local STS (at a steep discount - $330 for the set, mounted/balanced and all - they were advertising 'buy 3 get 1 free') I did some research on TireRack (Pirelli P4 Four Seasons), and found that I wasn't the only one who thought the world of them - at the time they were the highest rated all weather/all season they carried.

They came with an 80k mile warranty, and I've got more than 30k on them - and they look near new still.

In fact, I like them so much, that when I got the '08 3.0R LLB last month - I required the dealer to take them off of my '06 2.5i trade in and mount them on the '08 to complete the deal.

JMHO