All Seasons that do decent in the snow?

[jp1203]

I'm sure this has been posted a million times, and info that's already here did help me narrow it down. I've narrowed it down to basically two tires, unless someone has a better idea.

I'm looking at the Nokian WRG2s or the Goodyear Tripletreds. I don't want to mess around with having dedicated winter tires anymore. I ran studs on my 2WD vehicles for years, but I don't have additional rims for this so it would be quite an expense. Plus, I need new ones for the summer anyway, so I'd need two sets plus a second set of rims.

Concerns about the Nokians-
-Road Noise
-Impact on MPG
-Tread life (I don't want to be buying new ones in 20k miles)
-Price (how much should they be for 4 stock size)
-Have to drive over an hour to get to a Nokian dealer

Concerns about the Goodyears-
-Winter performance (the Nokians are definitely better, but how bad could these be?)
-I don't really know how much these cost either, but I'm sure they're cheaper than the Nokians

Any input? Any others I should look into? We get a significant amount of snow most winters, but everyone I know with a Subaru around here runs some sort of all seasons in the winter and they get around without much trouble even in some of the worse weather. I think I'm leaning toward the Nokians, but do have the few aforementioned concerns about them.

[ntippet]

Might want to look into the new Fortera TripleTred.
An all season that qualified for the mountain/snowflake symbol.

[AWDFTW]

Fortera doesn't come in a size that will fit the Gen 2 OB, only the All-Season TripleTred.

WRG2 has a lower treadlife rating at 500 than the GYTT. I'd expect 40-50k tops from the WRG2. The GYTT just got a redesign, so I am hoping it improves on the issues it had as as Assurance model (road noise, balance issues).

Think the WRG2 classifies as a Low Rolling Resistance tire, I'd expect there to be little to no MPG issues between them and the GYTT.

WRG2 will be more expensive by between $25-$50 per tire, depending on what sales you find.

That being said, I think it will be the better tire is you see lots of snow, slush, and ice.

[ntippet]

Its true they don't come in the stock size.
Although they do come in a size I run that does fit. (albeit a different tire nevertheless)
An accurate speedometer is another nice benefit.

I would agree Nokian WRG2 is a great tire.

You can ignore everything i've said, I see you noted stock tire size.

[subiesailor]

Any quality All Season tire with a decent reputation is going to have a very similar tread pattern to start with. The obscure brands will have tread patterns that seem well obscure compared to the usual suspects for obvious reasons they are obscure LOL

Regarding noise there are well know tread patterns known to be noisy there are basic tread patterns known to be quiet - the amount of stippling on the tire gives you an idea of how snow and ice capable they are though the tires with the most stippling tend to also wear out faster.

So based on your own need you do some comparing on tire treads etc and make a call. The stock continentals that came on my car have lots of stippling are fairly good in the snow and ice - have about a 30,000 mile very moderate no heavy abuse life span.

I'm looking at the BFG tire it has less stippling a tread thats not really that different but the car that comes stock with it is a Camero and many of those guys have reported that even with the heavy foot abuse they have put the tires through they have been impressed with the stock tire. Not something you hear coming from the outback Continental crowd at all.

I'm pretty sure the next set of tires I put on the OB are BFG's

[jp1203]

Thanks for all the input.

40-50k is fine...I'd get 2-3 years out of them, which is okay with me.

Sounds like I'm leaning toward the WRG2s. Looks like I can get a set of 4 online shipped for free for just under $600. If I did that, I'd just have to get someone to mount/balance them. No big deal. I'll have to compare that with the one dealer around here and see what I'm looking at for prices.

[subiesailor]

JP I've found that local tire shops will match tire rack for some time now. Usually making it a non issue regarding cost to just have the local guys do it. Plus if you get unlucky and get a screwy tire its far easier to just swing by have them look at it toss it on the balance machine etc and say yes this tire is screwy lets get another one for you and take care of this.

[jp1203]

Originally Posted by subiesailor

JP I've found that local tire shops will match tire rack for some time now. Usually making it a non issue regarding cost to just have the local guys do it. Plus if you get unlucky and get a screwy tire its far easier to just swing by have them look at it toss it on the balance machine etc and say yes this tire is screwy lets get another one for you and take care of this.

Yeah, I'd like to buy them locally. My two options are each about an hour away. Really weird that the biggest city in the county doesn't have a Nokian dealer. Maybe tomorrow I'll call around and see if they'll give me pricing. Don't want to drive all the way out there to find out they're out of stock or won't budge on an astronomical price. Not that I can really afford it until closer to the end of the month anyway...at least I have AWD. I know I can get by on these worn out all seasons for a while, I'll just have to take it really easy. Apart from one storm, the snow has held off so far.

[mcbrew]

I had the Nokian WRGs on my VW Golf. They were awesome in the snow. I'm sure you're aware, but I will say it for others: The Nokian WRG2s are a snow rated tire. They have the snowflake/mountain logo on them. Compared to other Nokians, they are considered an all-season, but they compare to most other snow tires very favorably.

[jp1203]

Thanks for the feedback!

That's exactly the reason I was interested in them...they're just about the only true winter tire that is also considered an all season.