The Michelin Defender has a UTQG of 820AB. The B is the temperature grade, definitely a minus IMO. Continental TerrainContact is rated 720 AA. A different tire, the Continental TrueContact Tour is more directly comparable to the Defender, and it costs less, has a 800 AA UTQG, and tested better than the Defender in Tire Rack Testing.

Tire Test Results : Comparing the Newest Long-Wearing Standard Touring All-Season Tires (tirerack.com)

My 2 last purchases of Michelin (Premier A/S, CrossClimate) have been disappointing on noise and treadwear. I really like the Continental CrossContact LX25 I recently bought, but too soon to say how they will perform over full lifetime, and of course it's a different tire than your Continental candidate.

Tire Rack never tested your two candidates head-to-head, but my impression is that the Continental would be better on wet or snowy surfaces.

 

Take a look at the Michelin Defender LTX M/S. I had these on my Forester.

Great Tire... While technically a highway tire, they do well for those occasional off tarmac trips to trailheads...

They didn't get noisy until 5/32.... And when I replaced them, I could have gotten another 5-7k miles out of them.

 

Take a look at the Michelin Defender LTX M/S. I had these on my Forester.

Great Tire... While technically a highway tire, they do well for those occasional off tarmac trips to trailheads...

They didn't get noisy until 5/32.... And when I replaced them, I could have gotten another 5-7k miles out of them.



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Did look at the Defender LTX but they don't come in 225/60/17. Looked at both the Premier & Primacy LTX but neither is as highly rated.

 

I have the Continental Terrain Contact H/Ts on my 2012 2.5. I haven't seen anyone else running these yet, but they seem to be made for something like the Outback. Primary considerations for me were that I wanted something with long tread life, the durability of a truck tire but NOT the weight or noise of a blocky tread. I liked that these had a highway tread, but the tread blocks are actually pretty deep and if you look at them up close, they have some biting edges and lots of siping that makes them better off-pavement than they appear at first glance.

I've had them on the car for about 6k, so they're still newish. Some observations - they're only about 3 pounds heavier than the Bridgestone Ecopias that were on the car previously. I'm pretty sensitive and noticed the increase in unsprung weight, but most drivers probably wouldn't. It's not like anyone buys a 2.5 Outback for the acceleration. 🙄 The ride is stiffer, but it's certainly not punishing. Because of the deeper tread blocks, I've noticed a little bit of noise on the highway, but way below what you'd expect from a typical A/T tread. I've only had these on forest roads - nothing crazy, but they seem to do really well in mud and snow.

I do about 60/40 highway/city and my average mpg with these is 29.1, so... no noticeable dip. I think they're a great tire for the car. Yeah, you're trading a little comfort on the pavement, but it'll be well worth it if you plan to load yours up with gear and/or get off the pavement once in a while.

 

I have the Continental Terrain Contact H/Ts on my 2012 2.5. I haven't seen anyone else running these yet, but they seem to be made for something like the Outback. Primary considerations for me were that I wanted something with long tread life, the durability of a truck tire but NOT the weight or noise of a blocky tread. I liked that these had a highway tread, but the tread blocks are actually pretty deep and if you look at them up close, they have some biting edges and lots of siping that makes them better off-pavement than they appear at first glance.

I've had them on the car for about 6k, so they're still newish. Some observations - they're only about 3 pounds heavier than the Bridgestone Ecopias that were on the car previously. I'm pretty sensitive and noticed the increase in unsprung weight, but most drivers probably wouldn't. It's not like anyone buys a 2.5 Outback for the acceleration. 🙄 The ride is stiffer, but it's certainly not punishing. Because of the deeper tread blocks, I've noticed a little bit of noise on the highway, but way below what you'd expect from a typical A/T tread. I've only had these on forest roads - nothing crazy, but they seem to do really well in mud and snow.

I do about 60/40 highway/city and my average mpg with these is 29.1, so... no noticeable dip. I think they're a great tire for the car. Yeah, you're trading a little comfort on the pavement, but it'll be well worth it if you plan to load yours up with gear and/or get off the pavement once in a while.

I'm considering those Contis as well. Do you have any other tires to compare them too? I'm also considering the General Altimax r43 and the Conti Terrain Contact touring.

 

I put Michelin Defender T+H on a Honda Fit to replace 4 year old Michelin Premiers and right off the bat the T+H feels better than the Premiers ever did - but I don't live in a place that gets snow.

Compared to the Premiers these tires are more lively, grippy, quiet, compliant. Part of it is that new tires will full tread depth do feel different but I'm positive that when I got the Premiers 4 years ago they didn't feel this good.

To the thumb the T+H havs much softer rubber yet higher treadwear rating. The compound might be different for different sizes but the rubber feels surprisingly soft.

 

I like the Continental CrossContact LX25

 

I can’t imagine choosing Continentals over Michelins for any reason other than price.

 

Here you go! These are 225/60r17.

 

Awesome! Thanks.