[mckeand13]

I’m at the point of needing tires on my 2001 OBW 2.5L Auto.

Currently it has Goodyear Comfortred’s on it and I have never really liked them from the first day I had them. Nothing that I hated about them, they just never stood out as good. Dry grip was lower than I expected and winter performance isn’t what I expected either. They seem very harsh over expansion joints and road cracks. The only good thing I have to say is that they are quiet on the road.

I live in Wisconsin so winter performance is high on the list. I am not willing to spend the money on dedicated winter tires and I recognize that the All Season tires are all compromise. Safety being the #1 concern, braking and ultimate grip are the highest of priorities. Tires are important to me as they are the only thing between me and the road.

Some contenders I have dialed in on so far:
Goodyear TripleTred
Bridgestone G019
General Altimax HP
Michelin MXV4

I’ve never used any of the following but here are my thoughts on each:

Goodyear TripleTred
Lot’s of people on the forum here seem to like this tire. My reservations with it are 1) heavier than other tires leading to decreased mileage (which is already pathetic) 2) Doesn’t perform as well as others in dry conditions relative to cornering and grip (based on other peoples posts). These are an 80K tire. Are they a really hard compound to accomplish that? I don’t want to sacrifice grip for that extra 30K warranty. I’m fine with a 50K tire.

Bridgestone G019
I have these on my wife’s 2002 Accord. I like them. They are predictable in corners, and seem to do ok in the winter. My reservations with this are based on the problems I had with my previous G009’s. My G009’s feathered very badly and got so loud I couldn’t handle the amount of noise at 30K miles. They were consistently rotated at 6K miles. Tires plus gave me credit for the remaining tread and replaced them with G019’s. I’ve only got about 1K on the new ones so I can’t be sure they are any better. I’m skeptical about buying another set of problems.

General Altimax HP
No thoughts really. I have never used a General tire and don’t know much about them. I like the lower price as compared to the other tires in the running here. Are they a “cheaper” tire? There’s a difference between cheap and inexpensive.

Michelin MXV4
I haven’t read much about these yet. They seem to be more of a summer tire just based on their tighter smaller tread blocks.


Any thoughts or direction? In reading many forum posts and comments it seems like everybody’s got their opinion but nothing seems to narrow in on a single one being the leader for an all season. Looking for suggestions.

A sales person at Tire Rack recommended the TripleTred and G019. The TripleTred offering better winter performance and the G019 offering better handling/dry performance since it's essentially a higher performance tire.

Thanks.

 

[wickedpete]

Yokohama Geolanders have a pretty good reputation for all around use, especially with more off road or winter driving like you are need to contend with.

 

[AWDFTW]

Check TireRack reviews.

My .02
-GYTT: You either love it or hate it. Impressive in rain and snow, but seems to have some quality control issues with balance and treadlife.
G019: I wouldn't just because of how much I hate the G009's currently on my 2003. Absolutely terrible in the winter.
Altimax HP: Wonderful bang for the buck tire. Some seem to have reported flatspotting in the cold until the tire warms up.
MXV4: $$$ but worth it. Comfy ride and predictable handling. Not the strongest winter marks, but seems to be decent for an all-season.

I'd go with the GYTT or MXV4.

 

[Garrison]

I used to work for sears auto, selling tires.

The Michelin MXV4 is amazing and it comes with something like an 80 or 90,000 mile warranty, but as mentioned it is not the greatest in the winter. However, in every other category, I'd say it's the top contender on your list; that being said, you pay through the nose for the quality.

 

[jabiru]

I am just now replacing my Continental ExtremeContacts with the same tire. I only got 35K out of them but that was probably due to the fact that at least 4 family members drive the car (01 Legacy GT Limited). I have been pleased with these tires for both summer and New England winter performance which is why I'm going with them again. They were recommended by Consumers Union in 2007 but have not appeared in CU's tests since although they're still available. The web is full of glowing reviews by owners of these tires.

 

[mckeand13]

I am just now replacing my Continental ExtremeContacts with the same tire. I only got 35K out of them but that was probably due to the fact that at least 4 family members drive the car (01 Legacy GT Limited). I have been pleased with these tires for both summer and New England winter performance which is why I'm going with them again. They were recommended by Consumers Union in 2007 but have not appeared in CU's tests since although they're still available. The web is full of glowing reviews by owners of these tires.

Which tires?

 

[bikemobile]

Head to Head I'm not sure that the Generals are "better" than the others on snow and Ice, or the same but I really like the generals.

I put them on 17k miles ago. Last summer. 225/60-16 v rated. I can see some wear but it is very even overall. Ive rotated them once so far and I check the air every 2-3 fillups. I run them at 37 psi, the most they've lost so far is about 1 psi. Ive only had to add air twice in a year. once in january (tire shop lowered the PSI to the subaru specs) and once in june when one tire was 35 psi, others were 36.

Ive had them offroad in light mud, gravel, lots of snow, glare ice, torrential rain on Monarch Pass. 2 feet of snow in downtown denver and 3 feet of snow up at 7,000 foot elevation.

I get 26-28 mpg average in town/mixed highway and got 31 mpg overall going to oklahoma and back from denver.

I paid $200 for all four on craigslist from a tire shop that was closing up. But the cheaper prices 80-90 each is hard to resist.

We'll see how far they go and what they look like at the end of their life.

 

[lexSubie]

I have relatively new (~8K miles) GY TripleTreds on my recently purchased 07 OBW. They have great wet traction but are noisy. I plan on keeping them as summer tires and buying dedicated winter tires. When replacement is needed, I'll opt for a quieter all season tire for 3 season use.

 

[wilsonhp]

Nokian WR G2

 

[mckeand13]

Nokian WR G2

All year round?

 

[OhBe1]

Of those, I'd consider only the TT. Impressive on the OB, and the only thing I've tried on our 2wd Tacoma that worked in the wet. And better in snow than the Winterforce tires I'd tried.

In the past, I've found MXxx problematic, not much in the wet. What about Hydroedge?
And the General UHP I put on the Miata have been great in the wet until recently, but highly inconsistent in the dry. Oh, and they took nearly 1000 miles before the release agent wore off.

 

[bikemobile]

General UHP and General Altimax HP are not the same.

Of those, I'd consider only the TT. Impressive on the OB, and the only thing I've tried on our 2wd Tacoma that worked in the wet. And better in snow than the Winterforce tires I'd tried.

In the past, I've found MXxx problematic, not much in the wet. What about Hydroedge?
And the General UHP I put on the Miata have been great in the wet until recently, but highly inconsistent in the dry. Oh, and they took nearly 1000 miles before the release agent wore off.

 

[wilsonhp]

You can. I run mine as winters only (so they'll last longer), but my wife uses her's year round. They are all season tires, not true winter tires, in spite of the mountain/snowflake symbol on the sidewall. This also keeps my aluminum factory rims out of the winter salt.

 

[fuel98rider]

I used to work for sears auto, selling tires.

The Michelin MXV4 is amazing and it comes with something like an 80 or 90,000 mile warranty, but as mentioned it is not the greatest in the winter. However, in every other category, I'd say it's the top contender on your list; that being said, you pay through the nose for the quality.

+1
You really cannot go wrong with the Michelins. On TireRack, at Consumers Report, etc, they are the highest rated tires in the all season category. I have had mine for 8,000 miles now and love them. The comment about quality is right on the money, as two of my Michelins are so balanaced, that there was no need to have any wheel weights on the rim.

Right now, there is a $70 rebate on the purchase of a set of 4. The rebate is directly from Michelin, and they send you a nice Michelin Man gift card.

 

[ob2011]

Yes, the WR is one of the few truly all-season tires.

 

[Nickerbox]

Concerning the TripleTreds, beware: the tread does not last nearly as long as 80K. I cannot attest to them on an Outback but I had them on another car and 1/3 of the tread was gone after about 15K. And this was only with a few trips to the mountains. Other reviews on Tire Rack indicate the same thing. Don't get me wrong -- they performed really well while I had them (especially in the snow, for an all-season tire) but they would not have lasted much longer had I kept the car. For $130+/tire, I'm not sure they were worth it.

 

[Startiger]

I just put Michelin Primacy MXV4's on my OB. These tires are great. They are smoother and quieter than the stock tires and the road grip is much better. I got them because they are rated very well in the snow. However, I haven't had them long enough to know. Once again, I am looking forward to winter and the chance to have some fun with this car.

 

[mckeand13]

Did my shopping around and stopped by the Goodyear dealer just up the street. I originally was trying to get them to price match the Sears price of $114 a tire but he said he couldn't as that was below cost. He also pointed out that, at least according to their online specs, Sears was a T rated tire not H.

I like the Goodyear shop as they've been very good to me in the past so I asked him what he could swing. He came down from $165/tire to $128/tire. Good enough for me! That's cheaper than Tire Rack or anywhere else.

$638 out the door after mount/balance/disposal/tax. There's also a $40 rebate right now so I'll be at $598 when my rebate shows up in 6-8 years.

So far I really like them. I haven't driven much at all yet and it's been all dry driving. It's like a whole new car though. Much quieter, less noise over bumps, lighter steering. I'm hoping they prove good in the winter but anything should be a noticeable improvement over my old tires as they were at the end of their life (5/32 left).

 

[mckeand13]

Concerning the TripleTreds, beware: the tread does not last nearly as long as 80K. I cannot attest to them on an Outback but I had them on another car and 1/3 of the tread was gone after about 15K. And this was only with a few trips to the mountains. Other reviews on Tire Rack indicate the same thing. Don't get me wrong -- they performed really well while I had them (especially in the snow, for an all-season tire) but they would not have lasted much longer had I kept the car. For $130+/tire, I'm not sure they were worth it.

A coworker has two different vehicles with TripleTreds on them. He has gotten 80K + out of them.

I think it's very vehicle dependent. I had Goodyear Comfortreds and I had about 40K on them and they were worn to 5/32 left. Nowhere near the 80K warranty on them.

 

[Startiger]

Did my shopping around and stopped by the Goodyear dealer just up the street. I originally was trying to get them to price match the Sears price of $114 a tire but he said he couldn't as that was below cost. He also pointed out that, at least according to their online specs, Sears was a T rated tire not H.

Be careful with Sears. While their tire prices are competitive, they will kill you on fees and installation.

When I was shopping for my tires this is what they told me:

Tires: $120/each, if you got them installed. $145/ if you didn't get mounting.
Shipping: $50. Didn't matter if they were going to the store or your house. You had to pay it either way.
Installation: $70/ PER TIRE!

So getting 4 Primacy's would have cost me $858.60 once you factor in tax. :16: