Subi Forester all around tires

[Boissal]

I need some schooling on tires and couldn't find any recent thread about this...

I have an 08 Forester for which I have great snow tires (Michelin X-ice) to cruise around the wintry Wasatch. I've been running whatever shitty tires the dealer put on the car during the summer... they've worked well enough for about 40k miles but now that the thread has worn off I've started getting more flats. A couple of epics involving using the donut on dirt roads and driving 50MPH for hours have convinced me that 1) I need new tires ASAP and 2) I need a full size spare.

What do you guys run as all around tires on the Forester? I have the stock 16x6.5 rims mounted with 215/60R16 tires. I don't use the car to commute and don't put too many miles on it (15k/year tops). Most of my driving is summer trips which involve a few hundred miles of pavement and a reasonable amount of dirt roads, some great and some that could justify a burlier vehicle. I'm looking for something that can take some abuse but doesn't suck and extra 3 MPG or increase the volume in the car by 20 dB. Winter performance is a non-issue as I swap the tires every year and UT isn't known for its extreme wetness. I'm guessing all-season is still the way to go as opposed to summer specific tires which seem to be a bit lower profile and optimized for good driving conditions... Any recommendations/things to avoid/places to buy? I'd prefer to keep the whole operation under $600...

I'm also trying to wrap my head around the rim issue since I need a new one for the spare. The OEM rim is a crappy steel 16x6.5 with a 48 mm offset, something which is apparently not easy to find. Will I die in a fiery crash if I get, say, a 42mm offset rim? Is the car going to break in half if I drive 200 miles with a different offset rim?

[axebiker]

My Suby XV Crosstrek shipped with Yoko Geolanders, which are showing no wear after 12K. They were good this winter as well. Probably won't hit your $600 mark though.

[TCNROMPER]

Not a subi forester owner but a saabaru owner with 205/55/16. I had a similar go at it this time last year and settled on Continental ExtremeContact DWS. They are an all-season tire and from what I have heard, they are the only all season tire worth getting. I originally ordered the DW (Dry,Wet) version of the tire but the shop actually ordered the DWS (Dry,Wet,Snow) and I figured I would give them a go. I am extremely happy with them at this point and have no complaints. I believe I purchased all 4 of them with mount and balance for ~$500 with some prepaid visa rebate.

The all season is nice to have in-between seasons as well. I rock X-ice here in VT for winters but unfortunately with variable seasons snow may fall much earlier than anticipated/later than anticipated so it is nice to have a tire capable in those conditions. I would say they are definitely quieter than the x-ice although by how much I am unsure.

Another tire that I have heard good reviews about are the nokian wrg3. People seem to like them here in VT but I am fairly certain the compound breaks down a little faster making them wear a little sooner. They appear to have a similar tread pattern then the DWS so I would say they would be a fair bet as well.

Best of luck

[bean]

DWS are a good summer tire that doesn't totally suck in the cold and snow. Those paired with a pair of X-ice sounds ideal for what you're doing, though the DWS will push a bit past your $600 budget.

[wolfy]

multi subies in the family. we only use Goodyear Triple Tred Assurance in stock or +1 sizing on everything- year round.
great on wear, easy on mileage. check the "black friday" sales at Discount Tire, or Discount Tire Direct online.
that will keep it in your price range.

[skimaxpower]

I joined Costco this year for the sole purpose of buying tires. Even after my membership fee, I saved over $150.

[Binky]

Mastercraft strategy

I have them on my subi and they are great in all conditions and show very little wear after 15,000

[Boissal]

I joined Costco this year for the sole purpose of buying tires. Even after my membership fee, I saved over $150.

Their selection is pretty limited in the size I want and their prices aren't as attractive as usual. The lifetime rotation/tire swap is cool though...

Thanks for the recommendations from everyone!

[liv2ski]

Check out www.onlinetires.com I just bought 4 HANKOOK VENTUS S1 Noble 2 tires from them at a smokin price over the Continental DWS tires I have previously bought. The tire got solid reviews on tirerack.com but onlinetires.com was a better price. Received a $60 visa card too.

[stuckathuntermtn]

Any all-season tire with lots of little ridges (sipes) in the tread blocks will do you well all year.
There are some good Michelins out there (of course). I needed new tires STAT, because I was a hockey puck, so I wound up with some Uniroyal Tigerpaw something something. They do pretty well cornering on snow. Actually, they do really well. Not much for treads and sipes of the middle so gassing it good on snow is not recommended, especially when turning, but they do great everywhere. Kinda noisy though. At least I think that's where the noise is coming from. I hope.

[MakersTeleMark]

Firestone destination at.

[Cocximus]

multi subies in the family. we only use Goodyear Triple Tred Assurance in stock or +1 sizing on everything- year round.
great on wear, easy on mileage. check the "black friday" sales at Discount Tire, or Discount Tire Direct online.
that will keep it in your price range.

Loved those tires. I swear up and down those tires grip better during winter on pavement than winter tires.

[nickwm21]

My Suby XV Crosstrek shipped with Yoko Geolanders, which are showing no wear after 12K. They were good this winter as well. Probably won't hit your $600 mark though.

XV Crosstrek comes with Geolander HTs - A good tire, I have an XV as well.

Back when I had a forester I enjoyed the Geloander ATS - Basically a truck tire, small enough to fit on a suby. Awesome for dirt roads and snow, no real negative mpg or sound, and considerably cheaper. I will be using these when my OEM geos wear down.

EDIT - Just read that you had snow tires. The Geo ATS is a good tire if you only have one set. If you have snows I would go with the Geo HTs...

[jamal]

I went through a few sets of falken 912s before I went to two sets of wheels with performance summers on one and winter tires on the other. Really good dry, wet, and dirt traction, pretty cheap, but not the best on snow (they still worked fine).

For the spare, just find another stock subaru wheel on ebay or whatever. They are almost all going to be the right bolt pattern and offset.

For example:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/04-05-06-07-...4c76bb&vxp=mtr

[whyturn]

Had Conti DWS, great tire all around. Decnt on trail but stellar in rain and dry. Will meet budget. tire rack is good for choices and my micheleen pilot AS have been good on tread and in dirt. A little soft for my taste and not up to previous DWS. Maybe go summer only since UT is dry during summer :>

[jmedslc]

Picked these after running potenza g019 grid for a couple years. FIRESTONE FIREHAWK WIDEOVAL AS
http://www.firestonecompleteautocare....UcCgNjcD.dpuf


The potenzas began to get real loud after 20k miles. Could not deal, got prorated warranty and discount on these. They ride well and handle dirt roads in the desert. Look forward to swapping them on next week before a trip to the mobe.

[Todd Zander]

Regarding the fiery crash potential, just remember that in any major blunt force trauma to the wheel, aluminum cracks where steel only bends.

[Boissal]

Regarding the fiery crash potential, just remember that in any major blunt force trauma to the wheel, aluminum cracks where steel only bends.

I was more concerned about wear and tear caused by the different offset on a single wheel. I've been reading specialized forums and opinions seem to vary ... about as much as they do here when someone gets a pair of bindings mounted .2 mm off center!
In the end I can't imagine running a sightly different offset wheel with a different tire can do more damage than the donut... I feel like I'm going to snap my drivetrain when I have that fucker on

Thanks for the responses, good beta in this thread.

[uglymoney]

I bought one set of Yokohama AVID's for my Outback at 40,000 miles when the total turd Bridgestone Potenzas gave it up. Now at 170k with the help of a couple sets of winter tires. They still have 85% of tread left. Yoko replaced them for free at one point because they 'might' develop sidewall cracks. No hassles. Just a letter in the mail and a trip to the tire dealer for free rubber. Excellent in the rain. Okay dry handling but not sporty. Wear like iron. I've had the car off road in the San Juans with no flats. Tire Rack has a couple different Yoko offerings that should work for you but read the ratings and reviews first.

I think Yoko's are like Michelin's but not quite as good and only half the cost.

[Boissal]

I bought one set of Yokohama AVID's for my Outback at 40,000 miles when the total turd Bridgestone Potenzas gave it up. Now at 170k with the help of a couple sets of winter tires. They still have 85% of tread left. Yoko replaced them for free at one point because they 'might' develop sidewall cracks. No hassles. Just a letter in the mail and a trip to the tire dealer for free rubber. Excellent in the rain. Okay dry handling but not sporty. Wear like iron. I've had the car off road in the San Juans with no flats. Tire Rack has a couple different Yoko offerings that should work for you but read the ratings and reviews first.

I think Yoko's are like Michelin's but not quite as good and only half the cost.

Update: after long hours spent reading reviews and putting together spreadsheets, I pulled the trigger on the Yoko AVIDs (the ASCEND to be specific). I could have spent another week browsing around and being indecisive so I chugged a bunch of booze to speed up the decision making process. Getting the set for $312 after rebate certainly helped me choose...
Thanks for the all the advice, it gave me a good starting point with a list of 8 or so tires to pick from instead of the 300 or so which fit the car.

[nhfinn]

Cooper CS4 Touring. No complains

[steved]

...and then some buy tires to fit their intended environment.
Have a great time running em'....

[bodywhomper]

Bumping cuz i searched.

Looking for similar as OP, 3 season “all season” tires (I hate buying tires at beginning of hit season!) for awd matrix (new car for us). It’s the everything car when the crew is small, do not need large hauling space, high clearance, and/or real off road capabilities. Driving in dirt, rock, gravel, and dry/wet pavement. Will run winter tires in winter. Because of the dry/loose dirt duties on steep roads, I typically run AT in other vehicles or just kept the winter tires on year around. I can’t find AT tires that get reasonably small enough for the matrix. Suggestions for the tires circa 2019? Haven’t figured budget yet because I don’t have a good baseline. Thanks!

[tsk01]

Conti DWS06 are a great all around tire. A cheaper alternative that's 95% of the performance of the Continentals are the General G-Max AS-05.

[iriponsnow]

I’ve got these that need a home-
Nokia’s XL entyre 2.0
•All season tires
•215/65R 16 size
•Only ~ 10,000 miles on them
•Rotated every 5k
•Best offer
•Call/Text 802-683-0248