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  1. #1
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    All Season Tires

    I'm tired of swapping seasonal tires and I'm tired of buying whatever the shop sells me. Cheap tires seem to wear out quickly but I'm not sure what else price gets me. Big lug grips look good but are loud as hell.

    Anyone got a strong recommendation on some all season tires? I drive a Subaru wagon, live in a ski town and put on a lot of highway miles in the northeast (25,000/year).

    Thanks,

  2. #2
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    Fantastic idea. It's not like there is ±1 sq. ft. of material keeping your life on the road. Why bother paying a few bucks extra to have a dedicated set of winter tires.
    Quote Originally Posted by Smoke
    Cell phones are great in the backcountry. If you're injured, you can use them to play Tetris, which helps pass the time while waiting for cold embrace of Death to envelop you.

  3. #3
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    ^I used to do the two sets until this year... my Blizzaks wore out pretty fast as I do a lot of highway miles, too. This year I put some all season Michelen LTX AT's on my Tahoe. Tho no snow yet, I love them on the highway, rain, etc. so far. Very quiet (once had studded Nokian's) and smooth on the highway. Better than Coopers, too.
    Screw the net, Surf the backcountry!

  4. #4
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    Dec 2012
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    I may have found the holy grail of tires.

    http://www.generaltire.com/tires/winter/altimax-arctic

    I use them all year around, they're inexpensive, they last 50,000+ miles. The only trade-off is a bit more noise than all seasons.

    Best tires I've ever owned and I've owned a lot of tires.

  5. #5
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    Feb 2009
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    ^^^^ I have a dedicated set of these with studs for winter...Great tire and this will be my 4th season with this set. I drive between 10/15 thousand miles per winter with them. Slush, snow, black ice...no problem.

  6. #6
    jgb@etree Guest
    Nokian WR G2. Amazing grip in wet, dry and snow/ice conditions. Have snowflake DOT rating & perform better than many dedicated snow tires, yet wear well and are quiet on the road. Well worth every dollar you'll spend on them, IMO.

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by Timberridge View Post
    I may have found the holy grail of tires.

    http://www.generaltire.com/tires/winter/altimax-arctic

    I use them all year around, they're inexpensive, they last 50,000+ miles. The only trade-off is a bit more noise than all seasons.

    Best tires I've ever owned and I've owned a lot of tires.
    Those are what I have as my designated winter tire. They are absolutely beast in deep snow, handle slush like a champ, do great on ice, so on and so forth. HOWEVER, they are not a replacement for my all-seasons I use for the summer. During warmer temps, my Altimaxes definitely take noticeably longer to brake, get chewed up quicker off-road, and are just plain not as good. I'm a huge fan of them, and you're right that they do last a long time for a winter tire, but they are still not what I would personally use year-round.

    As for OP, you DO realize you're asking about all-seasons on a ski forum, right? Around here, you'll get crap for not getting Nokian Hakkapeliittas! You trollin' us, bro?

  8. #8
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    These guys are biased in the direction of performance but they are super grippy and seem to be wearing well so far. Very happy with them so far. Continental ExtremeContact DWS.

  9. #9
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    All season is a huge trade off, unless you have an Audi. Nothing beats dedicated snows. Running Dunlop snows...best snow tire I have seen. Those General tires have too rounded a profile IMO.
    Terje was right.

    "We're all kooks to somebody else." -Shelby Menzel

  10. #10
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    Quote Originally Posted by iceman View Post
    These guys are biased in the direction of performance but they are super grippy and seem to be wearing well so far. Very happy with them so far. Continental ExtremeContact DWS.
    I have these too on another car. IMO another great tire in the all season category but not as much in snow when they wear down. The S in Dry Wet Snow is the first part of the tread to wear out.

    Fuck I'm agreeing with DasBlunt. The Dunlop Wintersport/Grandtrek M3 is another great tire that I have run all year, but compared to the Generals it really wears fast in the summer. I get 30K max on them. But a great all around snow tire and its a little quieter than the General. So you trade some mileage for quiet.

    Yup, there are some handling compromises with any snow in the summer. You can't drive like a raped ape, but if you have two cars and need 8 seasonal tires for each one, I prefer the tradeoffs.

  11. #11
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    Tech talk, JONG.

    Quote Originally Posted by DasBlunt View Post
    All season is a huge trade off, unless you have an Audi. Nothing beats dedicated snows. Running Dunlop snows...best snow tire I have seen. Those General tires have too rounded a profile IMO.
    Driving an Audi doesn't make your tires better. Sure, it can transfer traction to tires that might have some grip, if they have grip. No matter what, though, you have %100 of traction to use up, whether you are on summer tires, or snows. It can be used by turning, accelerating, or braking. The only way you can change what that %100 is, is by changing tires. Snow tires are cheaper than one bumper.

    I'm biased to Michelin tires and love my X-Ice's, but generally snow tires by each company are redesigned every 3 years, and they are all kind of alternating, so a lot of times the best snow tire is the one that was redesigned most recently. I believe last year it was those Conti's Iceman is talking about.

    Do you take out your Dynastar Legend 8000's on an epic pow day?
    "One season per year, the gods open the skies, and releases a white, fluffy, pillow on top of the most forbidding mountain landscapes, allowing people to travel over them with ease and relative abandonment of concern for safety. It's incredible."

  12. #12
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    You drive a Subaru, you cannot comment on an Audi.
    Terje was right.

    "We're all kooks to somebody else." -Shelby Menzel

  13. #13
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    Aaaaaactualllyyyyy, me driving a subaru pretty much makes me the traction guroo of this forrruuuuuuum.
    "One season per year, the gods open the skies, and releases a white, fluffy, pillow on top of the most forbidding mountain landscapes, allowing people to travel over them with ease and relative abandonment of concern for safety. It's incredible."

  14. #14
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    Quote Originally Posted by guroo270 View Post
    Aaaaaactualllyyyyy, me driving a subaru pretty much makes me the traction guroo of this forrruuuuuuum.
    And possibly a lesbian?

  15. #15
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    Quote Originally Posted by jgb@etree View Post
    Nokian WR G2. Amazing grip in wet, dry and snow/ice conditions. Have snowflake DOT rating & perform better than many dedicated snow tires, yet wear well and are quiet on the road. Well worth every dollar you'll spend on them, IMO.
    Thanks, dood - will check them out.

  16. #16
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    Quote Originally Posted by Tippster View Post
    Thanks, dood - will check them out.
    Just looking t them a minute ago, they have the WRG3 now. Not sure what the difference is. One more, I guess.

  17. #17
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    Quote Originally Posted by Timberridge View Post
    And possibly a lesbian?
    Possibly?

    I definitely rock the rainbow badge of ownership on my top box.


    http://www.briggssubaruoftopeka.com/...-of-ownership/

    ...but hey, mine does have a turbo.
    "One season per year, the gods open the skies, and releases a white, fluffy, pillow on top of the most forbidding mountain landscapes, allowing people to travel over them with ease and relative abandonment of concern for safety. It's incredible."

  18. #18
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    i was thinking of not using dedicated snows this year too, after my fiasco last year with trying to balance and then return the Pirellis. If my car has good clearance, all wheel drive, and excellent ABS and traction control, do I need snows? I drive into snow storms obviously, and have always placed a premium on the value of snows, but are they necessary?

  19. #19
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    .....yes.

    They brake much much better.

    And, as far as snows in summer, they brake much worse than all seasons.


    Anyway, an excellent all season is the Yokohama Avid Envigor.
    Last edited by Benny Profane; 09-24-2013 at 12:07 PM.

  20. #20
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    i drive like an asshole too, probably best to play it safe and get the snow/ice tires

  21. #21
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    All season tires are great, as long as you live in Texas. Buy a set of rims and mount some kick ass Hakapolita or something made for snow/ice on them. Swap your own tires over in mid November after you figure you almost died when you hit a patch of ice.

    If you drive any kind of winter roads you're a moron if you rely on "all season" tires.
    You are what you eat.
    ---------------------------------------------------
    There's no such thing as bad snow, just shitty skiers.

  22. #22
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    I had Nokian WRG2's on my Outback. They are good in snow, okay on ice, and pretty darn good in dry/wet/non winter conditions.

    They did wear fast in my experience, despite regular rotations and air pressure checks. They are only winter rated until the "6" embedded in the tread depth has worn through. I put about 25,000 miles on them when they wore to that point. They retired early thanks to a large nail through the sidewall in one of them.

    I'll be going with dedicated summer and winter tires from now on.

    And hey, wait a minute! Tech Talk, JONG!

  23. #23
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    Quote Originally Posted by glademaster View Post
    And hey, wait a minute! Tech Talk, JONG!
    Perhaps it be steered in another direction so as to stay in the Padded Room?


  24. #24
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    Tire tracks all across your back
    I can see you've had your fun

  25. #25
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    Quote Originally Posted by Chugach001 View Post
    I'm tired of swapping seasonal tires and I'm tired of buying whatever the shop sells me. Cheap tires seem to wear out quickly but I'm not sure what else price gets me. Big lug grips look good but are loud as hell.

    ,

    Snow tires & condoms are safety items
    Lee Lau - xxx-er is the laziest Asian canuck I know

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