2015 Outback tire question

[Cross]

We will be driving to Fredrickton Canada the last week of October to the first week of November. The friends we are staying with tell us that there is a good chance the will be snow and ice that time of the year. by that time the oem tires will need replacing. My questions is, is there an all terrain tire that would be good to handle snow and ice but can be used year round in hot weather. we live in miami fl.

Any input on this would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

 

[gandrimp]

BFGoodrich ko2 are getting good reviews all around. It will be my next tire, if it's still being made.

 

[calicamper]

For the OB and typical needs Michelin passenger tires all seasons have some of the best snow and Ice performance of the Allseason choices. I rarely see snow and Ice and have just shy of 40k on my BFG touring tires. They have been really good, but are not as good on snow and Ice as the stock tires. For dirt roads, wet roads the BFG touring tires have been some of the best tires Ive had on my subarus period. If I did snow and ice seasonally or multiple trips a yr my choice would be Michelin all seasons.

I would go AT tires 16inch wheels if we started doing lots of desert rocky road stuff. But the pretty well built BFG touring tires have held up really well towing, and coastal dirt roads etc. The AT tires hit the mileage fairly hard and so far between the Subaru AWD keeping wheel spin and tire shreding to near zero just a really solid passenger tire with respected reasonable allseason performance do pretty good. Nothing will beat dedicated winter snow/ice rubber but with good Michelin allseasons the Subarus are pretty rock solid.

 

[jeep-N-montero]

We will be driving to Fredrickton Canada the last week of October to the first week of November. The friends we are staying with tell us that there is a good chance the will be snow and ice that time of the year. by that time the oem tires will need replacing. My questions is, is there an all terrain tire that would be good to handle snow and ice but can be used year round in hot weather. we live in miami fl.

Any input on this would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

BFG ko2 is my suggestion, great traction plus it will make the car look a bit more manly. Second choice would be the Cooper AT3, very good wet and snow traction but look a bit less aggressive than the BFG's.

 

[LionZoo]

I think you need to downsize to 16" wheels to find a decent size, but I just got the Hankook Dynapro AT-Ms (225/70-16 size) and they were awesome in the snow while I was up in Tahoe.

Portions of 395 were pure snow and I was cruising at 50 mph, with the car feeling completely in control and capable of going faster. They almost felt like a snow tire.

 

[calicamper]

I have BFG Rugged Terrains on my truck. My prior truck 93 LC had the Kos. For the heavy trucks nothing is better than the BFGs regarding durability. They ride stiff but take huge amounts of abuse. Other than rocky durability I havent come across a situation where going full AT on my Subaru would have made a big difference. The Subaru is fairly light and the AWD system is really good at keeping tires from spinning too much risking the shred factor. Traction with a good quality All season is good unless your fooling with mud then you have an issue.

 

[jeep-N-montero]

I have BFG Rugged Terrains on my truck. My prior truck 93 LC had the Kos. For the heavy trucks nothing is better than the BFGs regarding durability. They ride stiff but take huge amounts of abuse. Other than rocky durability I havent come across a situation where going full AT on my Subaru would have made a big difference. The Subaru is fairly light and the AWD system is really good at keeping tires from spinning too much risking the shred factor. Traction with a good quality All season is good unless your fooling with mud then you have an issue.

Go read up on actual testing in snow and ice conditions and you will see why certain A/T tires get the snowflake rating and others do not, winter driving is far more than just having the ability to start from a red light. The difference in stopping and resistance to slipping/sliding is huge when you compare, stopping distance alone between the best all-season tire and just the cheapest snow/winter rated tire is almost 2 car lengths. AWD is nice, but if the traction isn't there then you might as well just ride a scooter....

 

[calicamper]

Go read up on actual testing in snow and ice conditions and you will see why certain A/T tires get the snowflake rating and others do not, winter driving is far more than just having the ability to start from a red light. The difference in stopping and resistance to slipping/sliding is huge when you compare, stopping distance alone between the best all-season tire and just the cheapest snow/winter rated tire is almost 2 car lengths. AWD is nice, but if the traction isn't there then you might as well just ride a scooter....

Re read my comment "nothing will be better than dedicated Snow tires" For off and on snow and ice needs "good all seasons yes snow flake rated which Michelin typically sits at the top of that list.

Its all about your need.. BFG k2's on a subaru that never sees more than occasional dirt road to a trail head is going to be supremely better on good car tires rated for your needs.

 

[p nut]

My suggestion is to forget AT tires, or even snow tires. You're going to "need" them on this one trip and that's it? Just get some good all-seasons that won't rob MPG, ride comfort, etc., and throw in a set of snow cables in the back (for all 4 wheels). There are people up in the Canada getting around in FWD/RWD cars in all-seasons. You will be fine in the Sub, as long as you slow down.

 

[calicamper]

My suggestion is to forget AT tires, or even snow tires. You're going to "need" them on this one trip and that's it? Just get some good all-seasons that won't rob MPG, ride comfort, etc., and throw in a set of snow cables in the back. There are people up in the Canada getting around in FWD/RWD cars in all-seasons. You will be fine in the Sub, as long as you slow down.

Yep

 

[Theprofessional]

I would recommend the Standard Michelin.
why?

They make the best tires in the world along with the likes of Perreli and Maxxis.
They will still out-perform any other AWD vehicle in ****ty situations on stock tires.
You're not going to get stuck.
You live in Florida. Don't decide on a tire based on a single trip.

 

[DanCooper]

Calicamper said it best: Buy what you need for the rest of your use of the Subaru, and just slow down. Being a careful driver in icy and snowy conditions will do more to keep you safe than any set of tires you can buy. Sometimes the trick to driving safely on ice and snow is knowing when not to drive on ice or snow. . .

 

[Dake21]

In Canada we have our fair share of snow and ice, some of us drive on All season but the lack of proper tire is compensated with experience. However, even with experience the main problem isnt always you but others.
One winter I was on all season and some drunk idiot crossed the media and hit the car in front of me. That day I have learned There's one thing AWD won't make any better than other vehicle and its the most important one: braking.
Even with a good distance (about 5 cars lenght driving at 40km/h) my crv did not come to a stop and I hit the car in front of me, was deemed ''partly responsible'' and had to pay $500 in deductible; which could have been put on winter tires.
I hope you have experience in snow and ice. If not, well....
AT tires are doing well in snow but not on ice. Ice on the coast is what we get most of the time and in october/november you might drive in freezing rain.
I'd buy a cheap set of winter tire. This would be a better compromise than some A/T that wont be any good on ice anyway.
Some of use drive on winter tire all year round, just keep dont go to fast (over 120km/hmph) or they will wear out quick.

 

[Cross]

Thanks for all the info, we will def keep it in mind.

The reason for an all terrain tire is we used to go to central florida (lots of sand) to offroad and hike in our old truck, had bfg all terrains, and never had an issue with traction. We wanted to start going back more often but feel we need better tires.

Buying dedicated winter tires would be the best solution, but its not possible.

We are planning on getting snow chains or cables if we need them, but figured we would decide once we got there.I know it might not be the best idea to wait till last min.

Thanks everyone again for everything. Any more info would be appreciated

 

[Hodaka]

We can talk about tires and driving experience all day, but here's something for you:
The chance of having to deal with snow and ice that time of year are pretty slight. Get good tires for sure, but I don't see you having to drive in a blizzard.