14 Forester XT - Replace or Keep ~ 3.4/32” Average Tread Depth

gathermewool

gathermewool

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It’s time to remove the winter tires and put the AS back on.

2014 Forester XT (family car), driven conservatively by wife, mostly locally. I drive on longer drives. I’m a little more aggressive.

Yokohama Avid Ascend GT 225/55R18
31,939 miles (9/20/2019)
Tirerack $642.31
Install + align $148.84

Tread depth (outer/middle/inner 32nd of an inch)
RF: 3/3/4
LF: 3/4/4
RR: 2/3/4
LR: 3/4/4

I’m really on the fence about whether to replace them now or at the end of the season. I’m also trying to figure out what to replace them with and where.
Money is tight right now…

A new Costco just opened up a few miles from me recently and their customer service and warranty is pretty desirable, but their selection is extremely limited.
I spent over a grand on CrossClimate 2’s last year for the Legacy and I’m only moderately happy with them. They’re comfortable and quiet, but there is a hit to MPG and they don’t handle as well as the Continental DWS they replaced.

So:

1. Buy once, cry once on highly rated tires (TBD)
2. Save money on clearance tires that are well rated (Goodyear Assurance for $740.15)
- Places like Amazon also offer some tires for relatively low cost AND offer 0% payments through the credit card. I’d miss out on 5% cash back, but it might be best.
3. Drive for the rest of the year and replace them when they get closer to 2/32”
- I do not like this idea, because this is the family’s vehicle, but my wife is very conservative driver
- I would hopefully get a few more months, with the best case scenario being all season. I’d swap winter tires early, then replace these next Spring.

All advice welcome. I can chew up the Blizzaks a little more while I decide.
 
Oh, and I need to look into the warranty.

I believe it’s 65k miles and 5 years, down to 2/32”. That means I’d need to to run them down to less than 2/32”. I’ve never warrantied a tire
 
Those are done.

IIRC the wrg4's handle pretty sporty.. they just get greasy if you push them really hard on a track or 150f pavement
I'd get a set of something reasonably sporty on a XT
dws06? or at least some V rated touring.

For budget this is as cheap as I would go.

GT Radial Champiro Touring A/S 225/55R18 98V AS All Season Tire​

(4.9)4.9 stars out of 42 reviews
Now $101.92


The nokians are 160$

Nokian WR G4 SUV All Weather 225/55R18 102H XL SUV/Crossover Tire​

(5.0)5 stars out of 3 reviews3 reviews
Now $160.01
 
Last edited:
Ordered from the online place for more than 25 years...the bad news for them is Costco. It's very hard to make a case against them. And, ours is tax free, which the online place is as well. So now it comes down to convenience. Costco is one stop shopping, and two things we've done with them and nobody else. Had them patch for free, and, had them do a warranty claim as the Premier LTX's started at 8.5/32 and were totally shot at 43k. Essentially got 17/60 credit against a new set.

Things are way too expensive today imho to throw anything away that's usable, I'd go down to 2/32. The car won't turn into a pumpkin as this is real life, not a fairy tale lol
 
Would you be paying to have these mounted? If so, no way. If they're on their own rims, let your conscience be your guide.
 
gathermewool said:
It’s time to remove the winter tires and put the AS back on.

2014 Forester XT (family car), driven conservatively by wife, mostly locally. I drive on longer drives. I’m a little more aggressive.

Yokohama Avid Ascend GT 225/55R18
31,939 miles (9/20/2019)
Tirerack $642.31
Install + align $148.84

Tread depth (outer/middle/inner 32nd of an inch)
RF: 3/3/4
LF: 3/4/4
RR: 2/3/4
LR: 3/4/4

I’m really on the fence about whether to replace them now or at the end of the season. I’m also trying to figure out what to replace them with and where.
Money is tight right now…

A new Costco just opened up a few miles from me recently and their customer service and warranty is pretty desirable, but their selection is extremely limited.
I spent over a grand on CrossClimate 2’s last year for the Legacy and I’m only moderately happy with them. They’re comfortable and quiet, but there is a hit to MPG and they don’t handle as well as the Continental DWS they replaced.

So:

1. Buy once, cry once on highly rated tires (TBD)
2. Save money on clearance tires that are well rated (Goodyear Assurance for $740.15)
- Places like Amazon also offer some tires for relatively low cost AND offer 0% payments through the credit card. I’d miss out on 5% cash back, but it might be best.
3. Drive for the rest of the year and replace them when they get closer to 2/32”
- I do not like this idea, because this is the family’s vehicle, but my wife is very conservative driver
- I would hopefully get a few more months, with the best case scenario being all season. I’d swap winter tires early, then replace these next Spring.

All advice welcome. I can chew up the Blizzaks a little more while I decide.
Click to expand...
Gathermewool

Safety 1st

No amount of $ is worth your Family's Safety
 
Rand said:
Those are done.

IIRC the wrg4's handle pretty sporty.. they just get greasy if you push them really hard on a track or 150f pavement
I'd get a set of something reasonably sporty on a XT
dws06? or at least some V rated touring.

For budget this is as cheap as I would go.

GT Radial Champiro Touring A/S 225/55R18 98V AS All Season Tire​

(4.9)4.9 stars out of 42 reviews
Now $101.92


The nokians are 160$

Nokian WR G4 SUV All Weather 225/55R18 102H XL SUV/Crossover Tire​

(5.0)5 stars out of 3 reviews3 reviews
Now $160.01
Click to expand...

I really hate the idea of going cheap. The more I think about it the more I don’t want to save a few hundred for a compromise.

Just realize that this XT started off in my hands. I know this sounds hard to believe, but I had some fun. It allows brake-boosting, so off-the-line starts were surprisingly quick. Without the kiddos, I also had fun on empty roads safely being a bit of a goober.

Anyway, now my conservative wife drives this 99% of the time and I don’t drive nearly as crazy as I used to, since I only really drive it with them in it.

I’m looking for only dry/wet traction. We don’t drive as much as we used to, so while the CrossClimate2 aren’t great, they are quiet. They’re just not sporty, which is disappointing.
 
Slick3914 said:
No way, I’d put them back on my Wife’s car. Mine maybe, but I want good rubber on her vehicle.
Click to expand...

You’re probably right. Switching her over to the Legacy is an options, I guess. It might actually be the most economical. The Legacy has way more space in the trunk than even my wife thought. We took a road trip to FL and fit everything we needed. You’ve got me thinking.
 
John105 said:
Ordered from the online place for more than 25 years...the bad news for them is Costco. It's very hard to make a case against them. And, ours is tax free, which the online place is as well. So now it comes down to convenience. Costco is one stop shopping, and two things we've done with them and nobody else. Had them patch for free, and, had them do a warranty claim as the Premier LTX's started at 8.5/32 and were totally shot at 43k. Essentially got 17/60 credit against a new set.

Things are way too expensive today imho to throw anything away that's usable, I'd go down to 2/32. The car won't turn into a pumpkin as this is real life, not a fairy tale lol
Click to expand...

I’ve taken the previous tires to 2/32” and it was fun for me. I was able to do a four-wheel drift on wet pavement (safely and on an empty street). I don’t necessarily want that for my family.

I’ve also hydroplaned and experienced that sphincter-puckering event a couple of times on decent tires and the thought of that experience with these tires is a bit concerning. My commute is short and safe. I‘m leaning toward swapping cars with her and taking the Foz for my own until these tires are replaced.

We’ll both have the final say, of course. She seems to want to buy better tires and “buy once, cry once”
 
eljefino said:
Would you be paying to have these mounted? If so, no way. If they're on their own rims, let your conscience be your guide.
Click to expand...

The winter and AS tires are on their own set of wheels. Steelies for the winters and stock alloys for the (current) AS tires.
 
Crusher said:
Gathermewool

Safety 1st

No amount of $ is worth your Family's Safety
Click to expand...
MalibuRam65 said:
Get them tires changed Asap it’s time . Safety first drive with Confidence knowing your tires are fresh .
Click to expand...

You guys might be right.

One key piece of info I left out is that we got hit with a freak snow storm where we were about a month ago and I was really nervous driving with these. I hadn’t put the snow tires/wheels on because the forecast had and was to be rain and well above freezing.

I did put the winter tires on soon after, because we had iffy weather coming and a 1.5 hr trip to see a Dr coming up. It ended up being a wintry mix that day, so I’m glad I made that choice.
 
Have you considered used tires? Craigslist/Facebook marketplace could be a good option. Just give the tires a good look before buying. There are also some used tire websites like ChampTires. I have seen tires with 10/32nds of treat on there for much less than they were new.
 
gathermewool said:
I really hate the idea of going cheap. The more I think about it the more I don’t want to save a few hundred for a compromise.

Just realize that this XT started off in my hands. I know this sounds hard to believe, but I had some fun. It allows brake-boosting, so off-the-line starts were surprisingly quick. Without the kiddos, I also had fun on empty roads safely being a bit of a goober.

Anyway, now my conservative wife drives this 99% of the time and I don’t drive nearly as crazy as I used to, since I only really drive it with them in it.

I’m looking for only dry/wet traction. We don’t drive as much as we used to, so while the CrossClimate2 aren’t great, they are quiet. They’re just not sporty, which is disappointing.
Click to expand...
CC2 are not supposed to be sporty.

Krzyś
 
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