I am looking at 2 options for a '23 Subaru Outback. We live in Northern Michigan, drive entirely on roads, and get a fair amount of snow (100"/yr) and a limited amount of ice. We travel south a few times per year and Michigan temps vary a lot during the spring and fall so we are considering all-weather tires.
Option 1: All Weather
a. General Altimax 365. Pros: Excellent snow and ice traction, less rolling resistance. Cons: Average wet and dry braking, average (60K) life
b. Michelin CrossClimate2 Pros: Excellent snow, better wet and dry traction, long life (85K) Cons: Average ice traction, more rolling resistance
Option 2: Winter tires / All season tires. Looking at Continental Purecontact LS or Michelin CrossClimate2/ Michelin Xice3 or Blizzak WS90 for snows
cons: hassle to store, seasonal changeouts, not ideal in varying temps pros: slightly better winter and summer performance.
What would you do? Please suggest different tires or a different mix.
I have the Michelin CrossClimate2 on my Toyota Highlander. It's a great tire; however, I just wanted to point out the tire life (at least for my tire size) is warrantied to 6 years/60,000 miles (not 85k). The only issue I've had with this tire is availability. I live in Colorado and there's tons of new construction all over. Builder crews don't seem to give any care whatsoever to securing loads so I have to replace damaged tires more often than anyone should. When it comes to local availability of the CrossClimate2 there's often a long wait. Even if I look on TireRack right now it presently says "Out of Stock" for our area. Just keep that in mind that while this tire is exceptional if you do ever need to replace just one with a road hazard warranty you might be waiting for stock. It's worth checking a few sources around your locale to see if they have it readily available in the size you need.
Prior to the Michelin CrossClimate2 I had Goodyear Assurance WeatherReady on this vehicle. I did not feel these tires did anything particularly well and would not buy them again.
Another option I haven't seen anyone mention, but
may be comparable to the CrossClimate2 is the
Vredestein Quatrac. It has a very similar tread design to the CrossClimate2, is also an all-weather grand touring tire, and similar warranty (8 years from date of production/55,000 miles). Unfortunately, availability may be a bit tough on these as well. Les Schwab sells them, but from what I've seen they charge a large premium on these tires over TireRack and others.
Last, I've never tried the General Altimax 365 AW, but I'll need new tires for my 2008 Subaru Forester soon and they're a solid consideration. There seems to be a healthy group of folks here that run them and are happy so while they may or may not be top performers in dry/wet they tend be priced at a good value even without a rebate. I take a lot of these online tests and reviews with a grain of salt because I think they can always be swayed by $$$. For instance, the Goodyear Assurance WeatherReady rates very highly everywhere, but I thought it was an average performer at best.
As some have mentioned here the Outback is a snow tank and while it's always great to get the absolute best tire you can these AWD systems really do an amazing job with lesser tires. Many years ago I had ran an off-brand all-season from Discount Tire on the Subaru called Arizonian Silver Edition. Nothing exceptional, but they got me through the winters just fine. In Michigan I imagine it's important to get an all-weather or winter tire that performs well in wet snow and ice.
Let us know what you decide and how it goes.