Thicker tires?

[sumanthjb]

Hi I am a new owner of an Outback 2013 with about 10k miles on it. I totally love my car but recently encountered a ton of problems with the tires giving up on me in the cold cold North Dakotan off roads. I work mostly in the oil field and do a lot of commuting back and forth from Colorado. I had my first flat which happened on a highway I suppose with a big nail sitting comfortably inside the flat tire. The second time I had a flat tire was completely unexpected and the tire had a gaping hole at the side and had to be replaced. There was no evidence of a foreign object in it. My fellow colleagues in the oil field who have the privilege of driving big pickups with 'x' ply tires just cannot what I am going through as they have never encountered a situation like mine before and keep suggesting me to go for thicker tires. 

So my question here is since the factory tires are not helping what would anyone suggest me going for the Outback 2013?? 

 

Thanks!

Sumanth 

[987687]

Get some beefy tires, like general grabbers or whatnot. You should be able to get light truck tires in outback size.

[Rooster2]

Agree with your buddy about buying tires that are thicker, particularly in the side walls. At a tire store, take your hand and flex tire sidewalls. The cheaper the tire, the thinner and more flexible the side wall. This also prolly holds true for the tread area as well. After flexing a few tires, you will get a good idea of what is good, and what is not so good.

[sumanthjb]

I will definitely check out the light truck tires for the Outback. And thank you both. 

[WoodsWagon]

Does your outback have 16" or 17" wheels on it? If you could switch to 16" wheels that gives you an extra 1/2" of sidewall to soak up hits on the trashed ND roads. Instead of a 225/60r17 you could run a 215/70r16. It's the stock steel wheel and tire combo the base trim Outbacks come with. You can get the BFG A/T in load range C in that size.

[spazomatic]

BFG ATs are a rugged tire and will handle most any type of abuse you can throw at 'em. They do ride a bit more stiff, but its an acceptable tradeoff. I use them as a summer tire for my 84 GL. This summer I put general grabber ATs on my 06 Baja and they seem to take abuse pretty well, though they arent as stiff, and dont weight as much as a BFG

[Bushwick]

Softer sidewalls are meant for a more car-like ride. If you have the clearance, get some small truck tires meant for on/off road. Ride will suffer a bit on road with added noise, and mileage will probably decrease as well, but durability should increase. Stopping effort might increase as well, so get used to them and any added stopping time they might introduce on the highway or roads.