I’m in a quandary and would love some advice, as I’m not a huge car guy. I drive a 2014 Subaru XV Crosstrek Hybrid Touring - an AWD vehicle. I’ve currently got size 225/55R17 Kumho Ecsta 4X II KU22 tires on the vehicle. About a week ago I got a puncture in one of the tire near the sidewall and it can’t be repaired. I had these tires installed in May 2022 and the tread is down to 6/32.
I know that ideally you replace all tires at once on an AWD vehicle and that Subarus in particular have a low tolerance for tire tread depth differences. As far as I see it I have two options - buy a new tire and have it shaved to match the tread depth on the other tires, or install all new tires. Trouble is the specific tire I have seems to have been discontinued and I can’t find it at any of the places that offer a tire shaving service. Could I replace it with the next most similar tire from Kumho - the Kumho Ecsta PA51? It just seems crazy to throw away 3 perfectly good tires that would last me at least another 1/1.5 years.
I’d bite the bullet and replace all 4. I replace at 4/32, so it’s not that far off. The only option would be if you could find a tire-shaving shop and shave the new Kumho. You’ve tried searching for “tire shaving yourtown”?
All 4 tires need to be with in 2 or 3/32 from lowest tread to thickest tread with the same roll out or you can damage the driveline… You either replace all 4 tires at the same time or find an exact matching tire and have the tread ground down to match the other 3 tires tread…
Tires don’t last forever. Just replace all four. Think about the minimal extra cost per mile for an expense sooner than expected. Big deal. I’ve put tires on after getting a patch or less.
They need to be closer than that. I have a 2014 Legacy and according to the owners manual, the circumference from the largest to the smallest cannot exceed 1/4". That means the tread difference cannot exceed much over 1/32. Actually about 1.25/32. And that only applies if all four tires are matching.
Subaru uses the circumference instead of tread depth because if there are tires from different manufacturers or even different model tires from the same manufacturer, that tread depth difference could even be a lot less.
Edit: I had the same issue when I got sidewall damage from a sharp rock that cut all the way to the cords on one tire. The tires were at about 6/32" as well, 55k on them at the time. I replaced all four. Just replaced their replacements at 150k miles. Watch for them sharp rocks.
I wrecked a tire when I had 1500 miles on the Acura. I would have bought four new ones but the dealer said 1500 miles would not be a problem. Four tires would have been cheaper than a transfer case and differential. Actually only three tires since one was a given. Just sayin is all.
2017 Edge with AWD. More than once I replaced just a single tire. I had never heard of the issues with one tire being new. Then 4K miles after the drivetrain warranty ran out we needed a new PTU for the AWD. $3200. Go with 4 new tires.
We always used the 2/32 rule, anything over that was ruled have to replace or have new tire ground down… I put 4 brand new tires on a customers brand new Subaru that was a 1/2 day old and under 40 miles on the vehicle due to hitting something in the road and taking out both right side tires, I could see the Subaru dealer from the shop… Well, the tires were still dealer ONLY and were on national back order, Subaru said 4 tires or void driveline warranty basically… I put 4 tires with Road Hazard so if a next time it will save them a lot of money… With Road Hazard and an AWD or full time 4WD and required 4 at a time, if 1/2 worn, then 1/2 price for all 4 tires, not just the one, 25% worn, 75%off etc etc… Did countless RH warranty’s like that, it was cheaper than buying a new driveline for the customers vehicle…
The Subaru dealer was wrong. The owners manual specifically states 1/4" difference in circumference. However if you could not get two of the same brand, model and size, then they would have a point.
I think in that case, I’d put the good left rear tire on the right front and put two tires from the same brand and as close to the model as possible on the rear, provided the circumfrences matched.
Some people think they are saving money by not buying three tires. I look at as only an accelerated expense that would have to be paid at some point, just a little sooner than expected. So big deal. That all depends on not dying first, in which case you would have saved the expense. I’d rather buy the tires than die.
$2000 for a set of tires sounds at least $1000 too high, for a Toyota. Make sure to check Discount Tire or Tire Rack for a quote.
And let’s not forget that we’re taking about the importance of having the same tread depth/size on an AWD car. Tire size is not nearly as important on a soley FWD or RWD car.
+1
Their selection is far more comprehensive than any tire shop that I know of. I’ve used Tire Rack on a couple of occasions, and I was very pleased with the results.
Nowadays, I simply go to Costco (especially when they are running a sale) because of their good prices on Michelins/installation/balancing, and also for their low prices on TPMS sensor replacement. But, if I was looking for cheaper tires, or tires other than what Costco sells, I would certainly get my tires from Tire Rack.