i bought my 03 OBS with 42k on it and now i'm almost at 52k (all in about 6 months, damn...). it still has the original potenzas. i've read the posts about which brands are good/recommended, but i have yet to see anything about how long the original tires last and/or when they should be replaced. i know some say replace them immediately because they're junk, but that wasn't really an option. but now i'm faced with winter coming. i prefer not to have to buy snow tires and regular tires since winters are hit or miss here (southern new england), but i do venture north for skiing. so are my tires near the end of their life? would it be in my best interest to replace them soon or should i wait and do it when the penny rule takes effect?

I'm of the "if it's not broke, don't fix it" mentality. Replace them when they wear out. I got 70k miles out of the Michelins on my 1996 Outback and expect to get about the same with the Potenzas. Sure, they may not be the best tires out there, but the Potenzas seem OK to me and I have never had reason to complain about traction or tread life.

The Potenza's on my Mom's '03 Gt sedan are 205/55R16 wore out in 30k!! HOW did you get 70k out of them!!

i bought my 03 OBS with 42k on it and now i'm almost at 52k (all in about 6 months, damn...). it still has the original potenzas. i've read the posts about which brands are good/recommended, but i have yet to see anything about how long the original tires last and/or when they should be replaced. i know some say replace them immediately because they're junk, but that wasn't really an option. but now i'm faced with winter coming. i prefer not to have to buy snow tires and regular tires since winters are hit or miss here (southern new england), but i do venture north for skiing. so are my tires near the end of their life? would it be in my best interest to replace them soon or should i wait and do it when the penny rule takes effect?

 

Just get a decent set of all season tires and you'll be ok. I've not put snows on our OBW at all and have no complaints about winter driving...

 

I've read that BFGoodrich Traction TA is a good mix of both all season and winter traction tire...

The Potenza's on my Mom's '03 Gt sedan are 205/55R16 wore out in 30k!! HOW did you get 70k out of them!!

 

I said that I got 70k from a set of MICHELINS. Right now I have 25k on the Potenzas on my 2004 Outback and they have plenty of life left.

Right now I have 25k on the Potenzas on my 2004 Outback and they have plenty of life left.

31K miles on ours, I seen no reason they shouldn't go until this time next year. This would be over 45K.

 

They've been rotated every 7500 miles.