Jeepwalker
Senior Member
- Joined
- Sep 8, 2017
- Posts
- 3,240
- Reaction score
- 3,468
- Location
- WI
- Ram Year
- 2012 Reg Cab, 4x4
- Engine
- 5.7 Hemi
No change in the Cooper tires since Goodyear bought them out???
I don't know. That was a concern of mine too. I bought 4 sets of tires last year for various rigs ...3 sets of Coop's. They seem fine. As good as any other tire. I looked them over closely ...and I've had a tire changer since I was in high school (changed/balanced a lot of tires over the yrs!). The rubber on the Coop's doesn't **seem** to have the feel of the Silicone compound (AKA rapid dry-rot & cracking compound) that the Goodyears & Michelins use. I've had those too, and no more. They just rot off after 6-8 yrs. But ultimately time will tell on the Coopers.
If you DD your truck any tire will most likely wear just fine before dry rot catches up to ya. Michelins are a fantastic tire, arguably the best. Everyone in the industry says there's Michelin ...and then everybody else. I've run many sets of car michelins and they are fantastic. I'm sure the truck tires are great too. But these days, I just don't want them to rot off in 7 yrs. LOL. I don't put on a ton of miles on each vehicle, so I hope to get more age out of a tire. I have a set of Coopers outside on another vehicle, ~13 years old and no cracks at all. But that was pre-Goodyear.
But we'll see on the Coops. I wouldn't tell you they are a decent tire if they weren't. At their price point, the regular AT's are a good 'basic' tire. Not a HD tire. They don't appear to be a cheap or low grade tire in any way shape or form. Or I wouldn't have bought more of them. The AT2's are heavier duty. If you want a HD tire, get those. Or another brand with 10-ply rating. I used to put on a ton of miles and have owned many types/sets/brands of tires over the yrs. I wouldn't recommend something *just* because I bought it. I actually quit buying Coopers for years there in the mid 00's due to some problems I had with a few sets. But these Walmart ones seem good. And the price was an added bonus. Even my buddies at the Local GM shop, where I had them balanced, they quit selling coopers years ago, but agreed these seemed really good and balance out nice. A lot of the mechanics we were all over by the balancer looking at tires ...like tire geeks. Like I say, time will tell.
Overall you can't go wrong with Michelins, Bridgestones & Goodyears. Continental makes a great tire. Lot of guys here like the Falkens. The Cooper AT3-XLT's are a better tire. You have a lot of choices. If you're not sure and you want the best, just get a set of Michelins or Cooper AT3-XLT on a buy-3 F/F deal. Ask them to Road Force Blanace them (you have to request it). You can't go wrong. Maybe that's what you should do.
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