jlb
Senior Member
I just got some new Cooper Discoverer S/T MAXX tires in 255/80/17, and so far I have been very impressed. The pictures online really didn't do them justice. I was looking for a reasonable offroad (not mud, been there, done that, don't need it) tire that:
It met all my above needs (can't comment on the lifespan yet obviously) as far as I can tell:
I went out, and played around a little during which the tires performed as expected. They are a large void design, verging on mud tire spacing, but not quite there (whew, like I said these were more aggressive than I was expecting) and as such chewed through 12" deep totally unpacked gravel, loose piled dirt, light mud 2"-3" deep (w/o 4x4) all with ease. I was also pleasantly surprised when I got back on the pavement, and sped up to note that they failed to pick up, and hold any rocks in the tread, so no rocker panel dings today... Hopefully that is a trend that continues. The tread blocks in profile are trapezoidal in shape, so rocks don't seem to lodge in as well as they would with a rectangular profile.
I must also say that for a 255 profile width (I understand profile & tread width are not always directly related, this is just an observation) the tread width was nearly the same as my 275/70/17s that came off. This is a plus though since I didn't want the truck to look anorexic.
I know 33s come stock with the 20s, but I will say this anyway, I have no rubbing to note although it is possible they just kiss the wheel well liner in the flex picture you see. I will point out though that the stretched tire was off the ground, so this is absolute max axle extension. It does boggle my mind how that beefy ass anti-roll bar in the front doesn't allow the front end much flex at all, but the ass is all over the place. This is my first half ton (NEVER AGAIN), so I am used to the absolute opposite where the ass end usually has more influence on frame orientation.
See the pics below, and if I remember in 30k - 40k I will try to bring this thread back from the dead with a mileage update on the tires.
- has decent on road behaviour
- has good offroad traction
- has reasonable sound level on highway
- is taller than stock
- is E-Rated
- didn't weigh a billion pounds
- won't break the bank
- won't kill my mileage/power
- will last a few miles
It met all my above needs (can't comment on the lifespan yet obviously) as far as I can tell:
- decent on road behaviour - on my way to work this morning it was wet/icy(ish), and I felt confident the tires had nice grip on the asphalt/concrete along the way
- is taller than stock ~33" vs. OEM ~32
- didn't weigh a billion pounds - 51 lbs. same as stock
- won't break the bank - $208/tire w free shipping & addtl. $40 off total
- won't kill my mileage/power - the butt dyno hasn't really noticed
I went out, and played around a little during which the tires performed as expected. They are a large void design, verging on mud tire spacing, but not quite there (whew, like I said these were more aggressive than I was expecting) and as such chewed through 12" deep totally unpacked gravel, loose piled dirt, light mud 2"-3" deep (w/o 4x4) all with ease. I was also pleasantly surprised when I got back on the pavement, and sped up to note that they failed to pick up, and hold any rocks in the tread, so no rocker panel dings today... Hopefully that is a trend that continues. The tread blocks in profile are trapezoidal in shape, so rocks don't seem to lodge in as well as they would with a rectangular profile.
I must also say that for a 255 profile width (I understand profile & tread width are not always directly related, this is just an observation) the tread width was nearly the same as my 275/70/17s that came off. This is a plus though since I didn't want the truck to look anorexic.
I know 33s come stock with the 20s, but I will say this anyway, I have no rubbing to note although it is possible they just kiss the wheel well liner in the flex picture you see. I will point out though that the stretched tire was off the ground, so this is absolute max axle extension. It does boggle my mind how that beefy ass anti-roll bar in the front doesn't allow the front end much flex at all, but the ass is all over the place. This is my first half ton (NEVER AGAIN), so I am used to the absolute opposite where the ass end usually has more influence on frame orientation.
See the pics below, and if I remember in 30k - 40k I will try to bring this thread back from the dead with a mileage update on the tires.
