Thoughts on Cooper Discoverer Tire - AT3 4s, AT3 LT or AT3 XLT??

Yondu · August 16, 2019

1 hour ago, amxguy1970 said:

The 4s will be my next set of tires. I did a bunch of homework on my current set (General Grabber AT2) because I knew I didn't need or want an E-rated tire and it came down to that or the Cooper AT3. Unless you tow regularly on the heavier side or off road a bunch it is not necessary for all the tradeoffs and MPG hit E-rated tires have. I looked at performance, tread depth and price as main factors plus reviews. Right off the bat the KO's were off the table, way over-rated, way over-priced and heavy, plus they only came in the size I wanted in E-rated and are susceptible to hydro-planning. Any of the Hybrid tires (AT3W, Duratrac, Ridge Grappler, etc) are too aggressive for daily driving and not going off road. They are always louder, worse on mpg, handle worse and heavier, just physics to running a bigger lug tire. I wanted to be realistic with my usage. The AT2's had half an inch of tread depth in the P-rated tire (plus snow rated, though I live in Texas I visit the mountains and family on occasion). I wanted the extra aggression for off road durability and looks. Even though I probably leave the pavement more than most here (I bet 90% never do) I still am on the pavement most all the time to work and back, so I want a tire that is good on the road and tough enough off road. More time with the Generals they have been an excellent tire but have gotten louder over time as they wear but are nice and smooth on the highway but I want something a little more street tame this go around. I realize my next tire will be slightly less aggressive so it is a better tire day in and day out so I will go with the Coopers. The AT3 originally was an excellent tire punching above its weight class off road (it won an expedition portal tire test a few years back) while retaining excellent on road manners without much of an MPG penalty. The new 4s is even better handling nearly as good as the top AT street oriented tire (Continental Terrain Contact) while nearly matching the most aggressive AT tires off road, it really is one of the best all around tires on the market. Plus they are american made and run mid pack in terms of price (nearly $70 less than the KO's and $60 less in the XLT version for an apples to apples comparison). Plus they fixed one of the largest grips people had about the original AT3 and the passenger car looking sidewall, I'd be lying if that also wasn't a small factor in my decision before but the tread depth was the largest factor in going with the Generals. The 4s has one of the deeper tread depths at 14/32 in passenger form and are a few pounds lighter than the Generals and only 5 pounds heavier than stock.

To the original question I would go with 4s and not the LT or XLT unless all out looks or toughness off road and heavy towing regularly are needed. That is what I will be doing next year as I have about 35k on these Generals and they should wear out around 50k (just shy of the 60k warranty). I will replace sooner if another back country trip comes up and the tread depth isn't enough for my liking.

Tyler

Right on. Sounds like you are also very picky. Many of your factors are things I looked at too. If I go 17, they make a 285/70r17 that I'll be going with.

The only other tire I'd consider is the Goodyear Trailrunner. I have not used that tire, but it seems to check the same boxes.

roadkill5.3 · August 23, 2019

I love at3’s. Just got my wife’s jeep some and my 2016 Silverado a set of at3LT’s.

My duramax had them. Awesome tire. Dry wet mud dirt grass. Great tire. Got 60k out of them.

Mpg’s? you bought a v8 truck. Not a car.

Edited August 23, 2019 by Jgreen2193

miker2702 · August 23, 2019

I have at3s on my 04 1500 and absolutely the worst tire I have had in some time. started out great for about a year.

now so loud and so rough I quit rotating them hoping they wear out faster. got about 30k on them. 6 hour road trip

to Nashville and back a year ago at around 80 mph or better I could not figure out what was worse the Volant air filter noise or the tires

screaming I thought they were in competition for which one would be the loudest.

Ozer · August 23, 2019

5 hours ago, miker2702 said:

I have at3s on my 04 1500 and absolutely the worst tire I have had in some time. started out great for about a year.

now so loud and so rough I quit rotating them hoping they wear out faster. got about 30k on them. 6 hour road trip

to Nashville and back a year ago at around 80 mph or better I could not figure out what was worse the Volant air filter noise or the tires

screaming I thought they were in competition for which one would be the loudest.

Thats weird. Check the tread closely, see if you have any missing pieces on the tread. I read someone on here getting all new 4 tires from Cooper because the tread was breaking up. That could be the cause of the noise.

Edited August 23, 2019 by Ozer

Bikemobile · August 23, 2019

Falken AT3W comes in a 117T rating in 275/55-20 so I went with those. Great so far!

Yondu · August 24, 2019

On 8/23/2019 at 6:26 AM, miker2702 said:

I have at3s on my 04 1500 and absolutely the worst tire I have had in some time. started out great for about a year.

now so loud and so rough I quit rotating them hoping they wear out faster. got about 30k on them. 6 hour road trip

to Nashville and back a year ago at around 80 mph or better I could not figure out what was worse the Volant air filter noise or the tires

screaming I thought they were in competition for which one would be the loudest.

Curious if you have the AT3 4s or the older at3.

Sounds like some bad luck. They would probably make it right for you.

miker2702 · August 25, 2019

Older ones. Just very loud and rough.can't all be like these to many people like them. For the first year they were good.

DirtyAndy · August 28, 2019

Ran these tires on my 08 Sierra and loved them. First year I put them on, we had 16” of snow overnight and it walked right through it the next morning. That sold me on them for the 2nd set.

Edit: I got 40-45k out of my first set. Had about 20k on my second set before I traded it in and they looked great still. My second set was quieter as well. I think they were balanced better.