Tire choice for the very occasional off roading

[screamoon]

I have been really happy with the Cooper Discoverer AT3 XLTs. Solid off-road, quiet and smooth on-road.
Their AT3 LTs have the same tread pattern with smaller sizes, and less sidewall beef.

Trail4Runner.com - Cooper AT3 XLT Review

I see a lot of Cooper At3 recommendations. I wonder if any of you with Cooper AT3's care about the speedometer offset that happens because of these tires?

 

[MTN4RNR]

I see a lot of Cooper At3 recommendations. I wonder if any of you with Cooper AT3's care about the speedometer offset that happens because of these tires?

Speedometer offset will happen with any tire that is a different size than stock. Not just the Coopers.

One thing I did notice initially was that on stock tires my speedometer was reading a few MPH faster than I was traveling (according to GPS). When I switch to a slightly taller 275/70 the GPS and speedometer were almost perfectly in sync. Now that I am an even taller 285, the speedometer reads a few MPH slower than actual, which is to be expected with larger tires.

 

[Kenstaroni]

I'm loving my current Nitto Ridge Grapplers. Nice and quiet on the road but work well offroad. Falken Wildpeaks are very highly regarded, maybe another to look at.

Some AT tires like K02's are available in load C instead of load E and will weigh less...might be a better option for someone who only mildly offroad's.

 

[screamoon]

Speedometer offset will happen with any tire that is a different size than stock. Not just the Coopers.

One thing I did notice initially was that on stock tires my speedometer was reading a few MPH faster than I was traveling (according to GPS). When I switch to a slightly taller 275/70 the GPS and speedometer were almost perfectly in sync. Now that I am an even taller 285, the speedometer reads a few MPH slower than actual, which is to be expected with larger tires.

Interesting. Thank you for the details.

 

[Backup]

I myself was deciding between the Falken Wildpeaks and Cooper AT3s in stock size / P metric. The wildpeaks look much more aggressive but are heavier than the AT3s. The AT3s are about the same weight as the stock so your fuel economy will be better.

 

[Rolltide05]

Cooper AT3 XLT is a great tire

 

[tpetsch]

I've been reading some positive reviews the new Continental Terraincontact A/T, could be up for consideration for the "Occasional off roader". They look the off-road part but are still relatively light weight which is a positive for predominantly road driving, road tire quiet on road, and they seem to balance out with little drama & wear well which could translate to less potential wheel shake down the road. ...Any body here driving on a set now?, What do you think?

 

[ElectroBoy]

I had a bad experience with Cooper Discoverer AT3 4S tires. They look great, and performed well for the short time I used them. But on pavement I sensed a buzzing vibration in the steering wheel at all speeds that I attributed to the tread lug spacing. They were balanced properly. I had replaced the stock tires at 20k miles, which rode very smoothly, with the Coopers and was surprised at the difference in the road sensation. I really wanted to like them since they seemed great from all the research I did. I used them for a month, about 1000 miles, and just couldn’t get used to the feeling.
So I traded them in at the tire store for Michelin LTX AT2 tires. They ride much smoother on pavement and have performed really well in dirt, mud, and deep sandy roads.

 

[tls3601]

Nitto TG. My Pro came with them and not quite as nice as the KO2’s We put on Darlenes SR5, but quiet and better than stock meats.

 

[Swipter]

I am about as indecisive as you can be and this thread doesn't help. I will be in the market later this year and cannot make up my mind. Between the Ridge Grappler and P rated Falken and now the Cooper XLT. I have even learned to others not mentioned but not worthy of this thread, and my purposes actually.

Maybe just not think about it for a while. Like that will happen.

 

[Hans Moleman]

Goodyear Ultra Terrain AT

 

[bglfgd]

I've ran stock sized Wildpeaks for a little over 20K miles now and they've been great, especially in rain and snow. They are noisy though.

Sent from my SM-G973U using Tapatalk

 

[BCMUSA]

I had the Cooper AT3 4S stock size, P rated and had nothing but issues with them trying to get them to balance properly.

I had them balanced 4 times at a few different shops and I had a wicked steering wheel wobble, and seat vibrations.

They took an insane amount of weight to balance.

I switched to the Nitto Terra Grappler G2 today and they balanced perfectly, requiring very little weights.

So far so good, no more wobble or seat vibration.

 

[rsimi72]

I had the Cooper AT3 4S stock size, P rated and had nothing but issues with them trying to get them to balance properly.

I had them balanced 4 times at a few different shops and I had a wicked steering wheel wobble, and seat vibrations.

They took an insane amount of weight to balance.

I switched to the Nitto Terra Grappler G2 today and they balanced perfectly, requiring very little weights.

So far so good, no more wobble or seat vibration.

I know you’ve been battling the wobble. Congrats on getting it worked out! I’ll put the Terra Grappler G2 on my list. Enjoy the smooth ride.

 

[DigitalRJH]

I really think for what the OP posted as his use for the tires it comes down to the coopers, falkens, and nitros, the terra grapplers. The ridge grapplers are a little too aggressive for what the OP’s intended use is. And all 3 of those tires in p metric. LT is also a little overkill for mostly on road driving and light off road use. Plus the p metric will be more comfortable on road.

 

[BCMUSA]

I know you’ve been battling the wobble. Congrats on getting it worked out! I’ll put the Terra Grappler G2 on my list. Enjoy the smooth ride.

Thank you. Yes I was very impressed with just how little weight the nittos required to balance.

Only issue I am having is a high frequency vibration in my steering wheel that I've had since day one, even with stock Bridgestone tires. I don't know what the hell is causing that. Feels like holding an electric toothbrush.

The wobble and seat vibrations however, has been fixed completely with the Nittos.

 

[firebirdguy]

i just bought the goodyear wrangler trailrunner 265/70/17 for my 4runner. same needs as you, very little real off roading, mainly a daily driver. i did research on tires for 6 months & read all kinds of reviews from tire rack, consumer reports, discount tire, amazon, walmart etc etc... & based on the reviews i picked the good years.

the other tires mentioned are great tires im sure, but based on reviews & tire rack & C/R's ratings, the goodyear trail runner beats the coopers, firestones & many other higher priced brands in most of the categories you are looking for... ride comfort & noise, wet/dry traction, wear, etc. its rated #5 out of like 20+ tires & was #4 untill the pirelli scorpion was recently added, but it only has like 50k miles worth of reviews vs 300k for goodyears & other brands. https://www.tirerack.com/tires/surveyresults/surveydisplay.jsp?type=ORAT

they dont rate the falkens at tire rack & im sure they are better for real off road & are "w3" rated so better in snow, but the good years rate very good in snow & very good to excellent in all other categories... & they are cheaper than many of the other brands based on MSRP.

BUT, a little secret is to order off goodyear.com & they will price match "fake" prices you tell them, within reason. i said i found them for $130/tire free shipping, they matched & beat that to $120/tire free ship. & if you have a authorized goodyear store in your town they will mount & balance with lifetime rotation & balance for $14/tire. i didnt have an auth store in my town so they went one step further & reduced the price to $112/tire to offset having to pay for rotation & balance. cant beat that price for a very good rated tire. &, goodyear has a $100 rebate untill 6/30... so after mount & balance, taxes, & lifetime rotation/balance i paid about $125/tire! best value out there.

as for my personal opinion, the trail runners are a very nice tire. they have a nice aggresive tread pattern but not overkill like the wildpeaks or bfg's etc. they ride very nice & are almost silent, no louder than the worn highway tires that were on it. they are also a P metric tire & very light, vs the LT or E-load tires that can hurt MPG compared to lighter tires. & i love the mild aggressive looks of the sidewall & main tread. i have no doubt these would do great in mild off road conditions as well as any other daily driving situations. like many, i'm on a budget for car expenses/upgrades so i like to shop around for the best deals & value. these goodyears are great tires & are as good as or better than many other brands in many categories & are much cheaper.

 

[eberlestock]

Nittos ridge grappler has a very girlie tread pattern. They are very smooth on road, look decent and actually work pretty well off road. They wear well too.

 

[Stephencovar]

I am so torn on what to get. I’m torn between the BFG KO2 and the Cooper AT3-4S.

 

[tls3601]

Hard to beat the KO2 even on rough rocky terrain. C load class.