So its been about a month since replacing the terrible street tires on my Tacoma and boy have I given them a good test with the recent winter weather we've been having here in my part of PA. This is the latest versions of Cooper's road type all-terrain that also carries a 3 peak rating.
Comfort -
Rides very well and while it does have a little more "roll" feel it doesn't wander too far and steering feel is still good. All 4 balanced well and even one required no weights. I've had a previous set of the AT3 4S that had a balance issue. This set does not.
Noise -
Very quiet even up to 80mph. It is a tire geared more towards the street so that's expected from me. I feel they're quieter than the factory Firestone's that came on my truck.
Wet Traction -
This has impressed me so far. With the old tires in the rain any little extra bump of throttle off the line would give you a little spin. These are harder to break loose and feel confident in corners. Doesn't mean you can get stupid, but in normal driving they feel confident.
Snow -
Being a truck, in 2WD it will still have issues with spinning, but in light snow there is plenty of traction if you take it easy. Locked in 4WD it has absolutely no trouble forging through 4"-5" (most we've gotten so far that I could test) of fresh snow. Has no trouble in the slush as well, but will let you know the road is slick underneath. I prefer virgin not driven on roads, but not once did I feel like I was going to have troubles.
Ice -
While these are not rated for ice or studdable we had a morning of pure ice that I had to commute to work. Tires are soft enough that if taken easy you can keep traction. They will quickly let you know that you are going a little bit too fast, but quickly recover letting off the gas. Now, this was a mix of lightly salted and brined roads (PA vs MD) so it was spotty, but bridges were a mess. Taken slow I made it to work with no issues. If the roads didn't have a little bit of treatment I would have probably stayed home. These are NOT meant for ice, but if you get stuck in a storm you could make it home IMO.
Overall -
Not sure how they're going to age, but new they are a great tire. No, siping does not go all that way down into the tread so the first 20-30K miles will likely keep good traction. I doubt they will make the 65K mile warranty without massive traction reduction. They're a budget tire and was $750 taxed and installed for 265/70/17's. Both vehicles have a set of Cooper tires and I haven't had much issue with both.
Comfort -
Rides very well and while it does have a little more "roll" feel it doesn't wander too far and steering feel is still good. All 4 balanced well and even one required no weights. I've had a previous set of the AT3 4S that had a balance issue. This set does not.
Noise -
Very quiet even up to 80mph. It is a tire geared more towards the street so that's expected from me. I feel they're quieter than the factory Firestone's that came on my truck.
Wet Traction -
This has impressed me so far. With the old tires in the rain any little extra bump of throttle off the line would give you a little spin. These are harder to break loose and feel confident in corners. Doesn't mean you can get stupid, but in normal driving they feel confident.
Snow -
Being a truck, in 2WD it will still have issues with spinning, but in light snow there is plenty of traction if you take it easy. Locked in 4WD it has absolutely no trouble forging through 4"-5" (most we've gotten so far that I could test) of fresh snow. Has no trouble in the slush as well, but will let you know the road is slick underneath. I prefer virgin not driven on roads, but not once did I feel like I was going to have troubles.
Ice -
While these are not rated for ice or studdable we had a morning of pure ice that I had to commute to work. Tires are soft enough that if taken easy you can keep traction. They will quickly let you know that you are going a little bit too fast, but quickly recover letting off the gas. Now, this was a mix of lightly salted and brined roads (PA vs MD) so it was spotty, but bridges were a mess. Taken slow I made it to work with no issues. If the roads didn't have a little bit of treatment I would have probably stayed home. These are NOT meant for ice, but if you get stuck in a storm you could make it home IMO.
Overall -
Not sure how they're going to age, but new they are a great tire. No, siping does not go all that way down into the tread so the first 20-30K miles will likely keep good traction. I doubt they will make the 65K mile warranty without massive traction reduction. They're a budget tire and was $750 taxed and installed for 265/70/17's. Both vehicles have a set of Cooper tires and I haven't had much issue with both.
