Experience with Cooper Tires??

My Buddy at Discount Tire is gonna hook me up with a new set of 4 Cooper Discoverer ATPs. Originally I wanted General Grabber AT2s but these are at a cheaper price and seem a bit more aggressive. Anyone have experience with either tire, or other suggestions? Probably gonna stick with something around 265/70-r16, but the Cooper Discoverer ATPs are 265/75-16. Also if you know of anyone who wants stock Xterra tires send em my way... Thanks!

And in a couple years, when I get a lift, I might get Cooper Discoverer ST-Maxx (in a larger size) if these ones work out.

I have the cooper at3 on my pathfinder and they are just ok... Not great in the snow... Not super quiet, they ride fairly smooth but that is it.. They are by means impressive

I have cooper discoverer ATP and love them for what I wanted them for. I have 265 75 16. I have had them for about a year and a half. Good tread wear so far with about 20k on them.

They have been great for me...and can handle a bit off road. It is not a great tire for really hard core rocky or deep mud off roading...obviously not a swamper or MT, etc...but for getting through the snow, doing some weekend offroading, and decent on the road...they are a solid all around tire. If you plan on off roading a lot...once you lift your truck and mod it some, the tires will eventually become a limiting factor, which they are for me now. So, it is all about expectations.

If you are on a budget, and aren't at the point offroading where you have said "forget road manners, snow, cost, and tire wear....I want 33" mud terrains for maximum off road ability" .... I think they are solid. I am itching to ditch them and upgrade to 33"s...but that is because the offroad bug has bitten me where I want more off roading ability. I do like them for my 20 mile commute to work every morning though...

I probably am not as picky as some though...Check my build thread or youtube for a few to see what kind of off roading I do...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHZxDewqWHw

robcarync said:

I have cooper discoverer ATP and love them for what I wanted them for. I have 265 75 16. I have had them for about a year and a half. Good tread wear so far with about 20k on them.

They have been great for me...and can handle a bit off road. It is not a great tire for really hard core rocky or deep mud off roading...obviously not a swamper or MT, etc...but for getting through the snow, doing some weekend offroading, and decent on the road...they are a solid all around tire. If you plan on off roading a lot...once you lift your truck and mod it some, the tires will eventually become a limiting factor, which they are for me now. So, it is all about expectations. ...

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Awesome! yeah if they can do that then they will be great for me and my X! I appreciate all the info man!

I have them on my X. I could stand more traction off road but they haven't really let me down.

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I have the discoverer at3's on mine and they do great. Aggressive tread pattern but do wear faster than I'd like with highway driving back and forth from college every few weeks. But around town and off-road they were worth the money definitely


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I also ran the Discoverer ATP's on my X and didn't have any outstanding issues with them at all. Tread wear was as expected and they handled great in all conditions that I put them through. They handled rain well and the bit of mild off-roading I did before lifting and getting MT's. I pretty much agree with everything that robcarync said, so this is pretty much just an "I second." Especially since it looks like he put them through much worse than I did. Also, to reiterate what rob said, if you see yourself going a bit mod crazy in the sub 30k mile future or wanting to attack more challenging terrain, you may want to look at something more aggressive, even if you stay with a 265/31" tire just in an MT, otherwise these will suit you fine. Overall it is a well-mannered tire that performs well and can handle a bit of off-roading. Mine are now currently sitting on my buddy's X, and he likes them as well. I will say this, they were, in my experience and his, difficult to balance.

Appreciate all of the info guys! Not for sure on anything yet, may go with some MTs but it's all about price right now :/

Id go with 33s if its an option. Youll end up going there anyway and they will fit without any issues.

I believe you can get 285 75 16 in them...discounttiredirect.com

You say it's about price right now...it always is at the beginning....then the mod bug bites...

and then less than a year later you are wishing you had 33" super swampers

robcarync said:

I believe you can get 285 75 16 in them...discounttiredirect.com

You say it's about price right now...it always is at the beginning....then the mod bug bites...


and then less than a year later you are wishing you had 33" super swampers

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hahaha the bug has already bit me for sure, just need to be making more money so I can feed it lol!

The 33s will only cost a few more bucks and its very worth it.

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Agred.....33s are good

Yeah, it should be said that I had my Coopers less than 10k before putting 33s on my X. Of course that involved a body lift as well.

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I just purchased a set of Cooper Discoverer ST/Maxx tires and can't say enough good things about them.

As far as the ATP goes, it is a "Discount Tire Only" house tire for which the true composition of the materials is unknown. Although Discount Tire likes to say they are identical to the Cooper Discoverer AT3 except for the tread pattern, there is no way to verify this and in my opinion some cost cutting measures were likely specified by Discount Tire so they could maintain their profit margin at a lower price point than the AT3. I obtained a price quote from Discount/America's tire on 3/18/14 of $140 ea. for the LT265/75R16-C AT3. For my money, with the cost difference between the AT3 and ATP being so small I would choose the AT3 over the ATP, particularly because the effective price for the AT3 would be reduced to $120 ea. with the spring Cooper $80 prepaid Visa rebate.

The reasons I chose the Cooper Discoverer ST/Maxx over the AT3: $160 ea. price quote from America's Tire, 3-ply sidewalls, more aggressive tread, and the LT265/75R16 ST/Maxx is 1/2" taller than the typical LT265/75R16 measuring at 32.1" in diameter (only 0.7" shorter than a 285/75R16).

Would the the extra 0.35" in ground clearance offered by a wider and much heavier 285/75R16 have been worth the additional cost, hit in fuel mileage, and hassle compensating for an inaccurate speedo/odometer? Not for how I use my rig, and I dare say not for most people. (When was the last time you couldn't take another line to gain an additional 1/2" inch of clearance over an obstacle?)

I'm not knocking taller tires. My first choice was actually the ST/Maxx in the recently released LT255/85R16 size which measures 32.8" in diameter, the same diameter as the typical 285/75R16, but lighter as it is approximately the same width as a 265/75R16. Only one problem: the best price I could find was $237 ea. and I would need to buy 5 to have a matching spare. With mounting, tax, etc. that would be almost $600 more than choosing the ST/Maxx in LT265/75R16. For 0.35" in additional clearance? Not in this lifetime.

Now for some new tire porn:

Robert Bills said:

I just purchased a set of Cooper Discoverer ST/Maxx tires and can't say enough good things about them.

As far as the ATP goes, it is a "Discount Tire Only" house tire for which the true composition of the materials is unknown. Although Discount Tire likes to say they are identical to the Cooper Discoverer AT3, there is no way to verify this and in my opinion some cost cutting measures were most likely specified by Discount Tire so they could maintain their profit margin at a lower price point than the AT3. Also, I obtained a price quote from Discount/America's tire on 3/18/14 of $140 ea. for the LT265/75R16-C AT3. For my money, with the cost difference between the AT3 and ATP being so small, I would choose the AT3 over the ATP, particularly because the effective price for the AT3 would be reduced to $120 ea. with the spring Cooper $80 prepaid Visa rebate.

The reasons I chose the Cooper Discoverer ST/Maxx over the AT3: only $20/tire more than the AT3, 3-ply sidewalls, more aggressive tread, and the LT265/75R16 ST/Maxx measures at 32.1" in diameter, which is 0.5" taller than the typical 265/75R16 and only 0.7" shorter than a 285/75R16. Is the extra 0.35" in ground clearance offered by the wider and much heavier 285/75R16 worth it? Not for how I use my rig, and I dare say not for most people. (When was the last time you couldn't take another line to gain an additional 1/2" inch of clearance over an obstacle?

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Awesome! I was thinking about those, might have to save up a little more, but they look great! Thanks a lot!

I VOTE FOR THE ST MAXX'S :kewl:


you cant beat them, Im setting at 20k on my set and they still look brand new. I toasted a set of cooper stts, only got like 30k out of those, before getting these. Theyve done great in the mud, clean out well. the side cleats like the stts have help alot. The 10 inches of snow we got were no problems for them neither. For a rig that gets driven to the trails, you wont be going wrong with these.

*if you know somebody that can hook-up with tires, thats the way to go. I went through a local wholesaler and got my set of 265/75/16s for $775 out the door.

I wanted the ST Maxx but they were out of my price range at the time. I got my ATPs for $119 per tire.

It is a Discount Tire only special type of deal. It has worked for me. I was wary a little bit...but I figured...if I was going to get a chain specific special tire, I would go with a tire chain VS the Wal Mart Good Year special tires...

Cooper Discoverer AT3s ended up wearing super unevenly, including "bubbling" in some areas, causing major jostling around 70-80 mph. Would not recommend for a daily driver tire.

Since this thread has been resurrected from the dead, I'll add an update on my experience with Cooper ST/Maxx tires purchased in March 2014:

Size: LT265/75R16-E
Date purchased: 3/25/14
Miles to date: 22,407
Tread remaining: 45%
Punctures/repairs: none
Estimated tread life to 4/32" tread depth: 35,000 miles

I like these tires and will likely purchase another set in the LT255/85R16 size in March 2018 (when Cooper typically offers spring discounts). They have stood up to two trips to goneMOAB, frequent trips to the Sierra Nevada mountains and the deserts of California and Nevada, also numerous long distance road trips on the Interstates. As with all open void tires, the noise level has increased as the tires have worn - the key to keeping this to a minimum is to rotate and re-balance consistently, which I do every 4,000-4,500 miles. I have found that the optimum tire pressure for my particular tires on my particular truck is 35 psi around town and 38 psi for long runs on the Interstate. I typically air down to 18 psi off road.

I do not get much snow in my area so I cannot evaluate snow performance, however my best guess for a snow rating would be above average for this type of tire based upon performance in the rain, which is very good. I have no complaints about handling on dry pavement, gravel or other "semi-improved" surfaces. Performance has been excellent offroad. Traction off road is as good or better than any other AT type tire I have used and many MT tires. They have balanced well and highway ride has been smooth and straight.

Tire wear has been very good for aggressive AT tires which are frequently used off road. Based upon tread wear so far, I expect to get 35,000 miles from these tires before they wear to 4/32" tread depth, which is when I typically replace tires rather than take them down to the legal limit of 2/32". That is as good or better than other AT and MT tires I have used through the years.

In my opinion, the Cooper ST/Maxx is one of the top tire choices for a Gen II Xterra that is used on the highway and frequently off road.