Cooper tire failure at 65mph - now what?

[thedavidzoo]

Bought 6 of the COOPER DISCOVERER AT3 LT235/80R-17 for our 2014 Ram DRW in April 2017 before our 13,000 mile AK trip with extensive gravel to Inuvik, etc. After that trip we were generally not too impressed by the wear on the front tires but knew our alignment might be a bit off. The worst front tire was then rotated to one of the inner duallys.

In the 10,000 miles since then we have taken our rig on many unforgiving and hairy forest gravel/rock roads, some falsely advertised as "maintained for passenger vehicles" :R. We like to get off the beaten path but obviously have a good bit of highway in between these places. The truck is driven very little without our 12' TC in the bed and we never tow.

Well, coming back from Flagstaff on I-17, we hear a clunk in front passenger wheel well and figured it was a rock that finally dislodged. Another mile and we hear a rythmic clunk clunk and pull over. A good chunk of tread had peeled off and separation in other areas all around. Thankfully the tire held pressure. Ohter front has worrisome areas. So, we have 3 1/2 years and fewer than 23,000 miles on these tires. Failure seems a bit extreme to us. We are always careful with rock and sidewalls, but maybe we are pushing these tires too hard?? We travel really light but usually have at least 1/2 to full tank of water. We contacted Cooper tires, so we'll see what they do with their warranty.





So now we are tire shopping for 6 new ones. We have narrowed it down to these 4 all in original size. Analysis paralysis has struck. Would appreciate any thoughts given our load, driving habits, etc. Don't need snow capability (live in the desert and try to stay away from that stuff). Just want something with good wear, that can handle rocks/gravel we seem to often find ourselves in. Prices are nearly the same.

1. Falken Wildpeak A/T3W
2. BF Goodrich ALL TERRAIN T/A KO2
3. General GRABBER A/TX
4. Toyo Open Country A/T III

Thanks and sorry for bringing up tires, yet again.;)

[dieseltruckdriv]

shum02 wrote:

dieseltruckdriver wrote:

I just switched to Cooper HT3s for my F-250 because after 3 sets the Goodyear Duratrac did not last like I thought they should.

I have always had good luck with Cooper tires so it was a natural switch for me.

OP, those tires have seen LOTS of gravel, haven't they? I grew up living on gravel, I have seen that before.

I did the complete opposite. The Duratracs have twice the mileage on them as the HT3's and way more tread left. Superior snow traction, abrasion resistance and they look WAY better on the truck.

What works for you, works for you.

I read reviews that the Cooper HT3s have gotten 80,000 miles towing. I very highly doubt I will get that, but I was barely getting 30,000 from three sets of Goodyears. If I get the same from the Coopers, I will consider it a win, or at least not a loss.

The Duratracs were very good in snow, which we get a lot of, but they discontinued my model. I told my tire guy that I have chains, so I don't really care if the Coopers aren't as good.

Thanks for giving your input, it is appreciated.

[jimh406]

specta wrote:
Today's trucks aren't meant to be taken "off road". But then off-road means a lot of different things to just about everybody.

Maybe you meant you wouldn’t take today’s trucks offroad. There are definitely lots of models that would far exceed the performance of the truck you are showing in your picture complete with factory lockers, gearing for offroad, skidplates,sway bar disconnects, and winches.

[specta]

thedavidzoo wrote:
specta - those Michelin are a bit more $, although we have considered them as their ratings are excellent. They are not really rated all-terrain though, just all season. Do you take yours off road or mostly highway?

I've done a lot of off-roading over the years but not in this truck. Its too wimpy. Today's trucks aren't meant to be taken "off road". But then off-road means a lot of different things to just about everybody.




This is about as far off-road that i go these days with the camper and HWY tires would suffice.

These Agilis tires are excellent snow tires too. Maybe not as good as ATs in 18" of snow but that would be an extreme rarity for most everybody hauling a camper.

With a locking rear differential and 4-wd ATs are really not needed. All of my other tires were ATs.

For some reason I jut don't see a need for them anymore.

[Grit_dog]

thedavidzoo wrote:
specta - those Michelin are a bit more $, although we have considered them as their ratings are excellent. They are not really rated all-terrain though, just all season. Do you take yours off road or mostly highway?
Yes, we have required a lot out of our current Coopers. The tread itself has worn surprisingly well and the sidewalls are good, considering. Just not the spaces between the treads with extensive cracks and separation and all.
We'll see. If Discount Tire will price match the Ram dealer, we might try the Falken Wildpeak as that would save a good chunk of money.

Like cracks they appear on old tires? If so, that isn’t right at all on tires only a couple years old.
Again, if you want the toughest tires, get M55s.
Or, what I’d do, find a set of takeoff tires for cheap then who cares how much you beat on em

[jaycocreek]

Not much talk about Nokian tires, although they get very good reviews for there AT tires..I am personally considering these when my currant AT#'s are done with...

Tires are just getting absurd in there prices any more..

Good luck on your next purchase whichever you decide on..Tires on truck campers has always been something to pay attention to others reviews..

[thedavidzoo]

specta - those Michelin are a bit more $, although we have considered them as their ratings are excellent. They are not really rated all-terrain though, just all season. Do you take yours off road or mostly highway?
Yes, we have required a lot out of our current Coopers. The tread itself has worn surprisingly well and the sidewalls are good, considering. Just not the spaces between the treads with extensive cracks and separation and all.
We'll see. If Discount Tire will price match the Ram dealer, we might try the Falken Wildpeak as that would save a good chunk of money.

[ppine]

A full sized truck with a camper on it is pulling a lot of weight, often over 10,000 pounds. Then you add in rocks and gravel and all bets are off. I used to drive on dirt roads for a living as a consultant for mining companies. I often carried two spares. There are going to be tire failures under those conditions no matter kind of tires you run. Even with an empty truck. The sidewalls are especially vulnerable. Some types of rock are volcanic or igneous in their origin and it shatters into fragments that can have sharp edges.

I rarely run that much tire pressure.

What is load rating of your tires? Go up a rating. Find the highest rated tires out there because you are on the edge of what tires can handle.

On my one ton Ford I have had great luck with Toyos and now Coopers.

[dirtyhandz]

Am I the only person who runs Firestone Transforce ATII's? I gotta say these have been pretty good tires as far as wear and over all performance I have had on my 2006 Cummins powered, six speed manual, 4x4 dually. I carry a Lance 915 with all the usual gear, generator, water, etc... I also tow a 7x16 cargo trailer with entirely too much stuff in it. Travel highway, a ton of gravel, and muddy rocky forest service roads. I have used most of the other tires everyone is posting about with pretty bad wear and no better "off road" and snow performance than these firestones. The only tire I have ever run that is better is the TOYO M55. Defiantly the best tire ever on my trucks. They are hard to come buy in my part of the country though.

[specta]

I am more than pleased with my Michelin Agilis Cross-Climate tires.

I've had Cooper, Big O (Cooper). BFG, Hankook (the worst tires I've had) and Yokohama.

When these Michelins wear out I'll be buying another set.

[jimh406]

deltabravo wrote:
Define "really light"?

Sadly, those tires have seen a rough life.

Just an obvious question for you ...

How can you possibly say they’ve had a rough life when you don’t even know how much he’s carrying? 😉

I think we are talking about defects in the tires in his case. As noted, I’ve never used Coopers, but based on this thread, it seems reasonable to think that it’s possible that thedavidzoo has experienced multiple defects. That is, unless you think it is acceptable for the tread to separate from the rest of the tire.

I think the phrase ... YMMV definitely applies when we are talking about tires. 😄

[deltabravo]

thedavidzoo wrote:
We travel really light

Define "really light"?

Sadly, those tires have seen a rough life.

I have the same tires on my dually and they have performed flawlessly. I've had them since 2014. I will probably replace them due to end of shelf life instead of "end of tread life." Tread still looks good on them, but I never go off pavement.

[shum02]

dieseltruckdriver wrote:

shum02 wrote:
I put Coopers on my F350 and had wear issues as well. Replaced them after 2 years and around 35K miles and went back to GY's. No defects in them just unusually rapid wear on all four corners

They were not worth the savings.

I just switched to Cooper HT3s for my F-250 because after 3 sets the Goodyear Duratrac did not last like I thought they should.

I have always had good luck with Cooper tires so it was a natural switch for me.

OP, those tires have seen LOTS of gravel, haven't they? I grew up living on gravel, I have seen that before.

I did the complete opposite. The Duratracs have twice the mileage on them as the HT3's and way more tread left. Superior snow traction, abrasion resistance and they look WAY better on the truck.

What works for you, works for you.

[MORSNOW]

I replaced my factory Michelin AT2's when they wore out with less than 30,000 miles with Cooper AT3 XLT's. For those that may not know current Cooper AT3's come in three different designs 4S designed for SUV's, LT, & XLT for heavy loads.

[dieseltruckdriv]

shum02 wrote:
I put Coopers on my F350 and had wear issues as well. Replaced them after 2 years and around 35K miles and went back to GY's. No defects in them just unusually rapid wear on all four corners

They were not worth the savings.

I just switched to Cooper HT3s for my F-250 because after 3 sets the Goodyear Duratrac did not last like I thought they should.

I have always had good luck with Cooper tires so it was a natural switch for me.

OP, those tires have seen LOTS of gravel, haven't they? I grew up living on gravel, I have seen that before.

[jimh406]

If I remember right, I think you can tell if all of the tires are from the same lot or not. At least, you can tell if they have the same date codes. If they are in the same lot or are produced about the same time, I wouldn’t keep any of them on my truck. I think Cooper should refund those at the same time. The chances of those other two not failing is not very good in my opinion.

As far as brand goes, I have no experience with Coopers.