285/ 70 or 75? That's the question.

[shorthorn]

I am running the 285/70R17 Cooper Discover AT3's... I can't weigh in on the 70 vs 75 aspect ratio as when I was looking there seemed to be very few options in a 75 aspect ratio 285 tire for 17" rims.

The Cooper AT3's have been awesome...There is my 2nd set now on different trucks.. Last set was on my Chebby and they wore awesome. Traded that truck in with about 35k on the tires and they still looked almost new. On the cummins, I expect them to wear alittle faster due to the weight, but so far they have been incredible traction wise. I do regularly pull a 7-9k lb camper with this truck... OD is alittle tall with the 285's, but it does fine in my 48RE equipped truck with 3.73's.

 

[frank1]

I'am w/ shorthorn, Cooper AT3's. Put a set on one of my 03's (automatic 3.73) last year. Have about 12,000 miles on them so far. Great in snow,ride and noise. They actually look like they have more rubber (deeper tread) than other tires I've used in the past.

 

[spin05]

Take a look at Kelly tires.......

 

[Wayne M.]

DONE! I've finally got the new sneakers, so I'll summarize here.
After so much poking and prodding and dealing with clueless tire stores around here that wont help the cause, I wound up at Costco with the $70 coupon and got BFG AT KO2's in the stock size.
It seems that Nitto is not too popular in these parts, and they are hard to get (or get anyone to listen) I did find one distributor in Brooklyn who would get them but totally trashed the 2 models (G2 and hiway grapps) as hard to balance (cites a quality issue not size issue) and was reluctant to deal. So since I was getting against a wall where I had to get a state inspection now, I went to Costco and scored the AT's for $215 each. The test drive last night gave me great feedback, and no noise at all. When I saw the tread at first, I thought I was making a mistake, but they are silent. Very happy right now. I didn't get to cut my final ratio- that'll have to wait till next time.

 

[TRAMPLINEMAN]

I bought my first set of BFG AT's back in '99. I believe they were 33x12.50R 16. I loved those tires. I bought a second set sometime around '08 and I talked my dad into buying a set. Mine were 285/7?R17 and his were 285/7?R16. We both rotate our tires every 5K miles. These were the two worst sets of tires either of us had ever bought. All 8 tires wore unevenly, had cracked side walls and tread separation. I got around 25K miles out of mine mostly highway driving and he got around 22K out of his on/off road driving. Kinda left a bad taste in my mouth and haven't bought a set since. But, I read an article recently on them. Apparently they changed the rubber compound formula and slightly altered the pattern and they're supposed to outlast/outperform any previous models. For the amount of money they want for tires, I sure hope they've improved. Good luck with your purchase and I hope they meet all your needs.

 

[Wayne M.]

Thanks TRAMPLINEMAN. We will see! I did some slower local driving and heard a slight moan around 35, but not bad at all.
Here's some pictures. Worthy of note, that wheel is a reconditioned piece from Rock Auto. I damaged one cosmetically in a blizzard a few years ago. It was affordable and looks good. Date coded 03.

I know about the stem. Costco promised me they would have a fresh set, but since NOBODY around this city does their job, they only had one of a long.

 

[TRAMPLINEMAN]

I've always liked the looks of those tires.

I just put a set of Toyo Open Country AT2 Extremes on my '14 last week. I had a set of these on my '06 in a 285, but these 35's are way different. I sure hope these hold up too!!

 

[photowrite]

AT3 75 aspect ratio

Last week I was happy to discover that Cooper makes a 285/75R18 in thier AT3. I think that now makes 7 tires made in that size. The AT3 is also offered in the 285/75R17 size.

Great news as I'm a Copper (and subsidiaries) fan, and the AT3 is now on my list of treads to try.

 

[Regcabguy]

Neat tire. My friend's very pleased with his AT3's. If they beefed the sidewalls up with a 3rd ply I'd be all over them.

 

[promisedland]

They look nice! Im prob a year from new tires for my Ram... Considering Hancook Dynapro ATM in ... I forget, 11.5''[?] wide by 32.8'' OD in the book.. i think {i'll need to check}

 

[photowrite]

Neat tire. My friend's very pleased with his AT3's. If they beefed the sidewalls up with a 3rd ply I'd be all over them.

Agreed.

I've been a fan of Cooper and thier subsidiary LT tires for a long time, and I absolutely love this 285/75R18 size for my '14 Ram, the narrowest 35" [almost, and taller than many "35s"] size made. (The 285/75R17 is also attractive for my built 4Runner, I'd like to step up from a 33" to a 34" if the rubbing isn't too bad.)

3-ply sidewalls are cool, but 2-ply is not a deal-breaker for me, I will run a tire with 2- or 3-ply sidewalls depending on the need and conditions. I currently have and am testing a set of the beefy Cooper STT PRO muds, plenty rugged when/if I need that. Resistance to cutting/tearing/pinching may be a concern with some 2ply sidewalls, but load capacity surely isn't... I love that the 285/75R18 size is good for 4,080-pounds at 80 psi.

LT tires are better than ever.

 

[16919]

I'm torn between cooper at3 and the Toyo at2...and either 285/75 or 295/70 on 18x9's

 

[photowrite]

I'm torn between cooper at3 and the Toyo at2...and either 285/75 or 295/70 on 18x9's

Selfishly I'd like to see you choose the 285/75R18 size because I think the taller but not unnecessarily wide size needs more fans.

Both treads are appealing but I only have personal experience with the Toyos, which have been wearing pretty quickly on my 2014 2500. I'd love it if the AT3 balanced as well and lasted a little longer.

 

[16919]

Any insight on who has the best deal going on a set of tires?

 

[SGBARRACUDA]

I bought my first set of BFG AT's back in '99. I believe they were 33x12.50R 16. I loved those tires. I bought a second set sometime around '08 and I talked my dad into buying a set. Mine were 285/7?R17 and his were 285/7?R16. We both rotate our tires every 5K miles. These were the two worst sets of tires either of us had ever bought. All 8 tires wore unevenly, had cracked side walls and tread separation. I got around 25K miles out of mine mostly highway driving and he got around 22K out of his on/off road driving. Kinda left a bad taste in my mouth and haven't bought a set since. But, I read an article recently on them. Apparently they changed the rubber compound formula and slightly altered the pattern and they're supposed to outlast/outperform any previous models. For the amount of money they want for tires, I sure hope they've improved. Good luck with your purchase and I hope they meet all your needs.

I had the same experience With the BFG AT's I ran them back in 95 on 4x4 CTD 2500 and they performed great. The only tire I ran for years, on my 03, 04 07. But the set i put on my 07 CTD 4x4 back when it was new separated. I would get in the neighborhood on 85K out of them. The last two sets I have used have been Bridgestone AT Duelers 285x65x18 load range E. They have held up real well, first set 80K and this set has 68K and they look like I'll get another 20K out of them. They stay balanced and ride OK for a tire with 70 psi. I tried a set of Nitto Terra graplers, they worn out super fast. I'm amazed when I read this thread that people are happy with getting 35-40 K out of them?

 

[16919]

I'm kinda starting to sway towards cooper at3 or cooper st maxx in 285/75 or 295/70 on 18x9. I have had good luck with the at3 in the past and seemed to wear well. Any input on the st maxx?

 

[photowrite]

Any insight on who has the best deal going on a set of tires?

I've never purchased from them, but Tire Cralwer has great prices and free shipping on Cooper tires. This seems like a great price for the 285/75R18.

http://tirecrawler.com/tire/cooper/discoverer-at3/90000023753/

 

[photowrite]

I'm kinda starting to sway towards cooper at3 or cooper st maxx in 285/75 or 295/70 on 18x9. I have had good luck with the at3 in the past and seemed to wear well. Any input on the st maxx?

A set of 255/80R17 Cooper S/T MAXX have been on my 'built' V8 4Runner (full-time 4WD). I don't drive it much so they have relatively few miles on them, about 8,000. They are wearing slowly on that car, of course a Cummins-powered beast (possibly loaded heavy) is a different animal.

The S/T MAXX and similar commercial traction, dual-purpose tires have always appealed to me. If Cooper would make the MAXX in a 285/75R18 I'd have a set on my 2500. For now, I'm focused on the A/T3 which is appealing for other reasons.

 

[16919]

Are there any members here that have experience with Toyo open country R/T?

 

[photowrite]

Toyo's RT interests me because it is offered in the 285/75R18. One thing I don't care for is the relatively shallow tread, and overall I much prefer the design of the Nitto Exo Grapller, though there are less sizes offered.