Cooper Tires

First off, glad to hear NissTech is alive and well. (And to think I was considering moving to Florida...)

Second: It is tire time. I currently have the Bridgestone Potenza R92 tires on my '98. My mechanic suggested that they're okay for a little more time, but my wife is going to take the car with my oldest up into the mountains on a major road trip next week. (Couple this with the fact that I have a plug in the front driver tire after a screw got implanted last month while on a road trip to Santa Barbara.)

He has Cooper tires on sale and can put them on +balance/align for $68 each. I searched around and didn't find anything negative about Coopers, except for one person who ran through the tread in 12,000 miles.

Anybody see any objections?

Reply to
filesiteguy
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Cooper is an economy tire... I've known several people who've bought them and had good performance, decent mileage and handling even in wet weather.

But then, they weren't demanding either... they just wanted reliable, safe, transportation at a good price. They got it.

I'm sure there are stories of Cooper tires that have failed and worn out early. But there are just as many of high priced top-end tires doing the same (I've my own experiences). It's hard to gain any insight from this.

As for me... I have no need for the high performance of an expensive tire, and definitely not the price. For instance... it's not too likely I'll EVER drive my Max at 130MPH... and even LESS likely to drive it "continuous" at that speed! IMO, it's just plain stupid to pay the price for a U or H speed rating. I think the only reason Nissan puts such tires on (especially the low-end GXE) is for liability concerns: they don't know that a driver might go out and do just that (and there are a lot who will) since the car is capable of it.

In short: I buy tires for how and where I drive, not what the car's capable of. I'll consider buying Cooper, too, if the price is right.

But if you think of tires as a style accessory for your car... well that shades the decision process entirely different, doesn't it.

BuddyWh

Reply to
BuddyWh

Reply to
Bitsbucket

The Kumho Ecsta HP4 716 are reasonably priced and rate 4 out of 5 stars.

Looks like a deal to me!

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has them for $66 each + $31.68 total, RoadHazard Program with four tire purchase. Also check out
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more specifically:
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The Dunlop SP Sport A2 look like a good buy also.

Good luck! :)

Reply to
Lynn

Tirerack have excellent tire choices... and usually at decent prices. But while intriguing, I've always wondered about shipping costs and the problem of getting someone local to mount and balance... not to mention disposing of the old tires. How much does this add to the total cost?

Are local tire shops generally amenable to someone bringing in their own tires for mounting? My guess (fear??) would be they'd gouge like mad, since they made no profit on the tire sale and they obviously aren't working with a loyal customer... or one who might be.

And finally... how does their road hazard program work since TireRack doesn't have a shop to take the flat to?

A few words from some folk that have actually gone through the Tirerack experience would be welcome...

BuddyWh

Reply to
BuddyWh

I have bought several sets of tires from Tirerack and have never had a problem getting them mounted and balanced, belive me, they make enough on that alone without hasseling you about where the tires came from. Disposal was not enough that I even remember what it was. I have always come out ahead (usually over 100 bucks) of buying locally even with the added expense of the mounting, balancing, and disposal....Price that same tire at a local dealer and see what they want for it.....

As far as road hazard, never had to file a claim so I really do not know on that..... Bitsbucket.

Reply to
Bitsbucket

BuddyWh scratched out in the sand

Thanks for the advice.

I wonder if I'll ever drive it in wet weather... :)

Let's see, my '98 has 70000 miles on it and probably has driven in the rain less than 10 times.

Low end!!!??? I didn't think there was a "low end" maxima. Anyway, I bought the tires, and after one day they seem to be nicer than the Potenza tires I had on there. They were ~$70 each mounted and balanced. They have a 50,000 mile warranty and seven years roadhazard assistance. Seems fair enough to me. I pretty much stick to the freeway to and from work and generally drive around 80-90 most of the way, so not too fast. (Yes, I go against traffic.)

Reply to
filesiteguy

It sounds like you're happy... so far at least.

FWIW, I've gotten a little tired of chasing "value" in high priced tires, if such is possible. For years I've always bought quality, name brands and been increasingly dissapointed, especially with poor wet traction -- Michelin extra- especially -- as prices continuously creep up.

But mainly due to performance near the end-of-life... that period when there is still ample tread left and it is well below expected mileage. From what I've read, this happens as rubber compounds used in high(er) performance tires change properties over time and temp. It handles poorly in any condition and they can become very noisy. For this, I pay a hefty premium!

So, when my Rodeo needed tires a few years ago, I bought some no-name tire instead of a much more expensive name-brand as usual. I have no complaints so far... the tires probably won't last as long, but for about 30% less $$, I've already enough miles to make them cheaper "per-mile" (and getting cheaper every mile I drive). I'd agree that more expensive tire probably handled/performed better when new, but these are still good even in "end-of-life" when a more expensive tire would have degraded performance.

FWIW.... I also (used to) live in a desert climate. I think having decent wet handling is much, MUCH more important here. Why?... because when it does rain NOBODY knows how to drive in it! It'd almost be comical... if I weren't also trying to drive in it and avoid them at the same time!

BuddyWh

Reply to
BuddyWh

BuddyWh scratched out in the sand

Very interesting input. I hadn't thought about things that way. In opposition to the maxima, I recently (May) put on some expensive Bridgestone H-Rated tires on my Kia minivan. I think it takes 215/70/15 tires. I spent twice in total of what I spent with the Maxima.

LOL! I think I can count on one hand the number of times in the past year I've driven in the rain. Of course, I can completely relate to your remark. When I used to live in Germany, driving in the rain was not an issue, since it did so at least once a week for most of the spring/summer.

Reply to
filesiteguy

BuddyWh wrote: . . . .

You mail bad tire to them. I've had the mis-fortune of exercising my road hazard warranty on several occaisions. What happens is you call them up and tell them about it, in my case it was DiscountTiredirect.com. They sell you a new tire and give you an address to send the old tire to. Then, when they receive the bad tire and verify that it failed within warranty guidlines, they refund the money you spent on the new replacement tire.

By the way, I've had Kumho Ecsta 712s and found them to be great tires. one drawaback was that they do not like the cold. They loose adhesion quite quickly when the weather gets cold. But then, being a summer tire that the Ecsta 712 is, we should know that:)

CD

Reply to
Codifus

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