SWMBO's 01 Grand Prix GT needs new tires. We have Bridgestone Potenza RE92A's on there now. Looking for something that will provide good street traction in dry and wet, last at least 3 full years (35K miles), and isn't more than the car is worth.
The tire guy is trying to talk me into a set of Cooper RS3-A's, but I've never run Cooper before. Any good? FWIW, I like Hankook, Falken, and Bridgestone, and have loathed every Toyo I've tried. She has 225/55/17's on there now.
Appreciate any advice!
I haven't driven any Cooper tires, but using nitrogen in your tires make them last longer and you don't have to check the pressure so much because the nitrogen is less susceptible to slowly leaking out the tires.
Mr_Clutch42 wrote: I haven't driven any Cooper tires, but using nitrogen in your tires make them last longer and you don't have to check the pressure so much because the nitrogen is less susceptible to slowly leaking out the tires.
Remember high school chemistry? Our atmosphere is 78% nitrogen...
Anything is better than RE92's. Those were the tires that came stock on the 2002-05 WRX. Some of the worst tires I have ever had on anything.
That said, I just had to buy tires for my DD, and I looked into the Coopers and passed after reading some not-so-great reviews and from past experiences with Cooper car tires (their truck tires are great).
I ended up getting some cheap Kumho Ecsta PA31's in 205/50/17's for my Mazda. I've got about 2000 miles on them. So far, they have been good. They are not really a sporting tire, but they are quiet and hold air, and are good in the wet. Only gripe is that they are a little flexy, but they are better than the Yokohama Avid S034's the car came with.
Javelin wrote:Mr_Clutch42 wrote: I haven't driven any Cooper tires, but using nitrogen in your tires make them last longer and you don't have to check the pressure so much because the nitrogen is less susceptible to slowly leaking out the tires.Remember high school chemistry? Our atmosphere is 78% nitrogen...
...and it's that other 22% that allows us to breathe, produces acid rain, allows things to burn and oxidize, and most importantly in the case of tire performance, includes water vapor. Pure compressed nitrogen is dry and inert. Good stuff.
The bagged dry food we buy at the store lasts a while because its packed in dry nitrogen. Once you open the bag those crunchy chips absorb moisture, are oxidized by oxygen in the air, and colonized by bacteria which now have the atmosphere to survive and reproduce in.
The street tires that lasted the shortest amount of time for me were made by Cooper. Bald in about 12k miles on a Mazda 626 with no issues. Just sayin'.
Had some BFG G-Force Sports on my RX-7. They were a bit slippery for auto-x, but had great dry "street" traction and I was very very impressed with their wet traction. At the time they ran $120 a tire. After about a year and a half of use they had lots of tread left.
I love my BFG G-Force Sport Comp-2's, but I wouldn't stick them on something like that. Seems like the Conti DWS and Bridgestone RE960/970's are awesome(Love the 960AS PP's), and the Coopers are a little less known. I see them alot on Ford's, though. Nitto Motivo maybe? Kumho 4X?
I'm a fan of Kumho Ecsta LX platinums for the noted duty. I'd also check out the General Altimx RT.
Another vote for the Kumho Ecsta PA31, or the Conti DWS if you have the cash to spend.
The Conti's are great too! I had those on my 2009 WRX. They looked new after 20k of driving. 
They are pricey, though.
Seriously kumho solus kh21's are a good tire. Not sure if they com in that size but if you're not looking for a performance tire I highly recommend them.
I have rs3-a's on my e39 wagon, they're noisy and have a moderately harsh ride. I wouldn't recommend them.
Are the Falken 812's any good?
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