Tyre advice

[Snouto Member Find all posts View Profile Close Snouto]

Hi everyone, so I've been driving my prado 2014 v6 this last year with the tyres it came with, some obscure branded road tyre that I wouldn't trust much on anything other than dry tar.

I'm considering changing them for one of the well known brands and through lots of searching and trying to evaluate the back-and-forth of opinions I'm still at a loss, and hope someone here can enlighten me a bit.

So I'm basically looking at the most well known of the tyres:

1. Cooper AT3 4S
2. Cooper AT3 LT
3. BFG KO2

I'm leaning heavily to the AT3 4S because they appear to be better suited to my needs, which are mainly bitumen (city/highway) and the odd bit of weekend beach/unsealed road driving. For beach drivingt I'm thinking of the sort that gets one around Fraser Island, Straddy Island, and up the Noosa North Shore beach. That sort of thing. The AT3 4S's also seem to be a little cheaper than the other alternatives I've listed here, and money is tight right now.

Does anyone have direct experience with the 4S tires? I'm wondering how the handle on road in the wet, if they cause any sagging around corners, and what their long term durability is.

I'd also be interested in hearing any opinions as to why I should go for one of the other tyres listed here. For a while I was only considering the KO2's, but there's a lot of mixed reviews out there and a mate of mine said he'd used Coopers and thought they were better (albeit he was referring to M/T spec). I feel like Cooper AT3 LT may be more than I need and may not handle as well on the bitumen as the 4S model, plus they're a bit more expensive than the 4S (but only by about $40).

Thanks for the insight!

[mjrandom Out of control poster! Find all posts View Profile Close mjrandom]

My driving is pretty similar to yours and I went from KO2s to Pirelli Scorpian AT Plus. Have done about 20,000km and very happy. The KO2s were ok but sstarted going hard and slippery in the wet at 60,000km.

We used Pirelli Scorpian ATRs on the 120 and they were ok but the Plus are better.

[404pug Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close 404pug]

I have used BFG for decades and never had a problem in the roughest toughest parts of the country but I couldn't get any when I needed them. As a result I now have Cooper AT3 LT which have 30000 km on them. They show no signs of uneven wear or balance problems. They are quiet and very predictable in the wet and a much better tyre than the Dunlops it came with.

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mjrandom

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mjrandom I had seen the Pirelli scorpions (not sure which model) mentioned at various times so good to hear someone actually running them. How would you rate them on wet roads? Have you done any driving on beaches? One last thing, what size did you run? I'm scratching my head over whether it's a good idea to get a larger profile for the Prado for increased load carrying (not a requirement, just something that may be important down the line). They do the AT+ in 265/65/17 and 265/70/17. I'm aware a larger profile will affect the speedo and fuel economy calculations, although from what I've read if anything it makes those metrics more accurate!

404pug

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404pug Interesting about the AT LTs, from the various places I’d been reading they were getting mixed reviews in the wet bitumen. I’m still of the mind that they’re overkill for my expected use though.

Another option that’s just coming in to view is Continental ContiCrossContact AT - was looking for TerrainContact A/T but don’t think they’re available in Oz judging by my quick check. Hard to find any opinions on these though.

Cheers.

[cbubner Lurker Find all posts View Profile Close cbubner]

I have had a set of AT3s on my 2007 Prado and I am about to replace them with the AT LT as I got 125000 + out of these ones and that is doing a lot of beach and some rough up in the cape. They have started showing signs of the walls starting to split but not a bad run on them at all. Never had an issue in the wet either.

[Peterpilot Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close Peterpilot]

I'd also consider the Pirelli AT Plus for value for money, I've been running Pirelli MTRs lately very happily but that pattern is only available in a 285/70/17.

American tyres (BFG, MT & Cooper) are a bit overpriced because people are willing to pay a premium for the brand and white lettering.