Long Term Review of Cooper STT PRO 37x12.5r17. 54,000+ miles

[wibornz]

I wheel with seven others that also run these tires with well over 250,000 combined miles. None of us have had any problems. Zero flats, zero loss of air, zero cupping and zero balancing issues.

So I added Cooper STT PRO 37x12.5r17 tires to my JLUR the second day of ownership. I drove the Jeep home from the dealership, took the wife to the grocery store and then the next day the 37s went on. The Jeep had 93 miles on it. I ordered the tires and wheels approximately 6 months before I ordered the Jeep. So they were waiting when the Jeep finally arrived.....along with a bunch of other stuff.

The Jeep came home on November 19 2018. looking like this.

November 20 2018 it was like this.

So the adventure begins. I have had many ask me why I did not go with the wider tire. The 37x13.5R17. My response is two part. I knew that I would be traveling a lot and and hoped to get just a tad bit better mileage with the skinnier tire, and I knew that my local favorite automotive drive through car wash place would not accept a 13.5 in wide tire in the carwash track. Hey, I wash it often. I have a subscription and often bring the guys that work there a couple pizzas when the Jeep needs extra power washing before it gets sent through the automated car wash.

On to the nitty gritty of the tire performance. The tires have been used in just about every tip of terrain in the US and have performed excellent in my option. So much so, I pull another pair right back on when I removed these tires.

For terrain type.
Sand. I run them as soft as 4 psi depending on the condition of the sand, but usually at 6 to 8psi. They cruse the dunes with ease.

Rock. They have done the Rubicon Trail, Moab twice. Ran 10 to 12psi at both places.

Mud from Michigan, Wyoming, Tennessee, Alabama and more.

Snow

and towing. I have towed this camper over 24,000 miles with the Cooper tires on the Jeep.

TIre squad and flexing pics

I did a 5 tire rotation about every 7,000 miles. I ran the tires at 26 to 28 psi and when towing the camper, I would bump the rear tires up to 30 psi.

The following pics are the tread depth after I took them off. I could have ran them longer, but with all the Jeep travel I have planned, It was time to switch them out. Well and I mount my own tires and did not want to fuck around with mounting cold tires in the winter in a garage with no heat..... So off they came.

So for cost, I bought the tires at my localDiscount Tire and they matched the best price I could find on the net. I paid $260 per tire for a total out the door cost of 1378 after tax. Yes, the cost of these tire have gone through the roof in the last three years. A quick search show the tires selling between the low $400 to over $500 per tire. Ouch.

So what do you do with 5 Cooper STT PRO tires that are used? I put them on Facebook Market Place. They sold in 4 days for $450. A guy that has a pre-runner Silverado wanted them. He stated he only runs in the sand and will run them at 6 psi.

With selling the tires, the cost to run the Cooper STT PRO for 54,000 miles comes down to $928. Would I buy them again. Yes.

I think they look good on the Jeep so that is also a plus.

So that is the Pro of the tires. Now for the cons

The tires are a M/T so expect a little more tire sound. At approximately 45,000 miles the sound of the tires grew louder. Not over bearing, just the hum at lower speeds got more noticeable. They probably grew louder as they wore out, but is was slow process over 3 years and I may not have noticed it when it truly started. Even when I took them off the tires were not like turn up the music louder to cover the sound, it was just more than when they were new.

So performance on ice and snow covered roads. Are they as good as a BFG KO2? No, they are not, but they do perform well enough to still be used on snow and ice. Yes, I never felt like O, my GOD this tires are terrible, like I do when I drive my XJ with the Pats on it. The Coopers are acceptable on snow and ice covered roads. . Not great, but not bad either.

So I also have the unique opportunity to talk about a 5 tire rotation vs a 4 tire rotation. One of my main wheeling buds. Also put a set of Cooper 37x12.5r17 tires on at 63 miles. The second day of ownership. He has wheeled all over the country with me doing the same trails, pulling a camper and if you have seen any of my Jeep travel threads, you have probably seen his Jeep too.

He drives the Punk'N JLUR.

He did the 4 tire rotation. His tires were whipped at 54,000 miles. He never rated his spare in. He only bought three new tires and put his new spare on the Jeep and used his best tire of the four from the Jeep as a spare. He then only needed to buy 3 new tires. He listed his tires hoping someone would buy his worn out tires and can not give them away.

So doing a quick analysis and say we pay $420 for new tires at current cost.

That puts him at $920 to get back to 4 new tires on his JLUR with a very worn out spare.

Me buying 5 new tires, puts me at $2100 minus the sale of the old tires at $1650

Even if he would have bought the fourth tire, he still came out better in the end. The only real difference is my Jeep performed better near the end as my tires were not bald and his were and he has a bald spare where I have a new spare.

I call this balancing risk. We have never had a flat, a cut in the sidewall, or any type of tire failure with the STT Pro tire. So he is more that likely to never have a problem with the new set either. Yet when we are on a 20,000 mile trip, if he does have a problem, he will be stopping and buying a new tire as the one he has should only be used to get him to the next tire shop.

Sponsored

 

[blnewt]

Great review Ted, and those tires have been to hell & back, and back again! You did have the wrong date posted, you said it was the next day after buying your Jeep but you have it 2019 instead of 2018, hey, had to pick on something lol.

If those tires could talk they'd have quite a bit to tell

 

[wibornz]

Great review Ted, and those tires have been to hell & back, and back again! You did have the wrong date posted, you said it was the next day after buying your Jeep but you have it 2019 instead of 2018, hey, had to pick on something lol.

If those tires could talk they'd have quite a bit to tell

My struggle is real. I will make a quick edit. Good catch.

 

[stino]

Thanks for this post! Ive been considering these, or Ridge grapplers or KO2s again. Thinking that kinda runs the gamut of most to least negative impact Im willing to make to my drivability. This is super helpful.

 

[blnewt]

Thanks for this post! Ive been considering these, or Ridge grapplers or KO2s again. Thinking that kinda runs the gamut of most to least negative impact Im willing to make to my drivability. This is super helpful.

Yes, but look at all the badassery those STT Pros will add to your already badass Rubi

 

[OGPizzaBoy]

Very in depth review brother! I hope to get half as much enjoyment out of mine as you did yours!

 

[Evo8]

Great review wibornz! I have the same tires, they have about 12k on them and they are great!

 

[wibornz]

Very in depth review brother! I hope to get half as much enjoyment out of mine as you did yours!

Make a plan and work the plan. It can be done.

 

[James07]

If you've been using these tires for 54,000+ miles, it suggests that they have a decent tread life because the average life of Cooper tires is only 50,000 miles in general

 

[wibornz]

If you've been using these tires for 54,000+ miles, it suggests that they have a decent tread life because the average life of Cooper tires is only 50,000 miles in general

I usually sell them at 50,000 miles or so as they still have enough tread left to pull around $500 for a set of five. Then I use that money on a new set.

 

[Tank2112]

I usually sell them at 50,000 miles or so as they still have enough tread left to pull around $500 for a set of five. Then I use that money on a new set.

Would you recommend the SST Pro for a daily driver 392? Stock XR came with 35" BF K02's, only 65lbs. Want to keep weight of tire low for performance, but looking for a better looking tire with more aggressive tread pattern. Do plan to move to a 37x12.5R17.
Keep reading the STT is quiet at first, then gets loud after 10k+ miles.
My 392 XR has the Sky One-touch roof.

I have a custom LJ on 42" sticky Treps for hard-core wheeling.

 

[wibornz]

Would you recommend the SST Pro for a daily driver 392? Stock XR came with 35" BF K02's, only 65lbs. Want to keep weight of tire low for performance, but looking for a better looking tire with more aggressive tread pattern. Do plan to move to a 37x12.5R17.
Keep reading the STT is quiet at first, then gets loud after 10k+ miles.
My 392 XR has the Sky One-touch roof.

I have a custom LJ on 42" sticky Treps for hard-core wheeling.

I love the performance of Cooper STT PRO tires. They do get louder about 30,000 miles. For daily driving. I would have you look at the Mickey Thompson Baja Boss. Did a review on these tires and they are vey quiet. I have about 30,000+ miles on them and they are still very quiet.

I did a review on the Mickey Thompson Baja Boss too.

Mickey Thompson BAJA BOSS AT review

I have already bought a second set of Mickey Thompson BAJA Boss Tires. I have not put them on yet as I only have 30,000 miles on them. I just ran into a decent deal and bought them. I will probably put them on before heading to Alaska in May. I always like to leave with fresh tires before starting a long trip.

Sponsored