Cooper Adventurer A/T Review [2023 Updated]

By Tire Expert, Joe Steffen

Are you looking for your next set of tires? Can’t seem to find unbiased reviews on the Cooper Adventurer AT?

Look no further! I have the best tire reviews, having seen and heard it all with over nine-plus years in the tire industry. All of my thoughts come from personal experience and my experience with customers just like yourself!

Today, I will do a tire review on the Cooper Adventurer AT. This exclusive product is only made for PepBoys and sold by PepBoys. I am wary of retailer-exclusive tires because manufacturers make lower prices, so the retailer has a higher profit margin. Making retailers push a product that may or not offer value to you.

This Cooper tire is designed using parts of the Cooper Discoverer AT3, an all-terrain made to offer on and off-road performance at a fair price.

Whether or not it’s an exclusive product won’t change the outcome of my reviews. I am here to give you the information to make the best decision.

Let’s get started!

Feel free to jump to any sections below if you want a specific review of this tire.

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Pros

Cons

Ratings

3.0

2.5

3.0

2.5

3.0

3.5

Wet Traction:

★★★★★ 3.0/5

Dry Traction:

★★★★★ 3.5/5

Snow Traction:

★★★★★ 3.0/5

Ride Comfort:

★★★★★ 2.5/5

Ride Handling:

★★★★★ 2.5/5

Ride Noise:

★★★★★ 3.0/5

Hydroplaning:

★★★★★ 2.5/5

Tread Life:

★★★★★ 3.0/5

Value For $$$:

★★★★★ 2.5/5

Traction - Cooper Adventurer A/T

While the Cooper Adventurer AT offers more traction capability than an all-season tire, you will lose some performance when it comes to stopping ability in wet and dry road conditions compared to the Discoverer AT3 XLT/4S. Due to the lower quality of construction used in the Adventurer, it will have slightly lower traction ratings.

This tire could offer better light snow traction when compared to its off-road tire competitors like the Falken Wilpeak AT3W or the Hankook Dynapro AT2 RF11. Cooper tire designed this tire for PepBoys with a similar tread pattern to the Discoverer AT3 but did not use the same level of technology. It will allow snow to pack inside the tread channels, but without the same siping, it provides sub-par traction for an all-terrain.

These are not snow tires but have a severe winter weather rating, meaning the rubber compound does not stiffen in sub-forty-degree weather. I would recommend winter tires for deep snow conditions for maximum safety.

It won’t be hard to find a tire with similar traction in wet weather. Using circumferential grooves allows the tire to evacuate water from the tread blocks, meaning less water between the rubber and the road. I find these grooves to not be enough to make it have safe wet road control, it needs more siping.

Driving on wet roads in a downpour might feel like going down an oiled slip-n-slide.

Dry road conditions are the easiest to maintain vehicle control. However, it does take longer to come to a stop and accelerate with this all-terrain tire due to the rigid tread blocks. Cooper uses a stiffer rubber compound in these tread blocks, which prevents them from flexing to grab the road.

You will find similar traction capabilities across exclusive tires, but I recommend spending the extra money to get the Cooper Discoverer AT3 XLT/4S as it offers much safer traction.

Traction Rating: 3.0/5

★★★★★ 3.0/5

Ride Comfort - Cooper Adventurer A/T

Out of all the times I have seen this tire, more times than not, they were so cupped and unevenly worn the customer would end up replacing them.

If you haven‘t ever driven on cupped tires, it is not comfortable. They can shake the vehicle so bad that it feels like the wheels will shimmy right off.

Cupping can result from several things, such as worn-out suspension components, lack of tire rotations, and not being properly balanced. These tires are prone to cupping because of the rummer compound and overly sized tread blocks.

The Adventurer AT uses “Tread Element Chamfers” to try and achieve a more comfortable ride and even wear. I haven’t seen a tire use chamfer technology in over five years as it is outdated and not optimal for tire performance and proving more even wear.

A tire with a more aggressive tread will provide a more comfortable ride than this tire.

For a tire that offers a comfortable ride and a similar price, I recommend the Hankook Dynapro AT2 RF11.

Ride Comfort Rating: 2.5/5

★★★★★ 2.5/5

Ride Handling - Cooper Adventurer A/T

I believe ride handling is another category you will find this tire to underperform. Combining the stiff silica tread compound with their sharp cornered shoulder blocks, you will receive extreme body roll when making sharp turns.

If you didn’t know, body roll is when the vehicle tilts or leans to the opposite direction in which you are turning. This is more prevalent in all-terrains since their tread blocks are more squared and have rounder sidewalls.

Maneuvering on them, you will notice that they tend to wander. Road wander is when your vehicle feels like it is doing its own thing against your command. If you are holding on to the steering wheel, you notice the wheel trying to move left and right.

Hopefully, you drive with a tight grip because you will need it on these Adventurers.

Those towing will notice a severe handling loss while pulling a heavy load in the light truck option. The sidewalls seem to be less durable and give under extreme weight.

I recommend going with the Cooper Discoverer AT3 4S/XLT for a tire that will respond to your steering directions.

Ride Handling Rating: 2.5/5

★★★★★ 2.5/5

Ride Noise - Cooper Adventurer A/T

The ride noise on this tire will be noticeable but not so bad you have to drive with the radio turned up. It will be more of a slight hum comparable to your typical off-road tire.

When these Coopers start getting some wear on them, ensure you are frequently inspecting your tires for signs of uneven wear. This could be as simple as turning your steering wheel and looking at the tread when you park your car.

Signs of uneven wear look like one portion of the tread having lowered tread blocks than the rest of the tire. Another way you can tell is if you run your hand over the tire’s tread and if you notice your hand or fingers moving up and down, that is a sign of cupping. You should immediately address tire cupping as it will get worse and, at some point, not be easy to fix.

Once these tires start to cup, you better upgrade your sound system. They will be screaming, and your neighbors will be able to hear you coming from down the street.

Based on their ability to be a quiet tire, granted, you have to be overly on top of your maintenance. I gave them an above-average ride noise.

Ride Noise Rating: 3.0/5

★★★★★ 3.0/5

Hydroplaning - Cooper Adventurer A/T

Driving on wet roads is scary for many people, and if you are one of the many who fear driving in the rain, I do not recommend this tire for your vehicle.

You will find much better hydroplaning resistant-exclusive tires elsewhere. I compared this tire to an exclusive tire from Discount Tire in the Cooper Discoverer ATP II, and while the ATP II was not the best for wet traction, it was much safer than the Adventurer AT.

The tread channels have no clear path for vast amounts of water to evacuate, which end up letting the water get stuck between the road and rubber, causing you to slide around.

Nobody wants their vehicle to spin around like a carousel at the carnival. Even though you may feel like a kid again, it will put you in an unsafe driving situation.

If you have your heart set on these tires, please use safe wet weather driving practices.

For those who want to remain safe in wet road conditions and have confidence that you can drive in the rain, I recommend the Michelin LTX AT2 or, for a more price-conscious option, the Yokohama Geolander A/T G015.

Hydroplaning Rating: 2.5/5

★★★★★ 2.5/5

Tread Life - Cooper Adventurer A/T

Tread life was a tough rating for me as I never knew how many miles a customer got out of the tire. I can tell you that when a customer would come in and I had to tell them their tires were worn out, I got a consistent response of “What?! they haven’t even been on there that long.”

This tells me consumers are replacing them much sooner than they would like, and if you combine that with the fact they are heavily prone to uneven wear, you will not have them on your car for very long.

They are rated for a sixty-thousand-mile tread life warranty, so if they wear out evenly and prematurely, you would have to take them back to PepBoys for warranty coverage. That is a big if as I rarely see them wear evenly.

Dry rot was also a concern with this tire, as I have seen them at four years old and already cracked like an eight-year-old tire.

Without knowing how many miles to expect from this tire, I gave it the benefit of the doubt with a slightly above-average tread life.

For an all-terrain tire that offers better treadwear and miles, I recommend the Nitto TerraGrappler G2.

Tread Life Rating: 3.0/5

★★★★★ 3.0/5

Value For Money - Cooper Adventurer A/T

Bang for the buck is something that I think most consumers care about. Finding the prices on the Adventurer AT was easy as PepBoys will only sell them brand new. When you search online, you will see this tire on eBay and Amazon but be careful as they will be secondhand used tires.

Used tires can be a great low-price option, but you never know how someone previously used them, so I recommend staying away from used tires unless you’re in a pickle.

I found that PepBoys frequently has rebates on this tire in the form of buy three get one free, but even with getting one for free, you still will pay over a thousand dollars for the size LT265/70R17(most common truck/SUV tire size). Without the free one, forget about it.

For this price, you can get non-exclusive tires with better performance and longevity, like the Cooper Discover AT3 XLT.

Value For Money Rating: 2.5/5

★★★★★ 2.5/5

Final Verdict - Cooper Adventurer A/T

Exclusive tires come in all forms, from all-terrain to touring tires, while not all exclusive tires are rated as lowly as this Cooper. I couldn’t find enough good things to make this tire buying.

Tire manufacturers make exclusive tires to form a better relationship with their retailers. Offering a lower quality tire for the price of a higher quality tire allows retailers and manufacturers to make more money.

Considering the low ratings of ride handling, ride comfort, and hydroplaning, I couldn’t give it a high rating. Especially since the areas it does okay were not higher than above average, and pricing was comparable to some high-quality products out there.

It was hard to find tires to compare this with the Cooper Adventurer AT. Therefore, I relied on first-hand knowledge and experiences with this tire to conclude the ratings it received.

I recommend that if you are looking for all-terrains on your truck, SUV, or crossover, look at the tire specs because you may find that it’s an exclusive product. You can also simply read my other reviews since I will always tell you if the product is exclusive and make sure to give you the truth about them.

If you want Cooper Tires, go with the Discoverer AT3 XLT/4S, as you will find the slight price difference is worth it.

Check out some of my other in-depth cooper tire reviews to see what new tire is the right choice for you!

Meet Your Tire Expert

Joe Steffen

Joseph Steffen is a trusted expert in the tire industry, with nine-plus years of experience. He has worked as a tire installer, tire salesman, and more recently a writer for various companies, providing honest feedback and advice to those who need it.

Tire Recall Information

Cooper frequently has recalls, especially in their off-brand and exclusive tires. I can’t say for sure, but this might have something to do with the quality of construction used in the lower-price variants.

I found no active or open recalls on the Cooper Adventurer AT, but with how frequently Cooper seems to issue recalls, it might not be a bad idea to stay away from their exclusive and off-brand product.

Nobody wants to be in a tire shop more than they have to, and recalls are another reason to return to a tire store.

Warranty & Tire Sizes

Warranty Details

Tire Sizes

Warranty Details

Tire Sizes

Frequently Asked Questions

What company makes Cooper tires?

Cooper manufactures Cooper tires even though Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company own them. Cooper is a division under Goodyear.

Are Cooper tires better than Mastercraft tires?

Yes, Mastercraft is Cooper Tires’ off-brand tire offering a lower price point with lower quality of construction.

Are Cooper Adventurer ATs good in the snow?

While they provide safe traction in light snow conditions, I do not recommend them for heavy snow use.