These recent years, the sales of SUVs have sky-rocketed. SUVs feature a much cooler-looking profile, and their performance is excellent both on the road and off-road.
Typical advertisements on TV portray the SUVs as the vehicle for the “rugged” lifestyle. You can see them driving through snow, mud, or on the desert dunes. SUVs are certainly are capable of this challenge but, is it practical?
It is certainly fun to experience the outdoors—it’s refreshing and invigorating. However, most of us don’t have the luxury to do it. Off-road can be quite an expense, and you need to invest time in it. So for the majority, they only use their SUVs for the daily commute.
With this in mind, I am going to show you two tires for your SUV. One tire for the typical commuter, and the other, for the rugged off-roader. This is not a comparison between the two tires, but rather, this is a review of two tire models for SUV. I am talking about Cooper Discoverer SRX Vs. Michelin Defender LTX.
Both of these two tires have different purposes in mind. However, both are in the all-season category. So we will see what design did they implement and see which one is best for you.
At a Glance
Cooper Discoverer SRX
The Cooper Discoverer is one of the newest tires developed for SUVs and Crossovers. Made as a replacement for CTS tires, this new model has now added several features for a more comfortable ride and longer tread life.
Here are some of the core features of Cooper Discoverer SRX:
1.) STABLEDGE™ PERFORMANCE:
Just like the previous models, this tire is also an all-season, road focus tire. The design’s priority is for on-road performance. This recent addition also features a new technology called STABLEDGE™ PERFORMANCE. It does the job of keeping the tread block stable and thus enhancing handling and dry traction capabilities.
In short, steering is more precise, and stability is optimal even in uneven pavement. So whenever you perform a tight turn, you can be sure that the tire sticks firmly to the road. This feature can be useful in case of an emergency. If ever you need to perform a tight turn, your car won’t flip over.
2.) Good Traction Rating:
Each all-season tire has a specific M+S traction rating on it, and it doesn’t matter which brand it is. So the same can be said for Cooper Discoverer SRX. The M+S rating stands for mud+snow. This indicates whether or not the tire meets the reasonable ability to dive in these conditions.
Yes, you can drive this tire through mud and snow with this tire. However, keep in mind that Cooper made this tire for on-road use. So at best, Cooper Discoverer SRX is only good for a light amount of mud and snow.
You can argue that the snow and mud capabilities are severely lacking. But even then, it won’t be much of a problem in typical road conditions. Unless, of course, you live in an environment that receives heavy snow and ice. For that, you need snow tires. No all-season tire can be as good as snow tires in thick snow.
When it comes to wet pavement, the Cooper Discoverer SRX handles relatively well. Not only can you drive wet pavement comfortably, but even the braking is also top-notch. I would say it’s almost as good as its expensive counterparts.
3.) Comfortable:
This tire is not for the people that are “rugged” at heart. Instead, this tire is for those people looking for smooth sailing. Despite having all the features of the new technology added, it stays quiet and no vibrations whatsoever.
When you compare it to other Cooper tires, this tire is by far the comfiest one. It can even rival some of the best-made tires out there.
4.) Has Wear Indicators
Cooper did something brilliant with their tires because they added Wear indicators! This technology is very simple yet brilliant, and I wonder why many haven’t done this yet.
The Wear Square is an indicator on the wheel that tells how worn the tires are. As the name suggests, there is a square-shaped indicator on the tires. There are four lines in a square, so as each line disappears, the tire is 25% more worn.
Michelin Defender LTX
The Michelin Defender LTX tire is the total opposite of the Cooper Discoverer SRX. This tire is made for the rugged lifestyle—ready to tackle almost anything that stands on its way. It’s one of the top-notch tires offered by Michelin, so you can expect this tire to perform well.
1.) EverTread Design:
Despite being a tire for the off-road life, it does not sacrifice comfortability for utility. For Michelin’s engineers to achieve this feat, they came up with the EverTread design. Evertread design does a lot of things at once: comfort, traction, reduce wear, and improve fuel efficiency. As a bonus, the design also reduces vibration, which also reduces noise.
The EverTread design is so robust that almost no natural debris can burst it. Sharp rocks, sharp pebbles, and wood splinters barely scratched this tire. Although it is not a dedicated as an off-road tire—it’s an all-season tire—it still can perform as well as one.
2.) Good Traction Rating:
The EverTread pattern ensures that the tire sticks neatly to the road. Even in high-speed tight turns, the tire still holds up neatly on the road. It doesn’t matter which season, rain, shine, or snow, the tire handles itself impressively
The tire can also perform well on wet or dry pavement handling and braking. Plus, the tire features four wide circumferential grooves, multiple lateral grooves, and open shoulder blocks. It improves the tire’s hydroplaning resistance.
For further improvements, Michelin added MaxTouch Construction. It is on the tire’s sidewall, and it helps increase the contact patch. This improves the tire’s ability to braking on various surfaces, improve stability, and improve overall handling.
3.) Has Maintenance Indicators:
Unlike Cooper’s Wear Square indicators, Michelin has their one take on it. Instead of lines disappearing, we instead have indicators that appear once significant wear has occurred.
These indicators are very important for safety. The more wear a tire has, the more prone it is to slide off track, which means accidents. When the tire is worn out significantly, an indicator pops up, and when it does, replace the tire immediately.
Takeaway
Both of these two tires are the best options for an all-season tire. If you want a smoother road experience, go for the Cooper Discoverer SRX. On the other hand, if you want a tire with a lot more versatility, go for the Michelin Defender LTX.
Do you think I missed something on this comparison? Any thoughts you might want to add? Feel free to comment on the below! Also, we offer other guides on our website as well such as:
