Pirelli Scorpions vs Cooper
Submitted: Wednesday, May 03, 2006 at 13:16
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Laura B
Looking over some old threads, I noticed that Pirelli Scorpions (A/T) were good on Volvo's and smaller 4wds and for use on bituman,sand and snow but on corrigation...the concensus seemed to be that on corrugation they were shocking....
It also seemed , according to other comparison sites too , that they are only suited to certain cars - like the volvos, smaller 4b's and the odd Patrol has been fine with them, but i have not found one L/C that has had a good run on them....
the biggest problem being not enough life out of them - worn out after 25,000km the best being about 65,000km, too many flats and tread breaking off - I have looked at a quite a few 4wd sites to get this info - not just EO.
We are wanting our tyres to be able to do bituman/corrigation/rocks.....a bit of everything (but mainly getting them for our trip to Alice via Ood then across to
Boulia,
Birdsville,
Cameron Corner and follow the border to surfers).......so our other option is Coopers (the 60%/40% dirt/bituman - STT's?????) , badyear wranglers have given me "bad vibes" although there are good reports .......
Have these tyres changed in the past 12 months or more - the threads that i read were about 12months old min. ???? They are cheaper then Coopers etc but quite alot so are these still in the same catagory - you get what you pay for - ???
your thoughts would help a lot!
Laura B
Reply By: Steve - Wednesday, May 03, 2006 at 13:28
Wednesday, May 03, 2006 at 13:28
Laura, just as a Porsche won't do what a Landcruiser will do (and vice versa) it's the same with tyres. The Scorpions have shown to be excellent on wet bitumen although their longevity is questionable, as is their off-road/corrugation suitablity. Coopers, on the other hand are the opposite. There is no perfect all-rounder though BFGs seem to be the most popular in ATs.
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Follow Up By: Member - Marquis - Wednesday, May 03, 2006 at 15:44
Wednesday, May 03, 2006 at 15:44
I had Pirelli AT Scorpions on '00 Rodeo - lasted 50k (including a trip around AU and up the Cape with 40k on them)
WARNING do not pump them up above about 32psi !!!
Had Cooper AT's on the Rodeo - lasted 50k as
well
The Pirelli tyres are quieter, I had no problems with either brand but the Pirelli's were $50/tyre cheaper at the time (ie $205 compared to $260 in '01)
FollowupID:
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Follow Up By: Steve - Wednesday, May 03, 2006 at 17:53
Wednesday, May 03, 2006 at 17:53
Them Scorpions don't sound too bad Marquis.
Despite their big raps in the recent 4x4 mag comparison they don't seem to find much support around here. Was tempted by the black-top performance of them, which is 90% of my driving. I'll be up for a set meself soon. Might just go with the BFGs though. Still undecided.
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Follow Up By: Steve - Thursday, May 04, 2006 at 17:45
Thursday, May 04, 2006 at 17:45
marquis: can you elaborate on the "don't pump em up more than 32psi"?
I'm a bit tempted by Bob Janes $236.50 per tyre (for 4)
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Reply By: Moose - Wednesday, May 03, 2006 at 14:01
Wednesday, May 03, 2006 at 14:01
Hi
Laura
Have you actually looked at these two tyres? You are comparing totally different tyres - AT vs mud pattern! Did you mean to say STs perhaps? Ithink it would then be a fairer comparison. Sorry can't offer personal experences with these. BTW Bob Jane has a special on the Pirelli AT at the moment.
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Follow Up By: Laura B - Wednesday, May 03, 2006 at 15:01
Wednesday, May 03, 2006 at 15:01
Prob meant the other type - i meant the 60/40 % ones - never sure which one is which .....i havent seen the tyres face to face just in the dogalogues.....Thats where i saw the spec....junk mail....
Laura B
FollowupID:
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Reply By: Mad Dog (Australia) - Wednesday, May 03, 2006 at 14:08
Wednesday, May 03, 2006 at 14:08
It's a
mine field. Don't confuse yourself, stick with your original choice, Silent Armour wasn't it.
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Follow Up By: Laura B - Wednesday, May 03, 2006 at 14:58
Wednesday, May 03, 2006 at 14:58
Slient Armour it was - good memory -
Laura B
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Reply By: Shaker - Wednesday, May 03, 2006 at 14:14
Wednesday, May 03, 2006 at 14:14
It's like Russian Roulette buying Coopers, some may be good, but some are most definitely cr@p!
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Follow Up By: Laura B - Wednesday, May 03, 2006 at 14:58
Wednesday, May 03, 2006 at 14:58
Whats your experience been?what do you use?
Laura B!MPG:4!
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Follow Up By: Shaker - Wednesday, May 03, 2006 at 15:21
Wednesday, May 03, 2006 at 15:21
My experience was with Cooper Discoverer ST Light Truck construction.
1. They wore at an alarming rate.
2. They chipped very badly.
3. They cracked around the base of the edge lugs
4. They gave a good ride & reasonable grip.
5. The so called warranty isn't worth the paper that it's written on ... The "State Manager" made false promises & when the chips were down, he blatantly lied through his teeth.
I now have Firestone Firehawk RMTs, around $70 per tyre cheaper, have done all the same work, outback, high country etc ...... no chipping, cracking & are wearing better.
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Follow Up By: Member - Jiarna (NT) - Wednesday, May 03, 2006 at 21:06
Wednesday, May 03, 2006 at 21:06
I had Cooper STTs on my LC, but took them off and threw them behind the shed after 10K about 50% worn out. The vehicle was almost undriveable on them. Wheel alignment was fine, and putting the Duelers back on cured the driveability problem. Don't like the Duelers much either but they are much better than the Coopers. BTW I had exactly the same experience a few years ago with Coopers on my MQ Patrol, but hoped they'd updated their rubbish.
Regards
John
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Follow Up By: Laura B - Thursday, May 04, 2006 at 14:41
Thursday, May 04, 2006 at 14:41
what psi is everyone running and when? do you change it on driving circumstances?
Laura B
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Follow Up By: Shaker - Thursday, May 04, 2006 at 15:54
Thursday, May 04, 2006 at 15:54
The advice given to me by Exclusive Tyre Service, the distributor of Cooper Tires, was Highway, 38psi & drop around 10psi for the Outback tracks.
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Reply By: Member - Paul S (VIC) - Wednesday, May 03, 2006 at 20:13
Wednesday, May 03, 2006 at 20:13
G'day
Laura,
Can't comment on the Coopers, but I bought a new hilux last year and ditched the original Bridgstone duelers H/T after 15K and fitted Scorpion A/T's. Slightly more road noise but the all round performance by comparison is astonishing.
Obviously the off-road grip is better, being an A/T, but what really surprized me was their bitumen credentials. I really have to push them to lose traction and very little squeal when compared to the Bridgestones.
Unable to comment on life as I have only done 5K, but should we really get too hung-up on whether a tyre lasts 50K or 70K. It only takes one instance of broken traction to come to grief and lose everything.
I paid $200 each for the scorpions and if I only get 50K out of them, I'll still be lining up for the same next time.
Cheers,
Paul
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Reply By: Twinkles - Wednesday, May 03, 2006 at 20:19
Wednesday, May 03, 2006 at 20:19
I had a set of Pirellis on my dual cab Hilux. They were great on the road and I was very happy with off road as
well. They wore out too quick (60,000), but were pretty cheap. I then went to an all terrain Dueler. Not good on road, ok off road, hard ride. I now have pro comp all terrains. Love 'em.
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Reply By: Trevor M (SA) - Wednesday, May 03, 2006 at 21:09
Wednesday, May 03, 2006 at 21:09
I put a set of Pirelli Scorpions on my Patrol. I got the dreaded sidewall bubble on one about 6 months ago so had to replace 2. Kept the ok 2nd hand one as another spare casing.
A few weeks ago got a side wall bubble on one of the 2 left.
Luckily had the other one still in the shed to swap but I have never experienced this with any other tyre and had 2 go just the same. May be just my bad luck but I won't put Pirellis on again. Missing my spare casing now actually!
Trevor
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Follow Up By: Member - Marquis - Wednesday, May 03, 2006 at 21:46
Wednesday, May 03, 2006 at 21:46
What pressures are you running them at?
It's typical for them to bubble and bust if pump them up over about 32psi
(side wall states max 35psi)
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Follow Up By: Trevor M (SA) - Wednesday, May 03, 2006 at 21:52
Wednesday, May 03, 2006 at 21:52
running (on the highway) the 38 psi recommended by the tyre place that fitted them. Lower pressures where applicable off road. There are still 2 on the rear running at this pressure.
Sounds like this may be the issue???
They were a "price effective" option at the time but I won't buy them again.
Will look into recommended pressure some more.
Thanks
Trevor
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Follow Up By: Member - Marquis - Wednesday, May 03, 2006 at 22:47
Wednesday, May 03, 2006 at 22:47
Trevor, I would say the high pressure is what caused the tyres to go off.
I purchased the Scorpions - the tyre
shop pumped them up similar to yours, I lowered them the same day when I saw the maximum pressure on the side wall. Talking to some other people that have had blow-outs etc with these tyres, I soon found out that you cannot exceed about 32psi if you want the tyres to last.
Do not trust tyre shops, always
check the tyres yourself...
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Follow Up By: Trevor M (SA) - Thursday, May 04, 2006 at 21:26
Thursday, May 04, 2006 at 21:26
I've had a look at the tyres and struggle to find anything listing max pressure of 35psi. In some VERY tiny writing there is something that could possibly be saying 44psi max but it is close to unreadable (it was in the dark with a torch)
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Reply By: Truckster (Vic) - Thursday, May 04, 2006 at 00:04
Thursday, May 04, 2006 at 00:04
Hvae scorpions on wifes pathfinder, they are useless offroad. they are nothing more than an HT. How any magazine can say they are a WINNING AT says everything about magazines and I better stop there before I get a lawyer on the doorstep
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Follow Up By: Member - Marquis - Thursday, May 04, 2006 at 08:41
Thursday, May 04, 2006 at 08:41
Truckster, you are full of it - big difference between a normal HT tyre and an scorpion/cooper/bfg AT.
Saying that - I would not recommend the scorpion if you wish to increase tyre pressure for better fuel ecom,
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Follow Up By: Truckster (Vic) - Thursday, May 04, 2006 at 11:09
Thursday, May 04, 2006 at 11:09
There is Nothing different in the Scorpion and most HTs. I have them on the car here. I can walk outside again and look at them.
They are nowhere NEAR a real AT like a BFG AT, or Cooper ST, dont put the 3 of them together by any stretch of the imagination.
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Reply By: RustyHelen - Thursday, May 04, 2006 at 09:20
Thursday, May 04, 2006 at 09:20
Each to their own but here's my Cooper ST report.
50,000 kms, no cracking, little chipping and improved the handling of the Paj significantly over the road tyres it came with. We don't
rock climb but the vehicle has done a few 1000ks on dirt/sand/
rock roads.
We are heading off for 3 months shortly so had them in for a health
check. Started at 15mm tread, after 50k have 9/10 mm remaining, ie 33% worn from full to bald. I reckon we will get the 80k easily (but then we got 70k from the road tyres originally).
The reason for the health
check was do we change them before we go or along the road or will they last till we get
home (estimated 15>20k on trip). Given that we will be doing Tanami, top half of CSR and
Pilbara I am going to change them and keep the "discards" as spare. Will we repeat the Coopers? Most definately.
Rusty
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Reply By: Member - Alan H (SA) - Thursday, May 04, 2006 at 13:37
Thursday, May 04, 2006 at 13:37
The Pirelli Scorpion AT 31x10.5R15 on my GQ have done
well.
I haven't closely tracked wear, but they had about 40% when I got the GQ and 15,000km later have about 15%. A late tyre rotation/wheel balance/steering alignement left the side of one with just 2mm.
Usage is 50% off road where they continue to take a pounding on the
Oodnadatta and
Birdsville tracks, regularly used in sand and no complaints in ~200km of low-range rocky tracks. Zero chips (they appear to have hardened) and my only flat was a staked sidewall. Clay and mud hasn't been good, and I expect a more open tread would do better. I run 36psi on-road and usually about 28 off. As already mentioned, on-road is excellent.
I'm looking at getting new tyres at the moment. Maybe I'll go with the popular BFG AT's or I'll get the Scoprion's again as they are doing all I require.
Cheers,
Alan
(Hey -it's my first post since being a member in September. woohoo!)
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Follow Up By: Muddy doe (SA) - Thursday, May 04, 2006 at 21:38
Thursday, May 04, 2006 at 21:38
Hah!
See, That wasn't so hard!
With informative postings like that we look forward to you getting the posting bug more often.........
Muddy
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Reply By: Laura B - Thursday, May 04, 2006 at 14:43
Thursday, May 04, 2006 at 14:43
Thanks everyone...
what psi is everyone using with their tyres and when??
Laura B
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Follow Up By: Member - MrBitchi (QLD) - Thursday, May 04, 2006 at 15:22
Thursday, May 04, 2006 at 15:22
Pressures will vary a little from vehicle to vehicle, and tyre to tyre....
On my Pajero (Cooper AT's) I run 36psi on the blacktop, around 28psi on gravel roads, and around 18/20 on sand, lower if necessary.
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Reply By: Twinkles - Thursday, May 04, 2006 at 16:48
Thursday, May 04, 2006 at 16:48
I run 30 to 32 in my Hilux on road and about 20 when off road. I've purchased a set of MT ProComps for high country use on another set of rims. These seem ok on road but noisier than the AT's.
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