Kumho KH16 vs Cooper tires

[scott2683]

I was going to try to put off getting new tires til sometime after the winter, but the other night while driving home from work in the rain my duelers of death tried to kill me. I was hydroplaning all over the road. I couldn't exceed speeds of 45 mph with out gliding all over the road like it was covered in ice.

I priced tires in my town. Discount tire offers the Kumho Solus kh16 for $483.00 out the door. Its a 40,000 mile tire, that price doesn't include a warranty. From what I have gathered so far from the forum, these are pretty good tires. I live in indiana, I need something that will be good in snow and rain.

Tire barn warehouse offered a cooper tire with an 80,000 mile rating, free 3 year warranty, and a $40 instant rebate, which brings the total to $525. I haven't heard much about cooper tires, anyone have much luck with them, I have noticed a few people on here didn't like cooper tires.


Any insight would be greatly appreciated!! I want to get a set of tires as soon as possible!

[bigbluthng]

we've had the kumhos on my wife 05 vue for almost two years and 38k miles. it's been a great tire with less road noise than the bridgestones, and better handling it seems. we will be due for another set here in the next few months and will definitely go the same route.

[bigbluthng]

by the way, have you checked tirerack.com ?

[D C]

Just remember that those tires are the ONLY thing connecting your car to the road and you'll be driving on them for the next couple/few years at least. If you save $100 now, that works out to a whopping 0.2 cents per mile saved over 50k miles.

[OhioVueBoy]

Meh, I went from a $700+ set of Michelin Pilot LTXs to my Kumhos, and I couldn't be happier.

D C, this is the second thread where you have came out against Kumho tires - do you have some factual information you can put up here to explain your opinion?

I'd go with the Kumhos... an 80K mile tire is somewhat of a joke - hard rubber compounds and cold roads in the winter are going to make it more apt to slide or spin on acceleration.

[SC2SkyVue]

Originally Posted by OhioVueBoy

D C, this is the second thread where you have came out against Kumho tires - do you have some factual information you can put up here to explain your opinion?

Maybe some people are just not big fans of car tires made in Korea

[golftango]

Originally Posted by SC2SkyVue

Maybe some people are just not big fans of car tires made in Korea

I'll take a set of tires from Korea over China any day. I've had both Kumho and Hankook tires and they are quality products.

[OhioVueBoy]

Originally Posted by SC2SkyVue

Maybe some people are just not big fans of car tires made in Korea

That's fine. Come out and say it then - if someone is asking opinions on tires without inquiring as to where they came from, they probably are not that concerned with it.

[SC2SkyVue]

Originally Posted by golftango

I'll take a set of tires from Korea over China any day.

Yikes! People actually buy Chinese tires?

[scott2683]

Thanks for all the info on the tires. It seems most of you guys prefer the Kumho solus over the cooper tires. I dont know a lot about tires, I just know I've got to get something safer. I drive 15-20k miles a year, so dependability and comfort is very important, also something quiet is a plus too!

[Tom92SCm]

Originally Posted by OhioVueBoy

I'd go with the Kumhos... an 80K mile tire is somewhat of a joke - hard rubber compounds and cold roads in the winter are going to make it more apt to slide or spin on acceleration.

Exactly. As D C explained, the tires are your only thing connecting you to the ground. You could go with some round, 80k mile bricks that are designed to survive a nuclear attack. Or you could go with a softer tire that will actually conform to the road and provide grip when you need it. Tires should not be designed to last forever.

[D C]

Originally Posted by OhioVueBoy

Meh, I went from a $700+ set of Michelin Pilot LTXs to my Kumhos, and I couldn't be happier.

D C, this is the second thread where you have came out against Kumho tires - do you have some factual information you can put up here to explain your opinion?

I'd go with the Kumhos... an 80K mile tire is somewhat of a joke - hard rubber compounds and cold roads in the winter are going to make it more apt to slide or spin on acceleration.

I don't believe I said anything in this thread about Kumhos. Nor did I expressly speak out against Kumho in the other thread. Previously, I simply said that I personally have a list of tire companies from which I am willing to purchase tires for my own vehicles. I believe those companies to be, overall, most capable of providing a tire with the performance and quality I desire.

The OP is looking at some tires and is using price as one of the means of comparing them. A LOT of people shop tires based on price alone and they'll settle for anything round & black that holds their car off the ground. I'm simply pointing out that the difference in cost is insignificant over the long haul, so focusing on price isn't necessarily the best thing.

I agree with you on the 80k mile tire. A tire should stop and turn well while providing reasonable fuel economy and wear. Focusing on extremely long wearability is sure to compromise some other performance attribute.

[golftango]

Originally Posted by Tom92SCm

You could go with some round, 80k mile bricks that are designed to survive a nuclear attack...

Cough...Michelin...cough.

Yikes! People actually buy Chinese tires?

Some of Cooper's tires are made in China...and gasp, GoodYear too!

http://www.nasdaq.com/aspx/stock-mar...on-china-tires

[kodak_jack]

I'm currently waiting for a response on what Cooper is willing to do about my Lifeliners that have less than 30,000 miles on them and are already shot. I bought them based on recommendations on here and am disappointed in the wear I haven't gotten from them. They are worn evenly, just prematurely. If you go to Tirerack, there are three grades of Kuhmo's. I would guess the most expensive and the highest rated are what we should get. I know people who have gotten the Kuhmo's and like them.

[golftango]

Originally Posted by kodak_jack

If you go to Tirerack, there are three grades of Kuhmo's. I would guess the most expensive and the highest rated are what we should get. I know people who have gotten the Kuhmo's and like them.

Both Kuhmo and Hankooks are a great value and good product. Just with any other brand, stay away from the "base" and OEM grades. I mean, Bridgestone makes some decent tires, but the OEM Bridgestones on both my Saturn and Honda were pure garbage, mass produced at lowest cost. But for the price of a OEM Bridgestone or Michelin, you can get a high grade Kuhmo or Hankook. And the base/OEM Kuhmos and Hankooks are not that great IMHO. This is the rubber that the Accent and Rio gets.

[MigL]

Originally considered the Kumho Road venture KL51 , a better tire in my opinion than the KH16, along with the BF Goodrich Long Trail tour. But in the end have decided that I will replace the OEM Bridgestones with Cooper CS4 touring T in a 235/55-17 size. I realize it will be a slightly smaller/lower tire but it'll effectively lower my gear ratio.

[djhhjd]

The Ford dealership where I bought my VUE had put new tires on it before I took it home, they are Continental ContiProContact's. This is the first set of these that I have owned and I've only put about 200 miles on so far, the only opinion that I have on them is that they are fairly quiet. The service dept charged the sales dept $487.32 for tires, mounting, balancing with a unit price of $109.33 I hope that they wear good because my 16 yr old will be driving soon and I dont want to worry about crappy tires.

[golftango]

Originally Posted by djhhjd

The Ford dealership where I bought my VUE had put new tires on it before I took it home, they are Continental ContiProContact's. This is the first set of these that I have owned and I've only put about 200 miles on so far, the only opinion that I have on them is that they are fairly quiet. The service dept charged the sales dept $487.32 for tires, mounting, balancing with a unit price of $109.33 I hope that they wear good because my 16 yr old will be driving soon and I dont want to worry about crappy tires.

Conti's are good. I had a set of OEM Conti's on my Golf, they wore pretty well from what I remember. The Pros are a step up from OEMs.

[Wildstar87]

That's not saying much, pretty much ANYTHING is a stepup from the Duelers... That being said, I got the Kumho over the summer, I've been pleased with them so far. Much more positive feeling, and quieter than the Duelers, they seem to have been ok in the rain, probably won't drive them in the snow since I have Toyo Observe's for that.

Originally Posted by golftango

The Pros are a step up from OEMs.

[Picbuddy]

At 33k, slapped on some new Pirelli Scorpions (tirerack) and at 50k they still look new and have enough tread to pick up and store acorns, which creates a unique and ever changing series of clicks. Always keep the windows cracked a little and listen to how these thing (Honda motors) sound. They blend beautifully with GM frame creaks and Saturn plastic part wind noise.

A true celebration of the driving experience.