General Altimax RT43 vs Cooper CS5 Ultra

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I'm interested in dry traction. My number one criteria. Out of the two tires, which will "hook" the best on a car with some power?

Before you ask why I am not looking at a more performance-oriented tire, the reason is size - 225/60R15. BFG T/As are popular, but I feel they aren't worth the money. Also - I am using a 185/65R15 on the front of the car, and it's pretty darn tough to find a decent tire made in both tires that is H-rated.

Out of the two, which would you pick? I know both get good reviews here. Has anyone ever had an opportunity to compare both?

FWIW, I have 80k mile rated 215/70R15 Hankook H725 Mileage Plus IIs on the car now, and they loose traction going WOT from a 20 mph roll in first gear. Hoping one of the above tires will work a little better.
 
Unless you go to a summer performance tire, I don't think you'll see any difference in dry traction with any tire.
Even then, most tires do just fine in dry conditions.
Maybe a street drag oriented tire on the rears would be something to try?
It would cost a bit more than either the Cooper or the General though.
 
What car is this for?

But the CS5 Ultra will give better performance traction than the RT43's.

The RT43s have a little better tire life and snow performance.
The CS5 Ultras are better dry traction, handling, and a little more quiet.

Both seem good in rain, not sure if one is better but they both work fine.


With that said the CS5 Ultra's are still a Mid+ life tire, not a performance one. They are kinda a bridge between a ultra-high performance all-season tire and a long life touring tire. You have a long life tire now.
 
It's a Chevy II. 225/60R15 is all the bigger I can fit with the wheels I am using. I have M&H drag radials (235/60R15) for track outings. Just looking for something better for normal driving. Snow doesn't matter, as the car will never be in the snow for as long a I am alive (and not in the rain if I can help it). Nothing available that is "performance oriented" in a 225/60, which is surprising, since this was the stock Mustang 5.0 size for many years in the late 80s.
 
The RT43s on my Camry make it handle like you're driving on a road made of mashed potatoes. Not good at all.

Very smooth and pretty quiet tires though, just mushy steering cause they're so soft.
 
Originally Posted By: SatinSilver
Nick,

Were those the T rated tires? Plus Camrys ride pretty soft until the 2012 model year.
Not sure of the speed rating. The old Goodyears weren't so sloppy and I previously had a 97 Camry and it wasn't like mashed potatoes either.
 
I'm waiting to see if DTD has a good deal on the Coopers for memorial day, but I suspect prices (Cooper vs General) will be so close that it won't make much of a difference if one tire is clearly better than the other.

Not too worried about lateral grip, as I am working with a suspension designed in ~1960, and a car that came with 6.50x13 tires. It's definitely not made for corner carving, so I don't push it in the twistys.

Sounds like they both will perform pretty close. Cooper sidewall looks better. I guess that counts for something? LOL

As an aside, I had a set of Cooper Ultra CS5s in a 235/55R17 on my 2005 Colorado 2wd truck when they first came out in ~2014 or so. They were great for ~10k miles (traded in the truck), but the old I5 never had enough power to test acceleration traction. I liked how they performed in all other categories. Never had the General RT43s, but I have had great luck with General Altimax Arctics on a few vehicles.
 
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I have the generals on my Focus. I put about 100 miles round trip to work and they are great. Quiet and good winter traction. I was told by a tire Shop that the CS5s were having cupping issues and got really noisy on cars that put a lot oF miles on. I ended up finding the best price on the Generals from Wal-Mart.
 
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Originally Posted By: tmorris1
I was told by a tire Shop that the CS5s were having cupping issues and got really noisy on cars that put a lot oF miles on.


This describes my experience with the CS5. While they have excellent wet/dry/snow traction on my Mazda3, even with 5000 mile rotations they have started to cup and are becoming quite noisy. I've had the alignment, tire balance, and suspension bushings/hardware/etc checked twice. Both shops think the camber settings Mazda uses are the culprit. My friend got his CS5's (at my recommendation) about a month after I had mine installed and he has not had issues with cupping or noise on his Dodge Journey.
 
Originally Posted By: quint
Originally Posted By: tmorris1
I was told by a tire Shop that the CS5s were having cupping issues and got really noisy on cars that put a lot oF miles on.


This describes my experience with the CS5. While they have excellent wet/dry/snow traction on my Mazda3, even with 5000 mile rotations they have started to cup and are becoming quite noisy. I've had the alignment, tire balance, and suspension bushings/hardware/etc checked twice. Both shops think the camber settings Mazda uses are the culprit. My friend got his CS5's (at my recommendation) about a month after I had mine installed and he has not had issues with cupping or noise on his Dodge Journey.


Interesting. As noted above, I have some experience with CS5 Ultra, as I've had them on my old Colorado. Never had a single problem with noise, balance, or cupping.
 
DT/DTD often has very good sales on Cooper tires, including the CS5 Ultra. Since it's almost always the better deal because of this, my choice would be the CS5.

That said, nothing wrong with the RT43, either. But between the two, get whichever one is the better price.
 
Originally Posted By: slacktide_bitog
DT/DTD often has very good sales on Cooper tires, including the CS5 Ultra. Since it's almost always the better deal because of this, my choice would be the CS5.

That said, nothing wrong with the RT43, either. But between the two, get whichever one is the better price.


Thanks. That's what I've kinds concluded. Will make the call next week once DTD's memorial deals are announced. Tires seem very close in performance, and I probably can't go wrong with either. Appearance does matter to me (it's a "cruise night" vehicle), and the CS5 scores some points for a cleaner sidewall, so if price is the same within a few %, that's the way I'll go.
 
CS5 Ultras I can load the Converter and still get zero spin off the line.
Granted Im not powerful, but I usually can still get some spin with both tires that way. (Limited slip)
 
Originally Posted By: Colt45ws
CS5 Ultras I can load the Converter and still get zero spin off the line.
Granted Im not powerful, but I usually can still get some spin with both tires that way. (Limited slip)


Thanks. That's what I was looking for. I saw general RT43s in a parking lot yesterday, and didn't like the look as much as the coopers. Think I'll go with cooper if the DTD Memorial Day deal looks OK.
 
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