THE REASONS WHY

ACCORDING to Cooper Tires’ Ken Reuille, these outback test trips are highly valued by the US company and have been so for many years. “Cooper Tire Rubber Company has been testing tread designs, carcass constructions and compounds on RLT products in the outback for about 15 years now,” Ken says. “Starting with the development of the original Discoverer ST, followed by the S/T Maxx, the STT Pro, and most recently the new AT3 available this year.”

The tyres are developed and then tested extensively at Cooper Tires’ US HQ, both in-lab and out on test tracks, but it is the product validation testing – a final tick of approval, if you will – that takes place in Australia, and on these tracks with their unique (read: rough, rugged and uncompromising) surfaces that offers the final shakedown of the product. “It would be extremely difficult to replicate in the US, the climate, varied terrain, and diverse road surfaces present in the outback,” Ken says. “Testing in the outback has provided us with meaningful information that has allowed us to optimise the tyre’s tread pattern. “For example, we added a raised rubber pad in the tread design of the STT Pro to aid in dislodging stones, and made changes to the shoulder siping of the new AT3 to minimise chipping, as a direct result of our outback testing.” This validation of a tyre’s strength and durability, in regards to seeking all advantages in a competitive retail market, is something that is invaluable. And it works both ways, in terms of the opposing markets for the US tyre giant. “Australian customers of our products can have confidence that they have been tested and proven in the outback,” Ken affirms. “While our US customers know that if our products have been vetted in the outback, they will perform well when exposed to likely much less severe service conditions in the US.”

AUSTRALIAN TRACKS WITH THEIR UNIQUE SURFACES OFFER THE FINAL SHAKEDOWN