With 10K on it, and worn out cooper tires, I would say someone sold the originals, or your mileage isn't correct. I have coopers on my tahoe, because they are cheap, cheaply made, cheaply cost wise. If you are around the tire business, you would know this already. Frugal yes, best performance, no. Cheap tires wear funny, always have, and always will. Air pressure, alignment, driving habits, road conditions, all play a roll in how they wear, and you should know that. Spend the bucks and buy some performance rated tires, and expect them to wear out in 15-20K, sooner if you really like performance. Go A/S is you want better mileage out of them. But don't expect a cheap tire to give you the mileage of a name brand tire.
I would kick your uncle's behind.....of course he is saving you $$$$$$$$$$