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BFG KO2 Tires

JCWages

Rank V
Launch Member

Pathfinder I

I’m looking for tires for my LX470 and was advised against getting them by the tire shop because of them being slick on wet roads. Is it that noticeable?
Wet traction is really the only downfall for the KO2. There are so many threads on this tire on so many forums and you'll find that the recurring grip is wet traction. There are people who claim they don't have any problems but you'll rarely find anyone boasting the KO2 prowess in wet. There are also a lot of fanboys out there...

If you want great wet/dry/snow traction from an aggressive AT then look at the Wildpeak A/T3W. For a mild AT the Continental TerrainContact and Yokohama Geolandar AT G015 are excellent in wet but the Conti isn't great in snow. I read the Ridge Grappler also has great wet traction as well but I've never run that tire. I've run the others.
 

JCWages

Rank V
Launch Member

Pathfinder I

Maybe, but coming of back to back to back German sports cars I drive this Outback like a banshee and no loss of grip because of the BFG K02’s in the rain.
Could just be a cooler weather or truck thing. Kinda like the Duratracs. :)
 

Pathfinder I

Wet traction is really the only downfall for the KO2. There are so many threads on this tire on so many forums and you'll find that the recurring grip is wet traction. There are people who claim they don't have any problems but you'll rarely find anyone boasting the KO2 prowess in wet. There are also a lot of fanboys out there...

If you want great wet/dry/snow traction from an aggressive AT then look at the Wildpeak A/T3W. For a mild AT the Continental TerrainContact and Yokohama Geolandar AT G015 are excellent in wet but the Conti isn't great in snow. I read the Ridge Grappler also has great wet traction as well but I've never run that tire. I've run the others.
Wet traction is the down fall of the Duratracs, I have to be very careful when at low speeds and wet roads, small throttle input breaks the tires loose.
 

JCWages

Rank V
Launch Member

Pathfinder I

Wet traction is the down fall of the Duratracs, I have to be very careful when at low speeds and wet roads, small throttle input breaks the tires loose.
Big time! I had to run in Auto4wd during rain events to keep the back end from sliding out on me when driving curvy road at or below the speed limit. I don't have to do that with the Wildpeaks or Geolandars.
 

Wawa Skittletits

Local Expert East Region USA
Staff member
Launch Member
Member

Expedition Master I

Big time! I had to run in Auto4wd during rain events to keep the back end from sliding out on me when driving curvy road at or below the speed limit. I don't have to do that with the Wildpeaks or Geolandars.
I find the G015 and Wildpeaks to be fantastic in the rain and snow but just as I think the only shortcoming with the G015 is mud, for the Wildpeaks its ice. Pick your poison haha.

I had heard the same grumblings about the K02 and didn't have a hard time believing them. I never went back to BFG after running the predecessor to the K02 on a truck because of abysmal wet weather traction. Even if the asphalt was simply wet AFTER it rained.
 

Viking1204

Rank V
Mod Team
Member
Investor

Member III

Wet traction is the down fall of the Duratracs, I have to be very careful when at low speeds and wet roads, small throttle input breaks the tires loose.
I find this to be the problem with the Duratracs here in NW Florida too, very easy to spin the tires on wet roads here. Part of the problem here is some of the roads were built with crushed sea shells in them so after a light rain the oil from the sea shells combined with the rain make the roads slick. I still have some time left before replacing my Duratracs but I'll be looking for something new when it does come time to replace them. I don't need to worry about snow and ice, I need a tire that is good in sand, mud and better grips wet roads infused with sea shell oil, it's almost like driving on ice. I might look at the Wildpeaks but still open to better ideas if there is one.
 

jimbofoxman

Rank V
Launch Member

Member III

Interesting read so far. New tire time is coming up for the Silverado. The "ALL TERRAIN" they come stock with are awful. Drop of rain and you can't accelerate without spinning. Was thinking of KO2's but now........hmmm. Not doing crazy mudding with my truck, but hate having my drive plowed in the winter, love driving in the snow, not crazy into overlanding to the point where I am doing some major off roading. Couple months to decide still.
 

Ghost

Rank V
Launch Member

Pathfinder I

Being in Washington states Columbia River Gorge both my wife and I commute on average 40-50 miles a day to work and back and put 20-22K miles on each our vehicles annually. In the Cascades we get rain for months, a few solid weeks of snow, and usually a round or two of freezing rain.

I've had a few sets of BFG A/Ts with pretty similar results as to what people have said above. Solid choice on heavier SUVs and a little squirrely on P/U trucks.

Currently my wife is running KO2's on her 2018 4Runner. Its heavy enough we have never noticed any issues with the rear end breaking loose on the wet. As for snow we take it snowboarding up MT. Hood and she drives some bad hills that are usually riddled with cars in the ditch and crawls right by them to and from work.

On ICE, the solid sheets we get that can end up several inches thick and rip down every power line for miles? Well we just stay home until that crap is over.

In comparison we had the Fj Cruiser with Cooper STTs and had similar results. Although owning it longer it was ran more extensively and through worse conditions.

Having a Tacoma again I am contemplating the Falken wildpeaks over the KO's but haven't committed to either yet.
 
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l_vandyke

Rank V
Launch Member

Enthusiast III

I’ve had BFG KM2’s in the past on a S10 ZR2 I used to have. The tires did amazing in all conditions including 2ft of snow. I was a huge fan. They rode smooth and very surprisingly quiet for a mud tire. A buddy of mine has KO2’s on his regular cab, long bed power stroke and so far he really likes them. I finally needed new tires on my 2015 Tacoma and ended up getting the KO2’s. Haven’t had them for a week yet so I can’t really leave a honest opinion on how they do on my truck until they get some wear on them. So far they ride really smooth and are extremely quiet.

5E555E82-C168-411D-BAB6-231627744910.jpeg
 

Ghost

Rank V
Launch Member

Pathfinder I

I’ve had BFG KM2’s in the past on a S10 ZR2 I used to have. The tires did amazing in all conditions including 2ft of snow. I was a huge fan. They rode smooth and very surprisingly quiet for a mud tire. A buddy of mine has KO2’s on his regular cab, long bed power stroke and so far he really likes them. I finally needed new tires on my 2015 Tacoma and ended up getting the KO2’s.
Haven’t had them for a week yet so I can’t really leave a honest opinion on how they do on my truck until they get some wear on them. So far they ride really smooth and are extremely quiet.

View attachment 111625
That is something I didn’t bring up in my previous comment, the ride or the road noise. The KO’s always seem to ride super smooth and have little to no road noise. That is one concern I have with the Falkens. I’ve heard some complaints that as they wear they get louder? I know what I’m getting with KO2s.

Nice rig by the way.
 

Craig M

Rank VI
Launch Member

Influencer II

While I have ran the previous BFG AT's on older rigs, I just put my first set of KO2's on the van I bought in May. We did a 2,300 mile trip around SW Colorado last month, with a couple hundred on dirt / gravel, and they have held up well. I also had no traction issues, whatsoever. Of course, I got the cookie cutters, and am not far below the weight capacity of these, so those both help. I have a feeling they won't last as long on my rig, due to the weight, though I really don't expect to have them on more than 6 more months, or so, since I plan to do the 4x4 conversion and move to at least 33's, likely 35's.

IMG_20190706_204933.jpg
 

l_vandyke

Rank V
Launch Member

Enthusiast III

That is something I didn’t bring up in my previous comment, the ride or the road noise. The KO’s always seem to ride super smooth and have little to no road noise. That is one concern I have with the Falkens. I’ve heard some complaints that as they wear they get louder? I know what I’m getting with KO2s.

Nice rig by the way.
Thanks! She’s a work in progress but does a great job. I’ve known a few people that ran Falkens and they really didn’t care for them. Tread wore out pretty quick and didn’t ride very smooth. But both of them were driving Chevy 2500 HD Silverados, so the weight might have contributed to that. I see a lot of people with Tacoma’s starting to use Falkens and Cooper STT Pro’s and day they do well. I’m gonna see how these KO2’s do for me.
 

Ghost

Rank V
Launch Member

Pathfinder I

While I have ran the previous BFG AT's on older rigs, I just put my first set of KO2's on the van I bought in May. We did a 2,300 mile trip around SW Colorado last month, with a couple hundred on dirt / gravel, and they have held up well. I also had no traction issues, whatsoever. Of course, I got the cookie cutters, and am not far below the weight capacity of these, so those both help. I have a feeling they won't last as long on my rig, due to the weight, though I really don't expect to have them on more than 6 more months, or so, since I plan to do the 4x4 conversion and move to at least 33's, likely 35's.

View attachment 111631
Cookie cutter, pizza cutter, skinny’s, no matter what you want to call them I’m a fan. It’s probably because my first summer time job was running saw and we rolled to work every morning in a 70 something ford highboy riding on some serious pizza cutters.
 

Ghost

Rank V
Launch Member

Pathfinder I

Thanks! She’s a work in progress but does a great job. I’ve known a few people that ran Falkens and they really didn’t care for them. Tread wore out pretty quick and didn’t ride very smooth. But both of them were driving Chevy 2500 HD Silverados, so the weight might have contributed to that. I see a lot of people with Tacoma’s starting to use Falkens and Cooper STT Pro’s and day they do well. I’m gonna see how these KO2’s do for me.
I burned through a set of the BFG ATs on my full-size dodge at a disappointing rate. Think I had 40k+ on the ATs I had on my 04 Tacoma when I sold it and they where in great shape. Much lighter rig. We had the Cooper STTs on our FJ and they rocked, especially in the deep snow. They would push it. I’ll probably just go with the KO’s because I know what I’m getting already having a set. Although I may go with something skinny.
 

l_vandyke

Rank V
Launch Member

Enthusiast III

I burned through a set of the BFG ATs on my full-size dodge at a disappointing rate. Think I had 40k+ on the ATs I had on my 04 Tacoma when I sold it and they where in great shape. Much lighter rig. We had the Cooper STTs on our FJ and they rocked, especially in the deep snow. They would push it. I’ll probably just go with the KO’s because I know what I’m getting already having a set. Although I may go with something skinny.
The majority of the people I’ve seen that don’t like BFG tires are people with full size and diesel trucks. They’re just so heavy. But most people that have lighter vehicles like Tacomas, FJ’s, and even 4Runners usually have plenty of good to say. I’ve talked to several other people on Instagram and forums with Tacoma’s that love the KO2’s because of their good on-road ride and off-road capability.
 

Ghost

Rank V
Launch Member

Pathfinder I

The majority of the people I’ve seen that don’t like BFG tires are people with full size and diesel trucks. They’re just so heavy. But most people that have lighter vehicles like Tacomas, FJ’s, and even 4Runners usually have plenty of good to say. I’ve talked to several other people on Instagram and forums with Tacoma’s that love the KO2’s because of their good on-road ride and off-road capability.
Bullseye! I had them on a a 4wheel drive Dodge 2500 12 value diesel. I’d probably not have any second thoughts on the KO’s but my wife made the comment I should get them “so we could have matching wheels”

SMH :):):) what next matching shirts???
 

Boort

Rank V
Launch Member

Member III

@BB_trailrook
I’m looking for tires for my LX470 and was advised against getting them by the tire shop because of them being slick on wet roads. Is it that noticeable?
Over the last 18 months they have not been a problem for me in my 4th Gen 4runner. This includes normal daily driving stuff, offroading, and towing a 3klb trailer over the Co mountains through rain, sleet, and snow.

Boort
 

Viking1204

Rank V
Mod Team
Member
Investor

Member III

So what is everyone running on full size trucks? Like I stated above looking for a better tire on wet roads than the Duratrac. My 2011 F-150 Supercrew FX4 weighs roughly 6000 lbs with all the gear I keep in it regularly under the Diamondback cover.
 
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