Problems with K02s?

[Golfsnob]

I live in Florida and it rains practically everyday in the summer (only when it doesn't for weeks) and I haven't experienced the wet road issues some folks have.

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[Ozbronco]

In my experience when I've had balance issues it was due to aftermarket wheels. I'm running the Everglades OEM wheels.

I'm also running the OEM Badlands wheels. Love 'em and had no issues with them. Turns out I had a bad tire (see update to original post).

 

[FloridaBroncoPipeDream]

no

 

[DrewBronc21]

I posted somewhere on here about having to swap out my 35” KO2s because of vibration at highway speeds. I tried to get them road force balanced and the shop said they couldn’t get them to balance. I returned them to tire rack , bought some Nitto Ridge Grapplers and been smooth ride ever since. My shop said they never recommend K02s because of balancing issues

 

[Bmadda]

This thread fascinates me because it’s either people who swear by them on their last 15 trucks or guys who never got them to balance from day one. Maybe there’s significant differences lot to lot?

Traction can be a bit subjective so it’s hard to say either way.

They have clearly had manufacturing issues in the last 10 years...it is entirely possible they have fixed those now for the most part, however, my issue is entirely how they handled the problem. I currently have 3 complete sets of KO2s, and one set of KM3s mounted on my vehicles, and they are absolutely a great tire! They were always the 1st tire i would reccomend to any customer asking for an aggressive type 4x4 tire. They outlast any competitors tire by 15-20k miles, and road noise/ride quality was as good or better than the competition. Unfortunately when I sell a set to a customer I am playing Russian roulette with my own wallet. If I get one of "the bad ones" thats just tough tittie...I can buy another one to solve the problem, or i can explain to the customer that he has to live w/that vibration cause some guy in France says so. I'm just not willing to assume that level of risk in my business. I will say this...if you get all good ones that balance out well, they are still an OUTSTANDING tire, and I have no problem putting "known good" BFGs on my vehicle or anybody elses. Its the fact that sorting the "you know what" out of the woodpile is left up to me, and at my expense, that I object to!

 

[zombie]

I've got 25,000 km on my OEM KO2's and I have no complaints. They've handled monsoon-type rain, heavy snow/ice and everything in between.

 

[kodiakisland]

Simply put, I can remember 25-35 years ago BFGs were considered the best AT tire on the market, hands down. Then, they weren't. Sometime in the 90s they developed a reputation for poorly balanced tires. Other makers caught up in on road technology. Now, I don't even consider BFG when I look for tires. They still make a decent tire, but they aren't what they were when they built their reputation.

 

[vzqhsg]

I have KO2 35" and my only issue is they don't grip well when it rains on pavement. I like the look... but I may try something different next time.

I haven't had this issue at all. Been in 3 down poor on the x-way. What grip issues aer you having?

 

[MWILD]

Had them on my JL, but won’t be buying them for my Bronco. Borderline dangerous in the rain.

 

[Rolandfj40]

Just get some Falken AT3W’s, you’ll never look back.

 

[Khakiman]

I have KO2 35" and my only issue is they don't grip well when it rains on pavement. I like the look... but I may try something different next time.

Same issue I had with my KO2’s. I loved them but they were not great on wet roads after about 20K miles on them. I have since switched to Mickey Thompson’s BAJA AT’s. The research I’ve done on them show they do very well on wet roads. I haven’t had them long enough to know but I’m hoping they work out. They have a very aggressive look similar to the KO2’s.

 

[Faust]

I ride smoothly on my KO2s up until 70ish MPH, then the vibration kicks in.

I ordered my wheels/tires through custom offsets so they come "balanced" already; however, I know better, so shortly after I received them I brought my Bronco into my local discount tire for them to road force/double check them. They claimed that they were out of whack (which I expected) although it seemed slightly better It's still very apparent.

They even mentioned that they would do what they could but KO2s seem to be iffy.

 

[Gtrekker]

No issues with my K02s... Balancing is all on the tech. After the 1st spin, etc..... and it's out of balance. Release the air and rotate tire around the wheel. Spin and repeat till you fine the sweet spot, minimizing the amount of weights needed.

 

[Fivefingerheist]

I have KO2 35" and my only issue is they don't grip well when it rains on pavement. I like the look... but I may try something different next time.

Second this, had to learn to be very careful when turning in rain. The rear end tends to slide out very easy (on pavement). I have heard the K03 may have addressed this issue with the new channeling.

 

[CarbonSteel]

Here is a review that I wrote about the BFGs on my Wrangler. The only thing that has changed from then until now is I had Discount Tire road force balance them and that helped quite a bit for the balancing issues--everything else remains the same.

If I had to do it again and despite the weight difference, I would have waited and gone with Mickey Thompson Baja A/Ts in load range D.

Vehicle = 2019 JLUR with 3.6L, ZF8, & 5.13 Gearing
Empty Weight = 5700 pounds
Lift = 3.5" MC Game Changer
Shocks = 2.5" Fox DSC
Wheels = Icon Alpha; 17x8.5 with 0 offset/4.75" backspace

Tire = BF Goodrich KO2 A/T
Size = 37x12.50x17
Load Range = C
Inflated diameter (Unloaded) = 35.75" (@31 PSI)
Inflated diameter (Loaded) = 35.375" (@31 PSI)
Tread Depth = 15/32" (0 miles)
Tread Depth = 12/32" (35K miles)
Maintenance = 5 tire rotation and balance every 5K miles (more frequent balancing needed as they wear)

Experience:

On-Road (Good--when new):

- They will not stay balanced as they wear (at least not for long), more and more weight is needed to balance them and they do not stay balanced as long as other tires have. Rebalancing has been needed between rotations (Discount Tire - Road Force)
- They begin to lose their grip in the rain and snow after about 20-25K miles. I had to drive from Denver to Colorado Springs during the last big snowstorm (speed was greatly reduced due to the conditions) and they are all over the place. They have a 3 peak snow rating, but as they wear effectiveness is reduced on the highway and they will slide in the rain much faster than other tires.
- They are quiet; probably the quietest tire I have had except for Michelin LTX AT2's on my trucks.

Off-road (Jack of all trades and master of none--except maybe powdery snow):

- They work reasonably well in the snow; I have gone through really deep powdery snow, and they handled it just fine.
- Loose, deep dry sand will typically find you close to stuck more often than not; wet sand is managed reasonably well.
- Thick clay-based mud will find you stuck and flexing your winch muscles. The tread design does not clear sticky mud and you will find they become 4 slicks with zero grip in short order.
- Watery mud is cleared reasonably well, but they are no match for a true M/T.
- They handle rocks "ok", but they will slip and drag you out of your line on side angled inclines and declines.

Noise = 10 (even after 35K miles)
Wear = 9 (even with the weight of my JLUR)
Ride = 6 (9 at first; 4 after 35K miles)
Dry = 9 (even after 35K miles)
Wet = 6 (7 new; 4 after 35K miles)
Snow = 6 (8 off-road--even after 35K miles; 4 on-road after 35K miles)
Mud = 4 (2 in clay/heavy mud; 5 in all other mud)
Sand = 6 (4 in deep dry sand; 8 in wet sand)
Trail = 6 (they can slip in rocks on inclines and declines)
Look = 5 (nothing aggressive or sexy here)
Overall = 6.8
Would I buy again? = No (as a jack of all trades and master of none (except noise and perhaps wear) they are too expensive for what you are getting)

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