Tire suggestions?

[chandleraj]

I'm creating this thread in hope that of all of the fellow overlanders will help out some new and upcoming overlanders who are at a major dilemma. What kind of tires would best suit my needs? For example if you have a rig that is primarily your daily driver, but also a weekend/expedition toy, what kind of tired would be best? Also if you want to travel all around the country in your rig what kind of tires would best suit that need? Reply with all the pros and cons of the tires you're running right now on your rig and what you have ran previously

PS: I'm running the BFG all terrain KO2's as of right now and I love them for my everyday needs!!

 

[Steve]

Here's a discussion that might be helpful

What tires do you like? (Merged Thread)

 

[RiverCityDave]

I just replaced all four of mine with 285/75R16 Cooper Discoverer ATP's (The AT3 as sold by discount tire) so far they are exactly as advertised. I've got an ominous noise from my front axle that is preventing me from putting many miles on them til this weekend when I can sort it all out, but they handle and feel great. They dont hurt the ol Surfer's looks any either.

I'll update this post with actual measurements and such later this afternoon.

New Cooper ATP by Dave Hunter, on Flickr

So just for everyone's info, the Cooper's I just replaced my Falkens with measure

32.8 inches tall, 11.1 inches wide when mounted. They weigh spot on 51 lbs each.

They are 285/75R16 Cooper 126R E1 ATPs

Bearings and Tires by Dave Hunter, on Flickr

Bearings and Tires by Dave Hunter, on Flickr

These are my replies from the thread mentioned above, and after about 1000 miles, Im still VERY happy with my ATPs. They are quiet on the road, way more on road traction than they look to have, and loose over hard soil, and rocks have been no problem.

 

[rixham]

I have run BFG AT/KO's for the past 25 years.. I just got Cooper Discoverer ST Maxx and love them. I have less than 1k on them, but the are a much nicer ride than my old BFG's.

 

[Corbet]

Tires are all about compromise. I've got two sets would like a 3rd.

I run studs in the winter, MT's in the summer. Would like some AT's for road tripping without wheeling.

 

[Vandy]

I've ran BFG AT/KO'S. I have nothing bad to say. I've still got them on my f350.

How ever I've had really good luck with nitto tires. Be it on my street cars or off road trucks.

Sent from my SM-G935V using Overland Bound Talk mobile app

 

[kadenwayne94]

I'm running nitto Taragrapplers and I love them


Sent from my iPhone using Overland Bound Talk

 

[Truckerbizz]

I have the old Cooper STT's. I love them, I have probably 15-20k on them and they look brand new. The only area they lack is compact snow, but that's to be expected from an MT. I can only imagine that the new STT Pro's are equally, if not more amazing. But when it comes time for new shoes I will be going back to an AT. I plan on moving to a place that gets a ton of snow so I will need better tires for compact snow/ice

 

[Lifestyle Overland]

Loved my KO's and now love my Ko2's even more. The Beast has the KM2's on it since it's expedition dedicated.

 

[anotherJeep]

For a daily driver I would always choose A/T''s. I had Mastercraft M/T but they were too loud and I had a couple pieces of the tread rip off. I decided to sell them and buy Grabber A/T 2's. So far they have been perfect on and off road.

 

[Huerta32]

Cooper st maxx, good on road manners and great off road.
The 3-ply sidewall is will suited for the rocky terrain here in California and Nevada

Sent from my SM-G900P using Tapatalk

 

[Winterpeg]

Around here the Goodyear Duratracs are very popular. With our cold and snowy weather they really do well.
My previous tires were BFG AT/KO... they were like trying to drive on hockey pucks. They were C rated.
I went to the 33" Duratrac E rated tire. The ride smoothed right out and the traction was way better... they were quieter too.

I've heard some pretty good things about the new KO2's.... but I haven't heard any real-world reviews yet for my environment on them.

I've got about 60k miles on them now and they still have plenty of life for another year. I got them in 2011 I think.

18-07-29 EDIT:
I put new Duratracs on last year in 2017. There were still a few tires with an "ok" amount of tread left that I saved for a future trailer project.
I'm obviously very happy with my Duratracs as this is now my second set.

A friend I spoke to recently had put KO2's on his Tundra... he thoroughly hates them for any kind of winter driving and can't wait to return to Duratracs.

 

[mmnorthdirections]

Around here the Goodyear Duratracs are very popular. With our cold and snowy weather they really do well.
My previous tires were BFG AT/KO... they were like trying to drive on hockey pucks. They were C rated.
I went to the 33" Duratrac E rated tire. The ride smoothed right out and the traction was way better... they were quieter too.

I've heard some pretty good things about the new KO2's.... but I haven't heard any real-world reviews yet for my environment on them.

I've got about 60k miles on them now and they still have plenty of life for another year. I got them in 2011 I think.

Icebergs just run Duratrac's. HAHAHA. I love them also, Installed 2013 40k miles (5 tire rotation) they wont were out 265/75/16 C.
They have performed well on snow sand mud and rock, and great on the road. I will be buying them again but in a 285/75/16.
Prior.
I ran BFG AT 265/75/16 E, the FJ does not like them!!! got rid of them after 25,000 miles and installed the duratracs.

 

[AdventureWithDanan]

I just swapped out my used up BFG All Terrains's for BFG Mud Terrain KM2's. I have to be honest, I think I prefer the All Terrains.

I've done a fair amount of research and at the end of the day, I always come back to BFG. They pioneered and created the All Terrain tire with the Baja races. For the release of the BFG A/T KO2's they just raced the Baja 1000 on a single set of KO2's and then continued to drive on them between for show.

My comparison was the Nitto's and while I cannot attest to the quality of them from personal experience, I can say that here in Florida I see many Nitto's (both mud and all terrain) with micro cracks in the rubber. Neither of my 3 sets of BFG's did that.

[edit: 29 June 2016]
I recently did a trip out to Rainbow River in Dunnellon, FL and I wanted to mention something in regards to traction in the rain. Let me preface this with a little bit of info. My tire sizes are a little smaller than they should be (in width and height). I was desperate for a new set of tires as my BFG AT KO's were almost slicks and I had 7 patches in them (4 in just one tire) and a slow leak out of the sidewall of one of them. A buddy of mine who owns a Rubicon Jeep got new tires and wheels and while a little too small, his BFG MT K02's would fit straight on to my wheels and he gave me all 5 for $500.00.

I have to say that I'm not as impressed as I thought I would be with the grip in rainy weather. I'd have to say that the AT's had better grip in wet weather. While I'm not condemning these tires by any means, I'd like to say that I personally feel that unless you are OFTEN in contact with muddy terrain, the AT's are a far better solution for the occasional off-roader.

Some additional information & contributing factors to consider with my opinion on these tires:

• I drive a Toyota Tundra, so driving with no load in the truck bed makes it extremely light over the read axles.
• I had 4 people in the cab which ads to the weight NOT over the rear axle.
• My tires are less wide than my truck can accommodate, and in fact are less wide than I should have on there in my opinion.

 

[Gunnermoose]

I just swapped out my used up BFG All Terrains's for BFG Mud Terrain KM2's. I have to be honest, I think I prefer the All Terrains.

@Dananc I have to agree with you on this. I ran a couple of sets of the BFG AT's and never had an issue unless snow was involved. I then tried the Goodyear Duratracs. I destroyed the Goodyears in less than 2 years. I think it is the combination of the Arizona heat and desert driving, but nothing different than what I put the BFG's through. I replaced the Goodyears with BFG KM2's, but right at 3 years I have a couple of the lugs wearing chunk off already. Yes they were noisier and provided great traction. But there was nothing that the AT's couldn't have handled.

The last set of AT's I ran lasted 5 years. I will be replacing the current KM2's with the new KO2's.

 

[First State Overland]

Had BFG All Terrains on a previous Jeep and they were outstanding in all conditions. Had the BFG Mud Terrains on the Rubicon from the factory and they were great offroad, but a little slick in rain. Now my Nitto Trail Grapplers are on and they are a little louder, they pull hard when they catch something like uneven pavement or standing water, whereas the BFGs would just hop over/slice through, but I understand that's what they are designed to do is pull you up and over things on the trail. Plus they look outstanding.

 

[94YJBeaver]

I ran BFG KO's for about 62k on my Jeep which was unbelievable since they seen a lot of use and abuse from the rocks. The only thing I bad thing I can think of with the KO's is that they didn't clean out in the snow. I did find a smoking deal for a set of Goodyear Duratracs from a buddy of mine that were practically brand new. I ran them over the winter and I do have to say I love them...I can only hope that they stand up to the abuse that I will put them through and get the mileage out of them like I want.

 

[GoHeels]

I ran BFG KO (originals) when I first got my Jeep, they were already on it. Then later I got a flat and had 2 rear trail marks (very similar tread). They were great, very well road mannered, and okay off (had open dif then) wish I would have kept them but I hated not having a matching set.
Swapped those out for Cooper Discover ATRs (8ply I believe) but with a very well mannered tread pattern for road use. They are supposedly in between the AT3s and street tires. They were great on road/highway, tough off road but not a lot of traction.
Going Muds this next go around. Not sure of brand yet.

 

[GoHeels]

BFG, Nitto, Cooper discover at3 seem to be very popular around my area.
I always like how the General Grabber red letters looked, but everybody who I've talked to that has them only has bad things to say about their performance.

 

[Sandpoint Steve]

Timing these on the van and love them so far. Found some good reviews on some of the jeep's sites. Great in the snow with state of the art tire technology.