BFG A/T or Bridgestone A/T Revo (1 Viewer)

[fishin]

Almost time for a new set of tires and I am conflicted. I need your help.

My wife's Sequoia has the Bridgestone Dueler A/T Revos on it. Nice tires. They are wearing well and seem to be great on dry pavement and on rainslicked roads. My LC has the Michelin LTX M/S on it and they are terrible off road and in the snow.

I had a Jeep Cherokee years ago with BFG A/T's on it and it was virtually unstoppable. I am wondering if I will get the same results on my LC? My memories are that the BFG A/T's were pretty good on the road, wore well, and were incredible in the snow.

I am off road once or twice a month, primarily on farms and in fields. I also tow trailers, an enclosed car hauler and a bass boat. During hunting seasons, the truck is off road multiple times per week.

Please let me know your thoughts and experiences.

Thanks,
Brett

 

[Greg B]

I vote BFG AT's. I've had very good success with them. However, your question is very subjective. You will get many responses both ways. You might try a search too; this has been debated numerous times on the 100 forum. I don't think you can go wrong with either tire though.

 

[calamaridog]

I'm not sure what size you are in the market for. Make sure you get an LT rated tire.

I like the Yokohama Geolander ATII's better than the BFG ATKO I had previously. They make them in the 285 75r16 size. They also have the new AT/S tires which I think will be replacing the ATII, but I haven't tried them yet. I've driven a good amount of rain, snow, and ice recently and the Yokohama's have been working well. The Yokohama's have nice big lugs and clean out mud better than the BFG's ever did.

Then you have Nitto Terra Grapplers which are also nice tires. Both of these tires are cheaper, and in my humble opinion just as good or better than the BFG's.

I have the Revos on my wifes Jeep and they have worked well for her in the rain, snow, and ice.

Honestly, I don't think you can go wrong with any of these 4 tires, they are all pretty good options. My personal preference has been the Yokohama's which cost about $40 less per tire than the BFG's.

 

[cary]

I am a big yokohama fan but the A/T-S does not look like it will be a good tire in the snow (lack of siping), this appears to be confirmed by one of the three reviews on Tire rack that specifically cites lack of snow traction.

BFG A/T's are a great A/T tire and they receive the RMA's severe snow rating. The Revo A/T is also a great A/T tire but is more road baised than the BFG and should peform better in the rain. It is a tradeoff that only you can choose.

Remember when you go to an LT tire from the P metric tires (check the sidewall to see what you are getting when you replace them as some tires like the Revo come in both LT and P metric), to increase the tire pressure by 8-10 psi over stock (has to do with the different inflation vs. weight capacity curves of LT and P metric tires).

 

[calamaridog]

Cary,

I just looked, and there are only 11 reviews on tirerack.com about the AT/S and several of them mentioned how good the rain and snow traction is. With so few reviews, I would say that it is WAY too early to draw any conclusions like you are doing. One review cited lack of traction on "packed" snow":

"The A/T-S are good in all respects except for packed snow. They are horrible in packed snow. My truck has a topper and an 80 lbs. dog box and 50 lbs. of other stuff in the bed so its not a question of weight over the rear axle. 4wd is a must with these tires in snow (they drive great with 4wd)."

Sorry, but that guy sounds like an idiot to me. "They drive great with 4wd" Duh. Of course they do, in packed snow.

Most of the reviews on discounttire.com mention how good the traction is in rain, snow, and ice. Not only that, but look at the tread pattern and tell me it lacks sipping.

 

[cary]

Cary,

Most of the reviews on discounttire.com mention how good the traction is in rain, snow, and ice. Not only that, but look at the tread pattern and tell me it lacks sipping.

I agree it is to early to draw many conclusions about the snow performance, we need more reviews. Those tires do lack siping, they are grooved, but sipes are different. Also, they do not have a severe snow rating from the RMA, presumably if they were good in the snow, they would have the rating like the BFG, Dunlop RVXT, and Goodyear A/T.

Here are some better examples of sipping on the BFG, Revo A/T, and Nokian respectively.

 

[cary]

Here is another picture of the Revo and a picture of the Nitto/Toyo A/T which also have sipping.

 

[rusty_tlc]

I can't talk to the other tires but I ran the BFG AT tires on my 40 for many years. It was my commuter car between Reno and Carson City, and my recreation vehicle on weekends. I saw about every kind of driving condition imaginable. They are very quite on the road, wear well and perform well in most on and off road conditions. The only thing I don't like about them is how they load up in gumbo mud. They clear snow well but mud just packs into the tread. I did see some chunking in mine when I started running them aired down on trails that were more suited to a more aggresive tire, probably not the conditions most 100 drivers would see.

 

[SWUtah]

Had the BFG A/T KO's on my old 95 FZJ80, they were good for about 70K miles, very tough tires. they won't ride as nice as the Michelin LTX M/S's, but it sounds like that isn't important to you. What year is your LC/LX?

 

[mikesurfs]

Fishin,

Here's what customer survey results at tirerack say about all-terrain tires. BFG AT was #8 and the Revo was #4.

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/surveyresults/surveydisplay.jsp?type=ORAT

I'm looking at tires as well and trying to decide between the BFG and Revo. I'm in Vegas and Sams Club offers both brands approx. $1050 out the door for 5 tires mounted, taxes, and everything. My decision is gonna be based on my own honesty with myself and future driving situations. I'll spend 90% on asphalt and 10% aired down in sand. I'm leaning toward the BFG for it's sidewall durability and traction off-road and aired down performance in sand. The manufacturers description of the Revo seems to be an off-road tire with great wet road traction, and there aren't many wet roads here in Vegas.

I'll probably get the BFG's. 285/75/16 are 183.00 at Sams and probably Costco too.

Mike.

 

[fishin]

My truck is a 99. I was quoted $1,000 for the Revos and $1,100 for the BFG's by a local dealer.

I will check Sam's.

The cost difference doesn't seem like much, but $1,000 for tires and an alignment seems high.

Thank you for all of your input.

Brett

 

[calamaridog]

Prices for 17" and 18" tires are more so make sure you specify which tires you are buying when you post a price.


Some reading from 4 Wheel and Off Road about winter tires:

"{They used to be called "snow tires," but over the past couple of years that name has been dropped by most tire manufacturers in favor of the "winter tire" designation, since dedicated winter tires are designed to handle more than just snow. These are the tires that most truck and SUV owners will switch to during the winter months, as they offer improved traction over the mix of road surfaces that people typically encounter in the winter, including snow-packed and icy roads. The most hard-core of this bunch are the "severe snow condition" tires. According to the Rubber Manufacturers Association (RMA), these tires feature "tread patterns, construction elements, and materials that provide superior snow performance" over other types of tires, even those the RMA used to classify as snow tires. The RMA has developed a severe snow tire icon--a graphic of a snowflake on a mountain--that appears on the tire's sidewall near the more traditional M+S (mud and snow) designation. The tires that carry that icon have scored a traction index of 110 or higher while undergoing the American Society for Testing and Materials traction tests on packed snow. Bill VandeWater, the consumer products manager in sales-engineering for Bridgestone/Firestone, told us there are two major components that make for a good winter tire: tread compound and biting edges. A dedicated winter tire will have a tread compound that is designed to stay pliable even when the weather dips below freezing. A flexible tread will grip the road surface--be it snow, ice or wet pavement--better than one that is rock hard.

"Our Bridgestone Mud Dueler, for example, is designed with a tread compound that will grip in temperatures of 40 or 50 degrees [Fahrenheit] and above," he explained, "but in cold weather that compound gets so hard that it just bridges over road surface irregularities and doesn't grip." Bridgestone's Winter Dueler, which has earned the RMA's severe snow rating, is made with a tread compound that will remain flexible at temperatures down to 0 degrees F, so it will be able to grab and grip whatever the road surface offers.

The second component--biting edges--typically come in the form of small, razor-like sipes, or cuts, in the winter tire's tread pattern. VandeWater said, "All these sipes present biting edges that grab into the snow. The Winter Dueler is heavily siped. The Mud Dueler isn't, as all those sipes would tear on rocks and be counter to the longevity of the tire."

Speaking of longevity, VandeWater admitted that a winter tire's soft compound and heavy siping contribute to a tread that would wear more quickly than a non-winter tire if used on pavement when the weather gets warm. It would probably provide excellent grip, but only for a few thousand miles. If the Winter Duelers are used only during winter-weather conditions, which means over a typical mix of snow-covered and bare pavement roads during cold-weather months, they should be good "for at least three to four winters," VandeWater estimated, "maybe five or six if they're used only in the snow."

Other truck and SUV tires that have earned the RMA's severe snow rating include the BFGoodrich All-Terrain T/AKO, the Goodyear Wrangler Ultra Grip Ice, and the Michelin 4x4 Alpin. Off-Road Tires in the Snow Except for the BFG All-Terrain mentioned above, most of the tire manufacturers we spoke to were hesitant about recommending a "typical" all-terrain or max-traction tire for winter use, since most of these tires don't feature a soft compound or heavily siped tread pattern engineered specifically for cold-weather traction. Yet they agreed that, under certain conditions, a maximum-traction tire would perform better than a so-called winter tire.

Those Conditions: Virgin Snow

If you do a lot of trail busting, or driving over snow that hasn't been packed down by other vehicles or plows, you're going to find that your mud tires will work great. That's because this kind of snow condition is a lot like driving in the mud. Your tires are going to need to claw for all the traction they can get, while not getting packed up with snow caught between the tread blocks. Plus, depending on the snow's depth, you may find that your tires will claw down through the pack and hit rock, stumps, or logs, and you're going to need your mud tire's cleats to track over those obstacles.

Speaking of digging down, there's a fair amount of disagreement over whether digging or floating is the best way to get traction in the snow. Some say you need to dig, with fairly narrow tires inflated to recommended street pressures, in order to find grip on the ground below the snow. Others take an approach more like running in the sand, and air down their tires so they'll act like snowshoes and float over the drifts. Like everything else, your approach will depend on a lot of factors. Are you driving a fullsize pickup or SUV that's too heavy to float? Are you traveling over snow that's so deep there's no ground to reach? As we've said before, tailor your approach to the conditions you're in.

Know, too, that the tire manufacturers take a dim view of underinflating tires, under any conditions, and will warn against the practice because of potential damage to the tire. But we've seen 'wheelers, here and in Iceland, who have great success floating over snowpack and even glaciers with their mud tires aired down to single-digit psi levels.

Whichever approach you take, make sure you go into the winter months armed with four good-quality tires that have plenty of tread left on them. If you're going to use dedicated winter tires, especially those with the severe snow condition rating, make sure all four corners have the same type of tire, so one end of your rig doesn't get a lot more traction than the other, which could make handling a nightmare. And don't get overconfident in your truck's traction abilities just because it's a 4x4. Your truck still contacts the ground through its tires' contact patches, not the transfer case and axles.}"

 

[rusty_tlc]

My truck is a 99. I was quoted $1,000 for the Revos and $1,100 for the BFG's by a local dealer.

I will check Sam's.

The cost difference doesn't seem like much, but $1,000 for tires and an alignment seems high.

Thank you for all of your input.

Brett

Those prices sound about right to me. I just paid more than that for 4 tires for my full size truck. Part of the price of playing.

 

[EdsCruisin]

Those prices sound very high to me. I got 4 Revos for less than $700 installed and then worked out a price match refund for another $200+. You should shop around for deals before resorting to Walmart. If you want Revos I recommend you get a quote from a Firestone shop, as well as some of the Bridgestone dealers. The web is a good source, as there are national chains.

Keep in mind that TireRack prices (for example) do not include shipping, mounting and balancing. A local shop will likely bundle the mounting and balancing cost on tire brands they normally carry, so an on-line purchase may cost more in the long run when you show up with the tires in the back of your truck.

 

[fishin]

EdsCruisin,

where did you buy your Revo's?

Are you happy with them off road?

Thanks,
Brett

 

[mikesurfs]

Fishin and Rusty,

The $1050 price tag was for FIVE tires mounted, the spare included, not four.

Ed is right and $1000. for four tires is alot of money, I would expect to pay alot less for just four tires.

Mike.

 

[EdsCruisin]

EdsCruisin,

where did you buy your Revo's?

Are you happy with them off road?

Thanks,
Brett

I bought them at Mr. Tire http://www.mrtire.com/index.html The web site does not indicate Bridgestone, but you should call the local tire dealers. Often they carry more than the advertiser's mention.

I have had limited off-road time with them. One day I found they were not effective on wet grass/topsoil on a 20-30 degree (40-50%) slope. We have had no accumulating snow this winter, so I can't say how good they are there, but plenty of others have more experiences to share. Otherwise I have been very pleased that the LC is practically unstoppable.

 

[ictcruiser]

I've got Revos on my 00 LC right now. I'll probably get the AT/KOs next time. I've had the hardest time getting the Revos to stay balanced and it drives me nuts. Conversely, I've got the AT/KOs on my Ford truck and they are smooth and stay balanced.

Both tires have been great in the snow and easily handle dirt roads and the light-offroading found around the farm.

 

[mikesurfs]

ictcruiser,

That's great info and will help greatly in my decision to get the A/T BFG's. I had 35 inch Nitto Terra Grapplers on my Diesel Excursion and they took a TON of weight to get balanced. I see lot's of folks get the Nitto because it's all that's available for a plus-size rim, but the tires themselves aren't that great. I did have 285 A/T BFG's on my 93 Bronco and they were pretty good tires.

Mike.

 

[fishin]

I got a quote yesterday from Sam's Club for four BFG A/T's in 275/70/16. Mounted and balanced, out the door for $807.33.

I think that is the way that I am going to go.

Thank you for all of your input.

Regards,
Brett (Fishin)