New version of the BF Goodrich Mud Terrain KM?

[Cañonero]

I read this thread on a jeep forum, see post 9:

Help me decide: BF Goodrich KM2 or Mickey Thompson Baja Claw? - JeepForum.com

Have you heard about that?. I'm about to get new mud tires, but if that's true I might wait as my main concern of the BF Goodrich M/T is the snow/ice/wet performance and a factory siped version would be great.

 

[darwink1]

The km 2's have been out for a while and they suck ass just as bad as the originals in the winter.... Thats just hearsay though but I do know the old ones were crap for snow and ice first hand.

Try the GY duratracks for ice/snow.

D

 

[bpassmore]

km2 are not new. mine rock the house.

 

[Cañonero]

The km 2's have been out for a while and they suck ass just as bad as the originals in the winter.... Thats just hearsay though but I do know the old ones were **** for snow and ice first hand.

Try the GY duratracks for ice/snow.

D

The duratracks look great, but they cost 230 EUROS each here, vs the 170 EUROS of the BF Goodrich, and somehow I think they won't be as tough as the BF Goodrich when it comes to abuse them on the really rugged african tracks with a heavy load on them. I may be wrong though.

I could always sipe the BF Goodrich in the winter, but I don't feel very comfortable with that, so if a new siped version is coming on the market, I will wait for it.

 

[darwink1]

Havent heard of a new siped km2 coming out......... The ones ive seen dont have any real sipes.

If the tires were primaraly used to run rugged african tracks then Id vote for the km2's but if youre looking for snow/ice performance as well Id look elsewhere.

D

 

[Cañonero]

Is there any true MT (I mean excluding GY Duratrack and Dunlop MT Rover), that is factory siped?

The only one I've seen is the Trxus, but It's not available here.

 

[darwink1]

Dont really know of any mt's that have real siping.

Look for pics of the duratrack then compare sipes between it and an actual winter tire. Both have a buttload of sipes compared to any mt Ive come across.

D

 

[Jrob80]

Don't mean to hijack this post but I am getting ready to get new tires here soon and my main concern is snowy conditions here in Nebraska (most of the time not to bad but this winter has been horrible). I do like the BF Mud tires but I was thinking of also BF a/t?

 

[gotmud]

I've had my KM2's for almost two years now. They wear great and do pretty well in snow. Granted, I don't commute daily in snow, but the mountains around here get plenty in the winter months and they have always done fine. I suppose highway speeds in the white stuff is a different story.

 

[greentruck]

I've heard nothing on a new version of the KM2 with siping, but I'd sure be interested. I'm a longtime user of the BFG MTs, since the first were introduced, so I've got plenty of experience. I tend to agree with those with concerns about them for road use in snow. They're OK, but be careful, as they're not a real snow tire.

The wife and I decided to take a short road trip after Xmas and navigated from our home south of Chicago through the Soo, Sudbury where Darwink's located, down through Toronto for some sightseeing and back home. It was snowing most of the way over hundreds of miles, so we really got a feel for how the truck performed. The 80 was still running what is basically a stock tire, Michelin 275/7 R16 LTX M/S.

Being used to driving on BFG MTs and generally getting to be a bit of a futz in my middle-age, I was pleasantly surprised at how well the over half-worn Michelins performed. They offered no surprises, which is exactly what you want out of a snow tire.

BFGs do their thing, but can sometimes break lose if you push them too hard or there's ice underneath the snow. We hit a band of icing about 30 miles across on the way back across Michigan that would've really tested the BFG's. It wasn't exactly easy with the Michelins, but by that point in the trip, under the circumstances I was actually glad to have them instead of my trusty old MTs. I could have made the MTs work, but the Michelins made things easier.

The Michelins on the truck don't carry the snowflake indicating they're actually rated as a snow tire. Maybe they do now, I don't know. In Quebec, they actually require people to swap out to a rated snow tire for the winter months. Many people in Ontario seem to put them on just to deal with things. So you'll see lots of folks driving around with a set of snow tires on plain steel rims.

It'll be interesting to see if there is anything to this rumor on the KM2. Most likely, I'm going to buy them anyway, because that's what best suits my off-road needs and I don't have a problem dealing with the slight winter limitations. The siping may or may not lead to a snowflake rating in any case, if that is what happens. However, it would be a plus, in my opinion, to what is already a great tire.

 

[Cañonero]

I've had my KM2's for almost two years now. They wear great and do pretty well in snow. Granted, I don't commute daily in snow, but the mountains around here get plenty in the winter months and they have always done fine. I suppose highway speeds in the white stuff is a different story.

What about wet roads?

 

[greentruck]

From time to time, I've seen vague complaints about the BFG MTs having issues on wet roads. I've not run any of the latest compound version, which is supposed to have slightly softer rubber. But all the original versions performed just fine on wet roads for me. A softer compound should help a little in wet conditions and siping from the factory would help considerably more.

I think where people get into trouble is with big tires on relatively lighter trucks in situations that encourage hydroplaning. Whenever you get a situation prone to producing a sheet of water because your rig isn't heavy enough to force the lug through the film of whater, you're going to have an issue. This situation is a factor of depth of water, speed and weight of vehicle. Go slower for a given depth of water and it won't happen. While it's true that poor roadway design or drainage factors can cause water to back up, in most cases when this occurs, it's a driver error, rather than a tire issue. Slowing down will prevent hydroplaning.

 

[darwink1]

My whole problem with the previous gen. bfg mt's is that the rubber gets hard when its cold. Id equate it to wearing doc martens in -20 deg temps, they seem to freeze up and then become useless.

D

 

[Nay]

My whole problem with the previous gen. bfg mt's is that the rubber gets hard when its cold. Id equate it to wearing doc martens in -20 deg temps, they seem to freeze up and then become useless.

D

Same is true of BFG AT's. You can have a tire that is functioning well at 30 degrees that becomes flat out dangerous at 10 degrees. There is nothing worse than a lack of predictability when it comes to safety.

 

[Nay]

Dont really know of any mt's that have real siping.

Look for pics of the duratrack then compare sipes between it and an actual winter tire. Both have a buttload of sipes compared to any mt Ive come across.

D

Trxus have real siping, almost to the point of narrow grooving. It isn't zig zag winter tire siping, but then is scared of stopping in our minivan with dedicated snows on icy hardpack because she has had some sliding issues and drives the 80 on 37" trxus instead when the roads are really slick.

I'll take a really soft compound with siping any day, because you get a great rock tire and a great winter tire in the same package. Too much siping and it is going to cause chunking problems, so it's a balance

I like the Duratrac concept and would definitely consider them if they made big sizes, but since Trxus have performed at the level of dedicated snows in my conditions for the past six years there is really no point.

 

[greentruck]

My whole problem with the previous gen. bfg mt's is that the rubber gets hard when its cold. Id equate it to wearing doc martens in -20 deg temps, they seem to freeze up and then become useless.

D

D,
I think you're onto something there. We get temps that low around here, but they don't last. Up where you're at, you know about such things.

Problem is a tire compound soft enough to perform well at those temps might be kind of like silly putty on the rocks at Moab. Of course, they always are saying "Better living through chemistry" -- or at least they used to. Maybe they'll get this figured out, too.

Nay,
I haven't done much rock crawling per se, but maybe your POV on the soft compound would work there, just not sure if it's going to still be soft when it's really cold. I know the siping does chunk on rocks, so that could be a drawback. But for my type of more all around use, a siped KM2 might work if they do it right.

 

[darwink1]

I know man, it really bugs me when ppl say their bfg at's are great in the snow. They may be ok initially but in a year or two they are hard as rock.

It depends on where you live I guess. I went w the dt's and lucked out since they were new and I didnt know anything about them.

D

 

[darwink1]

KM2 no siping.

Truxus MT

Duratrack

Blizzak snow tire.

D

 

[greentruck]

D,
Good pics for comparison. Thanks.

If BFG put siping in the central lugs like the Truxus, that'd make a lot of sense to me. In there, they have some protection from sideways and angular forces. It's the side lugs that bear the brunt of chunking. Guess we'll have to wait and see.

Then there's always getting it done by the local tire shop. I wonder how much that costs and if it is up to what the factory can do? That's another option, but it doesn't change the issue with the compound performance at low temp.

Which leads me to ask if the tire industry has any standards or rating that gives the consumer some insight on the cold temp performance. I suspect that people have to rely on good advice on what works well in low temps.

 

[Cañonero]

I think the KM2 is a softer compound that the km and the AT, so it may be better at low tems when siped.

And what about procomp Radial Mud Terrain?, it seems like they are quite siped in the centre lugs, more than any other MT except the Trxus I think, also has stud holes on the out lugs.

I just wonder about their strength, being the Dualguard sidwall protetion a 2 ply, may their we even weaker than the BF Goodrich Triguard?. The fact tha procomp also sells a extreme version with a 3 ply side guard doesn't help much to trust about their strenght.

Pro Comp Radial Mud Terrain Tires - Mud Terrain Truck Tires, Pro Comp Tires