Just purchased a 2004 wrangler sport and would like to upgrade my tires. I like the looks of the bfg ko2, any experience with these on the stock 15 inch rim.? Mostly street with some desert and mountain use- no rock crawling or anything like that.
Tire question
- Thread starter Newtj
- Start date
I loved my 33 KO2s. I think they're up to a newer KO3. Loved em enough I put KO2s on my truck, too.
I did eventually upgrade to 35 KM3s.
-Mac
I did eventually upgrade to 35 KM3s.
-Mac
KO2’s have been good for us on a few rigs.
Planning new 35” tires for our TJ, and KO2’s are a part of a pretty short list of contenders, to replace the Milestar Pat’s we have now.
Planning new 35” tires for our TJ, and KO2’s are a part of a pretty short list of contenders, to replace the Milestar Pat’s we have now.
WestCoastDan
TJ Addict
IMO, KO2's are probably the best all-terrain tires on the market.
I have them on both of our Jeeps.
The TJ is running 32x11.5 on 15x8 aftermarket wheels.
The JK is running 285/70 on 17" JL take-offs.
I have them on both of our Jeeps.
The TJ is running 32x11.5 on 15x8 aftermarket wheels.
The JK is running 285/70 on 17" JL take-offs.
Is your TJ Jeep lifted? Any impact on the speedometer reading? Road noise and mpg impact? Pic of the tj? Thanks!
WestCoastDan
TJ Addict
Yes, it's lifted about 3".
I had to change the speedometer gear. Cost was about $20 and it took about 10 minutes if I recall.
Hard to gauge road noise w/ the radio upgrade & soft top, especially given that we run without doors for much of the year, but they are a lot quieter than any MT tire out there.
I think we are getting about 16MPG; haven't really checked.
I've got 33" ko2 on 15" rims (aftermarket) on my TJ. They've been excellent on and offroad. With any tire larger than the OEM size you'll want to adjust your speedometer by changing out the sensor gear to the proper one for your tire size.
The Jeep is lifted 2", plus a 1.25" body lift. Yes, the larger tire size affected the speedometer reading, and effectively reduced power. I regeared the axles, and installed a digital speedometer corrector.
I like ko2’s they are just a pain to balance. Falken wildpeak A/T is also a great choice.
I'm going to go against the grain here and say KO2's are the absolute most garbage tire I have ever experienced. It was like slicks on ice, hydroplaned way too easily, and were very noisy. I had 33'10.5's on my TJ and took them off just to watch them burn after only 5K miles. They have a cult following and I got them because so many people spoke highly of them. Maybe I got ones with the wrong spec, who knows, but they were a terrible waste of money.
You need to know what gear ratio you have and how much lift you want before knowing what size tire to get .
What size tire are you running now ?
I am running Falken Wildpeak at4w tires . They ride and drive pretty good . I have no personal experience with the Ko2's .
The best all terrain tires that I have run were the Cooper at3 tires . They were smooth on the road , didn't hydroplane , great on snow and ice and worked well in mud and on mountain trails . I would still be running them if they had them in 255/85r16 size . I ran the Coopers in 235/85r16 for a while and even though that was a 10 ply it rode great . It seems the rubber is a little stiffer on the Falken tires , they don't seem to be quite as smooth .
If I go back down in size , it will be Cooper . They have a new all terrain tire called the Stronghold , looks promising .
What size tire are you running now ?
I am running Falken Wildpeak at4w tires . They ride and drive pretty good . I have no personal experience with the Ko2's .
The best all terrain tires that I have run were the Cooper at3 tires . They were smooth on the road , didn't hydroplane , great on snow and ice and worked well in mud and on mountain trails . I would still be running them if they had them in 255/85r16 size . I ran the Coopers in 235/85r16 for a while and even though that was a 10 ply it rode great . It seems the rubber is a little stiffer on the Falken tires , they don't seem to be quite as smooth .
If I go back down in size , it will be Cooper . They have a new all terrain tire called the Stronghold , looks promising .
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I’m aware that some folks have that experience! Bummer. Can you share which A/T tire has been a better choice for you? Ice isn’t a huge concern for me but it’s still good to have choices as we shop for new tires.
I have 265-75R 16 (32”) KO2s on my 05 TJRU with 4:10 gears. No excessive road noise. Only issue is the 16” are E rated and the sidewalls are very stiff. No experience with snow but all around performance on anything I run here in the South West is good. If I was rock crawling I would go with something with a softer compound. With 15” rims you have many more options than my 16”rims.
I think most would agree that the new mickey Thompson A/T tires are the best all around option. Quiet, good wear, excellent snow/ice/rain traction and good mud/rock performance. They are also really quiet. I just drove home from getting them rebalanced on my LJ today and I couldn't hardly even hear any tire noise at all. Mostly just wind noise at that point. Time will tell of course but they have been having excellent reviews across multiple vehicle platforms since they came out. I also have the wrangler duratracs on my TJ. I had them on my OBS 350 and had great traction with them as well, they are a little on the noisier side. Like the KO2's though, some love them, some hate them. So much of it revolves around your driving conditions. I would bet a months income that the Mickeys are the best option though.
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