New Tyres

[Geedublya]

Interested in peoples experiences with the following tyres:

BFG KM2 245 70 17 $330ea
BFG AT KO 265 65 17 $310ea
Bridgestone D697 265 65 17 $295ea
Bridgestone D697 265 60 18 $385ea

All are LT, I'm not interested in anything that is not LT or that is oversized for NSW regulations (+_ 15mm diameter). The max diameter allowed in NSW is 778mm.

I was set on the KM2 but after speaking to Redback since he had them fitted to his D4 and is suffering from noise and vibration I am unsure.
If people have other experiences with the KM 2 I would be pleased to hear from you.
Do not bother recommending Coopers to me ;).

[discotwinturbo]

"Do not bother recommending...."

Have you spent a lot of time on Exploroz.....so many people ask for advice about a particular product on Exploroz and every Tom, Dick and Harry, rattle on about their own preferences. It's quite annoying :-(

The 18inch ones don't have the usual LT weight rating at 114.

Hopefully you will come across the right advice here for your 4WD.

Brett....

[Owl]

Interested in peoples experiences with the following tyres:

BFG KM2 245 70 17 $330ea
BFG AT KO 265 65 17 $310ea
Bridgestone D697 265 65 17 $295ea
Bridgestone D697 265 60 18 $385ea

All are LT, I'm not interested in anything that is not LT or that is oversized for NSW regulations (+_ 15mm diameter). The max diameter allowed in NSW is 778mm.

I was set on the KM2 but after speaking to Redback since he had them fitted to his D4 and is suffering from noise and vibration I am unsure.
If people have other experiences with the KM 2 I would be pleased to hear from you.
Do not bother recommending Coopers to me ;).

I have 2 sets of tyres for my D3:

Everyday tyres are Continental Cross Contact AT in original 255/60R18 size. Marginally (emphasize marginally) more noisy than the original Wranglers and I find them a very good all round tyre.

My off-road set are BFG KM2's in 245/75R17. Again, marginally more noisy than the Continentals, but not intrusive. In part I'm sure due to Discovery NVH measures, but I noticed on my previous Patrol when switching from BFG KM's to KM2's, the newer tyres were much less noisy. (Cooper AT ST's were far more noisy on the patrol). These tyres are much less harsh and less noisy than a traditional mud tyre while retaining their off-road performance.

It will depend on your expectation. If you are committed to the super quiet, limosine feel of the OE tyres, then maybe the KM2's are not for you. If you're prepared to sacrifice some of that for the reliability of an LT mud tyre, I can't recommend the KM2 higher.

I note your comment re Cooper Tires (correct adjective for Cooper tyres) and agree fully.

Ian

[Timj]

I have just had fitted today a set of Bridgestone D697 265/60/18. I wanted an LT construction without going larger. The initial impressions are good, they appear to be almost as quiet as the Wranglers and handle fine. As they wear I will get a better idea but so far so good :).

I have had bad experiences with both the standard Goodyears and with GG AT2. The sidewalls of either of those are so soft that I consider it dangerous just to drive on a dirt road. Just on Saturday the last straw was a rock punching right through the middle of the tread of one of the Goodyears leaving me with only three of them, it was a sharp rock but I have never seen anything through the tread and belts quite like this before, all my problems in the past have been slashed sidewalls. I think I have now managed to destroy 5 GGs and two Wranglers in ways that they can't be repaired. Certainly would have to be crazy to drop pressures as it exposes the sidewall even more. Conversely I have had good experience with Cooper STT in the 245/70/17 on Dynamic steel rims. Have done a fair bit of serious offroad with them and also a trip to Tassie and back towing the camper and they have only recently got too noisy for touring and that could partly be a matter of alignment and balancing. No more damage to tread or blocks than I would expect given what I have done with them.

This is the rock that went right through the Wrangler and the hole it made.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2012/11/1068.jpg

Cheers,

TimJ.

[jonesy63]

I've had that size KM2 on my D3 (included one trip from Sydney to Darwin), and now on my D4 (included recent trip to Broome). Lots of other trips as well on both cars - probably done about about 40,000km. I really like them - briefly had up to 155 in NT while overtaking a road train. Cruised all day long on highways there at 130 (speed limit)... no vibrations.

The only two tyres that have blown on friends cars were Coopers. My lease company won't even let me get them. :wasntme:

Cheers,
Rob

[Geedublya]

I had the same experience with my Cooper ATR two slashed sidewalls and one large hole in tread, all occurred on the blacktop at correct pressures.
This and the other stories I have heard have put me off Coopers, I just want a tyre I can rely on.

[101RRS]

Of course the KM2s will be more noisy as you have missed the MT in front of the KM2 - they are of course BFGs main mud tyre whereas the others you have listed are ATs - so not really comparing apples with apples.

Garry

[Graeme]

You might consider the extra thumping from tyres over bumps as the load rating increases if they're not carrying the load. The 245/70-17 are probably 119 whereas sizes like 265/65-17 are likely to have a softer 114 or 116 rating. I'm considering using a lower load rating tyre next time for this reason (maybe even 112), but still a LT tyre.

[jonesy63]

It is also to put up with a rough/noisy MT tyre with high load rating - if they are only put on for offroad trips.

FWIW, after 16,000km of MT noise, HT Wranglers are nice and quiet.

[Geedublya]

Not after comparisons, just experiences, I realise the KM 2 is a MT and I'm prepared to live with the extra noise and rougher ride if it isn't too extreme. I'm hopeful that Redback's experience is due to an out of round tyre or a balancing problem.
I think the D697 is probably the pick for all round use, however I would prefer to put up with a little more NVH for more off road security/ability.

[scarry]

I have the BFG AT in 245/70/17 on the D4.
Slightly noisier on very smooth bitumen than the OEM 18' P rated tyres.

Apart from that,no issues at all.

Had them on the D2 as well,in 16",no worries at all,never even had a flat.And they did around 85K per set.

The 265's would be fine,as long as the rims you have are 7.5" wide or larger.Slightly harsher ride due to a lower profile than the 245's.The load rating on the 265 is good,so it will be a strong tyre.

My son has KM2's on the Puma.They are noisier than the OEM tyres,but can't really compare that vehicle to a D4.They definitely are good off road.

[Celtoid]

I have just had fitted today a set of Bridgestone D697 265/60/18. I wanted an LT construction without going larger. The initial impressions are good, they appear to be almost as quiet as the Wranglers and handle fine. As they wear I will get a better idea but so far so good :).

I have had bad experiences with both the standard Goodyears and with GG AT2. The sidewalls of either of those are so soft that I consider it dangerous just to drive on a dirt road. Just on Saturday the last straw was a rock punching right through the middle of the tread of one of the Goodyears leaving me with only three of them, it was a sharp rock but I have never seen anything through the tread and belts quite like this before, all my problems in the past have been slashed sidewalls. I think I have now managed to destroy 5 GGs and two Wranglers in ways that they can't be repaired. Certainly would have to be crazy to drop pressures as it exposes the sidewall even more. Conversely I have had good experience with Cooper STT in the 245/70/17 on Dynamic steel rims. Have done a fair bit of serious offroad with them and also a trip to Tassie and back towing the camper and they have only recently got too noisy for touring and that could partly be a matter of alignment and balancing. No more damage to tread or blocks than I would expect given what I have done with them.

This is the rock that went right through the Wrangler and the hole it made.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2012/11/1068.jpg

Cheers,

TimJ.

Same, I punctured three in a week (two in one weekend) on gravel roads. I had two new Wranglers that seemed to be OK but the others were about 50 % wear. Rocks went straight through the tread.

[Redback]

The whole reason we got the KM2s, was the experience we had with them on our D2, maybe they were noisey on the D2 and we didn't notice it as much because the D4 is so quiet, I think the vibration is a balance issue.

One thing I will say about them, they are brilliant offroad.

Baz.

[discojools]

Yep I agree with Baz (Redback)! The KM2s are a great tyre. I have used them on a couple of trips, Corner Country and Flinders ranges. Absolutely no chipping and great grip. Only really noisy when slowing down on sealed roads at around 40kph and slower.
On the other hand I have seen many destroyed Coopers. On our Flinders trip a Cooper on our mates offroad van lost the whole tread from the carcas . Looked like a crocodile on the road when I came across it!

[~Rich~]

I gave my Cooper LTZ's a nightmare time on my recent trip and they performed excellently. I would not have been as well off with my GG's I'm sure.

[Tombie]

The KM is a good tyre...

Only issues with BFG is balancing problems... They are prone to causing vibration... Many 'in the know' tyre stores wont recommend fitting them to Patrols due to Patrols inherent vibration problems - these tyres can amplify that issue..

Recent test in the USA (where a mate was present to drive, test, evaluate) had several brands of tyre on identical spec vehicles...

Each driver got to drive each of the vehicles in Mud, Rock, Sand..

Best performer of all the brands on test.... MTZs...

[Tombie]

I gave my Cooper LTZ's a nightmare time on my recent trip and they performed excellently. I would not have been as well off with my GG's I'm sure.

Keep an eye for cracks... Base of tread blocks, etc...

[~Rich~]

Keep an eye for cracks... Base of tread blocks, etc...
This is my second set!
No issues with the first one.

[Geedublya]

The KM is a good tyre...

Only issues with BFG is balancing problems... They are prone to causing vibration... Many 'in the know' tyre stores wont recommend fitting them to Patrols due to Patrols inherent vibration problems - these tyres can amplify that issue..

Recent test in the USA (where a mate was present to drive, test, evaluate) had several brands of tyre on identical spec vehicles...

Each driver got to drive each of the vehicles in Mud, Rock, Sand..

Best performer of all the brands on test.... MTZs...

Two problems with MTZs 1. No sizes for D3 unless you go oversize 2. Made in same factory as Coopers using same carcass (as told by Cooper/MT reseller)

[Geedublya]

I ended up getting KM2s but two of them needed a lot of weight. The tyre guy reckoned my rims were the problem. I don't think so..
I'll remove the tyres from the rims and check it out as I have access to a balancer.

[discojools]

No problem with balancing my KM2s, they run very smooth, but I did buy them a few years ago. Maybe they're not as good now.

[scarry]

As said a lot of tyre guys say the BFG are hard to balance.

If they are done correctly there should be no problems.

After three sets of the A/T's i have never had a vibration problem at any speed.

[Tombie]

Two problems with MTZs 1. No sizes for D3 unless you go oversize 2. Made in same factory as Coopers using same carcass (as told by Cooper/MT reseller)

Agree with part 1 completely - it is a problem 😜

As for part 2...

They share a common owner.
The compounding is different, the greens are made in same facility.
But the moulding, curing are different and produce a much stronger and premium grade tyre.

They also mould about 10 other 'brands'...

Coopers has 60 facilities and Make: Avon
Mastercraft
Star fire
Mickey Thompson
Dean
Dick Cepek
Road master
Chengshan
Austone
Fortune


Michelin own BFG and make in Ohio and Mexico