OP
OP
- First Name
- Colby
- Joined
- Oct 4, 2021
- Threads
- 9
- Messages
- 932
- Reaction score
- 3,119
- Location
- MB
- Website
- www.cspencephoto.com
- Vehicle(s)
- 2022 Badlands 2DR
- Your Bronco Model
- Badlands
- Thread starter
- #121
Well, the lady and I went off on our adventure without any major problems! Only one campground for one night we couldn't get to due to unforeseen construction closing off the roads. I'll be sharing some images from this trek in time.
Since coming home and getting back to reality there has been minimal mods for the Bronco... some BDUSA vent clips and Underground Gfx stickers that I forgot I had were installed. Otherwise, just oil changes.
The biggest change this year was getting into the Nitto Terra Grappler G3's and seeing how they perform on varied terrain. Dare I say that they remind me of KO2's? On high speed gravel, they are very confident and don't mind being pushed to the limit. Once you find the limit and make them break free, they maintain a very controlled slide and demand to hook up again. I found they have a more manageable threshold for getting slideways vs the AT3w's, which wanted to slide once they lost traction. The Terras are decently quiet on road but they do tend to hum on some pavements. After 20,000kms in, I've noticed some cuts and chipping in the lugs, but that's to be expected when driving on sharp granite gravel. When it comes to wet and winter, they also remind me of the KO2's - better in the snow, but worse in the wet, ice and cold. Anything wet, they love to spin, they spun while taking off in 2H or 4A in anything wet, regardless of the temp. They are useless on Ice and at temps below -15ºC - If it wasn't for 4A, I would've gotten out of them sooner than later. Asking the G3's to make a corner at 10km/h on city streets was a lot...
So the hunt began for a proper winter tire. The requirements are simple, Non Directional, Winter Compound and 33". Ive used Blizzaks and Hankooks previously and been satisfied, but the Bronco is a different animal. After browsing most threads, I realized that most owners never seem to utilize their 5th tire in winter? 99% of common winter tires are Directional, which doesn't truly suit the setup. I must've spent a week hunting but ended up with a fantastic option - Cooper Discoverer Snow Claw! A LT285/70R17 with E Load range.
Peep my buddies Silvia... Only Green rigs allowed.
First impressions were how plyable the rubber is, the increased sipes offer so much more grip on icy surfaces - which I spend 4-5 months of the year on.
The G3's are thick and chunky, but I had some doubts with them coming into winter... Ryan also had some KO3's in stock and a comparison was made with them too
I opted to stud them, and we got to work getting them all setup. Not a minute too soon as we dropped to -30ºC and had 16" of snow come through. I think we counted 126 studs per tire. Little did I know that there is a "Break In" period for studs, I guess to allow them to seat properly. 100kms @ <80km/h. Luckily with the storm that came through, that was easy enough to achieve.
After the first week with them, I could not suggest them enough for anyone liking for a non-directional winter tire. These things bite the snow like kids with candy. The traction they provide at deep cold temps is unrivalled compared to any AT tire. And the grip that's given on sheer ice feels like a summer romp.
Since coming home and getting back to reality there has been minimal mods for the Bronco... some BDUSA vent clips and Underground Gfx stickers that I forgot I had were installed. Otherwise, just oil changes.
The biggest change this year was getting into the Nitto Terra Grappler G3's and seeing how they perform on varied terrain. Dare I say that they remind me of KO2's? On high speed gravel, they are very confident and don't mind being pushed to the limit. Once you find the limit and make them break free, they maintain a very controlled slide and demand to hook up again. I found they have a more manageable threshold for getting slideways vs the AT3w's, which wanted to slide once they lost traction. The Terras are decently quiet on road but they do tend to hum on some pavements. After 20,000kms in, I've noticed some cuts and chipping in the lugs, but that's to be expected when driving on sharp granite gravel. When it comes to wet and winter, they also remind me of the KO2's - better in the snow, but worse in the wet, ice and cold. Anything wet, they love to spin, they spun while taking off in 2H or 4A in anything wet, regardless of the temp. They are useless on Ice and at temps below -15ºC - If it wasn't for 4A, I would've gotten out of them sooner than later. Asking the G3's to make a corner at 10km/h on city streets was a lot...
So the hunt began for a proper winter tire. The requirements are simple, Non Directional, Winter Compound and 33". Ive used Blizzaks and Hankooks previously and been satisfied, but the Bronco is a different animal. After browsing most threads, I realized that most owners never seem to utilize their 5th tire in winter? 99% of common winter tires are Directional, which doesn't truly suit the setup. I must've spent a week hunting but ended up with a fantastic option - Cooper Discoverer Snow Claw! A LT285/70R17 with E Load range.
Peep my buddies Silvia... Only Green rigs allowed.
First impressions were how plyable the rubber is, the increased sipes offer so much more grip on icy surfaces - which I spend 4-5 months of the year on.
The G3's are thick and chunky, but I had some doubts with them coming into winter... Ryan also had some KO3's in stock and a comparison was made with them too
I opted to stud them, and we got to work getting them all setup. Not a minute too soon as we dropped to -30ºC and had 16" of snow come through. I think we counted 126 studs per tire. Little did I know that there is a "Break In" period for studs, I guess to allow them to seat properly. 100kms @ <80km/h. Luckily with the storm that came through, that was easy enough to achieve.
After the first week with them, I could not suggest them enough for anyone liking for a non-directional winter tire. These things bite the snow like kids with candy. The traction they provide at deep cold temps is unrivalled compared to any AT tire. And the grip that's given on sheer ice feels like a summer romp.
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