BFGoodrich KO3 All Terrain Tire Launches as Successor to KO2

[hemiblas]

I've got a set of these being installed on my daughter's 4Runner this week. Interested to see if the performance improvement is as good as it was between the KO and KO2.

She must have a lift on it if you went 285 70 17.

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[swamp2]

White letters?

Always have been - one side back the other white.

 

[Johnny Rebel]

She must have a lift on it if you went 285 70 17.

You are exactly right. We put King 2.5’s on it and got a couple of inches of lift from them.

 

[timhood]

This is rich, the KO2 was surpassed years ago by several other brands. They're absolutely playing catch up whether they want to admit it or not.

Definitely a milder look that will improve everyone's daily drive. I do think there was a love affair with the iconic cheeto design that people will miss. Love it or hate it, they sold a lot of these because many considered it "the" AT tire to get for their truck/jeep.

The problem is, how does someone know Tire X is better than Tire Y for their use case? You either give a new brand/model a try or rely on other ratings and reviews, which can be subjective. Part of the problem is that nearly any new tire will immediately compare better than the worn-out tire that was just on the vehicle, so many people might mistake switching to another brand/model as an improvement when it's really just about having a new tire. I've been using the KO2s on my Badlands for rock crawling, and they seem fine. It's a $1400 gamble to switch to something else if I didn't have complaints about what I have. On the flip side, I could be missing out on something that's even better.

 

[timhood]

Always have been - one side back the other white.

Except the versions that are BSW on both sides. Like mine.

 

[Tricky Mike]

This must be why 33s aren't available for MY24 job 2, production of the KO2 is stopping.

Some will appreciate the strengthened sidewalls and will not mind the substantial additional weight. I am not one of these people. Never had problems with KO2s over the past 10 years, don't dmneed any5 stronger and don't need shottier mpg than I already have. I will keep buying the KO2s for as long as they are available.

They may have lower rolling resistance that offsets or exceeds the losses from the extra weight.

 

[Pressurized]

The AT3W and the KO2 are probably the best AT's on the market... And both are making their replacements in to heavy ass tires.

Way to ruin a good thing.

 

[GToddC5]

The AT3W and the KO2 are probably the best AT's on the market... And both are making their replacements in to heavy ass tires.

Way to ruin a good thing.

Maybe in AZ, but in the NE the KO2s suck in cold/wet/wintery conditions. Not just a little suck, either. Like, chrome off a bumper kinda suck level.

 

[timhood]

The AT3W and the KO2 are probably the best AT's on the market... And both are making their replacements in to heavy ass tires.

Way to ruin a good thing.

Not being snarky, but when does an AT or MT tire become heavy? According to Tire Rack data, it looks like the KO3 gains 5 pounds over the KO2, but still falls near several other options and still a heckuva lot lighter than Falkens. In fact, other than the Territory tires, none of the other brands are noticeably lighter.

In 285/75/17 Load C:

Toyo Open Country A/T III: 54
Toyo Open Country R/T Trail: 53
Falken Wildpeak A/T3W: 63
Falken Wildpeak A/T4W: 67
Falken Wildpeak M/T: 61
Goodyear Wrangler Territory MT "B": 50
Goodyear Wrangler Territory MT "A": 45
Nitto Ridge Grappler: 55
BFG KO2: 51
BFG KO3: 56

 

[cbrenthus]

Except the versions that are BSW on both sides. Like mine.

Yup, on my JLUR I could order BSW or OWL - if I got BSW it was black on both sides, but if I got OWL it was white on the outside and black on the inside, but could be flipped if one became sick of the white. So I got OWL, and never got sick of it!

My next tires on the bronco will almost certainly be BFGs w/ OWL on bronze wheels

 

[Imprezive]

Maybe in AZ, but in the NE the KO2s suck in cold/wet/wintery conditions. Not just a little suck, either. Like, chrome off a bumper kinda suck level.

I’ve driven in the snow in K02s plenty of times and they were fine. We don’t get the shitty cold as fuck ice/slush that you do back east out though. I suspect that K02s are fine in the snow if the weather is relatively warm and just don’t do well in the bitter cold. That’s why you get real snow tires though.

 

[Shrek27]

I'll probably switch to these if they keep a C load in a 37".

Americas Tire (Discount in some areas) web site say May 2026 for this one.

 

[GToddC5]

I’ve driven in the snow in K02s plenty of times and they were fine. We don’t get the shitty cold as fuck ice/slush that you do back east out though. I suspect that K02s are fine in the snow if the weather is relatively warm and just don’t do well in the bitter cold. That’s why you get real snow tires though.

I guess I expect better from a Three-Peak Mountain Snowflake rated tire, but they surely could be at the very bottom of the index and still get the rating. I'm certainly not alone with my feeling for them, so I really hope to see they took the years of negative cold/wet/winter feedback and made the KO3 better.

 

[Imprezive]

I guess I expect better from a Three-Peak Mountain Snowflake rated tire, but they surely could be at the very bottom of the index and still get the rating. I'm certainly not alone with my feeling for them, so I really hope to see they took the years of negative cold/wet/winter feedback and made the KO3 better.

I think it’s a hard problem to solve since A LOT of people use them as a desert tire they really need to stand up to abuse in high heat without chunking which a lot of all terrains have a problem with. That’s got to be tough on a tire compound to handle plus being able to stay pliable in bitter cold. I will be buying K03s but I doubt I would if I lived back east still.

 

[CarbonSteel]

This is rich, the KO2 was surpassed years ago by several other brands. They're absolutely playing catch up whether they want to admit it or not.

Agree 1000%!

The "new" KO3 better be light years ahead of the competition or it will quickly gain the same reputation as its predecessor which is a POS that does not stay balanced, loses traction in rain/snow after several thousand miles, and does nothing well enough for it to be a "top performance A/T tire".

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