KO2 Wet Traction

[Kenbike]

I had KO'2s on my jeep since new in the upper portion on Michigan and would rate the wet weather traction as good and snow and very good. Surprised folks dont like them but have not tried MT or others. I found TireRack preformed a mud and snow tire test and the KO'2s did by far the best on snow and wet pavement.
Our 4 dr Jeep came with the Duellers stock and they sucked on pavement and the 2 dr Rubicon came with BFg's 33" swapped them out to 35's BFG's at 1000 miles and sold the take offs.

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[KevinC11]

Florida.
A Lot of wet roadways throughout the year.
No snow or ice.

Based on numerous KO2's on numerous different Jeeps, TJ, JK, JL, they perform very well under all conditions I have here. The sidewall is not as tough as other off road tires. They air down good. They wear great. I have no complaints.

This is the first I have heard of factory tires being built different than what you would buy from a tire dealer. I don't understand how a tire company could run different compounds on a assembly/production line for the same tire design. I can't say I've noticed a difference in tread life. But reading what has been posted, I guess they are doing it. Makes you think.

KevinC

 

[JLUandCJ-7]

Has anyone experienced a significant drop off in wet traction while still having serviceable tread on their KO2s? I'm right at 40k miles.

Probably going to pull the trigger on a new set this week. Just curious if others have experienced this.

I'll post again whenever I drive in wet conditions again, but I can certainly say the new tires ride and track better (totally expected) and are much, much quieter than the 42k KO2s they replaced.

I'm sure the old tires were still relatively safe at 42k, but my takeaway is that although these are 50k warranteed tires, the things that I consider make the KO2 a great tire (limited road noise, good balance of on and off road capabilites) significantly diminish after 30k-35k miles, even when properly rotated.

I would likely have considered alternatives, but I really didn't want to spend the money for five tires vs four. I'm curious if my experience with the new set will be similar.

 

[KevinC11]

That new rubber smell almost relieves the pain of how much the cost of tires have went up in the last two years.

KevinC

 

[SLORubi]

I haven’t really had issues with my KO2’s but have heard the stories about hydroplane. I wanted something with slightly larger voids but not going full MT tire. I opted for Toyo AT3, they (hopefully) go on next week. Supposed to be better in rain and snow, but to me they loose a bit of the aggressive look.

 

[Garry]

I haven’t really had issues with my KO2’s but have heard the stories about hydroplane. I wanted something with slightly larger voids but not going full MT tire. I opted for Toyo AT3, they (hopefully) go on next week. Supposed to be better in rain and snow, but to me they loose a bit of the aggressive look.

I put Toyo AT3's on my Trailhawk and they are fantastic on wet roads.

 

[JLUandCJ-7]

Guess I did run them down pretty considerably. These photos tells the story.

 

[LCW]

Been raining non-stop here in the Twin Cities last couple days (near freezing this morning even). Zero issues with my KO2s. 285/70R17 OEM (Rubicon). I've got 3900 miles on them only so that may play a part obviously.

 

[TheBirdie72]

I have a set of 285 70 r17 Falken Wildpeak at3w’s that I got off of a Gladiator Mojave with only 400 miles on them. Living in New England, I saw plenty of wet, sloppy conditions over the last few months… And I gotta say that these tires are really good. Smooth ride and really grip the road regardless of what I was driving in! If you decide the KO2 isn’t for you, then you should definitely consider these!

 

[sigsegv]

Been raining non-stop here in the Twin Cities last couple days (near freezing this morning even). Zero issues with my KO2s. 285/70R17 OEM (Rubicon). I've got 3900 miles on them only so that may play a part obviously.

What are the road surfaces like there? Is it asphalt or concrete? Are studded tires allowed in the winter? Here in the pacific northwest we've got stud-polished concrete roads.

 

[CorvZ061]

My k02's have about 25k miles on them, I haven't noticed any wet weather issues with them. It's not uncommon for the side streets to have low spots that holds water 2-3" deep and outside of throwing water everywhere as you'd expect I haven't hydroplaned through it yet. My only complaint is I have one wheel with a slow leak. Not sure if it's the tire or wheel or valve stem, but it'll drop from 35psi to 25 psi over a week.

 

[Deleted member 59498]

I have always had good luck with BFG, wet and especially snow they do well. My last Wrangler I had Falken Wildpeak MT and they were also satisfactory.

 

[Wbino]

Does the old upside down penny Lincoln's head tire tread measurement trick work with these big old hunks of rubber?

 

[JLUandCJ-7]

We finally got a good rain this week so I got to compare, and holy bejeezus the new tires are insanely better at holding the road.

Prior, I couldn't pull out in 2WD on wet pavement with any sort of quickness, and under semi-hard braking ABS would kick right in. I don't have either of those issues now. I feel a lot more confident in wet conditions again.

I'll update this whenever it feels like the wet traction is decreasing. Hopefully that'll be four years from now.

 

[LCW]

What are the road surfaces like there? Is it asphalt or concrete? Are studded tires allowed in the winter? Here in the pacific northwest we've got stud-polished concrete roads.

There’s both asphalt and concrete. They can’t seem to make up their mind on which is best here lol.

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