HELP NEEDED! KO2 are they really worth it or all talk? Should I increase size of tire?

What pressure do you run in you 275/70/17's? I have been running 50 PSI. Not sure what it is "supposed to be"?

 

Falken A/T all the way.

 

I have minimal experience in snow and ice, so I can’t comment... But as far as rain and wet conditions go, I tend to think that a persons driving style is more of a factor than the tires that they have. If you don’t take off so fast or stop a little slower, you shouldn’t have a problem with slipping or sliding, also considering that your tires aren’t overinflated. So many people seem to avoid extra caution while driving in inclement weather... I’ve only owned Jeeps until this Tacoma. I have had many sets of many different tires on many different vehicles, all of which have been mentioned in this thread. That being said, i currently have C rated KO2’s on my daily driven Tacoma and they perform flawlessly for my driving style on and off road in all conditions.

 

When I first put them on they put 35psi on them and that just didn't feel right to me so I bumped them up to 39 cold and when they heated up they went to 42. And that actually feels close to where I think it should be. I bumped them to 39 in August and it was hot as hell here in TN.

I'm pretty curious where they will settle once the weather cools. Does 50 feel "right" to you? I'm wondering if I should tweak it some more and go up to 45 and see how it feels.

 

I run ko2’s in 265-75-16 at 32 psi... no more issues than the Goodyear’s that were on it in the rain....ko2’s maybe a little more slimy in the rain .... not sure about the snow yet. Heavy. Yes. Decreased mpg, yes...E- rated tires will do this. Rides stiffer. Yes. But I’m ok with this.

 

Haven’t had good luck in inclimate weather with ko2s. Have duratracs on my Jeep and falken wildpeaks on my awd sprinter. Both are way better.

 

50 psi wow. Chalk them up and run 35 psi and see the wear. Ive been running 33psi cold and running psi is 35. Great wear 88k on tires. Plenty of meat left for this winter. If I get 100k on this set ill be more than happy. Hands down best AT

 

I live in Prince George BC area. I ran KO2 275/70/17 for 3 1/2 years as they wore, the road noise level escalated. I used the KO2s in the snow in the first year and found them to be adequate. I use dedicated winter tires because I didn't fully trust the KO2s. I used them in heavy rain and found them to be adequate. I found that braking distance was an issue as we have moose and other animals that cross the highways. I'm a forest service road user and found that KO2s were too much tire for me. The 275 upsize slowed the truck out of the gate. I switched back to stock sized 17 Defenders and better out of the gate and quieter and better on-highway manners. I find the Defenders work well on the Forest Service Roads and I'm happy with my choice.

 

I run them because I got 5 like new for 350 off of craigslist .... almost a year since I installed them. The original Goodyear’s had 27k on them I think. I now have 32k on the truck. I like them but don’t love them.... I’m just used to them being on and don’t have to worry about punctures like I did with the Goodyear’s.... sidewalls weren’t the strongest

 

You would realize how bad they are if you ran something different.
Michelins are absolute best in rain. Cooper AT3's are really good too.

 

I sold my Cooper AT3's when I put the K02's on, they were on the truck when I bought it. I didn't like them, they were too soft and made the truck feel sloppy.

 

The question was rain.

 

I my opinion, K02s are a great choice and deservedly popular for an all-rounder AT tire. They are fine in rain, but not great, but they are also pretty good at a lot of things that a good rain tire would not excell at. I have them, in 265/70/17 C-rated, on 4Runner pro rims, but run a dedicated snow-tire from November to February in BC.

If you do not want to 4X4 a lot, I agree with others that there are all-weather tires with better rain and snow performance than a K02.

For your uses, I think you’d be happiest with a Cooper AT3 4S. Those tires are pretty good on ice and snow, due to them having silica in their rubber compound, which BFG does not. They also work great in the rain, from all reports I have been given. They have much more siping than a K02, so good wet road performance stands to reason. I have many friends that run these in BC and are fanboys of this tire.

They are also a sharp looking tire, IMHO.



https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=zOvWvHE5PFQ

 

Ko2s are a great choice. Not sure whats up with all this hate towards them. Good wet traction, silent on highway, great offroad and none other AT tire offers such beefy sidewall. Also IMO they are one of the best looking AT tires.

If you get lots of snow, then of course
nothing beats a dedicated winter tire, but the ko2s are not bad in snow. My duratracs were better.

I had 2 sets and my buddy had 2 sets as well, C and E loads. No issuss balancing at all. Ride is nice and smooth.

Awesome tires, would buy again for sure.
I would recommend getting 265/70/17 in C load, much better ride than E, plus less rotating mass.

 

That question was answered.

 

They are not so good on wet roads. Much better choices out there. But they do look good. I ran two sets and they were scary as far as wet traction.
Probably the best true AT tire from my lens were the Cooper AT3's. Pure best road tire are Michelins. Best offroad tire was the KO2'S. I have run several sets of Coopers and Michelins and two sets of KO2'S. I won't buy them anymore.
As life goes on my needs change. Right now I will buy the Michelins as I don't go offroad much. A few wear ago I was offroad quite a bit so... no Michelins.

 

I live in pemberton and commute to whistler for work I regularly drive to Squamish as well in all weather conditions...
I’ve also probably been over the Hurley road 15-20x in the last 3 years with probably 17000kms+ Of additional really shitty coastal logging road.
Some occasional muddy slippery technical trails as well.
truck carries a sled in the winter and loads of firewood in the fall.

my truck gets fairly well used dirt roads are driven 50+ kph Sharp things are not slowed down for.
Unless hauling a full load of firewood or sled is in it, but that’s to save the rest of the truck not really the tires.
I’m not really a fan of the way KO2’s look and I want a more aggressive looking tire.

but... I’ve been really beating on these ones on my truck so I can get new tires and they will not die.

40000 kms in I’m starting to think I might have to get another set
But in a bigger size.
Currently I’m running a c load 265/75 r17.

Are they as good in snow/ice as a dedicated winter tire. No not Even close. And neither is a duratrac unless it’s studded and pretty new.

I have used duratracs in the past, and they’re a good tire but they definitely get loud and lose their snow power sooner then the k02.

Will you skid off the road in a rain storm. Maybe. But it won’t be because of your tires. Lol.

I don’t think you can go wrong with this tire.
Oh and it’s pretty quiet.
That’s my ted talk about KO2’s thanks for coming.

Ps they don’t make the ko2 in a 265/80 r17...
they must mean the 34x10.5 r17
But I’d double check that.
That would be the next size I would too as well. Might rub a bit.

 

In my younger days I ran KO2’s on a variety of 4x4’s through all seasons.

They’re not great in the rain and get noticeably worse as they wear. I didn’t mind them in the snow, however where I’m from the snow is very “dry”. Some of you guys are probably laughing but not all snow is created equal. Where I’m from oftentimes snow has substantially more traction than the ice covered pavement surface. The KO2’s on “dry” snow had little issue, but they were poor in snow with higher moisture content or ice. Offroad, they were great.

I don’t mess around anymore and run a dedicated set of winters on all my vehicles. Likely studded Hakka’s for the new truck. With that in mind as a 3 season tire I think the KO2’s are a great tire and you certainly see a TON of Taco’s in my area running them. For the price though I think there’s some other options. I’m considering giving a set of Wildpeaks a go.

 

I live in Oregon where it basically rains 9 months of the year. Have yet to have any issues with my KO2s on wet ground.. Are there better tires for rain, probably, but KO2s perform fantastically. I feel completely safe. I feel a lot of a choice in tires is gonna be very subjective and depend more so on how one drives.

To OP, I say just get what you like most. Most brands have solid reliable AT tires, it's hard to go wrong honestly.

 

A lot of reasonable answers in here; I think the thrust of them is pretty clear. k02s are among the best when you’re off the road and not in a swamp or a snowfield, and they’re passable elsewhere. Great tire south of the 44th parallel, basically.

I’m in VT, and the ‘11 I picked up a few months ago came with K02s on it. Looking at the tire design, I anticipate pulling them off after the first snowstorm. nothing about them lends itself meaningfully to good stopping power in snow, and I expect the need for a well siped & studded pair of dedicated snows will make itself clear quickly. K02s will go back on when bike season shows up again