Different roads require different tires. This is why it is important to do an extensive background check before buying to know if what you’re eyeing is what you need.
This article will make an adventurous and not-so “tire-some” HEAD-TO-HEAD comparison of the best all-terrain tires of all time — Toyo Open Country AT3 vs. BF Goodrich KO2.
Let the battle begin!
Toyo Open Country AT3 vs. BFGoodrich KO2: Brief Overview
Image from: www.toyotires.com
Toyo Open Country AT3
The outstanding performance of the Toyo open country A/T III is a tire that will offer you a smooth, like butter ride you deserve by serving you higher ride height, thicker tires, and wide grooves.
This tire will give you an A+ experience in on-road handling, off-road performance, and everything in between.
The tire is also perfect for all sorts of weather conditions, especially with its strong focus on wet conditions.
On a side note, Toyo also advances its all-new tread compound, design, and construction, adding to its durability.
Go back and forth between your home and office, regardless of terrain or weather, quietly and stable through the Open Country A/T III.
Image from: www.bfgoodrichtires.com
BFGoodrich KO2
Goodrich is known for their high-quality, superb, and average-priced tires, which are felt on a wide range of surfaces such as sand driving, rock, and asphalt driving.
The company has launched its flagship toughest all-terrain tire — BF Goodrich T/A KO2.
This tire is pumped with a new tread design, rubber formulation, great wear, and year-round traction perfect for long drives, even in snow.
With BF Goodrich KO2’s amazing features, it can deliver impressive durability even with a jeepney, pickup truck, and sport on and off-road.
Toyo Open Country AT3 vs. BFGoodrich KO2: Comparison of Features
Before upgrading your old tires to top-quality ones, read this comparison first to know if what you’re eyeing suits your needs.
#1 Appearance
The visible smaller lugs of the BF Goodrich KO2 will is beneficial for improving the grip of your tire. However, Toyo Open Country AT3 has wider grooves that offer hydroplaning resistance because its higher void ratio leads to a superb wet performance.
Reminder: Avoiding hydroplaning comes from driving at a reduced speed; a higher hydroplaning can result in a complete loss of traction and vehicle control.
Both tires’ aggressive tread pattern appearance delivers better off-road traction and on-road performance. However, for appearance, BF Goodrich KO2 is our choice of tire.
For center section design, the AT3 has an S-shaped interlock center section; meanwhile, BF Goodrich KO2 has a C-shaped interlock section.
The sizes of these shapes are crucial; since tire and shoulder depend on them. The tire shoulder supports and protects the tire’s sidewall and tread compound.
The BF Goodrich KO2 shoulder design improves evacuation capability and works great as a sidewall protector.
The shoulders of Toyo Open Country AT3 made for traction in deep mud and snow. Thus, the sidewall durability of Toyo is lower than BFG.
#2 Performace
In this section, we have evaluated the performances of both wheels in terms of dry traction, wet traction, snow traction, dirt and mud traction, and off-road traction.
1) Dry Traction
The dry grip of BF Goodrich KO2 all-terrain is excellent, given for an all-terrain product. Besides that, the real deal comes with the superb performance of the tire in terms of traction, steering, and handling, which customers highly appreciate.
Since Toyo Open Country AT3 is also an all-terrain product, it probably has huge grip potential. However, unlike BFG, Toyo loses steering over 60 mph.
For dry performance, BFG got a better grip.
2) Wet and Snowy Conditions
Without a doubt, Toyo Open Country AT3 is our pick for wet conditions; it is known for its sipe density that provides great wet traction. Meanwhile, like mud-terrain tires, BF Goodrich KO’s sipe density is low.
Both products offer 3-peak mountain snowflake marking for snow traction, which means that they have been tested for acceleration on medium-packed and deep snow.
For snow performance, it’s a tie for us.
3) Dirt and mud performance
Since both featured tire products are all-terrain tires, dirt traction would most likely be not big of a deal and easy to handle. Therefore, for dirt performance, it’s a tie for us.
BF Goodrich KO2 and Toyo Open Country AT3 have unique shoulder design that increases biting capacities; therefore, both products must have good traction for mud and even for mud backward.
However, we choose Toyo Open Country AT3 for mud traction because we believe it can deliver a better grip than BFG.
5) Off-roading
BF Goodrich KO2 and Toyo Open Country AT3 can do all kinds of work because of their all-terrain tire feature, which is identical to off-road traction.
Their bigger lugs and interlock center section will protect you from harmful surfaces during off-road adventures.
KO2 has serrated shoulder design lugs that enhance sidewall durability for maximum off-road traction and mud, rock, snow, and wet traction. Meanwhile, the AT3 has staggered shoulder lugs for off-road performance and on-road dry and wet traction.
For off-road vehicles and grip, both tires can deliver greatly with excellent traction.
For the overall performance of these all-terrain tires, our pick is the Toyo Open Country AT3, as it delivers a much more well-rounded grip, especially on paved roads, compared to BF Goodrich KO2.
#3 Specs
In this section, we will compare the specifications of both tires in terms of durability, riding comfort, road noise, fuel efficiency, price, and warranty.
1) Durability
Regarding durability, the Toyo Open Country AT3 is expected to deliver a superb performance among other tires. Feedback from customers states that they still have an excellent treadlife after running 10,000 with almost no wear.
Thus, BF Goodrich KO2 is an extremely durable tire with a lower void ratio, long-lasting tread life, strong sidewalls, rim, and sidewall protector.
For durability, either of these top-grade quality tires is a good pick. Nevertheless, we are sticking with the thicker sidewalls of BF Goodrich KO2.
Reminder: BF Goodrich KO2 has a lower void ratio, allowing better tire traction. This means that it can also lead to increased treadwear and higher rolling resistance but a decreased durability.
2) Comfortable ride
Who would want a good-looking tire that can’t give you the comfortable riding experience you deserve? Having a comfortable and amazing riding experience comes from the internal structure of your tire.
Two-time casing polyesters cover both tires. Thus, BF Goodrich KO2 added some multiple bead wire wraps that can increase its stability.
In this regard, BFG is our choice for riding comfort.
3) Road Noise
Both featured products do not belong to mute tires. However, they both deliver a quiet-riding experience even while off-roading.
Despite their aggressive tread blocks and pattern appearance, their noise reduction feature enables them to create a bearable noise.
Therefore, these tires’ road noise is a tie for us.
4) Fuel Efficiency
Both tires may not provide the best fuel economy in the market. Thus, Toyo Open Country AT3 is a lighter tire with a lower uniform tire quality grade (UTCG), which means that it has a higher rolling resistance leading to an increase in MPG.
For fuel efficiency, Toyo Open Country AT3 is our choice of tire.
5) Price
Despite the ever-change price points of these tires in the market, we will still be sharing our thoughts about the price comparison of these two featured products.
The base price for the Toyo Open Country AT3 is only $162. Meanwhile, the base price for BF Goodrich KO2 is $199.
Clearly, for the price point, we are going with Toyo Open Country AT3.
6) tread blocks life span
As discussed a while ago, the Toyo Country AT3 has a higher UTQG leading to a better tread block life span. Therefore, it is given that Toyo will offer much more long-lasting tread blocks, rubber, and overall tread life.
Therefore for tread life, Toyo Country AT3 is our unanimous choice.
7) limited Warranty
Both Toyo and BF Goodrich tires offer a treadlife warranty for their products.
For Toyo, it offers 65,000 miles warranty package on passenger-metric (P-metric) vehicle sizes. Meanwhile, BF Goodrich offers 50,000 miles warranty.
Thus, both offer a 50,000 miles warranty for light trucks (LTs) sizes of vehicle/s.
Aside from the tread life warranty, Toyo also offers 500 miles of 45 days trial; meanwhile, BF Goodrich offers 60 days satisfaction guarantee.
For limited warranty services, we are probably going for Toyo Open Country AT3.
Toyo Open Country AT3 vs. BFGoodrich KO2: Final Verdict
We believe that we were all amazed by the performance these all-terrain tires bring to the market.
However, we must face the reality that there must be a winner; for this comparison, we are going with the underdog — Toyo Open Country AT3.
We were all hyped by the better traction, tread life, stone ejecting blocks, and advantaged higher void ratio for better traction on rocky surfaces.
Not to mention its low noise, comfortable ride, aggressive tread pattern, and above all, ability to maintain traction.
For the bonus part, the Three-Peak Mountain Snowflake rating is also a big factor to consider.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Here are the most frequently asked questions about our winner — Toyo Open Country AT3.
Is Toyo Open Country AT3 3 Peak-Rated?
As we elaborated in the performance of Toyo Open Country AT3 a while ago, the tire is a 3-peak mountain snowflake rated.
Ever since coming from a two snowflake rating from its predecessor, the all-terrain tire will surely give you the extra confidence you need under snowy conditions.
Not only is it 3-peak rated, but the Toyo AT3 also performs well on off-road traction and wet and dry on-road traction.
How Many Miles Do Toyo Open Country AT3 Last?
Toyo Open Country has the most durable tread blocks because of its powerhouse features such as wide grooves and more tread area, creating a lower void ratio than usual.
It can push through an excellent tread life after running 10,000 with almost no wear.
Generally, the tire can last up to 65,000 miles as covered by its warranty.
Is Toyo Open Country AT3 Good in Sand?
One of the reasons why people opt for AT3 is its advanced tread design with cut and chip resistance tread compound, which leads vehicles to have better handling, stability, and performance in all conditions, including sand traction.
Also, its 3D multi-wave sipes feature enhances snow and wet traction in fine sand.
Is Toyo Open Country AT3 Loud?
Nope. Toyo Open Country AT3 is among the quietest all-terrain tires with more aggressive tread blocks and patterns, as the blocks and void area were intricately designed to minimize noise.
Conclusion
The all-new and improved Toyo Open Country AT3 is truly set at an advantage among other products; since it was developed specifically with wide grooves and stone ejecting blocks for superb off-roading high-speed experience in deserts and other treacherous terrain.
Upgrading your old tires will surely be worth every penny you spend with Toyo Open Country AT3.
Let the ride begin with your all-new-looking vehicle!