BFGoodrich Mud-Terrain T/A KM2 vs KM3: The last time we looked into the mud terrain segment, we saw a great battle of General Grabber X3 vs BFGoodrich Mud-Terrain T/A KM3 with a surprising twist of results. We would like to go back memory lane to the launch of Mud-Terrain T/A KM3 and make a fight off against its predecessor Mud-Terrain T/A KM2. The Mud-Terrain T/A KM3 was launched in 2018 and has been a consistent performer in the mud-terrain scene. This is one of the niche markets where BFGoodrich truly dominates. Without further ado, let’s bring the successor and predecessor into a head to head and see who comes out on top!
Table of Contents
Results
Results below were taken from BFGoodrich Mud-Terrain T/A KM3’s launch material. The graph below shows the comparison between BFGoodrich Mud-Terrain T/A KM2 vs KM3 based on the relevant performance category. The Mud-Terrain T/A KM2 was set as a reference hence at the 100% mark.
As this is the mud terrain segment, mud & rock climbing capability were tested. The tire size of interest is a LT 265/70R17 which is a common tire size for Chevrolet Silverado 1500 & Toyota FJ Cruiser. You can check out our latest tire size table for more information. The testing vehicle is the slick 2014 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon.
Mud
When you have the whole segment named after the surface “mud-terrain”, you have to be pretty sure that any tire in this segment has to be optimized for mud. This is where Mud-Terrain T/A KM3 had improved against its predecessor with a 5% better mud traction. This would inevitably allow you to push the extra limit and still get away from tough tricky mud situations.
Mud-Terrain T/A KM3:
- +5% in mud traction
Rock climbing
This test was designed to emulate the climbing in an uphill scenario to see how well the tire performed. BFGoodrich managed to do this objectively and deduce that Mud-Terrain T/A KM3 was 8% better in rock traction against its old KM2 counterpart.
Mud-Terrain T/A KM3:
- +8% in rock traction
Sidewall robustness
According to BFGoorich, the Mud-Terrain T/A KM3 comes with an “extreme sidewall protection, pinch shock resistance and chip-and-tear resistance on gravel”. Basically what this this mean in layman term is that they have strengthen the sidewall with better or more material to ensure you have a higher probability of not getting a puncture or splitting during your tough off-road adventures.
Mud-Terrain T/A KM3:
- +27% in sidewall robustness
UTQG rating
We have previously shown that UTQG tread wear rating can be a good indication of your expected mileage. As Mud-Terrain T/A KM3 are releasing their sizes based on the light truck (LT) designation, UTQG rating is not mandatory. It was also noted that both tires do not provide any mileage warranty which is strange from my point of view. MT tires usually come with really high tread depth and this could be easily a marketing point.
For more in depth information about UTQG, please check out this article here. We even have a free download on the latest UTQG values from the leading tire manufacturers.
Price
Being the undisputed technology leader, we would expect BFGoodrich (Michelin) to command the highest priced tire in the market. Relatively to other competitors, Mud-Terrain T/A KM3 is one of the highest priced products in the mud-terrain segment.
Tire size: LT 265/70R17
Mud-Terrain T/A KM3: $327
Summary
Overall, the new Mud-Terrain T/A KM3 showed vast improvements in mud/rock traction & sidewall robustness. Be sure to check them out in your local stores !
