Goodyear Wrangler All-terrain Adventure with kevlar vs BFG KO2: We would like to plunge into the all terrain world by introducing one the 2 best products that dominates the American market. On one corner you have BFGoodrich which is a “God” of all/mud terrain tires and have made their name true countless tire wins in the Baja competitions. BFGoodrich All-Terrain T/A KO2 was launched in 2013 and has been a household name in the all terrain category as it often commands the highest price point in this category. On the other hand we have another all terrain household name in the form of Goodyear’s Wrangler AT Adventure. This tire was launched in 2017 and has proven its worth in the all terrain community. Without further ado, let’s bring these 2 tires head to head and see who comes out on top!
Table of Contents
Results
Results below were taken from the 2018 South Africa 4×4 test. A total of 17 tires were tested this time around. The graph below shows the comparison between Goodyear Wrangler All-terrain Adventure with kevlar vs BFG KO2 based on the relevant performance category. The Wrangler All-terrain Adventure was set as a reference hence at the 100% mark.
As it’s all about off-road in this segment, the tires were tested on gravel, sand & on the slope. The tire size of interest is a 265/65 R17 which is a common tire size for Toyota Hilux & Ford Ranger. You can check out our latest tire size table for more information. The testing vehicle of choice for off road performances is a 4 wheel drive Ford Ranger 2.2.
Dry
As for dry, safety is usually not an issue as the braking distance is much longer than wet. However this is the default daily usage and the tires have to perform at a very consistent level. Wrangler AT Adventure managed to out brake All-Terrain T/A KO2 by 14.1 feet (4.3m) from 62mph (100km/h) to 0. With a low surface contact and large block pattern, All-Terrain T/A KO2 was the worst dry braking tire among the other 16 competitors.
All-Terrain T/A KO2:
- -8.2% in dry braking
Gravel
With huge grooves providing ample of void volume, All-Terrain T/A KO2 was shown to be capable on gravel surfaces as it has a 5.1 feet (1.55m) shorter braking distance advantage compared to Wrangler AT Adventure. While in gravel traction the advantage was minizine as it only took 0.04 seconds less for All-Terrain T/A KO2 to accelerate up to 80 km/h.
All-Terrain T/A KO2:
- +4.7% in gravel braking
- +0.5% in gravel traction
Sand
For the Baja lovers, sand is the most relevant surface they are looking for. This is where Wrangler AT Adventure excels as it tops the chart as it managed to travel the longest distance of 131 feet (40m) before getting stuck. All-Terrain T/A KO2 on the other hand only got up to 117.5 feet (35.8m) before it could not move anymore.
All-Terrain T/A KO2:
- -10.5% in sand traction
Overcoming the slope
This test was designed to emulate the climbing in an uphill scenario to see how well the tire performed. This was done subjectively and Wrangler AT Adventure has a perfect subjective score of 50/50 while All-Terrain T/A KO2 managed only 47.5/50.
All-Terrain T/A KO2:
- -5% in overcoming the slope
UTQG rating
We have previously shown that UTQG tread wear rating can be a good indication of your expected mileage. Below are the UTQG values of both of the tirelines.
| Brand | Tireline | Size | Tread Wear | Traction | Temperature |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Goodyear | Wrangler AT Adventure | All | 640 | A | B |
| BFGoodrich | All-Terrain T/A KO2 | All | – | – | – |
Unfortunately as All-Terrain T/A KO2 is sold with a light truck (LT) designation, it does need to provide any UTQG rating. However we can gauge the expected mileage from the mileage warranty of both products. The mileage warranty of Wrangler AT Adventure is at 60,000 miles while the All-Terrain T/A KO2 is at 50,000 miles. With these numbers, we can safely assume that Wrangler AT Adventure should have a higher expected mileage compared to All-Terrain T/A KO2.
Price
As mentioned at the start of the article, BFGoordich is the most expensive brand out there in the all terrain segment. This turned out to be true as All-Terrain T/A KO2 is significantly more expensive than Wrangler AT Adventure.
Tire size: 265/65 R17
All-Terrain T/A KO2: $283
Wrangler AT Adventure: $275
Difference: +2.8% more expensive for All-Terrain T/A KO2.
Summary
Overall, Wrangler AT Adventure excels really well in dry, sand & slope performances while the only shinning light for All-Terrain T/A KO2 was in gravel. Considering additional price &expected mileage advantages, the clear winner in this battle is Wrangler AT Adventure !
