KO3 vs Grabbers

[WBTremor]

i have 57k on my stock general grabbers so i need some new tires. I don’t do enough major off-roading to have any complaints about the grabbers, but since im buying new tires might as well make sure im getting the best ones. Keeping the stock wheels and tire size. Deciding between KO3 and getting grabbers again. My off-roading consists of deep sand and snow, with some rocks in there. Mostly highway driving besides that. Priorities are performance, durability, and quietness.

Thoughts on these two tires?

I've got 285/75R18 KO3's on mine and have loved them so far. I debated on the At4w for a while but liked the overall look of the KO3 a lot better. I heard a lot on the balancing issues on the KO3, but have had no problems at all with mine and they are quiet and ride like the grabbers in my opinion. Been great on and off-road.

 

[TwistedADV]

I purchased my Tremor used and it came with a brand new set of the KO3s stock size, stock wheel. I can't comment on the Grabbers but what I can say is coming from a King Ranch with some cheaper Rocky Mountain ATs at 32-36 PSI is WAY smoother than the recommended 50 psi of the KO3s. It has taken me quite a while to get use to the stiffer ride. I have heard others run the E rated tires at lower pressures to help, but you run the risk of sidewall damage or even blow out at sustained high mph due to heat buildup. They run fairly quiet but you can feel some of the tread vibration in the steering wheel when slowing down.. no issues as far as balancing my set. I don't believe I will continue with E rated tires after this set.

My daily driver is a 4.5 inch lifted Jeep Sahara Unlimited which had 37 inch Cooper STT Pro mud tires so anything other than a MT will feel significantly better. I recently changed to the Cooper Rugged Trek which is a hybrid MT / AT Tire. Seriously quiet, smooth, awesome traction and still agressive looking. It competes with the Mickey Thompson Baja Boss but is lighter, less sidewall stiffness and quieter.. I would even consider putting a set on my Tremor when the KO3s wimp out.. My Tremor won't see jagged rocks so sidewall protection is not my main concern.

What I can say about the KO3s up to this point (I have not had a winter with them) is they feel planted, good traction on dirt washed out roads, but might feel heavy and stiff due to the added weight and higher required psi compared to your stock grabbers.. And you may even see a dip in mpg. My truck showed an average of 15.4 when I bought it but over the first 3,000 milies and changing to 93 octane, I have been getting 18.5 mixed and 20-21 highway. I suspect it would be even better with the grabbers. ( 93 octane has been a huge difference)... My fatherinlaw has a highcountry and has 20 inch Goodyears on it making it feel like a car. At least the KO3s let me know I am in a truck..

 

[McCarthy]

On what planet is 50psi the recommended pressure...? Read the sticker on the inside of the door- 35PSI. Adjust and it will ride way better.

 

[TwistedADV]

Yeah...so in case you didn't know, .. the stock grabbers are have a max psi of 44 and a different load index.. Which corresponds to the sticker and recommended pressure...The KO3 is an E rated Tire and has a max psi of 80.. They are two completely different tires and capabilities and require different recommended pressures.. There is tons of info on the interwebs concerning this if you ever decide to change out your stock tires. Even BFG recommended 50 ftont and 55 Rear for a similar sized K02... you can lower pressures as I stated earlier BUT. according to BFG, the heat build up will degrade the side wall and could cause damage... This data pull was all captured on planet Earth...

 

[TwistedADV]

On what planet is 50psi the recommended pressure...? Read the sticker on the inside of the door- 35PSI. Adjust and it will ride way better.

I was ignorant on this issue until I got the tremor and didn't like the stiffer ride. I thought they surely had messed up at the tire shop....As I dug further, and got edumacated speaking with BFG direct, I learned otherwise.... For us Jeep folks, I always just did the chalk test and found 26-28 psi on my 37s gave me the best contact patch, even tire wear and best ride.. of course 10 psi is even better on the trail. I am sure you could argue the same for the truck tire...run them low unless carrying heavy loads but again... not recommended by BFG...

I believe Discount Tire even put my new Rugged Treks at 42 on the jeep but that was quickly dropped to a happy 28 when I got home. The picture here is directly after the install and you can see they were overpressured and wearing only in the middle tread.. At the end of the day, do what you feel is best... it's your tire and wallet

 

[WBTremor]

I see what your saying, when I had mine put on though by a 4wd shop with my level and everything I asked them and they said try to keep it at around 35 to 40 for the E rated KO3’s on the Tremor. That’s all I know.

 

[TexasTea]

I've got 285/75R18 KO3's on mine and have loved them so far. I debated on the At4w for a while but liked the overall look of the KO3 a lot better. I heard a lot on the balancing issues on the KO3, but have had no problems at all with mine and they are quiet and ride like the grabbers in my opinion. Been great on and off-road. View attachment 40306

SL, C or E rated? And yes the KO2 and 3 are the best looking all terrains hands down. The Mickey Thompson Baja Boss comes close but WOW they are heavy.

 

[pittman]

The idea of E rated tires heating up is overblown on the interwebs in my opinion. Sure, if your pressure is too low and the tire is deforming significantly with load/rotation you'll make heat, and more heat with a heavier sidewall. BUT - at 30 or 35 PSI a 10 ply tire isn't deforming significantly and won't be generating excess heat. The tire will wear better, track better, and ride better.

Ultimately, a tire counteracts the load of the truck. If you keep the load the same but install a bigger tire with a thicker casing you'll need less air pressure. The higher PSI recommendations everyone cite come from higher loads used in the calculation.

Anecdotally. I've went through multiple KO2s in casings heavier than my truck needed. I've always ran them at a pressure that results in an even contact patch across the treads (was 28 psi for my last truck). Most of my miles were highway. No tires exploded. Wear pattern was excellent with over 100k kms on every set.

Disagree all you want, but the only folks that complain about poor tire wear and poor wet traction with KO2s have them over-inflated.

 

[WBTremor]

SL, C or E rated? And yes the KO2 and 3 are the best looking all terrains hands down. The Mickey Thompson Baja Boss comes close but WOW they are heavy.

They are E rated. Yeah I also liked the Baja Boss too but was too heavy for what I was wanting. I've had KO2's before and have always loved the brand. So far I have had the same great experience with the KO3's

 

[Calbot]

Load C ko2 are pretty chill.

 

[NomadA32]

Thanks for the input, I hadn’t considered the AT4/w. Perhaps thats a better deal?

I’m not a tire expert, my tremor is stock. Keeping the tires stock size more than likely. Just want to get a great tire.

Did you make a decision on tires, getting ready to purchase new tires and the KO3 and Wildpeak AT4's are the final choices for me. Everything is currently stock, upgrading size to 295/70R18's though.

 

[Aandrews109]

The idea of E rated tires heating up is overblown on the interwebs in my opinion. Sure, if your pressure is too low and the tire is deforming significantly with load/rotation you'll make heat, and more heat with a heavier sidewall. BUT - at 30 or 35 PSI a 10 ply tire isn't deforming significantly and won't be generating excess heat. The tire will wear better, track better, and ride better.

Ultimately, a tire counteracts the load of the truck. If you keep the load the same but install a bigger tire with a thicker casing you'll need less air pressure. The higher PSI recommendations everyone cite come from higher loads used in the calculation.

Anecdotally. I've went through multiple KO2s in casings heavier than my truck needed. I've always ran them at a pressure that results in an even contact patch across the treads (was 28 psi for my last truck). Most of my miles were highway. No tires exploded. Wear pattern was excellent with over 100k kms on every set.

Disagree all you want, but the only folks that complain about poor tire wear and poor wet traction with KO2s have them over-inflated.

Similar to Pittman, I’ve run multiple sets of KO2’s and always “Chalk Tested” to get the pressure right.
Running C-rated 315/70R 17 KO2’s on my Tremor. Daily driving I’m at 36 to 38 psi front and 32 psi rear. At over 25K miles tires are wearing perfectly. Ran roughly the same on my ‘19 Raptor and got over 60K on a set.
I also tow a Travel Trailer with 7,500 lbs max weight. I do raise the rear tires to match the front when towing. I use a temperature gauge to monitor tire temps when towing. Temps are pretty much the same towing as not. They are usually 5 to 15 degrees above ambient. Last time I checked was towing from Florida to New Mexico. Temps were always good and well within safety parameters.
It is very important to remember that the maximum pressure is for maximum load.

 

[TexasTea]

Load C ko2 are pretty chill.

Probably the sweet spot really! I don't think they come in OEM size though, I could be wrong. I only got in my garage by about 3/4 of an inch as it is....

 

[Aandrews109]

Probably the sweet spot really! I don't think they come in OEM size though, I could be wrong. I only got in my garage by about 3/4 of an inch as it is....

I believe you are correct on the C-Rated in stock size.
The 315/70R 17's are 34.4" vs Stock at about 33.3 ish.
With the 2" ReadyLift Level and 315's, I'm between 79 and 79.5 inches tall at the top of the cab in the rear. This appears to be the highest point.

 

[Bigred700]

Just ordered new tires today. (TB installed next Wednesday) Trying the Bridgestone Dueler AT Ascent LT295/70 R18. Going on stock rims. They are a load range E so I will have to figure out the proper pressure. Will try around 40-45psi to see how that sits and adjust from there. Not the KO3 or grabbers like the title but will post picts and talk about the ride/pressure after installed. (late next week)

 

[Brad99superd]

Some owners on here and other places have reported balancing issues with the K03’s so be wary.

I like the OEM Generals but when it’s time to replace them, I’m going to try the Toyo AT3’s in a slightly wider size. 295/70/18

I'm going with the ATIII's as well, I have had good luck with the Toyo's on my Super Duty. I have about 40,000mi on my OEM Generals (mostly pavement) they did well in the snow I thought. I think I could easily get 50K on my OEM tires the way they look, I might just replace them in fall we'll see.

 

[NomadA32]

I've got 285/75R18 KO3's on mine and have loved them so far. I debated on the At4w for a while but liked the overall look of the KO3 a lot better. I heard a lot on the balancing issues on the KO3, but have had no problems at all with mine and they are quiet and ride like the grabbers in my opinion. Been great on and off-road. View attachment 40306

What lift do you have, like the look of it. Getting KO3 295/70R18's installed today.

 

[Calbot]

Probably the sweet spot really! I don't think they come in OEM size though, I could be wrong. I only got in my garage by about 3/4 of an inch as it is....

Yeah you be VERY close with them. Like some days you might for some days not depending on the temperature lol.

 

[NomadA32]

Got to say, getting the 295/70R18's installed with everything stock.....that size just looks really good on the truck. I have zero rubbing and the KO3's feel balanced as of right now as I have not been on the highway with them yet.

 

[pittman]

Post up some pics!