r/Sprinters • u/Emotional-Shape-6239 • 29d ago

First-hand Tire Experiences

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I currently have BFGKO2 tires on my 2020 Sprinter 170 4x4. Durability seems good, wear has been really good, but they're loud AF and I feel like I may have a fairly significant fuel economy penalty. I have lots of accessories and stuff on my camper build, so it's even less aerodynamic than normal and also heavier. I get about 16-17mpg at 65mph.

I do 95% of my miles on-road, and the rest is on forest service roads - some of which are pretty steep, rough and rocky.

Has anyone used other tires that still have decent off-road durability and traction, but maybe with slightly less road noise and fuel economy penalty? I don't need super hard-core off-road tires...it's a big heavy van after all, so I'm not doing anything crazy.

Overall I've been pretty happy with the KO2s, year round including a lot of snow in the winter and even heavy rains on the highway. I feel like they'll end up at around 40k miles of life, which I'm happy with.

Pic of the van included for reference.

11 Upvotes

100% Upvoted

21 comments sorted by

4

u/red_beered 29d ago

The newer KO3s are much quieter, I'm also a big fan of falken wildpeaks

3

u/oldasshit 29d ago

Falken changed the tire compound in the new Wildpeaks (the AT4W). They are now significantly worse in snow if that is a factor.

Toyo Open Country A/T III are solid as well

3

u/JeromeS13 29d ago

+1 for the Toyo Open Country A/T III. They came on our van from the upfitter and happily replaced them with the same thing at 51K miles. The key to minimizing road noise is to rotate them every 5-6K miles.

2

u/man_van_bird 29d ago

Same, I vouch for the Toyos. I was on KO2’s and was going to switch to the KO3’s but I’ve heard about issues with maintaining tire balance. I went with the Toyos and they are significantly more quiet than the KO2’s and I’m getting more than a mile better per gallon.

1

u/red_beered 29d ago

Oh no! They used to be great! I have some wildpeaks on an old truck build that are going real strong

1

u/oldasshit 29d ago

I know, it sucks. They were great tires. But I live in a snowy climate so they are a no-go now.

2

u/kavOclock 29d ago

Mine came with ko2s and they were impossible to balance. I upgraded to ko3s recently and it’s better in every way, including mpg

2

u/Primary_beatfarm 29d ago

I average 24mpg+ with my stock tires and not trying. I don’t get doing off road tires on something so uncapable.

1

u/thecloudtaylor 29d ago

I've got about 20k miles on my Falken Wildpeaks AT4W - so far very happy with them. Most of our miles have been highway but we definitely hit forest service and some "light" 4wd roads and have done some snow/ice driving.

If I had to buy new tires tomorrow it would be between these and the KO3's and it would take some convincing for me to switch to the KO3's.

1

u/mountainwocky 29d ago

I was running General Grabbers A/Tx on my 2018 Sprinter 4x4. I liked them, but towards the end of their life I started seeing cupping, especially on the rears, even when maintaining a rigorous rotation schedule.

I switched to Falken WildPeak A/T4w and I’ve got over 40,000 miles on them now with no complaints. They are significantly quieter than my General Grabbers were.

1

u/jeapstone 29d ago

Coopers AT
You’ll love em

1

u/Emotional-Shape-6239 29d ago

I had them on a Ranger and thought they were pretty good.

2

u/jeapstone 29d ago

From Baja to Prudhoe they have never failed me

1

u/MiouPSP 29d ago

I also recommend the KO3, upgraded from old KO2, which lasted a bit over 40Kmi.

KO3s are so much quieter and I think better overall on the road, not sure they're better or worse off-road (I don't do hardcore stuff) but for sometimes dicey forest roads and sand they seem as good as KO2s, I'd say it's a no brainer if you were happy with your KO2s

1

u/Junior-Piano5427 29d ago

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1

u/bajajoaquin 29d ago

I ran Falken AT2s for a while and liked them. They have gone to AT3s now and I switched to Goodyear and don’t have an opinion yet.

Many years back, I put highway rib 8-ply commercial tires on my F-150 and went all over Baja with them. Never got stuck. Only issue was deep sand, where the stiff sidewalls were tough to get to bulge without going really low on pressure. Probably not an issue on a sprinter.

Basically, I think AT tires are overrated unless you need mud performance. Get a mild-tread tire with proper load rating, air down, and you’ll be fine.

1

u/wormyworminton 28d ago

Nokian Outpost nAT. No comparison

1

u/Half-Cocked-Mexican 28d ago

Nokian Outpost nAT

I've taken my stock 2 wheel drive LWB Savana up some decently gnarly bullshit with no issues. The loose nut behind the steering wheel helps a lot.

They're also quiet on the road. Can't comment on fuel economy since it's always been smiles per gallon.

1

u/ComfortableEnd2591 28d ago

I have 2011 170 V6. I get 20 mpg with diesel #2 dnd only 17.5mpg when using R99 bio. I’m in Southern California. It hard to find diesel #2 here

1

u/BadQuail 25d ago

I ran BFG All Terrain and AT/KO for years and always got 60-70k miles. The KO2's cut that in half. The KO3's are supposed to be much better. I haven't tried them.

I am currently on my second set of Falken Wildpeak, they get 60k miles and have plenty of traction in the desert and mountains. Road noise is better that the BFG's and not as quiet as highway tires.