BFG K02 versus Nitto Ridge Grappler

[DesertRated]

I have a shiny set of Mopar beadlock wheels waiting for my 2023 Mojave to arrive. Wanting to mount 35” tires and have narrowed it down to the BFG K02 and Nitto Ridge Grappler. Leaning towards the Ridge Grappler purely from an aesthetic point of view. However, the number 1 determining factor is road noise. I’d like to hear from forum members on their experience and recommendation.

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[JTenn]

I have a shiny set of Mopar beadlock wheels waiting for my 2023 Mojave to arrive. Wanting to mount 35” tires and have narrowed it down to the BFG K02 and Nitto Ridge Grappler. Leaning towards the Ridge Grappler purely from an aesthetic point of view. However, the number 1 determining factor is road noise. I’d like to hear from forum members on their experience and recommendation.

I have 35 12.50 17 RG's and they are WAY more quiet than the KO 2's I took off. I truly can't hear them but that may not be every one else's experience. I run 40 miles of interstate every day and they are extremely smooth on the road too.
EDIT:
I had KM 3's not KO 2's on my JT. However I did have KO2's on my Colorado and had a shaking I could never get balanced out. Could have been a bent wheel from the factory. Either way I'm happy with the Nitto RG's

 

[Lunentucker]

My K02'S are ridiculously quiet on the highway. Much moreso than the stock Falkens were.
I also like how light they are.

 

[SSinGA]

From my experience, both are low road noise but they also both suffer lower performance on wet roads. The MT Baja Boss AT has much better wet road handling with the same quiet, dry performance. The KO2 is going to be a tad small too.
YMMV

 

[bleda2002]

Ko2 will be quieter, but the jeep itself is loud. I've also noticed tire noise to be less bothersome in the gladiator than my wife's wrangler as the rear tires are farther back and just don't contribute to the noise as much.

 

[Rubi-Zero]

I have ran both, the KO2’s will be a little quieter. The Nittos are a hybrid of an AT and MT… I wouldn’t consider them loud at all if you keep them rotated. I got over 60k miles out of the first set on my JLUR. Both are good tires but I’d lean more towards the Nittos because it can do everything the KO2’s can do and look better at the same time.

 

[DesertRated]

Thanks for the quick replies! Is it safe to say that both the K02 and RG are quieter than the stock Falken AT tires?

SSinGA - I’ll consider the MT Baja Boss AT as well. 35” tires are ridiculously expensive so I want to make an educated decision.

 

[2TH MVR]

The KO2 is going to be a tad small too.
YMMV

I just purchased some KO2 37X12.50X17. I ran them up to around 70 yesterday. Quiet. Tracked well. I think it is funny that everyone says that the KO2 are "a tad smaller". Like what? 1/2 inch.

I originally wanted the Nittos RG, but was concerned with the weight. My Jeep spends alot of time on the road.

 

[Lunentucker]

Thanks for the quick replies! Is it safe to say that both the K02 and RG are quieter than the stock Falken AT tires?

SSinGA - I’ll consider the MT Baja Boss AT as well. 35” tires are ridiculously expensive so I want to make an educated decision.

You can compare actual sizes, weights, and more here.

Link

 

[bleda2002]

Thanks for the quick replies! Is it safe to say that both the K02 and RG are quieter than the stock Falken AT tires?

SSinGA - I’ll consider the MT Baja Boss AT as well. 35” tires are ridiculously expensive so I want to make an educated decision.

The ko2's while legendary, at over 8 years old aren't at the forefront of AT tires anymore. BFG has just given too much time for the other manufacturers to catch up and surpass it.

I've had great experiences with the newer generation of ATs in the general grabber ATX and the Baja bosses. I run the grabbers on the wife's wrangler and they're basically just an overall better ko2 in every single department. Better wet grip, quieter, smooth on road, and better mud grip(still not a mud tire by any means).

My folks run the Baja boss on their hummer and coming from ko2's they feel the same way, just a bit of an upgrade overall compared to the ko2.

 

[CrazyCooter]

My 38" Ridge Grapplers are quiet when compared to the wind noise in the truck. The BFG's well most definitely be smoother. I note little vibrations at certain speeds that weren't there with my STT Pro's, but I think it worth the compromise between mud and AT.

 

[jeep1]

My wife runs the Ridge Grapplers on her JLRU .. she loves them both on and. off the road.

One thing that may or may not matter ... K02s are truly winter rated, they have the snowflake/mountain symbol on them. The Ridge Grapplers are not. Likely only matters if you live somewhere that requires winter tires but its also likely that the K02s are going to be slightly better on icy roads.

If winter is a "thing" .. Duratracts are available in 35s (or 315s) and have extremely good winter behavior .. ran them for years both on the mountains passes around Seattle and in the winters of eastern Canada ...

 

[4-Play]

For looks, the Nitto’s win. However, they are load range E and are heavier than most others. Just my .02, the ride, would not be as good as with a load range C tire. Had a set of Falken MT‘s last winter and we’re awesome in the snow. Running K02’s now and have yet to test them in the snow. Had BFG Mud terrains on my old JK and they were good in snow, noisy, and terrible in the rain. All tires are a compromise in one way or another. If it’s just noise, turn up the radio!

 

[SSinGA]

I just purchased some KO2 37X12.50X17. I ran them up to around 70 yesterday. Quiet. Tracked well. I think it is funny that everyone says that the KO2 are "a tad smaller". Like what? 1/2 inch.

I originally wanted the Nittos RG, but was concerned with the weight. My Jeep spends alot of time on the road.

My 37" BFG KO2 was just a bit more than 1/2" bigger than my STT Pro 35" tire and my 315/70-17 KO2 was about the same bit smaller than the STT Pro. They are a tad smaller than most other tires.

 

[XJADDICTION]

I have 35 12.50 17 RG's and they are WAY more quiet than the KO 2's I took off. I truly can't hear them but that may not be every one else's experience. I run 40 miles of interstate every day and they are extremely smooth on the road too.
EDIT:
I had KM 3's not KO 2's on my JT. However I did have KO2's on my Colorado and had a shaking I could never get balanced out. Could have been a bent wheel from the factory. Either way I'm happy with the Nitto RG's

Yup not a comparison with KM3s, those are mud tires, better than an MT though.

I just drove almost 4000 miles on 37” KO2’s and they are quiet (they have 40,000 miles on them and are still quiet, only rotated them one time after 34,000 miles). At hwy pressure were great out west on dry rocks and a little mud/sand they have out there.

I’ve had both tires on many different rigs and will only run KO2s from now on. My JT tows to the Max, Overlands, does truck stuff and off roads in moderate to difficult dry (not a rock crawler).
I run pressure at 37 - 40 on “D” load range.

awesome on road, off road, rain, snow and even ice (they are incredible in snow I don’t know why a few people on here say they aren’t good on the snow). I got into some really bad weather a few times this last winter and had 0 problems in deep snow 10”es+ and 1/2” of ice. Still was able to drive in 2wheel drive most of the time.


and… they look awesome with my beautiful Woman on the hood… ?

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