BFG A/T experience on snow/ice?

[JCMatthews]

so, you are using these as traction tires then? do you also use chains? or do the BFG's work okay on their own?

I love my BFGs. I have used up three sets of them. They were great in the snow, mud and rocks. The only time I needed chains was when running in snow 2 feet or deeper. I also used chains in the mud, but I'm not sure I needed them. I always went anywhere I pointed my Jeep. The BFGs are better than any other tire I have run.

 

[MakersTeleMark]

I've run BFG AT's before and they are OK when they are fresh. Siping helps tremendously. Once they get some wear they tend to get harder and loose a lot of traction and get scary. I'm in the snow 6 months out of the year, and would suggest a dedicated snow tire like the Cooper M&S.

 

[Rando]

I know the decision has been made for the OP, but for reference I went through the same decision last year. I used to have BFGs on my old 4runner and had studded cooper M+S for the winter (drove snow/ice pretty much every day for 4 months of the year). It was hard to say which was scarier, the BFGs on hard pack snow or the studded Coopers on dry concrete highways.

Now I have a newer Tacoma, that came with Yokohama's which are poor in the snow and loud on pavement (albeit quite good on dirt). I have a set of studless blizzacks mounted on some CL alloy 4runner wheels for the winter. They perform as good or better than the studded coopers on snow and ice and have a nice quiet and secure ride on dry pavement. As soon as the Yokohamas are worn down enough to justify replacing them I will get some BFGs for the summer, but I will still use the blizzacks in the winter.

If you do significant snow driving, particularly on the highway where you are travelling at speed and may need to stop fast I would highly recommend some specialist studless snow tires. The ability of a tire to bring you to a stop under all conditions (ice/slush/snow etc) is far more important than its ability to propel you through 2 feet of snow. This is where the difference between a specialized winter tires and AT tires becomes obvious.

 

[007]

what yoko's Rando, the MT?

 

[CB3]

IME with my Jeeps, the narrow widths of BFG AT are excellent on snow and ice.

BFG AT 9.5 wide are best, 10.5 wide are good for winter roads. For XJ, TJ, LJ Jeeps, anyway, and similar light to medium weight SUVs.

The BFG AT 12.5 wide are miserable on packed snow and ice. For XJ, TJ, LJ Jeeps, anyway, and similar light to medium weight SUVs.

I'm currently running BFG AT 33 X 10.5 R15 on my LJ.

What I said above is for to 1/4 ton Jeeps and other 1/4 ton SUVs. Since appropriate tire width varies by vehicle weight (and tread design and rubber compound), what I said doesn't apply to heavier vehicles.

I mostly have experience with light and medium weight SUVs.

I have no experience with heavier SUVs, except some second hand experience with my cousin's super heavy Ford Super Duty. For that heavy beast, the wider the tire the better. It still sinks like a rock on any soft surface, even with 12.5" wide tires.

 

[Rando]

what yoko's Rando, the MT?

Geolander A/T-S in 265/75R16. They have also developed a strange uneven wear pattern (even though my alignment is good and they are rotated regularly) where every other tread block is worn down. Makes them even louder on the highway.

 

[IggyB]

I've ran BFG AT's for last 20 years and thought they were pretty good in winter too. And in fresh snow they do well.

That was until we switched to Yokohama geolandar IT-GO72 winter tire.

In hardpack and ice they are much better than BFG's, like going from muds to AT on ice. Better traction, less slippage, better braking. Just bought a set of Yoko's for my truck 3 weeks ago and put the BFG AT's in the shed till summer.

It's easy enough to say that BFG's are good if you've never switched over to snow tires on a cold and snowy day and driven them back to back. Yoko's shine.

My wife has them on her Xterra and it's the 3rd winter for them. I expect at least 2 more winters in addition to this one. And judging by how deep the tread is, I will get it.

 

[007]

I've ran BFG AT's for last 20 years and thought they were pretty good in winter too. And in fresh snow they do well.

That was until we switched to Yokohama geolandar IT-GO72 winter tire.

In hardpack and ice they are much better than BFG's, like going from muds to AT on ice. Better traction, less slippage, better braking. Just bought a set of Yoko's for my truck 3 weeks ago and put the BFG AT's in the shed till summer.

It's easy enough to say that BFG's are good if you've never switched over to snow tires on a cold and snowy day and driven them back to back. Yoko's shine.

My wife has them on her Xterra and it's the 3rd winter for them. I expect at least 2 more winters in addition to this one. And judging by how deep the tread is, I will get it.

Exactly spot on, especially concerning vehicles about 5,000lbs or less.

The Yoko Go72 is an amazing deep lug traction tire that has full depth sipes. It will easily handle 5 winters. Its soft but strong, on a light vehicle it would last well even with summer use. Not enough sidewall strength for airing down and charging ahead so its better off to switch.

 

[CB3]

Exactly spot on, especially concerning vehicles about 5,000lbs or less.

The Yoko Go72 is an amazing deep lug traction tire that has full depth sipes. It will easily handle 5 winters. Its soft but strong, on a light vehicle it would last well even with summer use. Not enough sidewall strength for airing down and charging ahead so its better off to switch.

What is the tallest size available of the Yoko Geo72?

 

[007]

What is the tallest size available of the Yoko Geo72?

http://www.yokohamatire.com/tires/geolandar_GO72.aspx

 

[squatch]

just put on some toyo observe open country go2plus lt265 75 r16 its studless and very nice. my first choice was sold out yoko geo it. very nice as well. both much nicer than my last, studded cooper st tires. bfg at ko even syped can not compare. trucks and ice don't play well.