Hydroplaning KM2s

[sapper]

I always found that MT's cleared the water faster than any other tire and I never hydroplanned on mine.

I loved it so much I would drive in the rain and power threw the water but my truck aslo weighed 7500lbs dry which may have played a big part why it never came un-glued from the road.

 

[IggyB]

Also have the new MT's but have not hydroplaned. Had them in 1-2" inches of water at about 40 mph.

Perhaps it's the short wheelbase combined with wide tire on your truck?

 

[BigDaveZJ]

Last weekend I purposely ran my ZJ on 35" KM2's into about a 3-4" deep puddle in the road at 45mph specifically to see how they would do. The puddle was about half of the intersection (roads were empty, don't worry safety sally) and I had no issues. Not quite as good as my F250, but certainly better than a regular car would've done.

 

[modelbuilder]

I have the original KM's and never had any problems in rain...but did notice traction loss in snow.


.

 

[Martyn]

I believe we all expect too much out of our tires. We want them to perform very well in every situation and that's a difficult task.

The KM2 have a great tread for loose off road conditions, but that tread won't work as well on road.

As with most things it's a series of compromises and every owner has to balance their tires with the usage of their vehicle. For me it's snow, so I got rid of the KM2s that came with the truck and put on some heavily siped Mastercraft tires. They work well in snow but not so well off road. But I spend more time in snow than in the dirt, so it suites my application. My percentage usage is 50% on road dry, 30% on road snow and ice, 20% off road.

If we choose the tires we put on our vehicles based on the % usage I wonder what we would all end up running?

 

[1x1_Speed_Craig]

I have about 12K on my 31" KM2s (installed about 15 months ago on my '05 Jeep LJ), and have had no issues in rain whatsoever. However, I can't speak for snow, as I store my Jeep in the winters.

Craig

 

[john101477]

I kind of have to agree with Martyn here I see a lot of mud terrain tires on rigs traveling in the desert for very little purpose. also running excessively wide tires on a light truck/Jeep might work for off road purposes in some situations but maybe mot at all on paved roads. I currently run Toyo MT's in the 31x10.5 flavor and have never hydroplaned in any wet weather situation except on some black ice. While the KM2's are nice for off road use after but inspecting a set a few weeks ago I am not sure they would be great for road handling and should be driven accordingly for those that do.

As for the milage they are getting I have nearly 30,000 miles on them and no issues on the toyota. My dad runs them on his F250 and just put a new set on. the last set got 51,248 miles

 

[Hilldweller]

If we choose the tires we put on our vehicles based on the % usage I wonder what we would all end up running?

More miles on the road for me; winding 2-lane podunk backroads mostly.
Quality time is in this type of stuff:

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7byayrf8mu4"]YouTube- Amicalola Falls State Park 045.MOV[/ame]

 

[Redline]

******** Cepek Fun Country II :sombrero:

If we choose the tires we put on our vehicles based on the % usage I wonder what we would all end

 

[Nick02]

I have run 265/75/16 km's and 35x15.5x15 km's on my dakota.
If you are driveing your vehicle like it had stock tires, they are scary and will break loose in rain.
Remember you're driveing an light solid axle vehicle with a short wheelbase, going around twisty bends with wide mud tires in the rain.....well that's not the smartest thing to do; IMHO it's not the tire's fault it's yours. Then again i'am the one to talk, I'am driving a truck with a fiberglass bed with no spare tire or rear weight at all. I cant even do more then 1/3 throttle when it rains without breaking the back loose; so how do I cope? I drive the Mitsubishi montero when I can.
After all, they are they are mud tires with little syphing and have flat patches of rubber hitting the road; point is drive accordingly.
Bashing a specific brand of tire because you didn't match the load capacity/tire width with with your vehicle is not BFG's problem.

 

[DaveInDenver]

If we choose the tires we put on our vehicles based on the % usage I wonder what we would all end up running?

You make a good point, I normally run BFG ATs but went with MTs for a specific purpose, Rubicon in 2008. I run 33" tires and IFS, so the MT was a calculated decision to give me a better chance on that run.

Which is a counter argument I might make, is that even though based on percentage there might be a more appropriate tire there are times when the right choice for driving to work makes no sense for the other 5% or 10% of the time. For example, a good street and snow tire would be hopeless and probably ruined in a rocky or muddy off highway situation.

I think your point is that based on percentages you might be better off with a different compromise in tread type. To that point I think when you consider most all purpose vehicles very few of us should be driving MT tires daily because a good AT can do most of what an MT can and there's not much for which a better line or a winch can't compensate. OTOH, if the purpose of your off highway driving is rock crawling, then you have to expect that the right tire is going to be pretty lousy for pavement.

 

[Hilldweller]

Remember you're driveing an light solid axle vehicle with a short wheelbase, going around twisty bends with wide mud tires in the rain.....well that's not the smartest thing to do; IMHO it's not the tire's fault it's yours.

The KM2s that I have on are 255/85-16; although the stock tires were 255/70-18 Bridgestone Duelers, the KM2s are narrower than the stock tires.
FWIW, the stock tires hydroplaned worse, had miserable sidewalls for airing-down, and were worthless in any amount of mud. I took them off at 4,400 miles.
I tried 265/70-18 General Grabber AT2s; they were marginally better all around but still not worth much in the rain or mud.
Then I got new wheels and mounted Wrangler MTR/kevlars in a 285/75-16; these never came unglued at all. I hydroplaned a couple of times in minor fashion in deeper puddles at higher speeds, but no pucker events. Great tires but a little heavy and pricey.
I bought the KM2s to save weight; I wanted Toyos but they were on galactic back-order.

I've had Cooper STTs before and liked them; hopefully they'll do okay on the Jeep.

Giving tires a pass and rationalizing away their shortcomings just lowers the bar for the tire companies. If Goodyear can make an aggressive tire that kicks butt on the trail and works for commuting in the real world, other companies should be able to as well.

 

[Outback]

During the winter I usually run a dedicated snow tire. This winter I will just stick with my BFG ATs. During the Spring time I will switch to a mud terrain tire for the mud on the trails. My Goodyear MTrs with Kevlar worked really well in the rain.

 

[Redline]

For as few miles as I have used KM2s I liked them. But I never used them in the wet.

I do prefer a tire with sipes and less void for most uses other than hard rock crawling (they tear) or mud. I have found two sets of tires/wheels to be the best solution.

 

[Desert Dan]

No issues with my KM2's in the rain.

MK2's are "Mud Tires" not a highly siped street tire and the vehicle with KM2's should be driven accordingly.

A Jeep should be driven like a Jeep regarless of what tires you have on it.