For those who are loving to drive along the harsh world out there in the wild, installing a suitable tire for your four wheeled drive is necessary to deliver you the best performance all the time. If you are also looking for a dependable tire, TreadWright CLAW II M/T Tire vs BF Goodrich Tires All-Terrain T/A KO2 can be a nice option to choose because they are made to handle those conditions but if you wonder which the better option is, go check our article below to see how they differ.
In this article, we are going to give you information about:
– Which Tire used for Off-Roading
– What are TreadWright Claw II M/T and BF Goodrich Tires All-Terrain T/A KO2
– How are the Tread Pattern on TreadWright Claw II M/T and BF Goodrich Tires All-Terrain T/A KO2
– What TreadWright Claw II M/T and BF Goodrich Tires All-Terrain T/A KO2 can offer to you
– TreadWright Claw II M/T vs BF Goodrich Tires All-Terrain T/A KO2
Tire for Off-Road Application
Tire is like the shoes to our feet because they are the shoes of our vehicle’s wheel which is always come in contact with the surface wherever you drive or ride. Tire in general is capable to help your vehicle roll but just like how you feel about your shoes, not all of them feel the same including those in a very similar design or features since each one of them may able to deliver the kind of performance you would love to have or prefer better.
Just like running shoes for running and basketball shoes for playing the sport, tire is created to be different depend on the type or model because our vehicle may run on different surface or condition as well. There are people who are mostly driving in city roads or highway so they won’t need any rugged tire for the smooth ones are the best option to optimize the performance in flat road which should focus on the speed and comfort.
As opposed to those who are living in an urban area and never leave the smooth city road, us who are going back and forth between the highway and gravel or mud will need different type of tires because smooth tires are not going to be helpful out there in the wild. If you are also driving in both terrains, the best tire are those made with rugged design and more aggressive tread pattern to help you tackling the harsh condition such as rocks, sand, gravel, snow and even deep mud.
For this type of application, the two most common options are Mud Tire (MT) and All Terrain (AT) while in recent years, the combination of both or often called as a hybrid tire also take the stage because of the demand of performance level from both models, making it a more versatile option with both advantage and lesser weak points. Just like the name, MT is designed for Mud applications while AT can be used on smooth road as well especially with more pleasant result.
Because there are so many options out there, before you are going to hunt for your next tire, it is good to ask yourself what kind of tire you need and what kind of improvement you want from your previous set so we can have a guide to make sure you are getting what you ask for.
About TreadWright Claw II M/T
If you are in the market for most aggressive tread design and rugged tire to accompany your journey and playtime in the wild, TreadWright may have the perfect tire for you. This company is very popular in the US and chances are you already heard their name before when hunting for off-roading tire. The manufacturer is currently offering several model in the catalogue but for those who need a set of tires to tackle those harsh condition, the Claw II M/T Tire may suit your taste.
Beside the capability for off-roading, what we love from this tire is they are made from the older material or molded again because they are adopting the company’s green manufacturing concept. Overall, the tire is made with 70% recycled content and moreover, this model also made with 65% less oil than the standard tires, making it friendlier to the nature. While being a Mud Tire, TreadWright claims that it is designed to prevent excessive road noise when you are driving on smooth road.
TreadWright Claw II M/T Material and Tread Pattern
Just like any other tire, the material and design is important, moreover if you are looking for a mud terrain, the one we used for off-roading. Thankfully, TreadWright Claw II M/T is offering an aggressive looking tire from high-quality rubber compound featured an amazingly deep lugs as you can see from the sample picture above which in a glance rather similar to those KM2 from BFG. It has a chunky blocks with deep lugs meant to grip the surface especially in loose dirt like mud.
It is sporting a symmetrical design to give the tread an even wear and the lugs are slightly elongated into the outer shoulder to give it a nice traction when dealing with water and thanks to the thicker sidewall, it will be helpful to prevent puncture when you are running on rocks. In addition, there are siping in each blocks to make the rubber more flexible as well when you need to drive in the winter and wet road.
TreadWright Claw II M/T Performance
Moving to the performance side, TreadWright Claw II M/T is amazing on the mud because not only mud, it can even handle a deeper puddle with much water and less surface to grip for when driven on such condition, this tire can handle the issue very well and cleanse themselves great as well so you can drive comfortably. On ice and winter driving, it also nice and working well without being slippery at all even when you are trying to slip it a little bit since it can quickly caught up.
If you are also running on rocks, this tire is not going to disappoint you too since it can grip and pull your vehicle forward easily with a predictable handling. The compound really help in this side because there are no tear for several thousands of use and we realize that these rubber does feels very sturdy and hard. On smooth road experience, TreadWright Claw II M/T is not going to be the quietest tire you can get out there because there are indeed some road noises.
About BF Goodrich Tires All-Terrain T/A KO2
If you are still curious about the off-roading tires for your 4 wheel driver, you may want to look around first and check what popular brand BF Goodrich has to offer because this is one of the main player in the market. For those who are driving and playing around with mud and gravel, their KO2 can be a nice option because as the next generation of the long favorite KO tire, this tire is here to give you an even better performance.
While the old model is a still a very good option to choose, it is not very promising anymore in present day due to the advanced in technology and those with better designs entering the market in the last several years. What has been addressed in the older model and renewed in KO2 is to handle the pinch flats and sidewall punctures issues as well as introducing a new tread compound to be more resistance to chunking and more long lasting.
BF Goodrich Tires All-Terrain T/A KO2 Material and Tread Pattern
BF Goodrich Tires All-Terrain T/A KO2 is inspired by the Baja T/A KR line so now we can see the similar feature called Core Guard technology meant to improve the split and bruise resistance in the sidewall while also adding a thicker shoulder rubber which you can see now extended into the outer shoulder or sidewall, making the new tire 20% stronger than the original KO. As for the compound, this one now use a new compound which is stronger because it can reduce chunking and 15% last longer.
On the tread pattern, it is still sporting the signature design but now it freshen with a new face so there will be some differences in term of footprint. It has big chunks of interlocking blocks with siping all over the rubber and combined with the new biting edges, giving the tire a new, contemporary look to compete better. Read also: Falken Wildpeak AT3W vs BFG KO2 here.
BF Goodrich Tires All-Terrain T/A KO2 Performance
On the performance side, BF Goodrich Tires All-Terrain T/A KO2 is working well just like what you have heard about this tire from other drivers out there. As an all-terrain, it can handle the common condition on the wild such as loose dirt, snow, rocks and cinders as well as light mud very nicely. The tire while not featured with deep lugs can give a proper traction and grip on different surface so we can drive confidently as long as you don’t push your tire too much.
On the highway, KO2 is probably among the quietest all-terrain out there yet not as quiet as DuraTrac but proven to be very comfortable for daily driver. The issue we have about this model is it can’t be used for more extreme mud and due to the shallow lugs, we are worried about the tread pattern life compared those with deeper and chunkier rubber.
Comparison
Now, let’s compare TreadWright Claw II M/T with BF Goodrich Tires All-Terrain T/A KO2. As you may already know, Claw II is a mud tire so in term of performance especially on the wild, this tire is going to win in all sides such as deeper mud and longer tread life thanks to the deep lugs and wide spacing. However, as an all-terrain, KO2 is a more comfortable option on smooth road or highway and in general, generate less noise as well.
TreadWright CLAW II M/T Tire vs BF Goodrich Tires All-Terrain T/A KO2
TreadWright CLAW II M/T Tire BF Goodrich Tires All-Terrain T/A KO2 - Mud tire - All-terrain
- Can handle deep mud
- Light mud only
- Deeper lugs
- Shallower lugs - Wider gaps - Narrower gaps - Tougher sidewall - Tough sidewall
Conclusion
All in all, the decision is all yours to make since we may have different need and preference as well as budget to spend. If you are rarely going off road or the condition where you drive is not very extreme, an all-terrain like KO2 is a nice option but if you loves playing around with loose surface and deeper mud or just need a more capable tire, we will recommend you to pick Claw II M/T from TreadWright.
Differences between TreadWright Claw II M/T and BF Goodrich Tires All-Terrain T/A KO2
