Never had any issue with my old K02s here in Chicago. They did great in the rain. If you're gonna be driving in packed snow a lot, I'd recommend the Falken Wildpeak ATs though.

Rain here in the SC lowcountry is no joke at times. No issues for me, just put my second set on after 91,000 miles on my first set. Even at 91k, they were only slightly less grippy and no issues in rain. Only complaint I have about KO2's is that they will cup if you're not johnny on the spot with 5k rotations.

K02 wet traction discussions/owner reviews on the internet are THE most bizarre discussions related to a product I've ever seen.

It's astounding to me that about 50% of people who own/have owned K02s have NEVER experienced any wet traction issues and swear by them, and the other 50% are adamant that wet traction is absolutely ABYSMAL, amongst the worst they've ever experienced with any tire.

Don't get me wrong, you will find people who absolutely love and absolutely hate any tire if you do 3 minutes of research on the internet, but there's usually a sizeable majority in one camp or the other, so it's fairly easy to determine if a tire is "good" or "bad"

It literally feels like it's an even 50/50 split for the K02.

On the other hand, the K02s have to be the most popular A/T tire I see on trucks and SUVs in my neck of the woods. I would say that I see K02s on probably 50% of all trucks/suvs equipped with A/Ts, and the other 50% is a mix of all other A/Ts.

I feel like it wouldn't be that way if K02s were as awful as some claim. I also think that the K02 is by far the BEST looking tire out there. But I just can't bring myself to dismiss the numerous claims of horrendous wet traction issues.

I'm tempted to try them out and bite the bullet and sell them at a loss if they are truly as bad as some say.

No issues what so ever with my KO2s.

When the rubber gets older though (drier) they'll become more slick but that is all tires.

Driving style probably has a lot to do with it. If you drive it like a race car on wet roads then AT tires probably not gonna make you happy.

https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires...RatingsReviews

I agree to a certain extent, but you would see the same kind of polarization with other AT tires if was just driving style, but this even split isn't as common with other ATs like the Falken Wildpeak, General Grabber ATX, Toyo Open Country AT3, Cooper Discovery AT3 4s etc, these have very few wet traction complaints compared to the K02...

@enyce did you try the SL Falken at3w? If so, how are they off road?

I suspect driving style, expectations for an AT, C vs. E and tire pressure. Highly inflated Es running on the center patch with an aggressive driving style being the worst case scenario. Load tablers and chalk testers are often on different pages. There will be no consensus on this tire.

I live in central Florida and we get a lot of rain. The only time I've had issues with my KO2s is right after it rains, before the oil has washed off the road, when I'm going around a turn too fast or giving too much throttle (running a Pedal Commander to give a little more lively response). Getting off the gas for a second brings everything back under control, but it's not an issue once you realize you just need to take it easy right after the rain starts. Once the oil is off the road I've had no issues - assuming I'm not driving like an idiot.

Can we find out if one group may have in fact been talking about past experience with the original K/O’s?


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Well said. I've seen so many posts about this on so many websites and it's pretty similar. The issue is the message boards are mostly anecdotal without any real data. The only data I've found that I am trying to find the source of is from America's Tire Website. It shows stopping distance on wet roads to be superior for KO2s vs AT3s, which is odd considering the overwhelming comments about AT3s being better on wet pavement. For wet roads it shows stopping distance for KO2 at 206' v 216' for new tread and 234' v 281' for worn tread over the AT3s (for the tire size I was searching). That's 47 feet shorter for KO2 v AT3 for worn tread on wet roads. That's the difference between stopping before a collision and fully crashing through whatever is in front of you. I had all but decided on the AT3s before seeing this and now this actual data has me rethinking things. Maybe the AT3s "handle" better on wet roads, but I see significant value in a tire that stops quicker during emergency braking on wet (or any) roads.

I have had my KO2 tires for nearly six years now, replaced the original Dunlop tires. My experience is, yes, they can be a bit slippery on wet roads, but they are fantastic for serious off roading. (The Dunlops were worse on wet roads and useless off road).

The KO2s are also wearing well, although I don't put that many miles on my 4Runner. Some people say they can be hard to get balanced right, but Discount Tires balanced mine right off and I have had no problems that way.

I got the load range E KO2 because I do off roading where there are sharp granite rocks, not the soft sandstone near Moab. They have stood up very well to that. Yes, they are a heavy tire which I can sense when driving, but the ride is still good.

I got to experience these on a rental JL this past week. Wet traction is still awful. Just like every other BFG tire ever made.

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I was coming from a Mazda3 with the best wet traction tire ever made (Michelin Pilot Super Sports) and knew i couldn't get that with an AT tire, but after doing a ton of research and asking around i found the perfect Snow/Rain dry AT tire. Good Year Duratracs hands down have the best wet traction of any AT tire.

All truck/AT tires suck in the rain, it's likely why there are such wide opinions of the KO2. Besides location and temps driven in effecting rain performance.

no such thing as the perfect tire.

Easy to blame lack of poor weather driving skill on equipment.

My advice: Learn2drive.