BFG AT on wet roads...

[MikeWhoTruong]

So I have 285-70-17 on my 4th gen for about 3wks, and i'm not too confident with the tires in wet conditions yet. My brother has them on his tundra and says they are amazing in wet conditions. My 4th gen with the Bridgestone Dueler h t that were on the truck prior to the BFG were amazing in the rain, I could drive in the rain as if it weren't raining. Zero Hydroplaning and it has never broken loose in the rain, even in the turns.

Now with these BFG's i've always driven extra carefully in the rain since I got them because im not sure how they handle in the rain yet. I just wanna make sure that if im going with the flow of traffic in wet conditions and a curve comes up my rear end won't come up from under me.... We all know how that ends up...

Today in the rain When I didn't have anyone around me at a light, I hit my gas as soon as the light turned green to 2k rpm, just to see what the tires would do... And it broke loose and my vsc kicked in, and i did it again this time while rolling 5mph to see up to 2k rpm and it went loose again... Mind you this is with the wheels going completely straight ! no turning involved... (road was blacktop BTW)

I could never get the bridgestones to break loose going straight in the rain.... I understand that the AT are not gonna handle as well as the street tires.... But I'm thinking that's a dramatic differance... Where my and others safety is concerned I don't want to take a chance...

Are my worries justified or am I just freakin out over nothing? Any thoughts would help, I do apologize for the bad grammar and spelling, i'm having a bad allergic reaction to the air right now and its making me very impatient... LOL

 

[RonMAIDEN]

I've been saying BFGs are subpar in the wet performance dept for years and I've driven on a few sets and both my Nitto TGs and my current Goodyears are both quite a bit better in hydroplane resistance and they give better warnings when they start to hydroplane than the BFGs. I demand a lot of my tires on the street since my truck is a DD so I have to give up a little off road (BFGs are a bit more durable than my GY but it's not like they are dramatically better) for being safe on road and the BFGs simply left me desiring more.
So far the Duratracs are giving me the best of both worlds and I don't have that nervousness I had when driving on BFGs which i've had them get loose more than once when I didn't expect it. BFGs have poorly defined water evac channels and it shows.

 

[CJ3Flyr]

Today in the rain When I didn't have anyone around me at a light, I hit my gas as soon as the light turned green to 2k rpm, just to see what the tires would do... And it broke loose and my vsc kicked in, and i did it again this time while rolling 5mph to see up to 2k rpm and it went loose again... Mind you this is with the wheels going completely straight ! no turning involved... (road was blacktop BTW) I'm assuming D or E rated? To get tires with those kind of load ratings to last they have to use hard rubber. BFG's are known for wearing like iron. It's pretty simple to me, you can't have 70k-80k tires with a sticky compound. I agree with Ron about the water channeling at speed.

I could never get the bridgestones to break loose going straight in the rain.... I understand that the AT are not gonna handle as well as the street tires.... But I'm thinking that's a dramatic differance... Where my and others safety is concerned I don't want to take a chance... What pressure are you running? Most load inflation charts will show a D or E tire in that size needs to be run at 38-45psi in that size to be safe and not overheat. Running those pressures will help with hydroplaning too. The higher will not help with breaking loose off of a light, in fact it may be a bit worse.

Are my worries justified or am I just freakin out over nothing? You tell me. Here's some E rated tires known for being hard with less than ideal tread pattern. Any thoughts would help, I do apologize for the bad grammar and spelling, i'm having a bad allergic reaction to the air right now and its making me very impatient... LOL

:cheers:

 

[MikeWhoTruong]

Thanks for the info, I'm running 40psi on the tires, I guess I'm just wondering if hitting the curves at 60-65mph on a wet surface takes more or less force to the tire vs the force it took for it to break loose going straight from a low speed. I just dont know how to better word what my question is so I hope you guys can get the idea of what im trying to ask. I'm not talking about any crazy curves or racing through them or anything... Just your normal highway curves going the same speed as everyone else. With my other tires i never even had to consider if I would break loose in that situation.

I'm considering putting my bridgestones back on for my DD and swapping out when I go on expeditions... I just love how they look, but not worth the safety aspect to me... Im not trying to compare them to street tires but if I can get the understanding that they will hold up under "safe" driving practices in the rain, and that they won't just decide to break loose and go under me... I would feel alot better about keeping them on full time.

When I bought these tires I did ALOT of reasearch on differnt tires, and knew they weren't up to par for wet conditions, I agree with you both on the thread pattern not dispersing the water well at all... I drive very carefully and defensive and take extra care in the rain, so I figure I could do with these tires... But that breaking loose at 2k rpm from a stop and a slow roll has gotten me very weary....

 

[CJ3Flyr]

Thanks for the info, I'm running 40psi on the tires, I guess I'm just wondering if hitting the curves at 60-65mph on a wet surface takes more or less force to the tire vs the force it took for it to break loose going straight from a low speed. I just dont know how to better word what my question is so I hope you guys can get the idea of what im trying to ask. I'm not talking about any crazy curves or racing through them or anything... Just your normal highway curves going the same speed as everyone else. With my other tires i never even had to consider if I would break loose in that situation. I understand what you're asking. I don't know for sure but the application of some 'good ol common sense' would suggest that a tire that breaks loose off of a light would be suspect in terms of cornering adhesion.

I'm considering putting my bridgestones back on for my DD and swapping out when I go on expeditions... I just love how they look, but not worth the safety aspect to me... Im not trying to compare them to street tires but if I can get the understanding that they will hold up under "safe" driving practices in the rain, and that they won't just decide to break loose and go under me... I would feel alot better about keeping them on full time.

When I bought these tires I did ALOT of reasearch on differnt tires, and knew they weren't up to par for wet conditions, I agree with you both on the thread pattern not dispersing the water well at all... I drive very carefully and defensive and take extra care in the rain, so I figure I could do with these tires... But that breaking loose at 2k rpm from a stop and a slow roll has gotten me very weary.... 2 things come to mind...

1st- Play with it in some parking lots, the empty kind with no cars, no police Learn what it does. I suspect the cornering adhesion will be better than you think but not great.

2nd- Where do live? Many places will add extra siping to tires which does help with wet and snow traction appreciably. Finding a place to add siping in the south is hard but in the north or west it's generally available.

I don't know what I think about running the Bridgestones as DD's. My first thoughts are you just spent a lot of money and most tires have a 30 day satisfaction guarantee. It sucks to have to jump through those hoops.

If you're 'stuck' with the BFG's consider the siping. If not a tire like the Terra Grappler, Toyo Open Country, Duratrac or Revo might be a better fit for you (even if your offroading is severe enough to warrant an LT). All of the ones I just listed are much better in the wet (P or LT).:cheers:

 

[MikesToy]

The reason why i got rid of my BFG's is because i can't go over 40mph on small puddles on the road. I can but i have to slide a little bit. Great tire in the snow but when the snow melts down to puddles of water is when it sucks. I love running thru puddles of water especially when there's someone on the sidewalk. HAHA...

 

[MikeWhoTruong]

Yea I love these tires for everything except wet conditions, I think my next move will be to play with them in a parking lot... Maybe Im just overreacting... I mean a tire known to not be good in wet weather and its pusing a heavy load from a dead stop maybe the breaking loose is warranted... Which ever the case, Ima play in a parking lot and see if it makes me feel any better !

 

[davefisher]

Mike how many miles so far on the BFGs? Tires can take 300-500 miles to break in as the top tread sometimes absorbs the chemical that let's the tire release from the mold when manufactured.

Aside from the break in period, I agree that the BFGs can be downright scary in wet conditions. This was the only thing that swayed me toward going with the Revo 2 (when my Revo 1s had 60,000 miles on them and treated me well). The Bridgestone Revo is an excellent choice for wet traction if you are still inside some type of 30 day "try" period from the tire shop. Most managers will want you to be happy and let you exchange for something else, even for a small restocking fee which sounds like it might be worth it for your satisfaction for the next 50,000+ miles.

Good luck!

 

[03_4x4Runner]

I have had my BFG all terrain 265/70/17 tires on now for 3 years. I have been in some really nasty downpours going down twisty mountains roads and many other rain conditions. I have never experienced any of the problems you describe. Maybe it is because of the wider tire you are using. I am completely happy with mine.

 

[MikeWhoTruong]

I got about 1k on the tires now... I got a used set of them... loved how the handled on and off road... and bought a completely new set... I guess I shoulda ran them in the rain first...

Im really Leaning towards changing out the tire, even if it cost me more money...I haven't taken them out in a parking lot yet... But on the way home from work.....

I was doing about 70mph driving on the highway and I see a down pour right in front of me... I let off the gas to slow down, as I hit the storm i was down to about 60mph and still decellerating. I felt my rear just not making contact with the ground and slipping... I kept off the urge to hit the brakes and just let the rig slow on it own untill it actually caught some traction and didnt break loose again... that wa when I got down to 40mph... Needless to say I exited the highway and stayed at 35mph all the way home....

I noticed that in wet roads i can go straight ok... its just when it rains hard enough to have standing water or even running water on the roads that the tires just glide over... I'm still not gonna try a fast curve, even if the road is "ONLY" wet...

03 4x4runner, I wish I had the same experience you did, I love everything about this tire, obviously except for its wet manners... My Brother tells me the same things you say about his bfgs and they are 315-70-17.. So I guess that would rule out the wider tire thing...

Could mine just be defective?

 

[RonMAIDEN]

It's the tread pattern of BFGs that don't give them as good wet traction as some of the others mentioned in this thread. I've driven on a few sets and compared to my Nittos and Duratracs the BFGs don't have the margin of error that the other tires do. BFGs are fine if you are a bit of a slower careful driver but admittedly I do drive a bit fast and corner hard and BFGs don't mesh as well with my driving style as my Nittos did and my Goodyears do.

BFGs simply don't evacuate water as quickly as alot of other tires do and when you loook at the tread pattern you should be able to see that the water evac channels aren't as defined as on other tires. BFGs haven't changed much (except for compounds) in over 20 years and it shows compared to newer tread patterns.

Discount Tire loves BFGs so much they automatically recommend them on tons of vehicles that will never even get near a dirt road which to me is rediculous;they must have a deal with BFG or their markup is higher than other brands and they make bank on them hence their percieved popularity.

My mom asked some advice on tires for her '99 Limited that will NEVER go off road and is primarily a street truck for the winter and Discount wanted her to throw $1000 at a set of BFGs and I told her that was overkill and a waste of money. Her truck now sits on Yokohama AT-S which is a much better tire for her considering her driving and she saved a couple of hundred bucks.

I admit BFGs do look great and alot of tire buyers base their decision on that alone which is a bit silly but it sure works in BFGs favor.
Like I said they are a great off road tire but on road there's better options for us who use our trucks as daily drivers.

 

[Toyodas]

I have BFG AT/KOs in 265/70/16 on my 2002 Sequoia Limited and I would just want to add that I really only notice the hydroplaning and poor wet performance at speeds above 40mph.

It may just be different on a 4Runner vs. a Sequoia due to weight.

If you really want uncompromised wet weather performance get a set of Goodyear Fortera TripleTreds. I have them on the 97 4Runner in 265/70/16 and they have only hydroplaned once on me at around 80mph on the interstate. I have neary 20,000 miles on them and they really are excellent in wet conditions.