Tire Question: Help a fella out

InspectahDeck

InspectahDeck

New member
Genuinely not trying to start a flame war here. Interested in people's thoughts on this.

So, if you've seen any of my previous posts, you know I have a '16 TRDP coming in in the next two weeks (arrived at port 8/8/16, no update yet since arrival). I learned about the TRD specific lift from Toytec and picked it up. I've been going back and forth with tire size. I stopped into another off-road shop yesterday and I think they convinced me to work with them instead of the shop closer to my house I'd originally been talking to (guy there told me they work on toytec's trucks and toytec balked when I mentioned the first shop). It'll cost more, but I feel more confident in their work. They also convinced me to probably get some UCAs, which Slee also recommended when I contacted them. In the course of the conversation though, the shop manager mentioned that he wouldn't advise his worst enemy to put on BFG KO2 due to their manufacturing quality and balancing issues. He had a showroom full of Toyos and Nittos. He did say that it was my truck, however, and that he was willing to put any tire I wanted on it.

So, my question is...how much stock should I put in this. I have KOs on my FJ currently and have never had a problem and it certainly seems like plenty of people here run KO2s, maybe more than any other tire. Still, when I did search I did find some threads related to balancing issues with the KO2s. I like the look of these tires and am currently thinking I really want to run white lettering out. So, these seem like a good choice.

He also mentioned that if I put these on, he would want me to pay for any additional balancing that had to be done if I had any vibration/balancing issues and BFG sent me replacement tires.


SMH???
 
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InspectahDeck said:
He also mentioned that if I put these on, he would want me to pay for any additional balancing that had to be done if I had any vibration/balancing issues and BFG sent me replacement tires.
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Does this imply he includes lifetime balancing on HIS tires?

I don't know shit about AT tires, but I do know people sell what they have for sale, and sometimes that includes badmouthing what they don't sell.
 
philsey said:
Does this imply he includes lifetime balancing on HIS tires?

I don't know shit about AT tires, but I do know people sell what they have for sale, and sometimes that includes badmouthing what they don't sell.
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Yeah. I'm not sure about lifetime balancing if I were to go with the Nittos or Toyos. I'll have to ask.

And yes, I am wondering how much he is pushing the brands he carries.
 
I just put on KO2s and they balanced fine. There is a thread here that talks about an adapter plate that the shop needs for Toy trucks and that could be the root of some balancing problems. If you are concerned about the KO2 then look at the review of AT tires on Expedition Portal and then consider the Cooper AT/3. My $.02
 
KO2s balanced great and perform flawless.... he is just trying to offload inventory on a sucker. Tell him to stick it up his ass along with the UCAs
 
InspectahDeck said:
...... And yes, I am wondering how much he is pushing the brands he carries.
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I'm not saying he's wrong necessarily - it's just business. Make him sweeten the deal to sway you over.

If I have a shop I like, I tend to buy their products, IMO it makes for a better long-term relationship. Unless, of course, I feel strongly about another brand.

There is nothing wrong with the tires he sells - besides if you ask 10 people opinions on tires you'll get 11 different answers. Hell, half the people on this forum mount ATs for their look. (OK, maybe a third....)
 
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InspectahDeck said:
Yeah. I'm not sure about lifetime balancing if I were to go with the Nittos or Toyos. I'll have to ask.

And yes, I am wondering how much he is pushing the brands he carries.
Click to expand...

Maybe it is a good shop and that guy has such an ego about it he feels like what his preferences are would be best for everyone in the world.

Duratracs are pretty popular around Denver, I even see them on a lot of vehicles that probably never go off-road, I see a ton of BFG as well though. If they were that bad probably wouldn't sell so many. A certain top notch knowledgeable member on here refuses to run Goodyear products after some bad experiences so bottom line to me is go with your gut.
 
I put Cooper stock size AT-3's on my 2011 Trail 50,000 miles ago. Nice tire nice ride. Great pricing. Plenty of tread left but getting a little noisy. Would used them again.
 
You don't need UCA's.

KO2 are fine, although I was reading about a cracking issue on ih8mud, down the center of the tire.

I say getchu some St maxx from Cooper.
 
My KO2's were good but did require a few sessions on the balancer to get them right. Of course discount tire wasn't using the adapter and who knows when their machine was last calibrated. The last round I put my foot down and told them to use the adapter. They had their "balance guy" balance the KO2s and they were butter smooth. I still run KO's on my 5th gen and in the nearly 60k I've never had an issue with those tires either. I can say, from my experience years ago as someone who was in the truck accessory biz and sold a lot of tires, Toyo and Nitto always seemed to balance easier and with less weight than any BFG tires. I've always been a BFG guy and have ran the many versions of their AT over the years and they have always worked good for me. That being said, I really like my ST Maxx on my 4th gen but I also really like a couple of the tires Nitto has released recently. I may give them a shot on my 5th gen.

More than likely, he is trying to push his stock on you and/or his profit margin is higher on Toyo/Nitto than the BFGs. As for the UCAs, I would align it after lifting and see where the caster is. I would drive it and see how it feels on a variety of roads. Honestly, if you have the budget, I would just get them and be done with it.
 
I have BFG s and they balanced fine.

If RSG off-road wants to sell you the nitto or toyos, make sure your ok with it.

If your set on BFG s get BFG s. I would only get what they were selling I'd they give me a really good deal.

The TRD pros comes with nittos anyway. Just run stock tires for now and decide later.
 
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InspectahDeck said:
Genuinely not trying to start a flame war here. Interested in people's thoughts on this.

So, if you've seen any of my previous posts, you know I have a '16 TRDP coming in in the next two weeks (arrived at port 8/8/16, no update yet since arrival). I learned about the TRD specific lift from Toytec and picked it up. I've been going back and forth with tire size. I stopped into another off-road shop yesterday and I think they convinced me to work with them instead of the shop closer to my house I'd originally been talking to (guy there told me they work on toytec's trucks and toytec balked when I mentioned the first shop). It'll cost more, but I feel more confident in their work. They also convinced me to probably get some UCAs, which Slee also recommended when I contacted them. In the course of the conversation though, the shop manager mentioned that he wouldn't advise his worst enemy to put on BFG KO2 due to their manufacturing quality and balancing issues. He had a showroom full of Toyos and Nittos. He did say that it was my truck, however, and that he was willing to put any tire I wanted on it.

So, my question is...how much stock should I put in this. I have KOs on my FJ currently and have never had a problem and it certainly seems like plenty of people here run KO2s, maybe more than any other tire. Still, when I did search I did find some threads related to balancing issues with the KO2s. I like the look of these tires and am currently thinking I really want to run white lettering out. So, these seem like a good choice.

He also mentioned that if I put these on, he would want me to pay for any additional balancing that had to be done if I had any vibration/balancing issues and BFG sent me replacement tires.


SMH???
Click to expand...

I can't remember if Toyo owns Nitto, or vice versa. Its just my .02 but most shops like that. They aren't worth it. I have noticed in my personal experience that these are the shops that build pavement princesses. Some people have been running the new Ridge Grappler though and its supposedly comparable to the Duratrac. I love my General Grabber AT2's. They are a little rough in range E though.

Anyways, any particular reason why you are going with Toytec?

Are you stopping at the Toytec lift? If you want the most travel out of your front coilovers, yes you will need UCAs. However, I would suggest that you get your rig lifted, and then decide how its working out for you. If you hear the UCA hitting on the CO, then you know your going to need to get some UCAs.
 
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jstim said:
Anyways, any particular reason why you are going with Toytec?
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Mainly because I'll be getting the pro and didn't want to discard the stock suspension entirely within a week of owning the truck (I paid more for it, right?). So the TRD specific kit is what I'm planning now. Later, maybe something more intense, but I'll wait til these are old.
 
InspectahDeck said:
Mainly because I'll be getting the pro and didn't want to discard the stock suspension entirely within a week of owning the truck (I paid more for it, right?). So the TRD specific kit is what I'm planning now. Later, maybe something more intense, but I'll wait til these are old.
Click to expand...

Do you know the part numbers? I just haven't ever seen anything for the TRDP specifically.
 
I just had the same lift installed with stock UCA with zero issues with Ridge Grappler 285/70/17 tires. Tires balanced out great and alignment is perfect, better than stock. I am sure you will be fine with the KO's as many people run those with great results.
 
I have KO2s with 15K miles. I got them from Americas Tire, so I get lifetime rotation balancing. Also, picking a nationwide chain helps if I'm traveling and something goes wrong. When they were first installed, I had to get them rebalanced. Since then no issues at all. No complaints about the tire at all. I am totally happy with them. I know some guys running Cooper, and they are happy as well.

I have Kings set at 2". No UCA. You don't need a UCA unless you're going higher.

The way you describe the shop makes me very suspicious. They don't sound trustworthy. I would look around.
 
Any tire brand will occasionally have a tire that won't balance out. I don't have KO2's myself and haven't heard of these balancing issues but they seem to be a very common tire for the off-roading community. So there will be a better chance that it'll gain "publicity" through forums, etc when someone does get one that won't balance out. Personally having sold thousands of tires, I can, without hesitation, say that any brand can have a bad apple. The bigger thing to me is, how well that brand takes care of you when there is a problem.
 
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Sounds like a sales tactic, I'd read up and install yourself.. Or at least compare prices to what a toyota dealer would charge. That said, if you do go with them, please get the toyo open country RT and report back.. reviews on that tire are slim lol.
 
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