Head to head
BFGoodrich KM3 vs KO2
The same manufacturer’s mud-terrain and all-terrain, and one of the most-asked questions in the category. The differences are not subtle, and most of them are published.
By Bill Belcamino · Last verified 17 September 2026
What the published data supports
The KO2 carries three-peak mountain snowflake certification and a 50,000-mile treadwear warranty. The KM3 carries neither. In every matched size the KO2 is also lighter — 6 to 8 lb per tire where both are in the same load range.
The KM3 carries 18/32″ of tread in every size listed against the KO2’s 15/32″ — 3/32″ more, or 20% more rubber to start with — and the mud-specific engineering BFGoodrich describes: Mud-Phobic shoulder bars, a Linear Flex Zone for aired-down driving, and Krawl-TEK compound.
Side by side
Specification
BFGoodrich KM3 (mud-terrain)
BFGoodrich KO2 (all-terrain)
Category
Mud-terrain
All-terrain
3PMSF (severe snow) certification
Not stated
Yes
Treadwear warranty
None
50,000 miles
Limited warranty (workmanship)
Life of usable tread, or six years
Yes — standard limited warranty
Sidewall claim
27% tougher than the KM2 (CoreGard Max)
20% tougher sidewalls (CoreGard) — baseline not stated
LT285/70R17
67.1 lb · 18/32″ · 3,195 lb at 80 psi (E)
50.3 lb · 15/32″ · 2,755 lb at 50 psi (C)
33×12.50R17
67.6 lb · 18/32″ · 120Q (E)
61.2 lb · 15/32″ · 120S (E)
35×12.50R17
74.4 lb · 18/32″ · 121Q (E)
66.5 lb · 15/32″ · 121R (E)
37×12.50R17
77.4 lb · 18/32″ · 124Q (D)
71.3 lb · 15/32″ · 124R (D)
Measured diameter (37×12.50R17)
36.5″
36.5″
Warranty, snow and sidewall claims are BFGoodrich’s own. Size rows are from the tiresize specification pages. In LT285/70R17 the source lists the KO2 only in Load Range C, so that row compares different load ranges and is not like for like; the other three sizes are.
Where the published data favours the KM3
Depth. The KM3 lists 18/32″ in every size on this page, against the KO2’s 15/32″. Three thirty-seconds is a large fraction of a tire’s usable tread, and depth is also void: a mud-terrain clears mud because the spaces between its blocks are deep enough to take it and throw it.
BFGoodrich publishes its mud engineering as measurable claims against its own predecessor: 5% better mud traction and 8% better traction on rock and slick surfaces than the KM2, and sidewalls 27% tougher on internal puncture testing. It publishes nothing comparable about the KO2 in mud, because that is not what the KO2 is for.
Where the published data favours the KO2
Winter and warranty. The KO2 is severe-snow rated with the three-peak mountain snowflake, and carries a 50,000-mile treadwear warranty. The KM3 has neither — normal for a mud-terrain, and the single largest practical difference between these two tires. Mud tires in snow explains what the certification measures.
Mass. In the three sizes where both are listed in the same load range, the KO2 is 6.4 lb, 7.9 lb and 6.1 lb lighter per tire. Across a set of four that is 24 to 32 lb of unsprung, rotating mass.
Speed rating. The KO2 is listed at R and S where the KM3 is Q — a higher rated maximum speed, which matters more for how the construction is built than for how fast anyone drives.
What about the KO3?
BFGoodrich also sells the All-Terrain T/A KO3. We have not included it here. The specification listings we use currently show incomplete data for it — missing measured diameters, and an identical weight across three different sizes — and a comparison built on figures we cannot trust would be worse than none. The KO2 remains listed on BFGoodrich’s own site.
What the evidence does not establish
No independent test has measured these two against each other. The two sidewall claims are measured against different baselines — the KM3’s against the KM2, the KO2’s against a baseline BFGoodrich does not state on the product page — so 27% and 20% cannot be compared.
Depth does not predict how fast a compound wears. An all-terrain with less tread and a treadwear warranty may well outlast a mud-terrain with more; nobody publishes the data to say.
What they cost
Tire
LT285/70R17, per tire
Read
BFGoodrich KM3
$339.99
11 Sep 2026
BFGoodrich KO2
Not tracked
—
The KO2 is not in the price tracker.
Which matters for your use case
If you drive in sustained snow, the KO2 is the only one of the two with severe-snow certification.
If you want written wear coverage, only the KO2 has it — 50,000 miles.
If you drive in genuine mud, the KM3 carries 3/32″ more tread and the mud-specific engineering BFGoodrich documents.
If mass at the corner matters to you — fuel, braking, gearing — the KO2 is 6 to 8 lb lighter per tire in matched sizes. See mud-terrain vs all-terrain for the category trade-offs.
Model pages and data
BFGoodrich KM3 · specification database
Related
mud-terrain vs all-terrain · mud tires in snow · warranties compared · Jeep Wrangler JL fitment · KM3 vs Trail Grappler
Sources
BFGoodrich, Mud-Terrain T/A KM3 and All-Terrain T/A KO2 product pages (bfgoodrichtires.com), read 17 September 2026 · Tire Size (tiresize.com), model specification pages, read 17 September 2026 · Mud Tires price tracker.
How these figures are gathered and what we refuse to estimate: our method.