KO3s terrible in damp conditions

[SubaruRaptor]

This issue is primarily OPs driving style as he admitted. The tires handle just fine in snow and rain, but 400HP+ in rear wheel drive will behave just like you think it will. KO3s are not snow tires or summer tires. As others have mentioned 4a or slippery will reduce the throttle response enough and or lower the amount of power to each wheel overall to make it manageable if you dont want to adapt your driving habits.

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[AlpineBike]

Still no mention of what tire pressure he is running.

Also the lack of understanding how a very front weight bias truck handles with 450hp going only to the rear wheels.

I would not recommend 4a. I would recommend attending a performance driving school!

 

[Towerdan]

No trouble here with my ko3’s. I was actually surprised at how good they did in snow. They do better than the tires I had on my old truck. We always put some extra weight in the back of the truck in winter out here in Idaho to help with the traction.

 

[Tobias]

I built a wooden rack out of 2 X 4's and use 4 50lb sand bags directly over the rear axle no more issues so far.

 

[CACTUSGREYFX4]

I built a wooden rack out of 2 X 4's and use 4 50lb sand bags directly over the rear axle no more issues so far.

I do that too but use old tractor tire inner tubes cut in half and tied at ends. The rubber doesn't freeze like the sand bags and they stay put and being tied at ends if I need a bit of sand it's still accessible.

 

[rocsteady]

Not to say anything disparaging about anyone that has experienced this; I have never had any issue as I drive the truck like a truck. By that I mean I drive differently in my previous Shelby than I do with the Raptor. If the roads are wet, I drive it like it has very capable all terrain tires, not like it has summer only Michelins and it's 90° and dry out. Even when dry, I drive it like it's a truck, high center of gravity and a light rear end and never have any issues. Totally different when I turn off all the traction aids and induce oversteer in slippery conditions for some hooning. I bought it understanding that I wanted the offroad capability and would not be using it to set records in time trials on twisty back roads. With all that being said, I do realize that some AT tires are better than others on wet roads but for the snow and off road performance of the K03, I'll stick with them.

 

[Topchop]

I have read tire comparisons with the K03 vs other tires on a Ranger raptor. Some tires stop 50’ shorter from 60mph in wet and up to 30’ less on dry.
I have 2k miles on my RR and have witnessed the wet issues of breaking free on acceleration and overly active ABS in wet. No KO3s when need replacement and contemplating changing them out now.

 

[John B]

I'm at about 12k miles and it's my daily, so plenty of snow, ice and rain.... Sometimes all on the same day... Lol. I usually drive in 4a and have never felt unsafe on the K03s. Fwiw with my 2019 4wd ranger I put 200 # of sand in a wood rack between the rear wheels. But at almost 1000# heavier, more weight seems to be counter productive as long as you avoid acceleration while cornering when you know it's slick. Slippery mode might allow this, but I'm still playing around with this mode, and don't know for sure. But in a blizzard with 12" of snow, this rr is very good in 4a or 4h in slippery mode, and great if you use the rear locker with that combo. I tried out 4l with both lockers, and can't imagine ever actually needing that much.

 

[Dutch]

“A bad workman blames his tools”

 

[Alaska Steve]

During snow and rainy seasons, I keep 4 x 60lbs sand bags over the rear axle to improve rear end traction.

 

[Hoss]

Best tire I’ve ever had

 

[Truckin]

Question for the KO3 guys or girls.
are you in cold climate when they slip?
The KO2s were famous for great in warm climate but slippery when cold but.
BFG said they nailed it perfect with the 3 and seen a lot of people say there good. Just curious, thanks

 

[Bigmess]

I love the tire and haven’t had this problem. Maybe keep your foot out of it when it’s wet out may help.

 

[huskyfargo]

We’ve had pretty snowy and wet conditions in NW Arkansas this winter, and I have no complaints about the tires at all. I’ve had to push kinda hard a few times to get it to break loose.
However, I’ve had Falken Wildpeaks on several other vehicles, and they were pretty unstoppable.

 

[romeo26]

Based on your description, the tires aren’t the primary issue. I’d hazard a guess you are coming from a sports car, which tend to be far more forgiving of less-than-smooth driving and of course have tires that are an order of magnitude better on the street.

Dial it back a bit and focus on developing smoothness, adjusting for the weight transfer under various conditions, etc. Yes, there are better AT tires for grip in damp conditions, but its a small difference relative to a tire fitted high performance car.

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