BF Goodrich KM3

Best Mud Terrain Tires

Updated: April 18, 2025 by Emrecan Gurkan 4 Comments

Picking the best mud-terrain tire could be challenging. Well, mud-terrain tires are generally heavy, noisy, and hard to balance. So, before making a selection, you should perfectly define your needs and your expectations. In this article, as a former Bridgestone engineer, I will talk about the best mud-terrain tires that could be used on any kind of application. Let’s begin!

Yokohama Geolander M/T G003 – Best All-Round Winter Oriented
General Grabber X3 – Best All-Round
BF Goodrich Mud-Terrain KM3 – Solid pick if you don’t need solid winter traction
Nitto Trail Grappler M/T – Best appearance – Wide Product Range
Falken Wildpeak M/T – Best Tread Life
Hankook Dynapro MT2 – Best tire for sand

All-Terrain vs Mud-Terrain

While I was researching online tire reviews, I realized that people are exceedingly confused about the difference between mud-terrain and all-terrain tires. As it were not enough, the rugged-terrain category has been created by manufacturers. Well, things are messed up.

I’ve decided to create the below table to make things clear for you fellows. You can check the below table to define your expectations and see which tire category meets your expectations.

	All-Terrain	Rugged-Terrain	Mud-Terrain
Durability	Poor	Good	Best
Comfort	Best	Good	Poor
Fuel-Efficiency	Best	Good	Poor
Highway	Best	Good	Poor
Dirt	Best	Best	Best
Gravel	Good	Best	Poor
Mud	Poor	Good	Best
Rock	Poor	Good	Best
Sand	Best	Good	Poor
Wet	Best	Good	Poor
Winter	Poor	Good	Good

You can check this article out the learn more about rugged-terrain tires!

How Long do Mud-Terrain Tires Last?

It highly depends on your vehicle, driving habits, and driving conditions. Mud-terrain tires are built for solid off-road performance. Though, for instance, if you use them on the highway often, tread life will dramatically decrease.

Mud-terrain tires last 40,000 miles on average. Yet, this number could be changed by external factors. Check the below table for more information.

How to Get the Most Miles out of Your Mud-Terrain Tire? (Imported From Table Press)

Guideline
Make sure that your tires’ technical features fit to your vehicle(for instance, you need 3-ply sidewall for over 3/4 ton pickups)
Use them on proper inflation pressure, you might slaughter your tire with the high inflation pressure on off-road
Do vehicle alignment often
Don’t miss rotation timing(3000-5000 miles depends on usage)
If you’re not buying them for only appearance, avoid highway usage

Getting maximum wear life from a tire is related to you as well as your tire,

If you’d like to learn how to get maximum tread life:

https://tireterrain.com/how-to-make-tires-last-longer/

Mud-Terrain Tires in Snow

Mud-terrain tires are not designed for snow. When you use them on snow, their lugs are filled with snow and your traction will decrease short to none. Moreover, these tires don’t have enough siping to grip on light snow. For this reason, I don’t recommend them for snow usage.

I’ve briefly explained what you have to expect from mud-terrain tires. Now, it’s time to share my favorite mud-terrain tires for 2022.

BF Goodrich Mud-Terrain T/A KM3

BF Goodrich Mud-Terrain KM3 is one of the highest-rated mud-terrain tires in the market. Its specific compound selection enables highway usage without sacrificing too much from tread life. However, the perfect tire doesn’t exist. Well, it has cons also.

As a former Bridgestone engineer, from my standpoint, BF Goodrich KM3 offers solid traction off the road. Due to its wide lateral grooves, it can evacuate the water with ease and provide massive traction on the mud. Moreover, it has Traction-Armor Sidewall Sculpture tech that prevents puncturing on rock crawling. Due to its soft compound, it’s a cozy tire. Yet, its huge void area makes it a bit noisier tire on the highway. It’s not the best tire on the wet. Yet, its increased biting edges and fluffy compound provide a decent grip on wet surfaces. Furthermore, it has decent tread life for a mud-terrain tire.

I recommend this tire if you spend too much time in the city. Worth reminding, even though it has good deep-snow traction, it’s the worst ice tire on this list.

If you want to see how it stands against BFG KO2, check this article out!

Yokohama Geolander M/T G003

Yokohama Geolander M/T G003 is a mud-terrain tire that builds by a US manufacturer. Yokohama knows US conditions very well. So, their tire is a highly reliable tire for any conditions inside of the US. Well, it’s slightly pricy but I can guarantee that it’s totally worth it.

In summary, Yokohama Geolander M/T G003 is an all-round tire. While it can perform perfectly in severe off-road conditions, it’s also a trustworthy tire for wet and dry highway usage. Due to its wisely designed center section, it’s the quietest tire on this list. It has higher sipe intensity compared to the other mud-terrain tires in the market. Therefore, its light-snow, wet, and ice performance is superior. Its beefy sidewall rubber makes it durable. Moreover, these sidewall biters increase its loose ground performance a lot. This tire has a perfectly optimized contact patch. For this reason, it wears evenly and offers long-lasting rubber.

Yokohama Geolander M/T is a safe-side pick on this list. No matter what your expectations are, it can cover it all in all aspects.

You can click here to see TireRack’s test report!

General Grabber X3

General Grabber X3 is another mud-terrain tire that belongs to the US manufacturer. It has a similar design to Yokohoma Geolander M/T. Yet, its sidewall biters go through the bead and that feature makes it a better tire for mud driving. Worth reminding, this one is also a bit pricy.

In summary, General Grabber X3 comes up huge with solid dry ground performance. Due to lack of sipes, it’s not perfect but a decent tire for wet grounds. However, its off-road performance is huge. It can evacuate and clean itself easily. Well, these features also help it to grip light snow and increase its traction on deep snow. Even though this tire is the most durable tire on this list, due to its tough internal construction, it doesn’t offer a rough ride as its competitors. Yet, its noise level is low due to a very well-optimized void area in the center section. It also has a decent tread life if you use them on the right vehicles.

You can click here to see its test report!

Note: General Grabber X3 isn’t a good selection for 3/4 ton or above pickups.

Nitto Trail Grappler M/T

Nitto Trail Grappler M/T has been added to this list due to its wide product range. This tire is available on big rim sizes like 22”, 24”, and 26” inches. Well, this feature makes it hard to balance time to time. Yet, if you prefer to use well-known tire manufacturers like DiscountTire, you can solve this problem with ease.

In summary, Nitto Trail Grappler M/T offers the smoothest riding experience on this list. Due to its perfectly optimized center section, it can provide quick steering response and solid loose ground traction at the same time. Yet, it has a high void area in the center section. Well, it’s a vocal tire. Where it comes short is tread life and wet traction. Its soft compound wears quickly. Moreover, it has limited siping on the tread(which causes poor wet traction).

Nitto has a wide product range for off-road tires. You can check this article out for detailed information!

I recommend this tire for its aggressive appearance.

If you’re looking for a cheaper version, I recommend you to check Toyo Open Country M/T. You can click here to see the comparison between Toyo M/T and Nitto Trail Grappler M/T.

Falken Wildpeak MT01

Falken Wildpeak MT01 is the dirt-cheap pick of this list. If you’re looking for a decent tire for a good price, here is your solution. Yet, worth reminding, these tires are built for massive off-road performance. So, it has limited on-road manners.

In summary, Falken Wildpeak M/T has a unique tread life. Due to its stiff compound, it wears very slowly. It has a wide void area in the center section. Well, it’s a vocal tire. Yet, this void area increases its traction ability significantly. It has a lack of siping, so, it’s not the best tire for wet grounds. However, its tread depth is deep and it can clean itself very well. Therefore, it’s a good pick for severe winter conditions.

I recommend Falken Wildpeak M/T if you care about your budget and do not much care about on-road manners.

Hankook Dynapro MT2

Dynapro MT2 is the recently released mud-terrain tire of Hankook. It’s another budget-friendly pick. It’s a mud-terrain tire with a rugged-terrain appearance. Well, unlike Falken Wildpeak M/T, it has satisfying on-road manners.

In summary, Hankook Dynapro MT2 has top-cat durability. Due to its relatively stiff compound, it’s not worn easily even on the highway. Hence, it has reliable tread life. However, due to the stiff compound, it has a loud mount. It’s an average tire on wet and loose grounds.

Here is a detailed review of Hankook Dynapro MT2!

Specs

	Yokohama Geolander M/T G003	General Grabber X3	Hankook Dynapro MT2	BF Goodrich Mud-Terrain KM3	Nitto Trail Grappler M/T	Falken Wildpeak M/T
Category	Mud-Terrain Tire	Mud-Terrain Tire	Mud-Terrain Tire	Mud-Terrain Tire	Mud-Terrain Tire	Mud-Terrain Tire
Vehicle	Light Truck, SUV	Light Truck, SUV	Light Truck, SUV	Light Truck, SUV	Light Truck, SUV	Light Truck, SUV
Available Sizes (Rim)	15”, 16”, 17”, 18”, 20”, 22”, 24”	15’’, 16’’, 17’’, 18’’, 20’’, 22”	15’’, 16’’, 17’’, 18’’, 20’’, 22’’	15’’, 16’’, 17’’, 18’’, 20’’, 22’’	15”, 16”, 17”, 18”, 20”, 22”, 24”, 26”	15”, 16”, 17”, 18”, 20”
Weight	32 – 81 lbs	55 – 90 lbs	45 – 89 lbs	37 – 89 lbs	61 – 111 lbs	46 – 87 lbs
Made In	West Point, Mississippi, USA	Mt. Vernon, Illinois, USA	Clarksville, Tennessee, USa	Opelika, AL, USA	Lakewood, NJ, USA	Japan
Severe Snow Rated (3PMSF)	No (Only M+S)	No (Only M+S)	No (Only M+S)	No (Only M+S)	No (Only M+S)	No (Only M+S)
Warranty (P-metric)	30 Day Test Drive	45-Day or 1st 2/32″ Customer Satisfaction Trial	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
Warranty (LT Sizes)	30 Day Test Drive	45-Day or 1st 2/32″ Customer Satisfaction Trial	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
Prices	Check price section to see best possible prices	Check price section to see best possible prices	Check price section to see best possible prices	Check price section to see best possible prices	Check price section to see best possible prices	Check price section to see best possible prices

Price

The tire market has a dynamic price policy. Hence, in my point of view, sharing tire price is pointless.

Though, I’ve analyzed the top 10 brands of most popular tire brands.

Here are the dealers with a reasonable price range,

DiscountTire

Biggest dealer in the US. Founded in 1960
1000 stores in 35 states. You most probably find one on your parallel street
Free rotation and balancing
5% off for DiscountTire cardholders on online purchase
Highest rated online tire dealer in Consumer Affairs
Almost all brands are available
Delivery takes 2-4 days (30% shorter average waiting time when you book online)
Frequent discounts and promotions

Yokohama Geolandar M/T G003: https://www.discounttire.com/buy-tires/yokohama-geolandar-m-t-g003

General Grabber X3: https://www.discounttire.com/buy-tires/general-grabber-x3

BF Goodrich Mud-Terrain T/A KM3: https://www.discounttire.com/buy-tires/bfgoodrich-mud-terrain-t-a-km3

Nitto Trail Grappler M/T: https://www.discounttire.com/buy-tires/nitto-trail-grappler-m-t

Falken Wildpeak M/T: https://www.discounttire.com/buy-tires/falken-wildpeak-m-t01

Hankook Dynapro MT2: Coming Soon!

TireRack

Fast and Free shipping
Usually delivered in 1 day
Joint venture with DiscountTire(their installers and dealers are on your service)
Tons of installer options, they also help you to choose the best one
Mobile installers in many areas, your tires will be replaced while you’re working in the office
Tire test results and comparisons can be found on the most product page
4.6/5 points on Google rate

Yokohama Geolandar M/T G003: https://www.tirerack.com/tires/yokohama-geolandar-m-t-g003

General Grabber X3: https://www.tirerack.com/tires/general-grabber-x3

BF Goodrich Mud-Terrain T/A KM3: https://www.tirerack.com/tires/bfgoodrich-mud-terrain-t-a-km3

Nitto Trail Grappler M/T: Not available

Falken Wildpeak M/T: https://www.tirerack.com/tires/falken-wildpeak-m-t

Hankook Dynapro MT2: https://www.tirerack.com/tires/hankook-dynapro-mt2

SimpleTire

Free shipping
Delivered in 2 days
Verified shops near you(for mount and balance)
Mobile installation option
7 million customers since 2021
4.7/5 points on Google rate
Top-notch customer service, you may even request a price match

Yokohama Geolandar M/T G003: https://simpletire.com/brands/yokohama-tires/geolandar-m-t-g003

General Grabber X3: https://simpletire.com/brands/general-tires/grabber-x3

BF Goodrich Mud-Terrain T/A KM3: https://simpletire.com/brands/bfgoodrich-tires/mud-terrain-t-a-km3

Nitto Trail Grappler M/T: https://simpletire.com/brands/nitto-tires/trail-grappler-m-t

Falken Wildpeak M/T: https://simpletire.com/brands/falken-tires/wildpeak-m-t

Hankook Dynapro MT2: https://simpletire.com/brands/hankook-tires/dynapro-mt2-rt05

While choosing dealers, I especially pay attention to reliability. All of the dealers on this list have 15-20 years of experience in the online tire business. Therefore, I can guarantee a smooth and fast tire buying process.

Conclusion

These are my Top-6 selection regarding mud-terrain tires. You can check the below table for my ratings.

	Mud	Rock	Sand	On-Road	Wet	Winter	Comfort	Tread Life	Road Noise
Yokohama Geolander M/T G003	9	10	8	9	9	8	9	9	8
General Grabber X3	9	9	9	8	9	8	8	8	8
BF Goodrich Mud-Terrain KM3	10	10	9	9	8	7	9	8	7
Nitto Trail Grappler	9	9	9	9	8	7	9	7	9
Falken Wildpeak M/T	8	9	8	7	7	8	7	10	6
Hankook Dynapro M/T2	9	9	10	8	7	7	7	8	7

I hope this article was helpful. If you have any further questions, please leave them below. Have a safe ride folks!

BF Goodrich KM3 vs Cooper STT Pro

Updated: April 18, 2025 by Emrecan Gurkan Leave a Comment

BF Goodrich KM3 and Cooper STT Pro are both mud-terrain tires that can be used for highway driving. Most people prefer these tires to obtain an aggressive look on their vehicles. Yet, an aggressive appearance comes up with some cons. Let’s see which will meet your expectations.

	BF Goodrich KM3	Cooper STT Pro
Better for	Off-road adventure, lifted vehicles owners who wanna put aggressive appearance, great on-road manners for a mud terrain tire, winter traction	Squishy regions, hauling & towing, commercial usage
Pros	Insane off-road traction, tough sidewalls, long-lasting rubber for a mud-terrain tire	Insane wet and dry traction, mild & severe off-road traction,
Cons	A bit noisy	Limited winter performance

As a former Bridgestone engineer, from my standpoint, BF Goodrich KM3 offers a slightly smoother and less vocal tire. BF Goodrich KM3 and Cooper STT Pro are both solid picks for wet and dry grounds. Furthermore, both have exceptional off-road performance. While BF Goodrich KM3 performs better in muddy conditions, Cooper STT Pro handles slightly better in rocky conditions. However, BF Goodrich KM3 lasts longer.

All-Terrain Tires Cheat Sheet

Finding the ideal all-terrain tire among the plethora of options available can be overwhelming. But don’t worry, my team and I have taken on this challenge head-on. Besides our hands-on experiences with these tires, we also analyze thousands of customer reviews and test reports.

Please note that: Light-Duty is 1500 series, Medium-Duty is 2500 series and Heavy-Duty is 3500 series. If you do towing or hauling, I recommend considering at least Medium-Duty tires.

Mobile users can scroll the table to the left to see the whole data.

All-Terrain Tires Cheat Sheet
Name	Category	Articles	3PMSF	Road Noise	Mileage	Fuel Economy	Riding Comfort	Responsiveness	Wet Performance	Mild Winter	Severe Winter	Mild Off-Road	Severe Off-Road	Best Fit by Pickup Truck Classification	Warranty (SL or XL)	Warranty (LT)	Product Page
Falken Wildpeak AT3W	Off Road All Terrain Tire	Review	Yes	Decent	Decent	Poor	Decent	Decent	Decent	Elegant	Elegant	Decent	Average	Light-Duty	55,000 Miles	55,000 Miles	Wildpeak AT3W
Toyo Open Country AT3	Off Road All Terrain Tire	Review	Yes	Average	Elegant	Decent	Decent	Decent	Decent	Elegant	Decent	Elegant	Decent	Medium-Duty	65,000 Miles	50,000 Miles	Toyo Open Country AT3
General Grabber ATX	Off Road All Terrain Tire	Review	Yes	Average	Decent	Decent	Decent	Decent	Decent	Decent	Decent	Elegant	Elegant	Heavy-Duty	60,000 Miles	50,000 Miles	General Grabber ATX
BF Goodrich KO2	Off Road All Terrain Tire	Review	Yes	Decent	Decent	Decent	Decent	Elegant	Decent	Decent	Decent	Elegant	Elegant	Heavy-Duty	N/A	50,000 Miles	BF Goodrich All-Terrain T/A KO2
Sumitomo Encounter AT	Off Road All Terrain Tire	Review	Yes	Decent	Decent	Average	Decent	Decent	Decent	Elegant	Average	Decent	Average	Light-Duty	60,000 Miles	60,000 Miles	Sumitomo Encounter AT
Firestone Destination XT	Off Road All Terrain Tire	Review	Yes	Average	Decent	Elegant	Decent	Elegant	Decent	Decent	Average	Decent	Decent	Heavy-Duty	N/A	50,000 Miles	Firestone Destination X/T
Cooper Discoverer AT3 XLT	On Road All Terrain Tire	Review	No	Decent	Decent	Decent	Decent	Elegant	Decent	Decent	Average	Elegant	Average	Heavy-Duty	N/A	60,000 Miles	Cooper Discoverer AT3 XLT
Falken Wildpeak AT Trail	On Road All Terrain Tire	Review	Yes	Decent	Decent	Decent	Decent	Decent	Elegant	Decent	Decent	Elegant	Average	Light-Duty	65,000 Miles	N/A	Falken Wildpeak AT Trail
Cooper Discoverer AT3 4S	On Road All Terrain Tire	Review	Yes	Elegant	Decent	Elegant	Elegant	Elegant	Elegant	Elegant	Decent	Decent	Fairy Well	Light-Duty	65,000 Miles	N/A	Cooper Discoverer AT3 4S
Firestone Destination AT2	On Road All Terrain Tire	Review	Yes	Decent	Elegant	Elegant	Elegant	Elegant	Decent	Elegant	Average	Decent	Average	Light-Duty	55,000 Miles	N/A	Firestone Destination AT2
BF Goodrich Trail Terrain T/A	On Road All Terrain Tire	Review	Yes	Elegant	Elegant	Decent	Elegant	Elegant	Decent	Decent	Average	Decent	Average	Light-Duty	60,000	N/A	BF Goodrich Trail Terrain T/A
Toyo Open Country R/T Trail	Rugged Terrain Tire	Review	Yes	Decent	Decent	Decent	Decent	Decent	Decent	Decent	Decent	Elegant	Decent	Heavy-Duty	45,000 Miles	45,000 Miles	Toyo Open Country R/T Trail
Falken Wildpeak R/T	Rugged Terrain Tire	Review	No	Decent	Decent	Average	Average	Decent	Decent	Decent	Decent	Elegant	Decent	Heavy-Duty	50,000 Miles	50,000 Miles	Falken Wildpeak R/T
Pathfinder AT Tire	On Road All Terrain Tire	Review	Yes	Average	Average	Decent	Decent	Decent	Decent	Decent	Average	Decent	Average	Light-Duty	55,000	50,000	Discount Tire Exclusive Product
Nitto Ridge Grappler	Rugged Terrain Tire	Review	No	Decent	Decent	Decent	Elegant	Decent	Decent	Decent	Decent	Elegant	Decent	Heavy-Duty	N/A	N/A	Nitto Ridge Grappler
General Grabber APT	On Road All Terrain Tire	Review	Yes	Decent	Decent	Average	Decent	Decent	Decent	Decent	Average	Decent	Fairy Well	Medium-Duty	60,000 Miles	60,000 Miles	General Grabber APT
Vredestein Pinza AT	On Road All Terrain Tire	Review	Yes	Elegant	Decent	Decent	Elegant	Decent	Decent	Decent	Decent	Decent	Average	Medium-Duty	70,000 Miles	50,000 Miles	Vredestein Pinza AT
Nitto Recon Grappler	Off Road All Terrain Tire	Review	No	Decent	Decent	Decent	Decent	Decent	Decent	Decent	Average	Elegant	Decent	Medium-Duty	65,000 Miles	55,000 Miles	Nitto Recon Grappler
Michelin Defender LTX M/S	Highway Tire	Review	No	Elegant	Elegant	Elegant	Decent	Elegant	Decent	Decent	Fairy Well	Decent	Fairy Well	Heavy-Duty	55,000 – 70,000 Miles	55,000 – 70,000 Miles	Michelin Defender LTX M/S
Kenda Klever R/T	Rugged Terrain Tire	Review	No	Average	Decent	Average	Decent	Decent	Decent	Decent	Fairy Well	Decent	Decent	Heavy-Duty	N/A	N/A	Kenda Klever R/T
Goodyear Wrangler Territory AT	On Road All Terrain Tire	Review	No	Decent	Decent	Decent	Decent	Decent	Decent	Decent	Average	Elegant	Decent	Medium-Duty	N/A	N/A	Goodyear Wrangler Territory AT
Goodyear Wrangler UltraTerrain AT	Off Road All Terrain Tire	Review	Yes	Decent	Decent	Decent	Decent	Decent	Decent	Decent	Average	Decent	Fairy Well	Medium-Duty	N/A	N/A	Discount Tire Exclusive Product
Continental Terrain Contact H/T	Highway Tire	Review	No	Elegant	Elegant	Elegant	Elegant	Elegant	Decent	Average	Poor	Decent	Poor	Heavy-Duty	70,000 Miles	60,000 Miles	Continental TerrainContact H/T
Patriot R/T	Rugged Terrain Tire	Review	Yes	Average	Average	Average	Decent	Decent	Decent	Decent	Decent	Decent	Decent	Medium-Duty	N/A	N/A	Patriot R/T+
Kenda Klever AT2	Off Road All Terrain Tire	Review	Yes	Decent	Average	Average	Decent	Decent	Decent	Decent	Average	Decent	Average	Medium-Duty	60,000 Miles	50,000 Miles	Kenda Klever AT2
Yokohama Geolander AT G015	On Road All Terrain Tire	Review	Yes	Elegant	Decent	Average	Elegant	Elegant	Decent	Decent	Average	Average	Poor	Light-Duty	60,000 Miles	50,000 Miles	Yokohama Geolandar AT G015
Mickey Thompson Baja Boss AT	Rugged Terrain Tire	Review	Yes (315 or narrower width)	Decent	Decent	Average	Decent	Elegant	Decent	Decent	Decent	Elegant	Decent	Medium-Duty	50,000 Miles	60,000 Miles	Mickey Thompson Baja Boss AT

Dry Performance

The dry performance consists of 3 different dimensions.

The first dimension is dry traction that’s not an issue for mud-terrain tires. These tires are also known as maximum traction tires. Well, dry traction is the easiest part for them.

Secondly, steering response. Steering response’s a huge game-changer in my point of view. It’s hard to reach for huge tires but not impossible.

Lastly, cornering stability. This part is tricky. These tires need flexible sidewalls due to increasing their air-down performances. Yet, manufacturers should balance this flexibility with sidewall durability.

Let’s compare them for each sub-sections.

Dry Traction

Let’s keep this part short. These are premium brand maximum traction tires. So, they’re both extremely trustworthy options regarding dry traction.

If have to pick one, I would go with BF Goodrich KM3. Its divided center section lugs will increase the biting edge area and offers slightly better traction.

Steering Response

Steering response is related to the contact patch. If your tire steps the ground completely then it’ll provide a solid steering response. Think about racing tires. They’re almost bald due to improving steering response.

In that case, our tires are close rated. Yet, if you check them closely, you can clearly see that BF Goodrich KM3 has a very well optimized and slightly less void area. Its center section almost steps the ground in whole and that’s a huge plus for quick steering response. On the other hand, bigger and differently sized center section lugs. These kinds of designs generally have an issue with steering response and balance in the latest tread life. Because they tend to wear unevenly.

BF Goodrich KM3 has a quicker steering response. Yet, Cooper STT Pro has a decent steering response. It’ll satisfy you at least %70 of its tread life.

Cornering Stability

Cornering stability is important when you’re driving at high speed. Though worth reminding, I don’t recommend using these tires at high velocity. Especially, if you’re not paying attention to your inflation pressure.

Regarding our comparison, I prefer BF Goodrich KM3 every day of the week. Its optimized sidewalls are robust and flexible at the same time. However, Cooper STT Pro has tough sidewalls. Yet, unlike BF Goodrich KM3, Cooper STT Pro is only designed for off-roading. Therefore, its sidewalls aren’t optimized for high-velocity driving.

I recommend BF Goodrich KM3 if you’re likely to use your vehicle at high speeds. Otherwise, Cooper STT Pro will meet all of your expectations.

Wet Performance

Mud-terrain tires generally struggle on wet grounds. Due to their less notched tread patterns, they have huge grip issues on wet ground. However, their water evacuation ability makes them a reliable tire regarding hydroplaning resistance.

Wet Grip

Wet grip is kinda challenging for these two. But, no worries. Both can handle it very well.

Due to their soft compounds, both have an average wet grip ability. However, Cooper STT Pro is one step ahead due to its better-notched rubber.

Cooper STT Pro is a better pick if a wet grip is your priority.

Hydroplaning Resistance

I don’t think that you’ll have an issue with hydroplaning with these tires. Yet, in case it’s important for you, here is the comparison.

Due to its narrower horizontal shoulder grooves, BF Goodrich KM3 can evacuate the water with a higher pressure. As a result, it can throw the water out of the pattern zippier.

BF Goodrich KM3 has better hydroplaning resistance.

Off-Road Performance

Off-road is where these two are shinning. Yet, they’re experts on different surfaces. Let’s evaluate them one by one and which one is better.

Dirt and Gravel

This section is for those who’re using these tires for appearances. So, you guys mostly face dirt or gravel.

Regarding dirt, both tires can perfrom perfectly. Due to their unique rubbers, they can grip like no others. Let’s say draw for this time.

Regarding gravel, both tires are trustworthy. Yet, I prefer Cooper STT Pro because its wider shoulder grooves can grip the loose ground better. On the other hand, these fellows have stone ejectors which provide consistent traction through the gravel terrains.

Just close your eyes and pick one for this section. They’re both unstoppable.

Mud

Mud performance is strongly related to water evacuation capability. In that case, shoulder biters have also had a huge impact on performance.

BF Goodrich KM3’s shoulder design promises a lot more than Cooper’s. Its shoulder grooves continue to its sidewalls. Therefore, its water evacuation ability is superior. Moreover, its sidewall biters are specially designed for loose grounds. They increase its traction ability a lot.

BF Goodrich KM3 is a better tire for mud driving. Yet, Cooper STT Pro is also a solid pick for this section.

Sand

Let’s keep it short. Less aggressive design always works better on sand. In that case, BF Goodrich KM3 is the winner of this sectiion.

Rock Crawling

Rock crawling is the expertise of BF Goodrich. Due to their robust compound selections and 3-ply sidewall addiction, BF Goodrich tires always my best picks for rock crawling. Yet, they have a tough competitor for this time.

BF Goodrich KM3 and Cooper STT Pro are equally great tires for rock crawling. While Cooper’s combine Armor-Tech3 construction with a 3-ply sidewalls, BF Goodrich has 3-ply sidewalls built with CoreGard technology. Both are beast for this section. You can confidently go each way.

Comfort and Road Noise

Unlike other tire segments, comfort and road noise aren’t aligned with each other for mud-terrain tires. These tires should have superior grip and flexible sidewalls due to perform properly off the road. So, they’re generally smooth tires. However, their huge void areas and big lugs make them the noisier tires in the market.

Regarding comfort, both are quite comfortable tires. They can absorb the reaction force on bumps with ease. Well, that’s expected. These tires should absorb rock crawling forces. Bumps are nothing for them.

I have to admit that, if you’re expecting a deaf ride, you can stop reading this article right now and start searching for all-terrain tires instead of mud. Mud-terrain tires are noisy. Yet, here is a perfect tip for you. If you’re looking for the quietest one you should pay attention to their pattern. A less void area on the center section always makes less noise.

Both offers smooth ride. Yet, BF Goodrich KM3 is a less vocal tire due to its optimized void area.

Winter Performance

Winter performance is where most mud-terrain tires are failed. Well, expect deep snow. Due to their lug-type patterns, these tires aren’t able to perform in icy conditions. Their contact patch is very limited for a decent performance on the ice. Therefore, I don’t recommend using these tires in icy conditions.

Light snow performance is highly similar to wet grip. Due to its softer compound and more siped pattern, Cooper STT Pro is a better pick for light snow. Though worth reminding, both tires have an absence of snow-biting sipes. Expecting perfect performance is nothing more than imagination.

Deep snow performance is strongly related to tires’ traction capability. In that case, shoulder biters and lugs are crucial. Due to more aggressive sidewall biters and higher void areas, Cooper STT Pro is a better pick for compact snow. However, BF Goodrich KM3 is a bit wider tire. Furthermore, its tread grooves are deeper than Cooper STT Maxx. Well, the difference is minor.

Tread Life

Tread life is the weakest point of mud-terrain tires. Due to their application range, they should grip better than other tires on the market. Hence, they have relatively soft and sticky compounds.

In that case, I’m going back to my comment in the previous sections. BF Goodrich KM3 has an optimized contact patch, which makes it a superior tire for highway usage. For this reason, its tread life is longer than Cooper STT Pro.

Due to uniform and optimized contact patches and stiffer compounds, BF Goodrich KM3 tends to wear more evenly. Thus, it will last longer than its competitor.

Getting maximum wear life from a tire is related to you as well as your tire,

If you’d like to learn how to get maximum tread life:

https://tireterrain.com/how-to-make-tires-last-longer/

Warranty

Cooper and BF Goodrich don’t offer tread life warranty for these products. Yet, uniformity warranty at first 2/32” of wear is valid for both of them.

You can click here to see Cooper’s warranty document.

You can click here to see BF Goodrich’s warranty document.

Specs

	BF Goodrich Mud-Terrain KM3	Cooper STT Pro
Category	Mud-Terrain Tire	Mud-Terrain Tire
Vehicle	Light Truck, SUV	Light Truck, SUV
Available Sizes (Rim)	15’’, 16’’, 17’’, 18’’, 20’’, 22’’	15’’, 16’’, 17’’, 18’’, 20’’, 22’’
Weight	37 – 89 lbs	42-94 lbs
Made In	Opelika, AL, USA	USA
Severe Snow Rated (3PMSF)	No (Only M+S)	No (Only M+S)
Warranty (P-metric)	N/A	45 Days Test Drive
Warranty (LT Sizes)	N/A	45 Days Test Drive
Prices	Check price section to see best possible prices	Check price section to see best possible prices

Price

The tire market has a dynamic price policy. Hence, in my point of view, sharing tire price is pointless.

Though, I’ve analyzed the top 10 brands of most popular tire brands.

Here are the dealers with a reasonable price range,

DiscountTire

Biggest dealer in the US. Founded in 1960
1000 stores in 35 states. You most probably find one on your parallel street
Free rotation and balancing
5% off for DiscountTire cardholders on online purchase
Highest rated online tire dealer in Consumer Affairs
Almost all brands are available
Delivery takes 2-4 days (30% shorter average waiting time when you book online)
Frequent discounts and promotions

BF Goodrich Mud-Terrain T/A KM3: https://www.discounttire.com/buy-tires/bfgoodrich-mud-terrain-t-a-km3

Cooper Discoverer STT Pro: https://www.discounttire.com/buy-tires/cooper-discoverer-stt-pro

TireRack

Fast and Free shipping
Usually delivered in 1 day
Joint venture with DiscountTire(their installers and dealers are on your service)
Tons of installer options, they also help you to choose the best one
Mobile installers in many areas, your tires will be replaced while you’re working in the office
Tire test results and comparisons can be found on the most product page
4.6/5 points on Google rate

BF Goodrich Mud-Terrain T/A KM3: https://www.tirerack.com/tires/bfgoodrich-mud-terrain-t-a-km3

Cooper Discoverer STT Pro: https://www.tirerack.com/tires/cooper-discoverer-stt-pro

SimpleTire

Free shipping
Delivered in 2 days
Verified shops near you(for mount and balance)
Mobile installation option
7 million customers since 2021
4.7/5 points on Google rate
Top-notch customer service, you may even request a price match

BF Goodrich Mud-Terrain T/A KM3: https://simpletire.com/brands/bfgoodrich-tires/mud-terrain-t-a-km3

Cooper Discoverer STT Pro: https://simpletire.com/brands/cooper-tires/discoverer-stt-pro

Conclusion

These tires have a tight battle. Moreover, they have a very similar application range. Well, I can confidently say that you can go both ways. Yet, the below table will help you to make the best selection.

	BF Goodrich KM3	Cooper STT Pro
Better for	Off-road adventure, lifted vehicles owners who wanna put aggressive appearance, great on-road manners for a mud terrain tire, winter traction	Squishy regions, hauling & towing, commercial usage
Pros	Insane off-road traction, tough sidewalls, long-lasting rubber for a mud-terrain tire	Insane wet and dry traction, mild & severe off-road traction,
Cons	A bit noisy	Limited winter performance

If you’ve any further questions, please leave them below. I will answer ASAP!

BF Goodrich KM3 Mud-Terrain vs KO2 All-Terrain

Updated: April 18, 2025 by Emrecan Gurkan Leave a Comment

BF Goodrich KM3 is a maximum traction tire that is often referred to as a mud-terrain tire. On the other hand, BF Goodrich KO2(review) is an off-road all-terrain tire that can perform on and off-road voluminously. Even though these two have similar product ranges, they offer slightly different things to the customers. Let’s see which one is more suitable for you!

	BF Goodrich KM3 (Mud-Terrain)	BF Goodrich KO2 (All-Terrain)
Better for	Off-road adventure, lifted vehicles owners who wanna put aggressive appearance, people who are looking for a mud-terrain tire with the best on-road manners	Snowy and squishy regions, smooth and quiet ride, towing & hauling, working trucks
Pros	Insane off-road traction, tough sidewalls, long-lasting rubber for a mud-terrain tire	Insane winter traction, unique handling mild & severe off-road traction
Cons	Noisy and stiff ride, poor winter and ice performance	A bit noisy

As a former Bridgestone engineer, from my standpoint, BF Goodrich KO2 has better on-road manners compared to KM3. It is quiet. Moreover, it has longer tread life than KM3. It overperforms BF Goodrich KM3 in wet and winter conditions. On the other hand, BF Goodrich KM3 has exceptional on-road manners compared to other mud-terrains. Moreover, off-road performance is phenomenal.