BFG's kinda disappointing

merc123 · Sep 18, 2006

I bought some BFG KDW's a while back. Although my front ones are good, my back ones are wearing pretty decent and I've noticed that even with a bit of tread above the wear indicators, they have noticeable very bad traction now. I can kick my rear end out in 2nd and 3rd gear when shifting hard. I've never had a tire get this bad traction until they were just about at the wear indicators.

Are Nitto's the same way? I figured with such good reviews on the KDW it would be a better tire.

Pennywise2 · Sep 18, 2006

You must like to burn rubber lol.
Really those tires don't have a very good wear rating.
When the BFG KDW's get warm or hot they stick to the
ground quite well.The Nitto 555's are the same way.
For your next set of shoes consider the Goodyear F1 GS D3's.
They are the best pair of shoes I ever put on my mustang.

Mossberg · Sep 18, 2006

The KDWs have never been known for long life. That's why I never bought them. I am installing G Force Sports by BFG which wear a little better.

PULMEOVR · Sep 18, 2006

I hear the BFG KD's (not the "W", wet version) are quite sticky. I also have heard they wear fast. For your next set, you should consider getting some Nittos or some Goodyear Eagle GSD-3 tires (my choice).

Matt

MineralMan · Sep 18, 2006

Mossberg said:
The KDWs have never been known for long life. That's why I never bought them. I am installing G Force Sports by BFG which wear a little better.

My first set of tires on my new rims were the gForce KDW. I got over 30K miles out of them. Just recently, they did get a little "entertaining" and were very slippery. But, I was down to the wear indicators. This weekend I had a set of the gForce Sports installed, mainly for the increased tread life.

So far, in a comparison between the two... the KDWs followed every single groove and crack in the pavement, the front end tended to be "darty" over rough stuff. But on smooth stuff, the steering was very direct. From a traction standpoint, they stuck like glue. With the Sports, the front end isn't nearly as darty.... but it feels like the steering isn't as sharp. It's not old and vague like an 83 Tempo, but it's just not as crisp (its still better than the stock Goodyears). The sidewall on the Sports seems to be a touch softer than the KDWs, but it also seems to be a little taller, even though the tires are the same size, 275/35-18.

Just my .02

FivePointStang · Sep 18, 2006

Same goes for my Kumhos in the rear, and I dont EVER do burnouts. I guess I got what I paid for though. But still, youd think theyd still have lots of life left after 6 months or so of use.

And as much as the rear tires cost

merc123 · Sep 18, 2006

MineralMan said:
My first set of tires on my new rims were the gForce KDW. I got over 30K miles out of them. Just recently, they did get a little "entertaining" and were very slippery. But, I was down to the wear indicators. This weekend I had a set of the gForce Sports installed, mainly for the increased tread life.

So far, in a comparison between the two... the KDWs followed every single groove and crack in the pavement, the front end tended to be "darty" over rough stuff. But on smooth stuff, the steering was very direct. From a traction standpoint, they stuck like glue. With the Sports, the front end isn't nearly as darty.... but it feels like the steering isn't as sharp. It's not old and vague like an 83 Tempo, but it's just not as crisp (its still better than the stock Goodyears). The sidewall on the Sports seems to be a touch softer than the KDWs, but it also seems to be a little taller, even though the tires are the same size, 275/35-18.

Just my .02

You hit the nail on the head with that one. I have 275's and they follow everything! I guess Goodyear's will be my next tire of choice.

merc123 · Sep 18, 2006

PULMEOVR said:
I hear the BFG KD's (not the "W", wet version) are quite sticky. I also have heard they wear fast. For your next set, you should consider getting some Nittos or some Goodyear Eagle GSD-3 tires (my choice).

Matt

The GS-D3 tires are $30 more than the KDW's. They run $206 on TireRack and the KDW's run 177. That's quite a bit.

Dragstr05 · Sep 19, 2006

I have the KDW's on mine and I have been quite happy with them. Cornering wise, they are much better than the last set of tires I had, but they dont take shock very well, like when taking off from a light. 60' times at the track are tricky with these, but they do get pretty sticky if you warm em up just a tad before staging. I dont see any high rate of wear on mine.

GDawg · Sep 19, 2006

merc123 said:
I bought some BFG KDW's a while back. Although my front ones are good, my back ones are wearing pretty decent and I've noticed that even with a bit of tread above the wear indicators, they have noticeable very bad traction now. I can kick my rear end out in 2nd and 3rd gear when shifting hard. I've never had a tire get this bad traction until they were just about at the wear indicators.

Are Nitto's the same way? I figured with such good reviews on the KDW it would be a better tire.

Do you rotate them? That would help them last longer.

merc123 · Sep 19, 2006

GDawg said:
Do you rotate them? That would help them last longer.

The wear is from burnouts. I already knew that. My concern was how unstable they become when they wear down. Most of my previous tires were close to the wear lines before I noticed any real difference.

joshheat25 · Sep 20, 2006

So the BFG KDW is pretty ****ty! I wonder if the KDW-S is better it's a totaly different tread design!

Cory281 · Sep 21, 2006

I have KDW's on my car right now and I really like them. They do seem to grab bump and crack in the road though. But for traction and cornering they do pretty good. I got good mileage out of them also.

stangGT97 · Sep 21, 2006

Well, I agree that the KDWs track, but so did the last set of tires I had. Every tire will track a little bit, especially when you have wides ones up front. So far though, I think they're a good tire for the money, and far from crappy. You want junk? Get a set of Nankang tires, then we'll talk

merc123 · Sep 21, 2006

I'm probably going to rotate my fronts to the back and buy a new set of 245's for the front. I may stick with the KDW's for now. We'll see.

trailblz · Sep 21, 2006

Are you guys reffering to the KDW's with the "cool" untraditional tread pattern?

Only reason I ask is I just bought a car with KDW's on it (with the cool tread pattern) and it tends to hunt a bit depending on road conditions. So I went to Tire Rack to read some reviews and they have a KDW and a KDW-2 (the one with the cool tread pattern). None of the reviews on tirerack noted any type of hunting.

Dope 97GT · Sep 21, 2006

I had KDW 2's on my saleens 285's in the back and they hooked really good I liked them a lot. You have to remember the kdws are just a street tire you can ask too much from them unless you get a drag radial. But my KDW2's hook way better than the goodyear F1 supercars I have on there now and the Goodyears are 295's.

joshheat25 · Sep 21, 2006

KDW 2's what the hell is that where can I get these at???

Torinalth · Sep 21, 2006

it depends on the site, KDW-NT or KDW2 or KDW (alternate) are the listings... they are just the one with the "flames" tread pattern. the older KDW style is more of an oldschool muscle car looking tread pattern. they perform identically from what BFG says, the new tread pattern is marketing... and working. just look for the not standard trad pattern and buy it... or get the classic look.

the KDW will track, of all the tires i've had they did iut the most. they also gripped the most in lateral force. strait line they were nearly identical with a slight edge over the nitto 555. GSd3 wil be my next tire just for comparison as everyone that has them raves over them, however i will quickly go back to the KDW if i am not impressed. i need lateral holding, i dont care as much about strait grip.

the KDW wear quickly, no disputing that, and the burnouts are contageous with the KDW... did more with thm then any other tire for some reason. the KDW-S i had for a while (thinking and hoping similer hold with more tread life) but hated them, lasted longer, a lot less hold, but HEY i could drive in the snow!!!! yay.

KDW> 555> Falken Azenis>kumho 712> Gforce sport> kdw-s> direzza> Fuzion.

next up is GSD3 and then probably dunlop sp sport MAXX.... unless something else comes to the top of the tire charts. take my thoughts for what its worth.

Torinalth

merc123 · Sep 21, 2006

I have the KDW which is the older tread pattern. I agree that they have great lateral traction (until my rears wore down) and I have done burnouts more with these tires than any other. I haven't a clue why. Could be the whole coming back from Iraq thing. I'm interested in the GSD3 comparison

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