The BF Goodrich Trail Terrain is an all-terrain tire that’s built with a focus on on-road performance, which is why it’s less aggressive compared to its rugged sibling, the KO2. That said, it doesn’t completely shy away from off-road adventures as it features bold sidewall lugs that add a touch of toughness and can handle light off-roading.
Let’s talk about this tire in detail, and see if its really for you…
Now as an experienced tire engineer, I find that the BF Goodrich Trail Terrain offers amazing steering response on dry roads with powerful lateral traction values. And the tire is also one of the quietest and most fuel efficient tires that you can get in all terrain category but the tire could still use some wet traction. Moreover, it is also great on snow and has 3 peak mountain snowflake rating.
Table of Contents
Measurements Info
BF Goodrich Trail Terrain, the tire comes in 44 different sizes which go from 15 to 22 inches rim sizes. (FYI, only one size is available in 15, 235/75R15).
The tire is available in T and H speed ratings and if I talk about load range, it shows up in either XL or SL.
So with smaller load ratings, the tire’s weight range is also small, it goes from 30 lbs to 46 lbs.
Being an all terrain tires, this tire does no offer enough tread depth as all of it’s sizes get to have 12.5/32″.
Mostly AT tires get to have above 15/32″. Its significant because with more tread depth the tire take more time to wear. Nonetheless, all of the BFG Trial terrain tire sizes get to have 60k miles warranty.
All of them are also branded with M+S & 3PMSF (3-Peak Mountain Snowflake rating).
Tread Design
The BF Goodrich Trail Terrain although provides a very similar sidewall lugs compared to it’s bigger brother BFG KO2, the tire is very different in the rest of the tread areas.
Let’s start things from it’s shoulders.
Tire features staggered shoulder lugs having traction scoops, but it does not make proper blocks as the outer ribs are continuous.
They have sharp cuts in them, sure, this is what provides shoulder blocks, but they are joined towards middle.
The rib has zigzag wavelike sipes on it which are full depth, and other than this it makes sharp biters.
These ribs provide 2 outer longitudinal channels which contains the central blocks within.
Let’s move towards the middle section.
Here the BFG Trial Terrain offers 6 main ribs which run in pairs creating 3 columns.
These blocks also have full depth siping on them, though its not as interlocking.
The rubber of the tire is very smooth and soft and it splits open these ribs apart because of the siping slits.
And yes, the tire doesn’t have traditional stone ejectors because its shoulder blocks are tightly packed together, leaving no gaps.
However, it does come with triangular stone ejectors tucked inside the grooves. And they help a ton on gravel.
Durability
As for durability, the Trail Terrain sticks to a classic construction approach. It features a 2-ply polyester casing, two broad steel belts covering the tread area, and a single ply of nylon reinforcement.
And this setup provides good enough strength and stability, for everyday driving and occasional off-road adventures.
This type of construction is a usual case with all terrain tire, anything above although would be better for a slightly more rugged tire, but for this one it would be overkill.
As this tire is designed to mostly serve on roads.
Dry Pavements and Asphalts
When it comes to off road tires, they are not as capable of providing on road performance as say all season tires, but they are still good enough.
But then again all tires aren’t created equal and this goes especially for the AT tires where each tire comes up with a lot of variables which make them either better suited for either smooth tracks or rugged trails.
Let’s see where this tire lies.
Dry Grip
Grip is directly proportional to friction which depends on how much rubber of the tire get to meet with the road (mostly in the middle where most of the tire pressure is deposited).
Now here, the Trail Terrain features three pairs of tightly packed ribs in the center, which create a solid contact patch with the ground. And this design helps ensure decent grip for both everyday driving and light off-roading.
Moreover, the tire also includes full-depth sipes across these ribs.
These sipes allow the tread blocks to flex, opening and closing as the tire rolls, which improves traction in various conditions.
Dry handling
When it comes to dry handling, the shoulders of the tire play a huge role.
Actually, the more the shoulders make contact with the road, the better. This is because during sharp turns or quick maneuvers, most of the tire’s weight shifts to the sides. And this makes the contact patch on the shoulders absolutely critical for stability and control.
Now the BF Goodrich Trail Terrain nails this with its continuous running ribs along the shoulders, packed with plenty of biters for extra grip.
This design translates into impressive dry handling performance, making it a confident choice for spirited driving or navigating tight corners.
Plus the tire’s steering response is equally impressive, with those continuous running ribs on the sides, as they provide strong lateral forces during cornering, ensuring the tire stays planted and responsive.
And yes, Trail Terrain’s well-rounded contact patch is also helping here a lot, particularly providing that nice on-center feel (or you can say stability when coming out of a sharp corner).
Wet Performance
On wet roads, when the tire’s rubber meets, it pushes water outwards, but some of it still gets left behind and it’s up to the sipes to clean it off.
Now the problem with BFG Trail Terrain, is that although its sipes in the center are not interlocking in design, meaning they are simply lateral and it’s very hard for such sipes to clean off when things are directional.
But does that mean it would perform well in the handling area? Well, don’t keep your hopes there either.
Although on sides, the tire does offer interlocking sipes, the continuous design of it’s rib don’t allow them enough flexibility.
It’s also doesn’t not allow proper water evacuation, which has to do with hydroplaning.
Resistance to Hydroplaning
The faster the water is removed from the tire, the better the tire gets here. But with closed up shoulders, the BFG Trail Terrain does not offer water a path to leave out (sideways).
So overall wet traction gets limited.
Ride Comfort
Ride comfort in tires is largely influenced by their noise production and bump absorption abilities. And the BFG Trail Terrain stands out in these areas.
Its construction features a spongy internal makeup, consisting of two-ply polyester and a single ply of nylon, coupled with a top layer of softer, silica-rich rubber. This combination enhances ride smoothness by effectively absorbing road imperfections.
Additionally, the tire ranks as one of the quietest in its category of on-road oriented all-terrain tires. This is attributed to several design features:
Continuous Running Shoulders: The tire has continuous shoulders, which play a significant role in noise reduction. The primary source of tire noise often comes from air entering the shoulder voids and hitting the tread walls. The continuous shoulders in the BFG tire effectively minimize this noise at its source.
Rounded Contact Patch: The tire’s contact patch is rounded, which helps in evenly distributing the vehicle’s weight across the tire surface. This distribution reduces the intensity of the noise produced while the tire is rolling.
Variable Pitch Pattern: The tire employs a variable pitch technology, which varies the geometry of the lugs. This variation creates different tones that can cancel each other out, thereby reducing the overall noise level.
So overall, the BFG here is a standout choice for those prioritizing comfort in their tire selection.
Winter Traction
When it comes to winter performance, a tire is judged on how well it handles both shallow and deep snow, as well as icy conditions.
And let me tell you, this is where the BFG Trail Terrain shines the most. In fact it outperforms every other tire out there in its on road all terrain category.
So why is this 3 peak rated tire so good?
Well the thing is its full-depth sipes, although not so great in wet conditions, are highly effective on snowy roads, flexing and biting into the snow to provide better grip.
Additionally, the tire’s softer rubber compound is less prone to freezing up in cold temperatures compared to harder compounds.
This helps maintain flexibility and traction even when the mercury drops, making it a reliable choice for most winter conditions out there.
Tread Wear
Tread wear is analyzed by looking at the tire’s composition and structure.
And looking at BF Goodrich Trail Terrain which stays below 50 lbs in weight with single nylon cap plies, and having a softer rubber composition, takes a lot of time to burn off.
Moreover, it’s composition also includes a good Kevlar mad polymers and these really help make its rolling resistance levels pretty low.
Though they could have further improved it’s tread wear by offering slightly more depth, though it’s still good enough. The tire also comes with 60k miles warranty.
Off Road Capabilities
Off-roading comes in many forms, and the BF Goodrich Trail Terrain handles different terrains in its own way. Let’s start with muddy terrains.
Mud
So on muddy terrains, its pretty clear that this struggles to make an impression in almost all sorts of conditions.
But why it lacks especially having those staggered shoulder lugs that resemble its rugged sibling, the KO2.
Well it falls short due to its continuous shoulder rib which pack up the lateral voids. And this means mud can not pushed out sideways.
So it becomes clogged up pretty quickly, loosing traction.
Sand
On sandy terrains, the Trail Terrain performs much better.
The thing is, sand requires a balance of digging in and maintaining forward momentum. And the BFG’s design prevents that nicely.
It offers more rubber exposure to the soft sand, and the thicker sidewall lugs that flex nicely when the tire is aired down.
And the tire’s softer rubber compound, (mainly designed to handle winter temperatures), becomes even more effective with reduced pressure, making it a solid choice for sandy trails.
Rocks
On rocky terrains, the tire shows mixed results.
While its sidewall lugs look similar to the KO2 and provide decent flexing, the less aggressive shoulders limit lateral traction on rocky surfaces.
It’s not the best for serious rock crawling, but it excels on gravel thanks to its cut and chip-resistant rubber.
And as I mentioned in its design, it also features triangular stone ejectors, which efficiently clear stones from the grooves, adding to its performance.
What’s the verdict?
So overall the BFG Trail Terrain is a very nice on road oriented all terrain tire for sure.
It mostly shines in terms of fuel economy, overall ride comfort and winter performance.
Puls its also great in terms of handling on dry roads in particular, and off road in gravel.
Though it needs some help on wet roads for sure.
