I’ve done around 160,000Km’s on two sets of these tyres and obviously have been happy with their performance or I wouldn’t have got the second set.

I first started using the BFG over ten years ago, so as you could imagine there wasn’t a lot of choice back then, not like today where there are too many to mention.  The BFG cretainly set the standard for mud and allterrain tyres, they gained a reputation for longevity and for actually working well in the conditions they were designed.

After such a long time on the tyres I found that they lacked grip on wet bitumen and would let go suddenly, making for nervous roundabout negotiation.  Thay were a reasonably quiet mud tyre that travelled well on dry bitumen.

On gravel roads the tyres ehibited similar characteristics to wet bitumen, that is they would let go suddenly and a heap of correction would be required.  Now I’m no boy racer, I have been 4WDing for over 30 years now and often have my family with me, so any young guns would probably find these situations more often than I did.

In the rough stuff, the tyres performed well in all situations except the red sticky mud that is so often found in our bush.  Here the tyres quickly gummed up and became like slicks on a wet race track.

I am meticulous with my tyre care.  They are rotated every 5,000Km and pressures checked religiously.  I am sure this is why I was able to get such great mileage out of a mud tyre.  However, my second set did not last as long sa my first and the reason for this was my fault.

I did a 7,500Km outback trip in 14 days.  As you can probably imagine, most of this was on outback gravel roads or 4WD tracks.  The problem for any tyre in this scenario is that the front tyres kick up and loosen the surface for the back tyres.  When this happens for thousands of kilometers, the rear tyres really take a hiding.  When I got back home the rear tyres were worn down far more than the fronts.  They were also chipped a lot more, though no where near what people have complained about with other makes.

The moral is to stop halfway through a trip like this and have the tyres rotated.

Anyway here’s my rating for the BFG Mud Terrain…

Dry Bitumen	★★★☆
Wet Bitumen	★★☆
Gravel Roads	★★★
Dry 4×4	★★★★
Mud	★★☆
Rock	★★★
Sand	★★★☆

Keep in mind that these ratings are based on my type of driving, that is, no hardcore competition work, simply the type of terrain you are most likely to find in your 4WD adventures.

See you out there!

ngine Bay Protection Placing a tarp across the front of the 4x4 minimizes water entering the engine bay by creating a bow wave, provided forward momentum is maintained. The result is less water for the radiator fan to spray over the ignition system, less chance of water entering the air intake and less likely for the fan to propel its way up to and through the radiator. Diesel 4x4's are usually better for water crossings as you do not have the ignition system to worry about. Water in the ignition system usually results in a stalled engine and not actual engine damage, though this is of little comfort when you find yourself stuck in the middle of a crossing. Depending on the water depth, its advisable to climb out of your window rather than open the door and flood your carpets. To minimize stalling from a wet ignition, it's a good idea to spray all the ignition system with water repellent beforehand.