i just got a set of 4 put on the truck today. initial impresson is good. ill try to get some pics and a limited (conditions) review in a few days. for now, looks are killer, just a tiny bit of noise that the wife probably wont notice. they are pretty smooth too
GOAT721
size and load rating? What were you coming from?
These are very interesting tires for sure. I went with the AT4w cuz i was scared the baja boss would be a little too beefy treadwise for me haha
These are very interesting tires for sure. I went with the AT4w cuz i was scared the baja boss would be a little too beefy treadwise for me haha
coming from a BFG K02. both old and new tires are 33x12.5r18 and both are load range E. should be a pretty good apples to apples comparison
so, im a bit over a week in and here are my thoughts so far. as a reminder, 33x12.5r18, E range, stock wheels. my scores below are for the category of aggressive AT (this truck has had duratracs, KO2s, and now the Baja Boss)
Visual
this tire is visually much more aggressive than i expected. there was a co-worker that had them on his truck and from what i remember, his were less aggressive (closer tread spacing). i wonder if its due to his being a smaller LT sized tire (on a stock height nissan frontier) and mine being larger and a flotation sized tire. the shoulder treads are deep and wide enough that i can fit a finger in the tread spacing. the sidewalls are crazy aggressive. they are very deep and should be a huge help when aired down on the beach or other soft surfaces. pics do NOT do them justice. overall, i personally love the look and while that is subjective, i give them a 10/10 for looks
Profile
this could almost be part of looks, but there is a functional aspect to this so i will break it out. these are the same size as the KO2s that came off my truck. the KO2 definitely has a more square profile and transition from the tread to side wall. the Baja Boss has a more rounded transition. i personally like the widest ground contact possible but the rounder profile should provide more even ground pressure when aired down and flex out better. that could be an advantage for me on the beach. i will give a --/10 since there I dont have a true criterial for what is better. edit, the metric sizes i have seen on other trucks have a more square profile
Contact Patch
i am noticing the same non "issue" with these as i did with my KO2s. the outer bit of tread doesnt seem to make contact with the ground. im talking about maybe 1/2 inch or so per side of the tire. my assumption is that its due to running a 12.5"' wide tire on a 8.5" wheel. being on the low end of the acceptable wheel with window, this is a bit expected. i assume the front edges will contact while turning. this caused no problems with my last set, and i am not too worried about this set.
Noise
There is no noise below about 40mph. above that, noticeable noise begins however it is NOT that wah wah wah wah sound of a mud tire. it is a more steady sound like wind noise but at a different frequency. the noise doesnt come close to interfering with conversation at all. i suspect some of the older guys might not even notice. comparatively, the KO2s were damn near silent, even after 35k miles. i did rotate them every 5k. ill give a 6.5/10 for noise (update 27 June, i dont even really notice the noise anymore. not changing the score because its more likely an adaptation on my part). edit 2, november, they are a bit more noisy after each rotation. i think the noise subsides after a few weeks post rotation
MPG
Coming to work is about 30 miles. pulling into the parking lot the DIC will typically read 19.x to 20.x mpg depending on ambient temperature (mpg is typically a little better above 50F and more improvement is seen around 60F). I have been in the same ball bark (over 19 each day) with the Baja Boss. I did have a 200 mile round trip drive into NJ and back and mpg was around 20. i think i would have dont a bit better with the KO2s, but it has been very windy most of march so i will have to see how i do when it settles down. UPDATE - starting to constantly get numbers matching the KO2s now. changed from 6.5 to 8/10 for MPG
Handling
I have not had to do any emergency maneuvers or panic stops so no real value to provide here. in general driving there are no quirks or oddities. For now, i dont think i can give a score, but i will just say no complaints.
Comfort
These are heavy and E rated, and that it is what i am used to. they have not made the ride jaring or uncomfortable in any way. infact, i think they do a good job of absorbing the small road chatter associated with rough pavement or a gravel road. that beign said, they also have not made the truck ride like a 80s cadilac (not expected though). i will give them an 8.5/10
Stones
I was very concerned that these would throw stones any chance they got. i have a 1/2 mile gravel road that leads up to the building i work in. the KO2s threw a lot of stones when new, but threw less as they wore. i have to say i am incredibly impressed with the lack of stone throws from the Baja Boss. maybe ill hear one a day (i make 4 passes down the gravel road a day). also, there are not stones stuck in the tire that havent come out. the treads are clear of rocks. obviously this will depend greatly on the size and consistency of the gravel you drive on, but for what i drive on, i couldnt be happier (note, the gravel in the pic is the most fine gravel i drive on. my drive in has as course as 3/4 with an occasional 1"). (note 2, the first pic shows a mud flap, i have since removed them with no noticeable increase in stone "pings") 10/10. UPDATE - i dont know if the treads loosened up with a few miles on them or if they regraded my access road with a different stone (dont think so), but they do pick up and throw some stones now. dropping to 6.5/10
Wet
Now a couple weeks in, we have finally had some rain. The big observation is the ability of these tires to evacuate water. between deep treads and wide spacing (especially on the outer treads), these things really do a good job of staying in contact with the ground when you hit standing water on the road. this is what i was really looking for an improvement over the KO2 as the tread pattern doesnt provide great evacuation paths. i never noticed any traction issues (not that i would expect to as i was driving normally). i will add a bit to this if i happen to tow my boat in the rain since i routinely broke my old tires loose when starting from a red light with the boat behind the truck. 8.5/10
Sand
pretty impressed. generally the more aggressive tread pattern, the more they dig and dont perform well on sand. these are probably the most aggressive AT hybrid on the market and have very wide tread spacing. i have been on the beach twice as i write this in july 2024. the first time, in may, i just went on real quick to check conditions as a nor easter was approaching. i was still at highway pressure (55 front, 45 rear). even at that pressure, the truck got around and was able to start from a stop on soft but level sand. it definitely wasnt happy though and had steady wheel spin during forward progress. the side walls really threw some sand. i went back this past week and dropped pressure to 30 front, 22 rear for the whole week. i figured this would be a decent compromise for sand and street. i was pretty happy, it got around very well and no wheel spin when driving sensibly. the only thing it didnt want to do was climb an incline in soft sand from a stop. it dug down. i was able to back out, and made it up easily with a bit of a running start (no yee yee stuff, just a bit of momentum). there was no wheel spin while driving up and down the beach, and with that, little to no sand being flung up by the side walls. the lower pressure didnt produce any bad handling characteristics on the street (all street driving was pretty tame, under 30 mph except for a 2 mile section of highway that is pretty darn straight) ill be back in august, and will play with pressure some more as i will go on a few different sections of beach, one is very soft. ill prob go to 17/17 for that.
just got back from my second beach week. pretty much the same as last time as last time with the exception of trying a day dropping the front down to 15 psi putting me at 15/21. holy crap, did it get around easy. could craw anywhere i wanted, could stop anywhere i wanted and just start going again. assume a less aggressive tire with tighter treads would be better, but im pretty comfortable giving these an 9/10 for my beach driving.
Snow
i got thes put on in march, its gonna be a while...
Mud/Offroad
i dont typically seek this out, but every now and then i find myself in a situation. will update after that
Towing
i tow a 8-9k boat & trailer combo. i will update once i pull it out of storage. should be within 2 months or so. UPDATE - towed my boat home last weekend. no issues. no emergency maneuvers required, but felt stable during normal driving (mostly back roads). after towing the boat all summer, no issues. no sway or wallowing, good load support. a more street friendly tire would rob a bit less power and be a bit more efficient. 7.5/10.
![Image]()
![Image]()
![Image]()
Visual
this tire is visually much more aggressive than i expected. there was a co-worker that had them on his truck and from what i remember, his were less aggressive (closer tread spacing). i wonder if its due to his being a smaller LT sized tire (on a stock height nissan frontier) and mine being larger and a flotation sized tire. the shoulder treads are deep and wide enough that i can fit a finger in the tread spacing. the sidewalls are crazy aggressive. they are very deep and should be a huge help when aired down on the beach or other soft surfaces. pics do NOT do them justice. overall, i personally love the look and while that is subjective, i give them a 10/10 for looks
Profile
this could almost be part of looks, but there is a functional aspect to this so i will break it out. these are the same size as the KO2s that came off my truck. the KO2 definitely has a more square profile and transition from the tread to side wall. the Baja Boss has a more rounded transition. i personally like the widest ground contact possible but the rounder profile should provide more even ground pressure when aired down and flex out better. that could be an advantage for me on the beach. i will give a --/10 since there I dont have a true criterial for what is better. edit, the metric sizes i have seen on other trucks have a more square profile
Contact Patch
i am noticing the same non "issue" with these as i did with my KO2s. the outer bit of tread doesnt seem to make contact with the ground. im talking about maybe 1/2 inch or so per side of the tire. my assumption is that its due to running a 12.5"' wide tire on a 8.5" wheel. being on the low end of the acceptable wheel with window, this is a bit expected. i assume the front edges will contact while turning. this caused no problems with my last set, and i am not too worried about this set.
Noise
There is no noise below about 40mph. above that, noticeable noise begins however it is NOT that wah wah wah wah sound of a mud tire. it is a more steady sound like wind noise but at a different frequency. the noise doesnt come close to interfering with conversation at all. i suspect some of the older guys might not even notice. comparatively, the KO2s were damn near silent, even after 35k miles. i did rotate them every 5k. ill give a 6.5/10 for noise (update 27 June, i dont even really notice the noise anymore. not changing the score because its more likely an adaptation on my part). edit 2, november, they are a bit more noisy after each rotation. i think the noise subsides after a few weeks post rotation
MPG
Coming to work is about 30 miles. pulling into the parking lot the DIC will typically read 19.x to 20.x mpg depending on ambient temperature (mpg is typically a little better above 50F and more improvement is seen around 60F). I have been in the same ball bark (over 19 each day) with the Baja Boss. I did have a 200 mile round trip drive into NJ and back and mpg was around 20. i think i would have dont a bit better with the KO2s, but it has been very windy most of march so i will have to see how i do when it settles down. UPDATE - starting to constantly get numbers matching the KO2s now. changed from 6.5 to 8/10 for MPG
Handling
I have not had to do any emergency maneuvers or panic stops so no real value to provide here. in general driving there are no quirks or oddities. For now, i dont think i can give a score, but i will just say no complaints.
Comfort
These are heavy and E rated, and that it is what i am used to. they have not made the ride jaring or uncomfortable in any way. infact, i think they do a good job of absorbing the small road chatter associated with rough pavement or a gravel road. that beign said, they also have not made the truck ride like a 80s cadilac (not expected though). i will give them an 8.5/10
Stones
I was very concerned that these would throw stones any chance they got. i have a 1/2 mile gravel road that leads up to the building i work in. the KO2s threw a lot of stones when new, but threw less as they wore. i have to say i am incredibly impressed with the lack of stone throws from the Baja Boss. maybe ill hear one a day (i make 4 passes down the gravel road a day). also, there are not stones stuck in the tire that havent come out. the treads are clear of rocks. obviously this will depend greatly on the size and consistency of the gravel you drive on, but for what i drive on, i couldnt be happier (note, the gravel in the pic is the most fine gravel i drive on. my drive in has as course as 3/4 with an occasional 1"). (note 2, the first pic shows a mud flap, i have since removed them with no noticeable increase in stone "pings") 10/10. UPDATE - i dont know if the treads loosened up with a few miles on them or if they regraded my access road with a different stone (dont think so), but they do pick up and throw some stones now. dropping to 6.5/10
Wet
Now a couple weeks in, we have finally had some rain. The big observation is the ability of these tires to evacuate water. between deep treads and wide spacing (especially on the outer treads), these things really do a good job of staying in contact with the ground when you hit standing water on the road. this is what i was really looking for an improvement over the KO2 as the tread pattern doesnt provide great evacuation paths. i never noticed any traction issues (not that i would expect to as i was driving normally). i will add a bit to this if i happen to tow my boat in the rain since i routinely broke my old tires loose when starting from a red light with the boat behind the truck. 8.5/10
Sand
pretty impressed. generally the more aggressive tread pattern, the more they dig and dont perform well on sand. these are probably the most aggressive AT hybrid on the market and have very wide tread spacing. i have been on the beach twice as i write this in july 2024. the first time, in may, i just went on real quick to check conditions as a nor easter was approaching. i was still at highway pressure (55 front, 45 rear). even at that pressure, the truck got around and was able to start from a stop on soft but level sand. it definitely wasnt happy though and had steady wheel spin during forward progress. the side walls really threw some sand. i went back this past week and dropped pressure to 30 front, 22 rear for the whole week. i figured this would be a decent compromise for sand and street. i was pretty happy, it got around very well and no wheel spin when driving sensibly. the only thing it didnt want to do was climb an incline in soft sand from a stop. it dug down. i was able to back out, and made it up easily with a bit of a running start (no yee yee stuff, just a bit of momentum). there was no wheel spin while driving up and down the beach, and with that, little to no sand being flung up by the side walls. the lower pressure didnt produce any bad handling characteristics on the street (all street driving was pretty tame, under 30 mph except for a 2 mile section of highway that is pretty darn straight) ill be back in august, and will play with pressure some more as i will go on a few different sections of beach, one is very soft. ill prob go to 17/17 for that.
just got back from my second beach week. pretty much the same as last time as last time with the exception of trying a day dropping the front down to 15 psi putting me at 15/21. holy crap, did it get around easy. could craw anywhere i wanted, could stop anywhere i wanted and just start going again. assume a less aggressive tire with tighter treads would be better, but im pretty comfortable giving these an 9/10 for my beach driving.
Snow
i got thes put on in march, its gonna be a while...
Mud/Offroad
i dont typically seek this out, but every now and then i find myself in a situation. will update after that
Towing
i tow a 8-9k boat & trailer combo. i will update once i pull it out of storage. should be within 2 months or so. UPDATE - towed my boat home last weekend. no issues. no emergency maneuvers required, but felt stable during normal driving (mostly back roads). after towing the boat all summer, no issues. no sway or wallowing, good load support. a more street friendly tire would rob a bit less power and be a bit more efficient. 7.5/10.
side note. i spoke with Mickey Thompson tech support because i wanted to ask about the siping. the siping goes 3/4 down the tread so they should be present for the full life of the tire.
great write up. I might steal the format for my new skins too. glad you are liking them, a very neat tire for sure.
Man, those threads sure are chunky too haha. Definitely subbed for your continued thoughts on them. I have never run a Mickey thompson, if they were cheaper than the Falkens I would have considered it!
and yeah, going by mickeys website, you have 18.5/32" of tread depth. So those and the Falken have the deepest tread in the category, unless im outdated. Funny cuz just by pics, your tread looks tall A F.
I would love to know what you end up running them for a daily pressure, and how they wear etc. On my C's I set them at 39 unladen to start. gonna chalk it this weekend maybe haha.
Did you get an alignment with the tires? if not, would love to know your current or last set specs if you were happy with them, im still dialing mine in and we have similar front ends.
and yeah, going by mickeys website, you have 18.5/32" of tread depth. So those and the Falken have the deepest tread in the category, unless im outdated. Funny cuz just by pics, your tread looks tall A F.
I would love to know what you end up running them for a daily pressure, and how they wear etc. On my C's I set them at 39 unladen to start. gonna chalk it this weekend maybe haha.
Did you get an alignment with the tires? if not, would love to know your current or last set specs if you were happy with them, im still dialing mine in and we have similar front ends.
good call on the PSI, definitely should have added it. 45 psi front, 33 psi rear for unloaded driving. (on a scale, i have 3500lbs on the front axle, 2500 on the rear axle). the outer 1/2 of tread still doesnt touch the ground on the rear (i am in wheel with spec for the tires). i typically bring the back up to closer to 40 when boat towing season starts and up to 50 or so when i start hauling fresh cut oak firewood
did not get an alignment. i got one 3 years ago after the truck got hit. i have had perfect tire wear on the KO2s and she will track down the center of the lane on the interstate with no hands on the wheel.
the treads definitely look very deep. i will also try to get a pic that better shows the sidewall tread
did not get an alignment. i got one 3 years ago after the truck got hit. i have had perfect tire wear on the KO2s and she will track down the center of the lane on the interstate with no hands on the wheel.
the treads definitely look very deep. i will also try to get a pic that better shows the sidewall tread
yeah and i dunno if you kept those specs, but id love to see em. 
. I think my problem is in caster settings tbh.
Okay, awesome, very glad to read 33. Mine at 37 psi cold this AM, and the center line has already worn off the rear, still present out front. I was halfway shocked that the rears seemed overinflated. But, awesome. I'll probably start at like 35 rear or something as I have the short bed and likely a little tighter on the F/R weight spread. appreciate it
. I think my problem is in caster settings tbh. Okay, awesome, very glad to read 33. Mine at 37 psi cold this AM, and the center line has already worn off the rear, still present out front. I was halfway shocked that the rears seemed overinflated. But, awesome. I'll probably start at like 35 rear or something as I have the short bed and likely a little tighter on the F/R weight spread. appreciate it
dont have the specs on the alignment, sorry.
and overall, i feel that most do have their rears over inflated for daily driving empty. now if you frequently haul, then i get bumping them up to handle the extra weight, but pick ups are so light in the back, they dont really need much
and overall, i feel that most do have their rears over inflated for daily driving empty. now if you frequently haul, then i get bumping them up to handle the extra weight, but pick ups are so light in the back, they dont really need much
I tried to do what you did, but, mysteriously I either have very fat index fingers, yours very small, or those treads on your tires are beeeeeefcakes hahaha
So far I've landed on 34r/41f cold. They get up to 37/44. The rears are wearing really nicely and like dead flat. Juries still out on the fronts. Good call though, truck handles much better overall set closer to your numbers and with a spread. The rear does feel a little draggy on lane changes, but, worth the ride haha.
I can finally just feel more spring than tire and oh baby that's a nice feeling haha.
How are you liking the Mickey's a little further in?
![Image]()
So far I've landed on 34r/41f cold. They get up to 37/44. The rears are wearing really nicely and like dead flat. Juries still out on the fronts. Good call though, truck handles much better overall set closer to your numbers and with a spread. The rear does feel a little draggy on lane changes, but, worth the ride haha.
I can finally just feel more spring than tire and oh baby that's a nice feeling haha.
How are you liking the Mickey's a little further in?
Glad you like em. I wish I would've put those on my silverado.
I just got my first set of Mickey Legends on my gmc last October. Difference is I don't drive it enough to wear out any out. Tires just rot on the wheel.
I just got my first set of Mickey Legends on my gmc last October. Difference is I don't drive it enough to wear out any out. Tires just rot on the wheel.
updated "Stones"
also, there is an outside chance that i will get on the beach this weekend and be able to do a sand assessment
also, there is an outside chance that i will get on the beach this weekend and be able to do a sand assessment
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