Hey Guys…I had new 275/55r20 BFG A/T KOs installed on my Defender X SE last week and am experiencing a loud left front tire, which grows louder at 20 mph and louder when braking.

For background, I installed the 1.5" PR lift rods before I installed the tires, then removed the lift once I returned back home from the installation. The next day, I returned to the shop, who reviewed all thr tires and even swapped the spare in for the left front tire to ensure the issue wasn’t the bfgs. So, not a balancing issue.

I took the truck into my local mechanic for an alignment but they didn’t the tools to complete. They did tell me that they noticed a dry spot on the front left rotor, which could be causing the tire "whirl" noise. Strange. My next step is the LR stealership, who is 3 weeks out from the next available appointment..

Anyone out there experience anything similar? Thoughts? Appreciate your feedback

 

If I am not mistaken you can only adjust one (Toe) out of the three main alignments on the new Defenders. I bet it is just a normal meatier tread sound from AT. My MT's currently roar the loudest between 34-38 especially when braking. Love the rims btw. Good looking Defender.

 

Even the 19" Goodyear Wrangler Duratracs definitely have a low level hum that gets louder and pretty noticeable upon braking, compared to the same size Wrangler Adventures that the car came with originally (which were whisper quiet all the time), and I definitely rate the Duratracs among the quietest A/T I've ever had on any of my Land Rover vehicles. My guess is that there is nothing wrong with your setup and you just need to get used to the noise, which is definitely substantial with stiff, heavy and chunky Light Truck tires such as the BFG KO2s.

FWIW, Land Rover used to recommend Hunter Road Force wheel balancers only a few years ago (all LR dealerships had to install those balancers in their shop), not sure if they still do as the competition may have caught up with Hunter's technology, which used to be far superior and resolved vibration issues that other spin balancers could not, especially on 20" and larger wheels.

 

Thanks for the feedback. I’ve had bfg ats on 4 of my vehicles, including an old D2, and none have sounded like this. I plan to find an alignment shop, maybe Firestone, while I wait for the dealership spot. Will circle back around once I isolate the issue.

 

It's hard to compare sounds ... but I have the KO2's and haven't noticed any difference in the quality of sound vs the GY Adventures they replaced. I do have a frontrunner roof rack which may be masking sounds from the tires ... but, I frequently run without radio and nothing jumps out.

 

wlindsey, what psi are you running? For you have the D rated 275/55s?

 

I settled on about 10lbs under max - which is way higher than most. I’m running them at 55lbs rear and 53lbs front.

 

Have you looked to see if they are rubbing the suspension arm ever so slightly? I know that width has been a topic of discussion with the factory offset and no spacers.

 

It’s a good call out. I had the same size Michelin AT2s on before the bfgs, so didn’t think to look. Different tire, so worth a shot. They don’t appear to be rubbing:

 

Failed to mention, I aired the tires up from 36f and 41r to 47f and 52r today to rule out pressure. Other than riding like ****, no changes. My “whirl” is still there.

My local tire shop wouldn’t touch the alignment, said their equipment isn’t current enough..but did say that there appears to be a “dry spot” on the rotor and recommended that I point it out to my dealer. Said it could amplify the noise I’m hearing during breaking. My appt is mid-Sept