FWIW. The BFG At’s you refer to in 2002 are not made anymore. They did a pretty big redesign and they are now the KO2’s. They may (or may not) still suck in the mud, but they are a different tire than the ones you used.
Just had the boss lady's Colorado at Sam's Monday, for a new set of Hancook "highway" tires.
Plenty of time to kill while there. Stack of 275/18" BFGs there in the show room area. Didn't really see much difference in their tread design, than the 2002 TA K0s I once had. Exactly what did I miss, 'cause I ain't no where near blind, yet?
One big change most tire makers made in "AT" type tires, was back in the late 80s or early 90s. Had a set of Firestones on my '80 Chevy 4x4. Forget the name, but they were wide, aggressive tread gums designed for off road use. They worked fairly well off road, but were a handful on the highways in heavy rains. Hydroplaned enough that you really needed to pay attention in standing water at highway speeds. Buddy put a similar set of Goodyears on his truck, noticed the same problem.
It was a few years later that manufacturers opened up the shoulder tread, so water could escape. If you had a set of tires like the ones we had and hit standing water going 65, things could get dicey right quick.
