Supported by a global company, BFG Tires are a major section of the tire market. If you have owned the tires you may have a little information about BFG and their tires. Most people know little more than the type of tire they have on their vehicle. However, knowing the company that you are buying from is an important part of buying tires or any product, for that matter. This article aims to educate you a little about the company, its tires, and your future tire purchases.
History
BFG stands as an acronym for B. F. Goodrich, which started as a company called the Goodrich Corporation. It was an aerospace manufacturing company based out of Charlotte, North Carolina. The took a step up north to Akron, Ohio in 1870 and became Goodrich, Tew, and Company that was owned by Dr. Benjamin Franklin Goodrich a local doctor. Dr. Goodrich brought his current company to fruition by buying Hudson Rubber Company and making a new name B F Goodrich Company in 1880. From there they have consumed Uniroyal the old United States Rubber Company and through many business deals and sold off their aerospace products for the sake of selling tires.
Now the real kicker is that in 1988 the Goodrich Co. left the tire business, but uses of the name were sold to Michelin.
Current Business
Despite changing hands, the BFG name still produces quality BFG tires. They provide for the typical daily driver, the off-roader, and the racer. In fact they offer eight different categories of tires:
*Tuner
- A tuner car is an import, with performance modifications and not necessarily a racing vehicle. They are popular in rally competitions and street races. For the most part they are made in Japan, where the focus is to get the most power from the smallest engine possible and lower curb weight to make up for this lack of torque. Basically, it means they are made to fast on curvy roads and race tracks.
*Sports Car
- The thing to remember about these are that a car can be a sporting model without being a sports car. They are a low car with a very high powered engine with only two seats. It for sporting performance and not utility. These go fast and look good.
*Passenger Car
- Just as the name suggests these are made for carrying passengers. Some people call them sedans and will vary from compact size to quite large luxury vehicles.
*Family SUV
- An SUV stands for sport utility vehicle with four wheel drive. This means they are meant to travel off the road or on rougher ones. Suggesting that is family means this falls into a different category of SUV. These are called Crossover SUVs, which are not meant for extreme off-roading, but rather have the capabilities of handling light off-road driving and have the high ground clearance of other SUVs.
* Sport Truck
- These are trucks made for handling and performance driving, but typically have a lower suspension than most other trucks. Most trucks offer 4WD, but these can offer 2WD.
*Pickup Truck
- This type of truck is the other one you see that offers the standard, extended, and crew cab options. You will also see a difference in the open bed of the truck which can vary between short to larger beds.
*Off-Road
- This is any vehicle that can be driven off paved roads and has been mechanically engineered to withstand the unpredictable terrain.
*Racing
- If you take your vehicle on a professional track for racing and it does not fit into the category of Tuner. These are often specialized for the type of track you would be racing on.
Helping You Choose a Tire
BFG's website offers a tire selector. This is an easy want to get recommendations from the experts that work for BFG without sitting in line or spending hours on the phone with customer service. You have three options for finding the right tire.
1. The first is entering your vehicle specifics: year, make, model, and options.
2. Next is the find by tire size, which you can find in your owner's manual or on the sidewall of your tire. You will need the type, width, ratio, and diameter.
3. The last option is much simpler and will give you a wider array of options. It is simply searching by the tire's name.
Each is followed by selecting the “Find” button that will lead you to a page with your specified selection(s).
Finding BFG Tire Dealers
One of the best and quickest option is to use the “dealer locator” option at the top of their webpage. It allows you to enter a city and state or zip code in order to find dealers close to you. You can limit the number by the distance (miles) from your location. This location does not have to be a home location. You can use this locator if you are away from home and are in need of BFG tires. Another great part of the locator, in this respect, is that you can choose to look for a dealer who is open on the weekends or services Fleet National Accounts.
Example Location Found:
Discount Tire Center
1234 Alphabet Street
Letter City, USA 12345
(123) 456-7890
Distance 3.0 miles
Hours of Operation
M-F: 7:00am – 4:00pm
Sat: 8:00am – 5:00pm
Sun: 9:00am – 4:00pm
Now that you know the tire you want and you know where you can go to get it. Then you should know some of the better deals on the market. Your first option is to check out the local ads in your newspaper and call around to local dealers who you have found using the Dealer Locator. Another option is the one you are using now to find BFG Tires; Internet. You can do a basic search in most search engines to find exactly what you are looking for and the price range required. Remember that buying online will incur some costs that you would not see in a local tire shop. You will see shipping costs and then find someone to install the tires for you. Both can get costly. However, there are some places that offer free shipping with certain tires and certain amounts of tires. Some even discount your installation if you have your tires shipped to a dealer they support.
These were found using basic criteria of BFG Tires:
*Tire Rack (dot com)
BFG Radial T/A – Performance All-Season
- 205/70R14 – 93S
- $81.00 (each) or $324 (4)
This is your basic deal with no discounts.
*Discount Tire (dot com)
BFG G-Force T/A KDW NT
- 245/45R-18 96Y BSW
- $182.00 (each)
Now they give you the option of which store to send the tires to, in this case American Tire Company was chosen
*Extra Fees:
- Environmental Fee - $1.75 (each)
- Old Tire Disposal Fee - $2.25 (each)
- Valve Stem and Lifetime Rotation - $FREE
- Installation and Lifetime Spin Balancing - $15.00 (each)
*Also, be prepared to see upsells from the mechanics handling your installation.
Warranty
Every set of BFG Tires have a limited warranty which covers any defects in workmanship or the materials used in the making of the tire. This is for the life of the original tread or six years from the time you purchase the tires. It depends on which happens first. Depending on the tread design, you may also be covered by an additional limited warranty based on mileage put on the tires.
Tread Design Examples:
- Precept Touring
80,000
- Premier
65,000 Miles
- Advantage T/A
60,000
BFG Tires are a responsible choice for anyone looking for new tires. With this information you should be able to choose the best for your car and your safety.