Snow tires- are Hankooks any good?

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Topic Author
protagonist
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Snow tires- are Hankooks any good?

Post by protagonist »

I have been researching snow tires, and Hankooks actually seem to get very good reviews on multiple sites, despite being at least $50 cheaper per tire at Discount Tire than Michelins or Bridgestones. I am surprised. And skeptical.

Anybody with experience?
dennyt
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Re: Snow tires- are Hankooks any good?

Post by dennyt »

Yes, I've had good luck with Hankook as well as General.
el47
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Re: Snow tires- are Hankooks any good?

Post by el47 »

I bought a set of Hankook i*Pike RW11s last winter from DTD mounted on cheap steelies and they are fantastic. I couldn’t bring myself to spend the extra $ on X-Ices & Blizzaks especially with the combination of the DT promo & Hankook rebate. Granted, this is my first set of snow tires so I can’t compare with other snow tire models, but I’ve been very happy with my i*Pikes. Good luck!
IMO
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Re: Snow tires- are Hankooks any good?

Post by IMO »

Have had a set and was happy with them.

Presume of course that you are getting these studded and are not talking about just using the tire alone without studs.

Also advise buying a set of inexpensive winter rims for the tires.
onourway
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Re: Snow tires- are Hankooks any good?

Post by onourway »

Personally I would avoid studs unless you live in an area where roads are snow and ice covered the majority of the time. Otherwise they are tremendously louder than non-studded tires, and actually provide worse traction and handling on dry and wet winter roads than a regular winter tire.

I would expect the Hankooks to have plenty good traction in most conditions. The other factors to consider whether its worth paying more for are ride quality, noise level, and longevity of the tire as a functional winter performer. Some brands (namely Nokian/Nordman) are worth the extra cost IMO because they excel in all of these categories, providing excellent winter grip even when low on tread depth.
motorcyclesarecool
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Re: Snow tires- are Hankooks any good?

Post by motorcyclesarecool »

I live in snow country, and I am very satisfied with the performance of the studded (DW) and non studded (mine) iPike tires from Hankook. South Korea’s finest automotive export.
A bonus of having studded tires is you can’t wait to get them off in the spring. The studs make an enormous difference on black ice and frozen bridges. When my car needs new winter shoes, they will be studded.

Keep in mind, the studs on iPikes are along the outer edges of the tread, where they are most critical for directional control. The main, center expanse of tread is not studded. A worthy compromise to help with dry/wet braking.

EDITED: typo fixed
Understand that choosing an HDHP is very much a "red pill" approach. Most would rather pay higher premiums for a $20 copay per visit. They will think you weird for choosing an HSA.
brokendirtdart
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Re: Snow tires- are Hankooks any good?

Post by brokendirtdart »

el47 wrote: Mon Nov 20, 2017 12:00 am I bought a set of Hankook i*Pike RW11s last winter from DTD mounted on cheap steelies and they are fantastic. I couldn’t bring myself to spend the extra $ on X-Ices & Blizzaks especially with the combination of the DT promo & Hankook rebate. Granted, this is my first set of snow tires so I can’t compare with other snow tire models, but I’ve been very happy with my i*Pikes. Good luck!

I used the studded i*pike on steel rims for winter tires on my Tacoma when I lived near Anchorage. I wouldn't hesitate to do so again. Night and day difference over my regular big name all terrain tires I used in the summer.
forgeblast
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Re: Snow tires- are Hankooks any good?

Post by forgeblast »

I have not run those but I normally check the reviews a tire rack (dot com) and found them to be trustworthy.
My wife runs studded tires on her Jetta and has great traction on our dirt road but there is only a certain time they can be on for.
Topic Author
protagonist
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Re: Snow tires- are Hankooks any good?

Post by protagonist »

Thanks , all of you. I'm convinced now to get the Hankooks.
Topic Author
protagonist
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Studded vs. non-studded snow tires for MA

Post by protagonist »

I live in Western MA. Most of my winter driving is highway driving between MA and NYC on weekends. Otherwise it is largely limited to driving around town a few times a week. I am very rarely on country roads in the winter.

Would you recommend studded or non-studded snow tires, and why?
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nativenewenglander
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Re: Snow tires- are Hankooks any good?

Post by nativenewenglander »

I run studded snows on my Tacoma and have been happy with them. I bought the studded snows when we lived way out on a dead end dirt road in an old farmhouse up a steep driveway. The dirt driveway and the road were basically solid ice until sometime in March. when it was turning to mud. We now live in town with a dirt driveway, still icy all winter. I might get studded next time, my wife has a Forester with four regular snows and has no issues. It sounds to me like studded won't help you most of the time as you are not driving the back roads much where I found they had the best advantage.
lazydavid
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Re: Studded vs. non-studded snow tires for MA

Post by lazydavid »

protagonist wrote: Mon Nov 20, 2017 8:37 am I live in Western MA. Most of my winter driving is highway driving between MA and NYC on weekends. Otherwise it is largely limited to driving around town a few times a week. I am very rarely on country roads in the winter.

Would you recommend studded or non-studded snow tires, and why?
I would avoid studded tires if you drive primarily on well-traveled and maintained roads. They're even illegal in some cases. Studs are really advantageous when you frequently have to drive on ice.
Topic Author
protagonist
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Re: Snow tires- are Hankooks any good?

Post by protagonist »

Some winters we get a lot of snow and some winters we hardly get any. If the weather is really bad I can usually postpone my trips...I am rarely if ever forced to drive in horrible weather. Temps in Jan and Feb seem to hover around freezing most days (20s, 30s) though on rare occasions can go below 0 F.

In MA, studded tires are legal seasonally (I think until April 1)
Topic Author
protagonist
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Re: Snow tires- are Hankooks any good?

Post by protagonist »

Any thoughts as to which are better, Hankook iPikes or Hankook iCepts?

My gut feeling is to avoid studs.
snowman
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Re: Studded vs. non-studded snow tires for MA

Post by snowman »

protagonist wrote: Mon Nov 20, 2017 8:37 am I live in Western MA. Most of my winter driving is highway driving between MA and NYC on weekends. Otherwise it is largely limited to driving around town a few times a week. I am very rarely on country roads in the winter.

Would you recommend studded or non-studded snow tires, and why?
For the type of driving you do, you will be fine with non-studded tires.

I never had Hankook tires, I drive on Michelins. They are fantastic, and were excellent value when I got them. Having said that, it all depends on the out the door price you can get. All winter tires will perform much better on winter roads compared to all seasons, even when the roads are dry. You will see. The difference in price reflects other attributes of that tire - longevity, warranty, overall performance, gas mileage, etc. The best winter tires will generally perform well in most conditions - dry, wet, snow, ice; the next tier will sacrifice performance in some conditions, like dry and wet. The bottom tier will be unremarkable in most winter conditions, yet still better than an all season tire.

If the price difference is relatively minor, I would go for Blizzaks or Michelins. If it's substantial, I wouldn't pay the premium. The best time to buy them is when retailers have discounts, and you can add rebate on top of it. See what DT is willing to do for you - they will negotiate.
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protagonist
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Re: Studded vs. non-studded snow tires for MA

Post by protagonist »

snowman wrote: Mon Nov 20, 2017 9:49 am
protagonist wrote: Mon Nov 20, 2017 8:37 am I live in Western MA. Most of my winter driving is highway driving between MA and NYC on weekends. Otherwise it is largely limited to driving around town a few times a week. I am very rarely on country roads in the winter.

Would you recommend studded or non-studded snow tires, and why?
For the type of driving you do, you will be fine with non-studded tires.

I never had Hankook tires, I drive on Michelins. They are fantastic, and were excellent value when I got them. Having said that, it all depends on the out the door price you can get. All winter tires will perform much better on winter roads compared to all seasons, even when the roads are dry. You will see. The difference in price reflects other attributes of that tire - longevity, warranty, overall performance, gas mileage, etc. The best winter tires will generally perform well in most conditions - dry, wet, snow, ice; the next tier will sacrifice performance in some conditions, like dry and wet. The bottom tier will be unremarkable in most winter conditions, yet still better than an all season tire.

If the price difference is relatively minor, I would go for Blizzaks or Michelins. If it's substantial, I wouldn't pay the premium. The best time to buy them is when retailers have discounts, and you can add rebate on top of it. See what DT is willing to do for you - they will negotiate.
That's my gut feeling as well....non-studded should be fine.
The price difference is huge....about $100 vs $150 per tire.
I didn't know DT negotiated. Thanks for the tip.
Tire pressure monitors cost $25 per tire....my guess is they are not worth it for tires that I will not put more than max. 3000 miles/year on. If others disagree please explain.
onourway
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Re: Snow tires- are Hankooks any good?

Post by onourway »

I would avoid the studs for my reasons listed above. In Western MA you will be on dry/wet roads the majority of the season.

$25/tire for sensors is cheap. I'd pay it just so I didn't have to look at that light 5 months of the year.
snowman
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Re: Studded vs. non-studded snow tires for MA

Post by snowman »

protagonist wrote: Mon Nov 20, 2017 9:59 am
snowman wrote: Mon Nov 20, 2017 9:49 am
protagonist wrote: Mon Nov 20, 2017 8:37 am I live in Western MA. Most of my winter driving is highway driving between MA and NYC on weekends. Otherwise it is largely limited to driving around town a few times a week. I am very rarely on country roads in the winter.

Would you recommend studded or non-studded snow tires, and why?
For the type of driving you do, you will be fine with non-studded tires.

I never had Hankook tires, I drive on Michelins. They are fantastic, and were excellent value when I got them. Having said that, it all depends on the out the door price you can get. All winter tires will perform much better on winter roads compared to all seasons, even when the roads are dry. You will see. The difference in price reflects other attributes of that tire - longevity, warranty, overall performance, gas mileage, etc. The best winter tires will generally perform well in most conditions - dry, wet, snow, ice; the next tier will sacrifice performance in some conditions, like dry and wet. The bottom tier will be unremarkable in most winter conditions, yet still better than an all season tire.

If the price difference is relatively minor, I would go for Blizzaks or Michelins. If it's substantial, I wouldn't pay the premium. The best time to buy them is when retailers have discounts, and you can add rebate on top of it. See what DT is willing to do for you - they will negotiate.
That's my gut feeling as well....non-studded should be fine.
The price difference is huge....about $100 vs $150 per tire.
I didn't know DT negotiated. Thanks for the tip.
Tire pressure monitors cost $25 per tire....my guess is they are not worth it for tires that I will not put more than max. 3000 miles/year on. If others disagree please explain.
Not sure how the price difference can be that big. I just checked out both tirerack and discounttire online for my tire size, and the prices were between $95 (BF Goodrich)-$108 (Michelin) per tire on tirerack, and $101 (Hankook) to $116 (Michelin) on discountiredirect. Plus $70-$100 rebate if you buy 4 tires. So after rebate offer at DT, Michelin would cost $30 more than Hankook for all 4 tires, which I would pay. Yes, this is for my tire size, but I cannot see how you are coming up with $200. What is your size and prices quoted?
bloom2708
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Re: Snow tires- are Hankooks any good?

Post by bloom2708 »

Check out Toyo Celsius tires. They are a winter tire that can be driven year round.

It might be a good compromise and then you don't have to have two sets of wheels, reset TPMS, pay for switching 2x per year.
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