Hankook

[Toros]

Originally Posted by slacktide_bitog
Hankook makes quality tires.

Another thing to keep in mind is that OE tires are not a good basis to judge a tire compoany on, since they are different than what they sell to everybody else, even when they share the same name. For example, an OE Hankook Optimo H426 that originally came with the car brand new from the factory is not the same thing as the "same" Hankook Optimo H426 you'd buy from your local tire shop, Walmart, or Tire Rack. The OE tires are usually inferior to the aftermarket tires because they select OE tires to be cheap.

Hankook's Kinergy GT will be a much better tire than the Hankooks you will be replacing.

For the size 195/65-15
Hankook Kinergy GT
Falken Ziex ZE950
Kumho Solus TA71
Cooper CS5 Ultra
Goodyear Eagle Sport AS

Also, FWIW, even Nexen is now an OE supplier to Porsche (and they are building a Czech factory). They will be OE on some Cayennes. While the rebadged Touareg is no 911, it is Porsche's best-selling model by far. And I consider Nexen to be a step below Hankook.






What proof do you have of this theory? Why would any manufacturer change machining a composition to mass produce the same model or version of anything?

 

[CapriRacer]

Originally Posted by Toros
Originally Posted by slacktide_bitog
Hankook makes quality tires.

Another thing to keep in mind is that OE tires are not a good basis to judge a tire compoany on, since they are different than what they sell to everybody else, even when they share the same name. For example, an OE Hankook Optimo H426 that originally came with the car brand new from the factory is not the same thing as the "same" Hankook Optimo H426 you'd buy from your local tire shop, Walmart, or Tire Rack. The OE tires are usually inferior to the aftermarket tires because they select OE tires to be cheap.

Hankook's Kinergy GT will be a much better tire than the Hankooks you will be replacing.

For the size 195/65-15
Hankook Kinergy GT
Falken Ziex ZE950
Kumho Solus TA71
Cooper CS5 Ultra
Goodyear Eagle Sport AS

Also, FWIW, even Nexen is now an OE supplier to Porsche (and they are building a Czech factory). They will be OE on some Cayennes. While the rebadged Touareg is no 911, it is Porsche's best-selling model by far. And I consider Nexen to be a step below Hankook.






What proof do you have of this theory? Why would any manufacturer change machining a composition to mass produce the same model or version of anything?


First, read this: Barry's Tire Tech: OE Tires

What you should pick up from that is that vehicle manufacturers have specs for tires and that those specs are different than what the tire manufacturer uses for tires it supplies to tire dealers. That's because the vehicle manufacturer wants tires to contribute to fuel economy - and they get that by sacrificing treadwear and/or traction, especially wet traction. By contrast, the average tire buyer is pretty much interested in only 2 things: Treadwear and price.

Further, the OE specs all over the place - even within a vehicle manufacturer and even within a vehicle model. Plus each vehicle usually only has a single tire supplier for a given size (some exceptions), then all the other brands - and even tires of the same size from the same brand - are going to be significantly different

Where it gets tricky is that if you go to a tire dealer and try to get EXACTLY the same tire that cam on your new car, it is unlikely you can. Unless the tire is still being supplied to the OEM (or for a short time afterwards), it will revert back to the tire manufacturer's specs - and even within that window of time, some tire manufacturers produce a different version for tire dealers.

Now as to proof: Read this: Tire Rack: Original Equipment Tire Designations

So go look at the tires on your new car and see if you can find those markings. They may or may not be on the tires you can buy at your local tire shop.

 

[4WD]

Yep, put all 4 factory H426's at the curb with only 10k on them (less on 1 that had been replaced)
The H must stand for hydroplane