Hankook Tires Review and Buying Guide

About Hankook Tire & Technology – Hankook Tires Review

Founded in 1941, Hankook Tires & Technology is a South Korean tire brand headquartered in Seongnam-si, South Korea. Despite having been in the market for over 80 years, it is still one of the youngest tire brands compared to the other top brands that have been on the market for over a century. 

Today, Hankook is the 7th largest tire brand in the world in terms of revenue. The company manufactures all its tires in just 8 factories and employs more than 22,000 people and sells in over 180 countries. In 2022, Hankook produced over 104 million tires. 

How has Hankook been able to grow in the US?

The US tire market is cutthroat. It’s dominated by a few large giant brands that have been on the market for decades. Surprisingly, Hankook has captured a significant market share in the US.  There are a few things that could have led to this. 

First, Americans seem to embrace foreign tire brands provided the products are top-notch. There are only two American tire brands (Goodyear and Cooper) the rest are foreign brands. Hankook popularity can also be attributed to its products being affordable and of great quality. The brand also has some of the best mileage warranties for its tires.

What type of Tires does Hankook make?

Like all the major brands Hankook has tires for every type of car and driving condition. Whether you are looking for an SUV, light truck, passenger, or even electric car tires, Hankook has a range for you. 

Where are Hankook Tires Made

Apart from the manufacturing plants in South Korea, Hankook has production facilities in the following other countries.

• USA
• China
• Hungary
• Indonesia
• Japan
• Germany

In the US Hankook has a production facility in Clarksville, Tennessee, which opened in 2017. The first tires to be produced in this plant were the KINERGY PT. 

Has there been a recall on Hanko

Most tire companies have had recalls at some point, it’s nothing to be alarmed about, and this brand is NOT on our worst tires list.

In 2021, Hankook voluntarily recalled Kinergy GT H436 tires that were OEM on Chevy Equinox and GMC Terrain. 

In 2016, there was also a recall of Ventus S1 Noble2 245/45R18 96W, 275/35R19 96W, and 245/40R19 94W tire sizes.

In 2010, there was another recall of the Dynapro MT LT325/60R18 RT03 because of quality issues. 

Are Hankook tires made by Michelin?

No, Michelin does not own Hankook. Previously Michelin owned about 10% of Hankook but sold the shares in 2011. Today, the brands have no existing partnership. 

Hankook Tire Categories

Tyre Type	Category	Models
Light Truck and SUV	All-terrain	Dynapro AT RF08 Dynapro AT-M Dynapro AT2  Dynapro AT2 Xtreme
	Touring All-Season	Dynapro HP2  Dynapro HP2 Plus Kinergy 4S2 X  Kinergy AS X EV  Ventus AS RH07
	Highway All-Season	Dynapro AS RH03 Dynapro HT RH12 Smart Flex AH35 Vantra LT
	Street/Sport Truck Summer	Ventus S1 evo2 SUV Ventus S1 evo3 SUV Ventus S1 evo3 SUV HR
Passenger	Grand Touring All-Season	Kinergy 4S2 Kinergy GT Kinergy GT HRS  Optimo H426  Optimo H426B HRS  Optimo H428  Optimo H725A
	Winter	Kinergy GT (H436) Kinergy ST (H735) Ventus S1 Noble2 (H452) Kinergy PT (H737) Dynapro HP2 (RA33)
	Ultra High-Performance Summer	Ventus Prime 2 Ventus Prime 2 HRS Ventus Prime3 HRS Ventus S1 evo2 Ventus S1 evo2 HRS  Ventus S1 evo3  Ventus S1 evo3 HRS  Ventus S1 evo3 ev
	Ultra High Performance All-Season	Ventus S1 AS  Ventus S1 noble2  Ventus S1 noble2  Ventus S1 noble2 HRS  Ventus V4 ES H105
	Standard Touring All-Season	Kinergy PT  Kinergy ST Optimo H724 Optimo H725
	Max Performance Summer	Ventus S1 evo Z Ventus V12 evo K110  Ventus V12 evo2
	Extreme Performance Summer	Ventus R-S4

 

Hankook Most Popular Tires

1. Hankook Kinergy GT H436

The Hankook Kinergy GT H436 tire is a grand touring tire for passenger cars. It’s an all-season tire and is rated M+S. The tire comes with a 70,000-mileage warranty. It’s one of the most popular Hankook tires and makes a great option for budget-conscious buyers. The tire is designed to offer the best combination of wet, dry, and snow performance that you can get from a grand touring tire. 

2. Hankook Ventus V12 evo 2 Summer

The Hankook Ventus V12 evo 2 is developed for drivers looking for a reliable tire for sporty driving. This passenger car tire offers the best traction and handling even at high speeds. When driving on wet roads, the tire will provide the needed traction and handling. Since this is a summer tire, it’s not ideal for driving on snow and ice.

3. Hankook Dynapro AT2 RF11

Another popular Hankook tire is the Hankook Dynapro AT2 RF11. This is an SUV all-terrain tire that comes with a 60,000-mileage warranty. This tire offers the best combination of off-road and on-road driving performance.  When driving on the road, the tire is comfortable and remains quiet. 

4. Hankook Kinergy ST H735

The Hankook Kinergy ST H735 is a standard touring tire for passenger cars. The tire comes with a 70,000-mileage warranty. 

Does BMW use Hankook tires?

Yes, BMW has used some Hankook tires in some high-end car models. For instance,

 BMW X3 M and X4 M were fitted with the Ventus S1 Evo Z tires. This is a bold move by BMW since most of these high-end models are typically fitted with Michelin tires. It’s not just BMW,  Audi RS Q8 was also fitted with the Ventus S1 Evo 3 SUV Hankook tires.

Hankook Tire Warranty 

One area in that Hankook Tires excel in is the treadwear warranty. While it’s not for all tires, some Hankook Tires have some of the best treadwear warranties in their categories. For instance,

Optimo H727 has a 100,000 treadwear mileage warranty

• Optimo H727 – 100,000 miles
• KINERGY PT – 90,000 miles
• Optimo H725 – 80,000 miles
• KINERGY PT – 75,000 miles
• Optimo H724 – 70,000 miles
•  Kinergy GT – 70,000 miles
• Dynapro HT – 70,000 miles
• Kinergy ST – 70,000 miles
• Dynapro HP2 – 65,000 miles
• Ventus AS – 65,000 miles
• Ventus H101 -50,000 miles
• Ventus S1 Noble2* -50,000 miles
• Ventus ST** -50,000 miles
• Ventus V4 ES* -50,000 miles
• Optimo H431 – -50,000 miles
• Optimo H725A Dynapro AS -50,000 miles
• Dynapro AT -50,000 miles
• Dynapro AT-M -50,000 miles
• Ventus V2 Concept -50,000 miles

These tires have some of the best mileage warranties in their respective categories

How much do Hankook Tires cost?

How much you will pay for a set of Hankook Tires will depend on the specific tire you are buying. For instance, passenger tires range between $60 and $580. The cheapest model is the Hankook Optimo (H724), while the most expensive is the Ventus S1 evo Z.

In the light truck category, the cheapest is the Winter i*Pike (RW11) retailing for about $100 and the most expensive is the Dynapro MT2 RT05 costing around $630 for a single tire. 

In the SUV category, the cheapest is the Kinergy 4S2 X (H750A) retailing for about $140, while the most expensive is the Dynapro HP2 Plus (RA33D), which will cost you about $750.

As you can see the price depends on the category. In all these categories, Hankook Tires are a bit cheaper than equivalent tires from other big brands such as Michelin, Goodyear, and Continental. 

Where to buy Hankook Tires

There are different places you can buy Hankook tires if you are in the US. Some of these places include.

• Tirerack
• Simple Tire 
• Amazon
• Priority Tire 
• Discount Tire
• Tire America

Most of these sellers ship your Hankook tires to your preferred auto center. While some brands run promotions for free installation when you buy multiple tires from them, I could not find such offers for Hankook tires. You can be lucky to get such a service from a local or online seller as a way to attract customers. 

>> Check for Hankook tire recalls

Does Hankook have auto service stations in the US?

No, I could not find any Hankook auto service stations in the US. This is unlike other brands such as Firestone, which has auto care centers in more than 1700 locations, while Goodyear has auto care centers in more than 1300 locations in the US. 

Hankook OEM tires

Hankook continues to cement its authority in the tire market as car brands continue to choose its tires as OE tires. Hankook is now supplying some high-model cars with OE tires, which is usually a reserve of the top brands such as Michelin. If I were to list every car model with Hankook OE tires, I’d require another five posts. Here are some of the car models that come fitted with Hankook tires

Tire	Car Models
Ventus S1 evo3 SUV	PORSCHE Macan Cayenne, Macan, Taycan, Boxter
Ventus S1 evo2 SUV	Audi A4 A3, A4, A8, S3, RS4, RS5, RS6, RS7, TT, TT RS, Q2, Q3, Q5, Q7, Q8
Ventus S1 evo3	BMW 5 Series 2 Series, 3 Series, 5 Series, 6 Series, 7 Series, X1, X2,,X5, X6,Z4
Kinergy GT	BMW X3, X4
Ventus S1 evo2 SUV	BMW 5 Series X5, X6, Z4
Ventus S1 evo2 (Ventus S1 evo2 SUV) (Vantra LT)	Mercedes Benz A-Class, B-Class, C-Class, E-Class, GLC, Metris, Sprinter
Kinergy GT	Golf Beetle, Golf, Jetta, Passat, Tiguan
Optimo H428, 725 or  Kinergy GT	CHEVROLET Captiva Aveo, Captiva, Cobalt, Cruze, Equinox, Malibu, Sonic
TESLA Model 3	Ventus S1 evo3

Other car brands that have used Hankook tires include Toyota, Nissan, Ford, Kia, Hyundai, and Honda.  

Wrapping up

Hankook is one of the top ten largest tire brands in the world. The article covers everything you should know about this South Korean brand and how it compares to its competitors.