Hankook Tire gains three awards at the 2022 Auto Express Product of the Year Awards

Daventry, UK – Hankook Tire was crowned by car magazine Auto Express with three of its summer, all-season and winter tread flagship products.

In its special issue published on May 26, 2022, the magazine highlights the outstanding properties of the Ventus S1 evo 3 which gained its first award win last year in the Auto Express Summer Tyre Test 2021 with a “well deserved first win” (Auto Express, September 1, 2021). The newly developed tire compound pays off especially well and provides a particularly good result in wet braking. In general, the testers verified “A great all-round performance” (September 1, 2021). This resulted in the magazine also awarding the Hankook Ventus S1 evo 3 the title of Summer Tyre Product of the Year 2022.

The Kinergy 4S 2 was able to prevail against well-known competitors, especially with the results of the aquaplaning tests and achieved top values in braking performance and handling. The “Product of the Year” award follows last year’s test victory.

Last but not least, Hankook’s Winter i*cept RS 2 achieved a solid “Commended” in the same test. The tire “felt particularly good for handling, with relatively lively steering and low slip”. (Auto Express, October 5, 2021).

“We are delighted with the latest awards from Auto Express. They prove once again that our products are a great choice all year round. In particular, the Product of the Year awards for our summer and all-season flagship tires are an important indication to our customers that they can rely on Hankook and its ongoing research and development,” comments Sooil Lee, CEO & President of Hankook Tire & Technology.

The features of the three award-winning tires – Safe driving all year round

The Ventus S1 evo 3 is equipped with a high-strength bead core which, in combination with the reinforced sidewall, not only ensures sporty, dynamic handling but also high driving stability, directional stability and steering precision, particularly at high speeds. Further improvement in the areas of wet grip and handling/steering precision was emphasized. Numerous well-known car manufacturers use this tire as original equipment for their top models.

With the Kinergy 4S 2, premium tire maker Hankook has developed an all-season specialist for various weather and temperature conditions. Now in its fifth generation, the Kinergy 4S 2 offers an even more balanced and consistent performance. The tire is aimed especially towards quality and cost-conscious drivers who want to do without the six-monthly tire change, but still want year-round balanced performance and safety. Particularly in view of the increasingly changeable weather conditions in Europe, as well as predominant use in a more urban environments, the tire offers an attractive alternative for ensuring year-round mobility in compliance with the law.

Developed to deliver balanced performance in all wintery driving conditions, the Hankook Winter i*cept RS 2 comes equipped with a special nano-sized, high dispersible silica compound, resistant to hardening in low temperatures, and a new solution-styrene butadiene rubber. The compound ensures the tread stays elastic even at very low temperatures, thus providing excellent traction and braking power by increasing the tire’s contact area, in particular in the cool temperatures and wet roads typical during the colder seasons.