Hankook tires, any good?

[t4thfavor]

I believe both of my 90's Rangers had OEM Firestone Wilderness XX tires, I want to personally thank Phil for 1. Not killing me with bad tires as a teen, and 2. Paying (indirectly) for a brand new set of tires for my 1995 Ranger STX that I promptly destroyed dumping the clutch in my highschool parking lot (easy come easy go...).

Ahh, those were the days

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[RANGER_MARC]

I've got a 2020 Lariat SuperCab with the FX2 package on order, I am assuming that the standard equipment tires will be Hankook 265/60R18 OWL tires (chrome package also).. The so called LT tire option is not available with the chrome package.

What has been your experiences with this brand of tire? Frankly I don't expect them to perform admirably.

I am well aware of the fact that all auto manufacturers broker deals with certain tire manufacturers and specify the absolute cheapest tire available.

• is it round, black and have tread?
• does it meet the minimum DOT/FMVS standards?
• will it remain inflated for any length of time?
• can you supply X amount of them?

When you buy 5K plus tires, this is an important cost cutting factor. For all I know my new truck may be shod with Bridgestones instead.

Remember the Firestone debacle with the Explorers some years ago?

Thanks !

I had factory Hankooks on my previous vehicle, a 2014 Explorer Limited, and I was not pleased with their overly soft ride (matter of opinion, I know) or their tendency to lose air (matter of fact). I replaced them with Pirellis and was much happier on both counts. However, in fairness, the Hankooks did last for 50,000 miles, and I had no issues of slippage or hydroplaning on wet (rain or snow) roads! This time around, the factory Hankooks on my 2019 Ranger Lariat FX4 seem better, but I only have c. 1,000 miles on them--so hard to say!

 

[Deleted member 1634]

Not a bad tire, 20,000km in. They are not the best in the snow, but Mokume shouldn't have to worry about that, lol. I do plan on changing them before winter for a snow rated tire though.

I'm making note of the "not the best in the snow" comment. This it the one thing I've really been concerned about. Coming from a Subaru with snow tires that could handle everything and anything thrown at it, I'm worried this truck with the stock Hankooks will be a let down and give me some heartache this winter. We'll see how it goes and adjust accordingly for the following winter I'm thinking.

 

[t4thfavor]

Not going to compare to dedicated snow tires, but I can say they aren't terrible in snow, they just aren't the best. If you deal with extreme amounts of snow, (I see MN in your bio), the truck will be better than the Subaru because weight, and height. As for ice, it has snow and ice mode which was actually super cool last winter the few times we got snow (in February).

Don't worry, it will be fine... IF not, you can buy a set of takeoffs from this forum, and put blizzaks on them, just like you did for the Subaru.

 

[egilbe]

Hi,

News to me...As far as I am aware, Ranger and Explorer tires were produced in the USA at two plants. Not sure where this came from , but am not aware of a Chinese connection with respect to the Ford/Firestone fiasco.

Oops, it was another tire manufacturer around the same time frame.

 

[Fjsteven]

I’d also like to thank Phil. Seems he is the guy who got me my first ever set of BFGs on my Explorer.

Before that I just bought cheapest available. He indirectly taught me what real quality is.

 

[toddiscdn]

I'm making note of the "not the best in the snow" comment. This it the one thing I've really been concerned about. Coming from a Subaru with snow tires that could handle everything and anything thrown at it, I'm worried this truck with the stock Hankooks will be a let down and give me some heartache this winter. We'll see how it goes and adjust accordingly for the following winter I'm thinking.

Not going to compare to dedicated snow tires, but I can say they aren't terrible in snow, they just aren't the best. If you deal with extreme amounts of snow, (I see MN in your bio), the truck will be better than the Subaru because weight, and height. As for ice, it has snow and ice mode which was actually super cool last winter the few times we got snow (in February).

Don't worry, it will be fine... IF not, you can buy a set of takeoffs from this forum, and put blizzaks on them, just like you did for the Subaru.

Basically what 4th said, they are not horrible in the snow, take it cool and you,ll be fine. I was just expressing that there are all terrain tires available that are better in the snow.

 

[Michael Bailey]

I've got a 2020 Lariat SuperCab with the FX2 package on order, I am assuming that the standard equipment tires will be Hankook 265/60R18 OWL tires (chrome package also).. The so called LT tire option is not available with the chrome package.

What has been your experiences with this brand of tire? Frankly I don't expect them to perform admirably.

I am well aware of the fact that all auto manufacturers broker deals with certain tire manufacturers and specify the absolute cheapest tire available.

• is it round, black and have tread?
• does it meet the minimum DOT/FMVS standards?
• will it remain inflated for any length of time?
• can you supply X amount of them?

When you buy 5K plus tires, this is an important cost cutting factor. For all I know my new truck may be shod with Bridgestones instead.

Remember the Firestone debacle with the Explorers some years ago?

Thanks !

You have been misinformed about OEM tires. These are very good tires, but designed only for the test-drive. Don't get me wrong, they last far longer than the test-drive, but these are the tires that Ford engineers designed the suspension for and these tires work great.

My problem with the Hankooks is that they will not work in the snow and I live in the mountains. So, I bought a set of take-off wheels identical to my OEM wheels, and a set of 275/65R18 mud and snow tires to wrap around them. I will swap out the winter tires in early December and put the Hankooks back on in March when we are mostly done with snow. And when these wear out, I will try to buy someone else's new "take-offs",

I did the same setup on my wife's 2.0 Escape, spare snow wheels and tires.

(The problem in the Firestone/Explorer debacle was engineer communication between Ford and Firestone. That, and the low TP called for, that drivers ignored resulting in rollovers.)

 

[P. A. Schilke]

You have been misinformed about OEM tires. These are very good tires, but designed only for the test-drive. Don't get me wrong, they last far longer than the test-drive, but these are the tires that Ford engineers designed the suspension for and these tires work great.

My problem with the Hankooks is that they will not work in the snow and I live in the mountains. So, I bought a set of take-off wheels identical to my OEM wheels, and a set of 275/65R18 mud and snow tires to wrap around them. I will swap out the winter tires in early December and put the Hankooks back on in March when we are mostly done with snow. And when these wear out, I will try to buy someone else's new "take-offs",

I did the same setup on my wife's 2.0 Escape, spare snow wheels and tires.

(The problem in the Firestone/Explorer debacle was engineer communication between Ford and Firestone. That, and the low TP called for, that drivers ignored resulting in rollovers.)

Hi Michael

Please do not blame the engineers for the Firestone debacle. This is not true, being behind the Ranger portion of this corporate emergency. To malign us for something beyond our control is simply flat A$$ wrong. You do not speak from knowledge for sure as you did not live this fiasco as I did.

Engineers of both sides understood the issue, but the Blasted CEO egos of both companies was the main problem.

Phil Schilke
Ranger Vehicle Engineering
Ford Motor Co. Retired

 

[Deleted member 1634]

Basically what 4th said, they are not horrible in the snow, take it cool and you,ll be fine. I was just expressing that there are all terrain tires available that are better in the snow.

Okay, thanks. After thinking it over and asking a few guys here at work, they hardly do anything to their trucks and they have pretty basic tires on them. I definitely won't do any mods to the truck for this winter (except adding a couple hundred pounds of weight/sand to the bed) and see how it goes. Then re-assess from there. Most of my driving back and forth the work will be plenty easy. It's just the long holiday trips through the UP that will be the real test.

Thanks! Not too concerned about it anymore.

 

[MT19RANGER]

Not a bad tire, 20,000km in. They are not the best in the snow, but Mokume shouldn't have to worry about that, lol. I do plan on changing them before winter for a snow rated tire though.

What winter tires are you looking at? I've run Bridgestone Blizzaks in the past on my Explorer and Foresters, but now I'm looking towards the Michelin Latitude X-ice XI2.

 

[doug910]

I put the factory Hankooks through just about every kind of terrain and they are definitely solid. You can't really go wrong with them in any terrain, but here's my judgement:

• Dry pavement: Extremely pleased with the fuel economy, wear, road noise, and grip. No complaints whatsoever.
• Wet pavement: Never had issues with hydroplaning, the siping on the tread seemed to do their job well.
• Snow: I took the Hankooks in 12+" of snow and never had any issues.
• Dirt: Will perform better than your average street tire, but it was adequate in dirt trails.
• Mud: This is where this tire falls flat on its face. The pack with so much mud and become impossible to clear, becoming very slick.
• Loaded: I towed 5000 lb with this tire and it felt very solid. The ride was supple under load and I was very pleased.
• Overall: This tire is perfect for anyone who doesn't plan to take their truck in extreme mud conditions and I think the Ford engineers made the right choice. The typical Ranger owner will drive their truck on the road 90% of the time, and will occasionally take it on dirt trails to get to camping spots/etc and this tire performs very well for that kind of use case.

For me, I like to go to off-road parks and get it super sloppy in thick mud. That's why I went one size up and went with more aggressive A/T's (Falken Wildpeak AT3W) and I am very pleased. Fuel economy did go down a little, but very little compromise in on-road handling with HUGE improvements off-road.

 

[REDWM]

FYI I went on dirt roads on Labor Day with my 2019 Ranger with Hankook tires that had only 3000 miles. Got a flat from a 1/2 inch rock that stuck in the tread. Maybe it went over a bigger rock in the road that pushed it in but that seems like poor performance for a new tire.

 

[doug910]

FYI I went on dirt roads on Labor Day with my 2019 Ranger with Hankook tires that had only 3000 miles. Got a flat from a 1/2 inch rock that stuck in the tread. Maybe it went over a bigger rock in the road that pushed it in but that seems like poor performance for a new tire.

There's a BUNCH of people talking about how they got flats/tears from driving on tiny rocks. I guess I got super lucky when I took the Hankooks off road because I didn't experience anything like that.

 

[P. A. Schilke]

There's a BUNCH of people talking about how they got flats/tears from driving on tiny rocks. I guess I got super lucky when I took the Hankooks off road because I didn't experience anything like that.

Is this not a steel belted tire? Seems to be a sidewall issue, maybe?

best,
Phil Schilke
Ranger Vehicle Engineering
Ford Motor Co. Retired

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