Yokohama vs Hankook Tires
In today’s installment of our tire brand comparison series, we are going to focus on Yokohama vs Hankook tires. Both of these brands are often regarded as mid-spec brands with mid-spec prices which is often the best part of the market for most people. Premium tires are indeed better, but it does not always make sense to go for the best and the most capable as exploring the limits of traction is not for everyone.
On the other side of the spectrum are budget economy-level tires which often deliver a decent experience in some environments, but also fall apart in others. As such, this isn’t the choice for anyone who spends a decent amount of time driving. So, if you want to know more about how Yokohama vs Hankook tires compare against each other, be sure to read this article!
Yokohama History
When WWI was nearing its end, the world of industry and manufacturing was left to pick the pieces and try to once again regain its presence on the global market of goods and services. This was also the time when Yokohama came to be as the company was founded back in 1917. The company was actually a result of a joint venture between BFGoodrich and Yokohama Electric Cable company which was originally in the business of making cables.
They both saw an opportunity as motor cars were starting to become more and more common while car tires were relatively scarce at the beginning. After the initial launch of the company, everything was more or less smooth sailing thanks to Yokohama being an incredibly inventive brand as well as they were the first Japanese brand to make a dedicated snow tire and the very first brand to make a corroded tire.
When WW2 came around, Yokohama shifted its efforts toward making tires for the Japanese air force which resulted in more R&D money and more expertise being thrown in their direction. Yokohama is also a prominent name in global motorsports as they ran their team in Formula 3 and have taken place in countless racing events around the world.
Today, Yokohama is one of the most popular brands on the planet even though they aren’t situated in the premium segment.
Yokohama Tire Families
With six tire families under its belt, Yokohama is not the most expansive tire brand in the industry, but Yokohama believes that these are more than enough to saturate the needs of the wider market. These include performance tires, winter tires, touring tires, off-roading tires, and special eco-friendly tires.
Yokohama ADVAN
In the introduction to Yokohama, we talked about Yokohama having a substantial presence in the world of motorsports which is a common trait for all tire brands with great performance tire models. The Yokohama ADVAN is the top-shelf Yokohama ultra-performance tire family which consists of summer/ultra-performance tires and all-season/performance tires.
Models like the Neova, Sport and Fleva are summer tires only while the Sport A/S+ and the A82A are the two all-season options. All of these are designed to go on passenger cars while the ADVAN S.T. model is designed for SUVs and trucks and is a summer tire exclusively.
Yokohama AVID
Likely the best-sold family of Yokohama tires is the AVID family as these tires are intended for touring purposes and are class-leading at what they do. The idea behind the AVID family is to make a touring tire that can be used throughout the entire year which is why you can only find all-season tires here. Comfort is what these do the best.
You can buy these for passenger cars, minivans, performance cars, or even SUVs and CUVs. They offer an impressive performance in most instances which also includes lighter snow. The two most popular models in this lineup are the Yokohama AVID Ascend GT and the TOURING-S while the ENVigor ZPS is a balanced touring/performance tire.
Yokohama iceGUARD
The Yokohama iceGUARD family represents what Yokohama believes is the best winter tire you can buy in this market. This family consists of quite a few models, all of which are designed with a slightly different idea in mind. The iG52C and the iG53C are designed for passenger cars with a lower center of gravity while the G075 is designed for both trucks and SUVs. Moreover, this family also offers studdable tires which are perfect for ice driving.
Yokohama BluEarth
Likely the most interesting family of tires from Yokohama is the BluEarth line of tires which are designed with sustainability and eco-friendliness in mind. The idea behind these tires is to serve as an example that all the other families should follow in the near future if Yokohama truly wants to make the most ecologically friendly tires they can.
These are characterized by low rolling resistance which boosts fuel economy, and refinement, and should last a long time as well. Moreover, they are available as all-season and winter tires and can fit on passenger cars, SUVs, and trucks.
Yokohama Geolander
If you want a dedicated off-road tire or a capable all-terrain tire that can also offer decent levels of comfort, the Yokohama Geolander is right up your alley. These are available for SUVs, trucks, and crossovers. For example, the Yokohama Geolander CV G058 is immensely quiet and comfortable while also being really capable off-road.
On the other hand, the Yokohama Geolander X AT is one of the most popular off-road tires in the entire US as these can often be seen on numerous off-road SUVs and trucks.
Yokohama Parada
The Yokohama Parada line of tires is designed to be a melting pot between touring tires and performance tires, but as of right now, you can only go for a single model, the Spec-X. The Spec-X aims to be a tire that offers great performance, a good touring experience, all-season dependability, and flexibility, and should also last a decent amount of time.
Hankook History
The Hankook tire company was founded back in 1941 by a man called Cho Hong-Je in Seoul, South Korea. These times were particularly challenging for a wide variety of reasons, with the most obvious one being WW2. If you pair that with the fact that the 1940s were a time when most tire companies we know today already existed, the inception of the Hankook brand was anything but smooth sailing.
However, one of the more impressive things about Hankook is that they always acted like a premium brand which means that they cared a lot amount their image and were also keen on experimenting and trying something new in order to push the entire industry forward. This is obvious the moment you consider that Hankook is one of the very first brands out there that came out with a dedicated EV family of tires.
Hankook is not a premium brand, but many premium brands such as Audi, Mercedes, and even Porsche were supplied with Hankook tires from the factory. Motorsports is also something Hankook cares about a lot which is why they are the sole supplier of tires for Formula E which coincides perfectly with them being the first tire maker to offer an EV-specific tire family.
Many believe that Hankook is firmly in the top 5 largest tire brands on the market which is an unbelievable feat considering that Hankook tires are not the most expensive tires on the market.
Hankook Tire Families
Hankook also offers a few dedicated tire families with some form of lineage which is more or less the same as Yokohama. You can buy all types of tires from Hankook which include all the regular summer/ultra-performance tires, all-season tires, winter tires, off-road tires, and EV tires.
Hankook Ventus
The Hankook Ventus family of tires represents the top-echelon Hankook performance tires which are designed to offer you the very best steering responsiveness, traction, and feedback. The Hankook Ventus RS4 offers class-leading traction in the dry and is incredibly responsive and offers impressively short braking distances.
On the other hand, the Hankook Ventus S1 EVO3 is also a performance tire with lots of traction, but also a really refined and comfortable tire. Tires such as this one can often be seen on Audi RS models which means lots of traction, but also a premium experience.
Hankook Kinergy
If you want a premium touring tire that can last a long time and is really refined and quiet, be sure to consider the Hankook Kinergy family of tires. These are perfect for luxury sedans which is why even the Mercedes Benz S-Class once came with Kinergy tires straight from the factory. The Hankook Kinergy GT is an incredibly well-rounded tire while the Hankook Kinergy ST is one of the longest-lasting touring tires out there.
The Hankook Kinergy eco2 is a winter touring tire that offers lots of traction in both snow and ice while also maintaining quietness, refinement, and comfort. The Kinergy family of tires is available for all types of cars including passenger cars, hatchbacks, SUVs, CUVs, and minivans.
Hankook iON
The fact that Hankook supplies all of the tires for the illustrious Formula E racing championship enabled them to come up with the very first dedicated electric car tire family called the Hankook iON. This family of tires offers quite a few options which include performance tires for sports cars, winter tires for SUVs, and all-season tires for all of these.
When Audi came out with the Audi RS e-Tron GT, they made quite a bit of noise that it features Hankook iON tires. This makes sense as the Audi RS e-Tron GT is one of the most capable electric cars on the market.
Hankook Optimo
If you are someone who spends the majority of his/hers driving time on the highway, you will definitely enjoy the Hankook Optimo family of tires as these are designed with low rolling resistance in mind. You can consider these to be premium cruising tires that are similar to your regular touring tires, but also try to be as economical as they can be.
These are also available for passenger cars, hatchbacks, SUVs, CUVs, and trucks and you can buy them in a wide variety of shapes and sizes.
Hankook Dynapro
The Hankook Dynapro family of tires is designed for those who love taking their SUVs/trucks on various off-road trails. The Hankook Dynapro AT2 is one of the most comfortable off-road tires ever while also being incredibly capable in mud, snow, gravel, and all the other off-roading environments. The Hankook Dynapro MT2 is really similar to the AT2, but is a bit rougher and is much better in the mud.
The Hankook Dynapro AT-M is both a great off-road tire and a great mud tire, but it can’t match the AT2 when it comes to comfort and refinement.
Hankook I*Cept and I*Pike
As far as extreme winter driving is concerned, look no further than the Hankook I*Cept and the Hankook I*Pike line of winter and ice tires. These feel at home in places like the South/North pole or Alaska as they can easily withstand loads of snow and can be equipped with studs to offer unparalleled ice-driving performance.
You can also buy these for passenger cars, SUVs, CUVs, hatchbacks, and trucks. In addition to that, they also come in countless sizes.
Differences Between Yokohama and Hankook
Performance
If you want the best ultra-performance tires, you are not going to make a bad decision by opting for either of these two brands. The Hankook Ventus and the Yokohama ADVAN are really closely matched but the Ventus takes it as Hankook does seem to offer better dry traction across the board.
Touring tires are also closely matched between both, but the Yokohama Avid Ascend GT is likely the best touring tire here. Winter tires are better with Hankook thanks to more variety and a dedicated winter tire model for electric cars. Off-roading is where both brands excel and it’s impossible to say which one is better.
Hankook does offer more comfortable Dynapro off-roading tires while the Yokohama Geolander family of tires is more durable and more capable off-road. All in all, performance-wise, it’s neck and neck between these two brands.
Price and Warranty
Price-wise, these two brands are also really similar, but Yokohama tires tend to be slightly cheaper, but the differences are marginal and not really enough to make a substantial difference. Yokohama warranty is really good as they offer longer warranty coverage for off-road tires (65k vs 50k), but Hankook offers Optimo tires with warranty coverage of up to 100,000 miles which is excellent.
Availability Of Options
As far as options are concerned, Hankook takes it here because most of their tire families are available for passenger cars, SUVs, CUVs, tucks, and everything in between. Yokohama also offers lots of variety, but nowhere near as much as Hankook. Also, we do need to mention that Hankook offers dedicated EV tires while Yokohama offers dedicated “green” tires.
Advantages Of Yokohama
- Slightly More Affordable
- Better Touring Tires
- Better Off-Road Performance
- A Dedicated Eco-Friendly Tire Family
- More Durable Off-road Tires
Advantages Of Hankook
- Better Performance Tires
- Better Warranty Coverage
- A Dedicated EV Tire Family
- More Comfortable Off-road Tires
- More Options And Sizes
Which Brand To Choose?
At the end of our Yokohama vs Hankook tires comparison, we can easily conclude that choosing one brand over the other is nitpicking. I guess the correct answer here would be is to go for the brand that offers you a better deal overall as you are not going to suffer either way.
Both of these brands are amazing and they sure deserve to be in the top 10 largest tire companies in the world.