Hankook Kinergy AS EV: Review & Rating
The advancement of electric vehicles in today’s world is rapid, with newer technologies being tested and implemented every day. Charging stations are replacing gas pumps in bigger cities from developed countries and electric cars are becoming every way better than gasoline powered vehicles through each passing year. With advancements as such in electric powered vehicle technology, more and more OEM part manufacturers are developing newer more advanced parts to make electric cars run better. This collective advancement in technology is what is making electric cars a promising possibility in the future of mobility.
One such company is Hankook Tires, with it’s forward thinking approach to future technologies. The global tire maker has introduced the second iteration of its electric vehicle tire, the Kinergy AS EV. This is an All Season, high performance tire built for low road noise and strong road holding capabilities. The tire features optimized performance characteristics that are essential for today’s electric vehicle needs.
EV or Electric Vehicles, unlike their gasoline powered counterparts, are much quieter. Because of the exclusion of a noisy gas powered engine, supplemented by a low noise electric motor, electric cars run quieter. The only noise they generate are from the rolling tires, hence the need for low noise, low friction tires. The chassis of electric cars is also heavier than a comparable gas powered car because of the added weight of the battery pack. Tires suited for electric vehicles also need to be strong enough to handle the extra weight at abrupt accelerations, high speeds, and corners and these tires deliver in all departments.
FEATURES
This tire exhibits maximum quietness by using technology that reduces the noise produced while rolling on tarmac. The technology also helps reduce particular frequencies that incur when driving through optimum pitch arrangements. The noise cancellation technology cancels out frequencies that can be heard by the human sound receptacles, thus making this tire quieter for human ears.
As electric vehicles are heavier than their gas powered counterparts, electric vehicle tires need totake on more stress.To compensate for the additional weight, the most advanced material is used for tire assembly, the Aramid Hybrid reinforcement belt along with an extra load reinforcement structure. This material is a hybrid of Kevlar and Twaron. Due to its low density, stiffness and high damage resistance, it is widely used in marine and transportation industries with demand for lighter and stronger parts. Aramid fibers are very tough to penetrate making the Kinergy AS EV almost bullet proof.
The usage of these composite materials increases the tire’s structural rigidity by ten folds, while eliminating the need to employ a larger diameter construction. With the help of these materials, the tire remains within the regular diameter sizes of today’s road going tires. The material also eliminates size distortion even in high speed driving and minimizes tread block distortion while changing direction, maintaining optimum grip force to provide optimum handling performance and improved handling stability.
CONSTRUCTION, SPECIFICATIONS AND AVAILIBILITY
The new Kinergy AS EV boasts organic Aqua Pine build materials used as tire compound, that include vegetable oils and resin extracted from Conifer pines. These materials are eco-friendly and help improve performance on wet roads, securing agile handling and braking in wet conditions. The application of these material also provide extra rigidity and comfort while use in different road conditions. The compounds help driving stability while maximizing traction and minimizing tread abrasion to deliver the high torque and of the electric motor and powerful initial acceleration with low loss.
The tire will be available on sale in Korea this year, and will be launched globally by 2019.
PROS
- Eco-friendly organic materials used in the construction
- Low drag, low noise technology
- Very strong construction
- Aramid hybrid belt and shoulder reinforcement made of Kevlar provides extra rigidity
- Superior wet road traction
- Noticeably quiet to go along with the electric vehicle quietness
- Expected long service life
- Tough build construction balances load well for balanced tread wear
CONS
- Will be available in the US by 2019
CONCLUSION
If you own an electric vehicle and are looking for a high performance specialty tire, the Hankook AS EV is the best option to go for, although you will have to wait till the next year to buy one. Delivering optimum performance in both dry and wet conditions, the tires are built specifically for electric vehicle performance and operation.
These aren’t just well built;they’re engineered with the future of motoring in mind. Built with advanced materials, this tire is a brilliant addition to Hankook Tires arsenal and will most likely be the choice of tire for a lot of OEM suppliers of Electric Vehicle parts.
The tire boasts a combination of brilliantly used organic materials with high tech industrial grade Kevlar strengthened technology to create an all-round high performance, ultra-low noise tire. Although this is yet to hit the roads, because of the superior build quality, we expect the tire to run longer than conventional tires of this tier.