Review of Hankook W409 iPike
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Review of Hankook W409 iPike
Not every S2K owner have the luxury of storing the S2000 for winter.
I drove mine this past winter on Hankook W409 iPike (AP1 stock sizes on AP2 w/ VSC)
Let's go over what the tire is designed for:
The Hankook is a deep-snow tire, and not designed for handling / dry grip.
PSI Setup
The tires have a very soft side wall, and I drove around at 38 psi at 0 degrees Celsius. The increase in PSI helped handling a bit but the ride became bouncy.
In the dry/wet
The tires have very limited grip in the dry, if you gun it in third-gear the tires will spin when vtec is reached. VSC saved me a few times as tires have very limited dry grip.
Cornering
The soft-side wall says it all, it's a huge step down. Emergency lane changes also suffer as a result.
In the snow(VSC is turned off)
The tire shines in these conditions. Canadian snow storms does not pose much of an obstacle for these tires. If the back-end comes loose, its very manageable. It's near impossible to spin the car around as long as you add steering correction. Do note: Sudden bumps when your back-end comes loose can still spell disaster.
Road Noise
The road noise is minimal due to the soft sidewall. A little quieter than Hankook Evo K12 tires.
Comfort
The ride is noticeably softer. As a result, the car is much more comfortable but handling suffers.
Would I buy it again?
The straight-line grip is horrible and cornering suffers as well due to the sidewall. However, considering this is for winter, I would get these tires again. As a matter of fact, all 3 cars in my house-hold are using the same tire.
Alternate good winter tire: Gislave NordFrost5. (very similar tire, but better overall grip)
I drove mine this past winter on Hankook W409 iPike (AP1 stock sizes on AP2 w/ VSC)
Let's go over what the tire is designed for:
The Hankook is a deep-snow tire, and not designed for handling / dry grip.
PSI Setup
The tires have a very soft side wall, and I drove around at 38 psi at 0 degrees Celsius. The increase in PSI helped handling a bit but the ride became bouncy.
In the dry/wet
The tires have very limited grip in the dry, if you gun it in third-gear the tires will spin when vtec is reached. VSC saved me a few times as tires have very limited dry grip.
Cornering
The soft-side wall says it all, it's a huge step down. Emergency lane changes also suffer as a result.
In the snow(VSC is turned off)
The tire shines in these conditions. Canadian snow storms does not pose much of an obstacle for these tires. If the back-end comes loose, its very manageable. It's near impossible to spin the car around as long as you add steering correction. Do note: Sudden bumps when your back-end comes loose can still spell disaster.
Road Noise
The road noise is minimal due to the soft sidewall. A little quieter than Hankook Evo K12 tires.
Comfort
The ride is noticeably softer. As a result, the car is much more comfortable but handling suffers.
Would I buy it again?
The straight-line grip is horrible and cornering suffers as well due to the sidewall. However, considering this is for winter, I would get these tires again. As a matter of fact, all 3 cars in my house-hold are using the same tire.
Alternate good winter tire: Gislave NordFrost5. (very similar tire, but better overall grip)
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