2017 Car and Driver UHP Tire Test
This tire possesses the rare and admirable ability to maintain relatively high grip compared with its peak grip even as the tire begins to slide. This is particularly apparent when the front end begins to push into understeer. Where other tires scrub speed and sail off the driving line, the Hankooks hang on longer and with only a slight drift off the intended path. This means the driver is scarcely penalized for sloppy piloting. The Hankook is easy to drive at the limit, with quicker than average recovery when the driver attempts to reel it all in. In other categories, the Hankook impresses less. The Ventus V12 Evo2 is laterally soft when loaded up in a corner, and steering inputs are imprecise. On wet surfaces, its favorable progressivism dries up. It also emits tones that penetrate the cabin, with a high-pitched zip as it rolls and loud thumps over imperfections. And while easy to drive, the Hankook's performances in both dry and wet tests were only marginally better than those of the Goodyear. Its fourth-place position was cemented by this objective performance that placed it in, well, fourth place.