An innovative new tyre which strikes a better balance between environmental concerns, fuel economy and safety has been launched on the Australian market.
Hankook’s Kinergy Eco uses cutting-edge tyre compound technologies to reduce rolling resistance by 12 per cent compared to an equivalent conventional tyre.
At the same time Kinergy Eco improves wet braking distances by eight per cent compared to other low rolling resistance (LRR) tyres in its class.
“To us, the Kinergy Eco marks the start of a new era in LRR tyres,” said Hankook Tyre Australia’s chief executive officer, Paul Park.
“Australian consumer values have changed a great deal in recent years and they want tyres that reduce fuel consumption – and as a result CO2 emissions – but they won’t sacrifice safety or driving comfort to satisfy those requirements.”
The key to achieving these seemingly conflicting goals has been Hankook’s pioneering use of nano-scale silica particles in the tyre’s rubber compound to reduce rolling resistance.
This is combined with a high performance tread pattern that has several features designed to improve handling and grip.
In the centre of the tyre larger tread blocks with an increased contact area are optimised for stiffness to improve dry handling performance.
The tread block edges are self-sharpening to ensure the necessary grip on both wet and dry roads.
A sawtooth-type tread pattern evacuates water into three wide, circumferential grooves for improved wet road grip, particularly when braking.
The optimised arrangement of the grooves provides effective protection against aquaplaning.
The outer blocks of the Kinergy Eco tread pattern feature a semi-rib design to provide greater stability and handling performance.
On the sides of the tyre the pitch sequence of the grooves has been optimised for a quieter ride.
Comfort is further enhanced by the application of Hankook’s computer simulated vibration control technology.
Hankook Kinergy Eco is now available in Australia in a range of sizes suitable for popular small and light segment passenger cars.