Hankook Tire Launches 'ION', World's First Full Lineup Dedicated to Electric Vehicles, in Korea

Four Products with 20 Specifications Released for All-Season and Winter Use

[Asia Economy Reporter Kiho Sung] Hankook Tire & Technology (Hankook Tire) launched its electric vehicle-exclusive tire brand ‘iON’ domestically on the 20th.

iON is a premium brand completed with Hankook Tire’s unique electric vehicle-specialized technology. It is equipped on sedan and sport utility vehicle (SUV) electric vehicle models. Composed of six products including all-season, winter, and summer tires, it boasts the world’s first full lineup exclusively for electric vehicles. Developed from the initial design stage targeting high-performance electric vehicles, it plans to perfectly realize the performance of electric vehicles in any driving environment.

In the domestic market, starting this month, four products with a total of 20 specifications will be launched: all-season ▲iON Evo AS ▲iON Evo AS SUV and winter ▲iON Winter ▲iON Winter SUV. Next year, the lineup and specifications will gradually expand to include summer ▲iON Evo ▲iON Evo SUV.

The newly launched electric vehicle-exclusive all-season tires ‘iON Evo AS’ and ‘iON Evo AS SUV’ feature a ‘next-generation material compound’ based on high-performance polymers, eco-friendly materials, and high-concentration silica, providing excellent grip and improved mileage performance throughout all seasons.

By lowering the ground contact pressure per unit area of the tread blocks and applying the ‘3D Grip Control Sipe Technology’ to increase internal block rigidity, it delivers outstanding grip. The electric vehicle-exclusive profile design technology ‘EV Contour Technology’ also enhances the tire sidewall rigidity. Through this, compared to the company’s regular tires, lateral and cornering rigidity are significantly improved by 25% and 20%, respectively, supporting the high load of electric vehicles while providing excellent handling performance.

The electric vehicle-exclusive winter tires ‘iON Winter’ and ‘iON Winter SUV’ maintain winter performance through compounds optimized for electric vehicles while reducing rolling resistance to offer longer driving range. The latest high-tech vulcanization technology is applied, and rolling resistance is reduced based on aerodynamic profile design.

To withstand the high torque and heavy load of electric vehicles and deliver top performance on various winter roads, the tire sidewall cornering rigidity is increased by 7%, providing enhanced handling performance. Additionally, the zigzag fine groove angles on the tread help with braking and traction on snowy roads.

Both all-season and winter tires apply Hankook Tire’s noise reduction technology, ‘Sound Observer Technology,’ which reduces specific frequency noises generated during driving, offering a quiet and comfortable ride across all speed ranges.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.