Choosing tyres to suit your needs

Buying new tyres for passenger cars is not always a cut and dry exercise. With more than 100 brands on the market, and numerous products within each brand, choosing the right tyre for not only your car, but the way you use it, can be daunting.

Hankook Tyres has created a new website - www.hankooktyre.com.au/idrive - with the sole aim of making the task of finding the right tyres a little less stressful. After users arrive at iDRIVE, it asks a number of lifestyle questions rather than just "Do you drive a VP Commodore?"

For instance drivers will asked what sort of driving they normally perform, such as street, family, open road, eco comfort, performance or explorer. The website then filters out unnecessary tyres and then makes appropriate suggestions.

Jose Angeles, Hankook Australia's marketing manager says that unlike many other important purchases, tyre research is not common amongst car owners. "These days, consumers typically do quite a lot of online research before entering a store to shop for cars, electronics or white goods but curiously, very few do the same when it comes to tyres.

"The average motorist knows very little about differences between tyre patterns and compounds, so they tend to rely on the recommendation of salespeople at the tyre shop closest to their home or place or work."

Angeles claims the iDRIVE online selector helps motorists to choose tyres based on lifestyle requirements rather than just on price. "If your vehicle is being used primarily to transport the family to school and sport, the iDRIVE system will recommend a tyre that prioritises ride comfort and low noise while not compromising safety.

"If you are a driving enthusiast, you will be willing to trade some ride comfort for greater cornering grip and high-speed stability."

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