Since I did the Taos review I might as well also post the review of these tires. I actually bought them last year for my previous Forte GT, but the size is close enough that I was able to reuse them with the Taos. (Taos OE tire size 215/50/R18, these are 225/45/R18, so only slightly smaller and a little wider). These tires are made in Korea.
I got them because they were reasonably priced for a winter tire, and had good reviews over on the EU side of the pond (haven't seen any NA professional reviews of them). In the dry they are excellent for a winter tire. They are extremely quiet, refined and comfortable, and still have good handling and grip, though not as good as a good grand touring all season tire. In the wet they are also pretty good for a winter tire, though the gap between them and the all-seasons is much more noticeable here with braking in particular. Still better than some previous winter tires I've had. In the snow themselves, you can tell why they are good in the dry, the actual snow performance is not quite as good as other dedicated snows. Definitely still heads and shoulders above the best all season I've had however, and they aren't remotely in dangerous or slippery territory. Just not quite as much absolute grip as others. Didn't get stuck once last winter unless you count getting high centered on a snow bank on my street trying to get unparked, but that's my own fault. Treadwear seems good, I expect to get around 25k miles out of them based on the wear from last year. Considering how much cheaper they are than a lot of winters from Bridgestone, Nokian, etc, these are easy to recommend. Great in the dry, good in the wet, still more than decent in winter, and quiet. I think I paid $110/tire plus mounting/balancing for these, which was significantly less than comparable Firestone/Conti/Michelin/etc. If you're looking for a solid winter tire that won't break the bank and is good in dry and wet? I can strongly recommend them, they are a fantastic value. The handling on these is even sharper than the Goodyear Assurance Finesse OE tires that came on the Taos.
The biggest downside is they are relatively high rolling resistance, and I saw a couple MPG drop with them installed on both vehicles.
I got them because they were reasonably priced for a winter tire, and had good reviews over on the EU side of the pond (haven't seen any NA professional reviews of them). In the dry they are excellent for a winter tire. They are extremely quiet, refined and comfortable, and still have good handling and grip, though not as good as a good grand touring all season tire. In the wet they are also pretty good for a winter tire, though the gap between them and the all-seasons is much more noticeable here with braking in particular. Still better than some previous winter tires I've had. In the snow themselves, you can tell why they are good in the dry, the actual snow performance is not quite as good as other dedicated snows. Definitely still heads and shoulders above the best all season I've had however, and they aren't remotely in dangerous or slippery territory. Just not quite as much absolute grip as others. Didn't get stuck once last winter unless you count getting high centered on a snow bank on my street trying to get unparked, but that's my own fault. Treadwear seems good, I expect to get around 25k miles out of them based on the wear from last year. Considering how much cheaper they are than a lot of winters from Bridgestone, Nokian, etc, these are easy to recommend. Great in the dry, good in the wet, still more than decent in winter, and quiet. I think I paid $110/tire plus mounting/balancing for these, which was significantly less than comparable Firestone/Conti/Michelin/etc. If you're looking for a solid winter tire that won't break the bank and is good in dry and wet? I can strongly recommend them, they are a fantastic value. The handling on these is even sharper than the Goodyear Assurance Finesse OE tires that came on the Taos.
The biggest downside is they are relatively high rolling resistance, and I saw a couple MPG drop with them installed on both vehicles.
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