Falken Azenis FK450?

[asiancivicmaniac]

Does anybody have any experience with the Falken Azenis FK450? There's basically no reviews on them. I just bought a set for my Maxima because of the rebates from Discount Tire Direct. 500AA and rated for 50,000 miles so hopefully they last a while.

I've had Falken Ziex 912 before. They were a cheap, decent tire, but they wore quick.

 

[SatinSilver]

Seems to get decent reviews so not a dog tire by an means. I can't do links at the moment but 1010tires has 25 reviews scoring 4 out of 5 stars.

 

[Rand]

I had a set. They were smooth, cornered well.
I felt like they had slightly less traction than my michelin premiers
but the sidewalls were stiffer so it cornered better.
Good wet traction. They were firm but not excessive as an entry level UHP tire.
Gas mileage was average at best--> most UHP tires dont focus on rolling resistance.. at all.

If you are in the market for a sporty tire they can be a very good choice.
I liked them quite abit better than the kumho ecsta 4x I had on the 2011 forester.

 

[asiancivicmaniac]

Thanks!

 

[anl0109]

Originally Posted By: SatinSilver
Seems to get decent reviews so not a dog tire by an means. I can't do links at the moment but 1010tires has 25 reviews scoring 4 out of 5 stars.



I believe that is for the summer tires. I cannot find FK450 on 1010tires Web site. CR, on the other hand, had an opinion... an average one. Very good dry handling, hydroplaning ratings but not so good for winter driving and overall ride comfort.

 

[asiancivicmaniac]

Originally Posted By: anl0109
Originally Posted By: SatinSilver
Seems to get decent reviews so not a dog tire by an means. I can't do links at the moment but 1010tires has 25 reviews scoring 4 out of 5 stars.



I believe that is for the summer tires. I cannot find FK450 on 1010tires Web site. CR, on the other hand, had an opinion... an average one. Very good dry handling, hydroplaning ratings but not so good for winter driving and overall ride comfort.


Luckily I live in FL where winter doesn't exist. The ride comfort on the other hand I might have to learn to live with. Do you mind elaborating on what they mean by ride comfort? I don't have a subscription to consumer reports.

 

[slacktide_bitog]

Falken makes awesome tires. The FK450 is probably a great product. I have the Ziex ZE950 on my car and they are good.

 

[anl0109]

Originally Posted By: asiancivicmaniac
Do you mind elaborating on what they mean by ride comfort? I don't have a subscription to consumer reports.

I'm not a subscriber either -- was just going off of a recent CR buying guide I have. The comfort "rating" is subjective as you can imagine. I think it's just based on different riding experiences. Overall, I take CR tire ratings with a grain of salt after a really good 50K+ mile run on A/S tires that CR ratings put on the very bottom of its list one year! I think Tire Rack ratings and actual user experiences (DT reviews, TR reviews, this forum, etc) are more valuable.

 

[asiancivicmaniac]

Originally Posted By: anl0109
I think Tire Rack ratings and actual user experiences (DT reviews, TR reviews, this forum, etc) are more valuable.


That's the problem. It's like nobody has owned these tires before. They don't even show up on Tire Rack. The set I ordered is supposed to arrive in a couple days so I guess we'll see.

 

[anl0109]

Right, not much by way of reviews. Azenis FK450 and Sincera SN250 A/S came out at the same time based on an article I read about a month ago. I think the roll out was Feb 2016 -- or it could have been just the announcement. Maybe there was a delay for FK?

 

[zmelli]

Falken makes great tires, very under-rated, I have a set of the FK453 and wish I would have just settled for the longer lasting FK450s. Like you I ordered some FK450s for my garage queen.

 

[anl0109]

It would be great if those that purchased could put some reviews up about the tires after they are mounted and potentially along the way of ownership... thanks in advance!

 

[paulswagelock]

I purchased a set of these for my son's Subaru this week. $162 including shipping for a set of 4.
His car eats tires in 15-18000 miles, so if they make it that long, I consider it a deal.

 

[Rand]

Originally Posted By: asiancivicmaniac

Luckily I live in FL where winter doesn't exist. The ride comfort on the other hand I might have to learn to live with. Do you mind elaborating on what they mean by ride comfort? I don't have a subscription to consumer reports.


These are UHP tires with stiff sidewalls. You will feel it more on expansion joints and other road imperfections. I think florida has some of the better roads due to less freeze/thaw cycles.

Some of the highway bumps in Ohio you can literally almost go airborne on in late winter.

These are designed for cornering and performance. They are not tires that will soak up some of the bump.

on the other hand.. they arent excessively harsh considering they are a uhp tire with stiff(er) sidewalls.

If you want a softer ride with with good performance perhaps a grand touring tire in V speed rating would be more to your liking. Cooper CS5 ultra? etc.

 

[asiancivicmaniac]

UPS just delivered mine. They have a date code of 4215 so I guess they're probably not selling well, hence the additional rebate on them.

 

[anl0109]

Originally Posted By: asiancivicmaniac
UPS just delivered mine. They have a date code of 4215 so I guess they're probably not selling well, hence the additional rebate on them.


Oh wow, that's probably from the original run. I believe originally these went on sale in early 2016 togetehr with Sincera SN250 A/S. You're probably right -- these must not be selling well at all. I believe SN250 has been a better seller.

 

[zmelli]

I had my set installed last weekend. First thing I noticed is that they did not need any breaking in. They were smooth, felt stable and planted out of the box. I took them up to 85 without any hint of vibration and they still felt connected. I took them up a curvy mountain road (10000ft) it was about 39Deg/F and they were great. No need to overspend for good tires these days. They have a nice rim protector and look sporty because they have that checkered flag on the sidewall. You can also rotate side to side because they are not directional. Well engineered tire that just slipped under the radar.

 

[slacktide_bitog]

Originally Posted By: zmelli
I had my set installed last weekend. First thing I noticed is that they did not need any breaking in. They were smooth, felt stable and planted out of the box. I took them up to 85 without any hint of vibration and they still felt connected. I took them up a curvy mountain road (10000ft) it was about 39Deg/F and they were great. No need to overspend for good tires these days. They have a nice rim protector and look sporty because they have that checkered flag on the sidewall. You can also rotate side to side because they are not directional. Well engineered tire that just slipped under the radar.


I hope you get many enjoyable miles out of them, Please keep us updated

 

[zmelli]

Originally Posted By: slacktide_bitog
Originally Posted By: zmelli
I had my set installed last weekend. First thing I noticed is that they did not need any breaking in. They were smooth, felt stable and planted out of the box. I took them up to 85 without any hint of vibration and they still felt connected. I took them up a curvy mountain road (10000ft) it was about 39Deg/F and they were great. No need to overspend for good tires these days. They have a nice rim protector and look sporty because they have that checkered flag on the sidewall. You can also rotate side to side because they are not directional. Well engineered tire that just slipped under the radar.


I hope you get many enjoyable miles out of them, Please keep us updated

The true test is if they stay balanced and if they wear evenly over time.