Hankook Optimo H428 

At 49,000 I'm shopping for new tires and was expecting to buy this same tire, which came on the car when new. I've not had any snow or ice, but the handling & traction have been great; no hydro-planning even. Maybe it's mostly that the Sonic has good handling; I love the way it grips on the freeway semi-circle off-ramps...some sporty cars tail-gating me can't keep up. So I'm really shocked at the poor reviews. Because of that I'll review the other tire choices, but honestly, these have actually been great on the highway & around town, even when trying to drive a little spirited with the 6-speed manual.

I own a 2019 Chevy Sonic Premier RS Hatchback that I purchased new, off the showroom floor, from Haley Chevrolet. My Sonic had these Hankook Optimo H428 P205/50R17 tires from the factory.

Now, I'm going to be completely honest. On Monday the 14th I was going to submit a review for these tires and it wasn't going to be a stellar one. I drive mostly highway miles (25k plus/year) to work and back. A day or so prior to Monday, I was driving home on I64 West. That day it was raining, the roads were wet, and it was just really nasty out. In my honest opinion, driving in wet conditions with these tires is utterly terrible. It actually feels like these tires float on wet roads. I realize that I have a light car, which very well could contribute to the lack of traction in wet conditions, however, I would NEVER recommend these tires to anyone who lives in a wet, and rainy climate. Monday was not the first time that I had issues with my car wanting to skim/hydroplane either.

On Wednesday the 16th, the Shenandoah Valley received a large amount of snowfall, and I will tell you that these tires performed tremendously. I was taken aback by how well these tires gripped in the snow and slush. It is a night and day difference in my opinion. If any of you are familiar with the Shenandoah Valley, then you know that it's mountainous and hilly. My parents live off a gravel road that had not been plowed, and I broke the first set of tracks in there without so much as an issue. The front of my car was pushing snow at one point. I am still ecstatic about the way these tires performed, especially up and down the hills by us.

At the end of the day, I would not recommend these tires to anyone who lives where it rains year round, especially if traveling at highway speeds (55 or above).

I would only recommend them to someone who lives in a mostly dry climate year round. Dry driving just is what it is.

Don't be worried if you get a little snow though, as these tires grip incredibly well.

These tires are good on dry road period. They came with the car I had never purchased or experienced this brand of tire before. I have to agree with most of the other ratings. These are the worst tires for rain and hydro planing. at 27000 mi I still have about 4/32 left on the tread. small puddles and I am fighting to keep out of the ditch. I have had some bad tires before but these are dangerous. soon as it stops raining here. I'm replacing these tires.

OE tire came on my wifes hatchback. Not overly impressed, I would personally take a hit to mpg for better wet traction, but didnt hate em enough to shell out for new shoes. Pros - car gets good mileage, they are fine dry pavement. At 42k still have enough tread to make it through one more summer.
Cons- non-existent snow/ice traction. Poor wet traction. Got car new in sept. even almost new these tires were sketchy in moderate rain. After 20k miles rain traction went downhill. Found out first winter they ---- in snow (less than 5k)

The original tires that came on this used Sonic I bought demonstrated some problems early. On one occasion, I slid part-way into a wet intersection when stopping. At first, I thought that was me getting used to an unfamiliar car. When we had our first big snowfall here, I then realized it was a problem with the tires. My vehicle couldn't hold traction, and was sliding all over the place when on snow of any type. My previous Hankooks were still very good on snow, even though they were near the end of their useful life. But these tires had to go. It was either the expense for new tires, or money toward my collision deductible (and then new tires anyway :-) )

Bought my 2017 chevy sonic new off the lot and only had 200 miles i put on on a two day test drive. These tires were not bad the first few months but i feel that as they got broken in they began to have problems. They are not very quiet and the grip when turning especially exiting and entering a highway is also poor. I live in New England so having a tire that is good in the snow is extremely important and these were not a good solution. I got about 35k miles out of them and could have gotten more if the performance was better. I wouldn’t recommend this tire especially if you live in a area that gets a lot of snow. You can find much better tires for cheaper.

These tires are plenty adequate in dry conditions and also suitable for wet and rainy conditions. After 30 years and multiple millions of miles driven, I can honestly say these are the absolute worst tires I've ever driven in snow. Braking in anything above 1/4 inch of snow is instant anti-lock engagement and a guaranteed slide through an intersection. 3 inches of snow is sketchy and unstable as can be. 4-6 inches don't bother leaving the house with these tires. Turning the steering wheel a quarter turn from a 4 way stop will cause these tires to just slide into whatever is in the way. Absolute loss of control. I read all the other reviews about how bad this tire is in the snow and just assumed people were inexperienced at driving in inclement weather, but such was not the case. After a low speed collision with a hardened snow pile, do yourself the favor and swap these out for some good winter tires.

This tire is absolute junk!!!! I have never owned a worse set of tires. They are average at best in dry conditions and in wet conditions forget about it. I only used the tires I had on my Sonic in the snow once or twice at the tail end of last winter. If you value your life, or anyone else's, replace these factory junk tires right away. These tires also have terrible road noise and drive hard as a rock. As far as tread ware, I wouldn't know because I replace them with a different set at 11k miles. Take them off right away and sell them on Craigslist.... I did!

Came stock on my 2013 Chev Sonic, Tires are ok for normal wet and dry pavement. Never had any control issues or loss of traction. Dismal performance when there is any snow or ice. Had to mount winter tires to be able to get up a slight slope when there is any snow at all, or risk skidding up the slope while trying to get any speed over 10 kph. Tread wear is great however the tires have literally weather cracked after 4 years 1 month and need to be replaced already. My last set of bfg tires lasted me over 8 years before they weathered enough to be replaced. Have only put 27,000 km's or 17,000 miles on these tires. Very disappointed about needing new tires already, shortest life of any tire myself or my family has ever owned including some off brand tires. Would not buy again or recommend.

I'm writing this review solely based on the factory Hankook's that came on my 2013 Chevrolet Sonic Sedan LTZ. I understand that factory tires on new vehicles come with slightly less tread on them (makes it cheaper on the vehicle maker) But after 14,800 miles, one tire rotation (Had winter tires installed then since I live in Northeast Ohio) When it's dry they ran great. When it rained they were pretty good, but when the snow came dear --- almighty they ----ed tremendously. 3 inches of snow and I had to park a mile from home because of how poor these tires perform in the winter. When I had the oil change done right before these were pulled off they were already down to 5/32 for the front and 6/32 for the back which that's real fast treadwear considering I usually drive 13 miles a day most days. If you live in a dry climate where snow is NON-EXISTENT then I recommend these. However if you do get snow where you live then please avoid these.

Real good tire until I had to deal with the snow and fast tread wear. Wet/rain almost no problems but struggled to get going after stopping in the snow. I've never had a set of tires on any car wear as fast as these. I relaxed my driving style and found that if you drive like an old woman on Sunday they should wear normal, but as soon as you do anything with a little extra speed they just waste away.