Hankook Tire & Technology Co., Ltd. (Hankook Tire) announced on March 30 that it has launched two new front-axle tire sizes for heavy cargo trucks and tractors: the SmartFlex AH51+.
To address shifting domestic freight conditions and customer needs, Hankook added two sizes optimized for front-axle applications on large cargo trucks and tractors — 295/80R22.5 and 315/80R22.5. With these additions, the SmartFlex AH51+ lineup now includes three sizes, including the existing 385/65R22.5, allowing the company to better meet a wider range of operating requirements.
Both new sizes incorporate Hankook’s flagship TBR (truck and bus radial) technology platform, Smartec (Smart+Technology). Smartec improves overall tire performance across five key areas—safety, mileage, chip-and-cut resistance, retreadability and braking—through advanced TBR engineering.
The latest TBR innovations were applied to significantly boost durability and mileage. The tire uses a four-belt construction that wraps a high-strength wire in an approximately 300-meter spiral coil at the same angle as the rolling direction, which enhances structural durability. This design minimizes tread peel and limits tread deformation at highway speeds, preserving a uniform contact patch and improving mileage.
Hankook also widened the groove widths and added an arrowhead-shaped design within the grooves to reduce stone retention and promote easier stone ejection, optimizing the tread pattern for real-world use.
Bead durability was substantially improved through carcass and bead-structure optimization and the application of a new bead-specific compound. The design also incorporates “hidden grooves,” which change tread shape as wear progresses, and T.W.E.S. (Tread Wear Equalizer Stepper) pattern technology to enhance overall performance, including mileage, traction and wet braking.
The SmartFlex AH51+ is available at Hankook Tire’s truck and bus tire specialty stores, TBX (Truck Bus Express). TBX not only offers products that apply advanced technologies for improved safety and durability, but also provides professional maintenance and management services. TBX is the domestic market leader in replacement truck and bus tires and has continued enhancing customer convenience and satisfaction since launching the TBX membership app in 2020, which offers store-visit reservations, discount coupons and free warranty services.
▶ Applied Intuition partners with LG Innotek… accelerating autonomous vehicle development
▶ Hankook Tire launches new sizes of SmartFlex AH51+ front-axle tires for large cargo trucks and tractors
▶ Iveco Korea renovates and reopens service center at Dangjin, a central logistics hub
