Hankook Winter I cept RS3

The Hankook Winter I cept RS3 is a Premium Touring Winter tire designed to be fitted to Passenger Cars.

Tire review data from 17 tire reviews averaging 80% over 58,300 miles driven, and 11 tests with an average result of 6th.

Dry Grip 87%
Wet Grip 87%
Road Feedback 76%
Handling 81%
Wear 81%
Comfort 66%
Buy again 75%
Snow Grip 92%
Ice Grip 78%

First On Market May 2021
Wheel Size 14 - 17"
Width 165 - 225mm
Profile 45 - 70
Rolling Resistance C - D
Wet Grip B - B
Noise (dB) 70 - 72
Winter Rating 3PMSF Rated

The Winter I cept RS3 is ranked 42nd of 68 Winter Premium Touring tires.

This tire replaced the Hankook Winter i cept RS2.

In Depth Tire Comparisons

Tests Included

11

Best Result

3rd

Worst Result

14th

Average Result

6th

Latest Tire Test Results

2024 ADAC 16 Inch Winter Tire Test
4th of 12 tires
  • The Hankook Winter icept RS3 tire shows mixed performance across different driving conditions. On dry roads, it offers good steering feedback, precise handling, and good safety reserves during sudden evasive maneuvers, though its braking distance is slightly longer than average. Its performance on wet roads is less impressive, barely missing a good rating. While it handles aquaplaning well, it struggles with wet braking and handling, showing weak grip and a tendency to oversteer. The tire performs well on winter roads, with above-average braking and acceleration on snow, and safe, precise handling on snowy courses. Ice braking performance is average. Environmentally, the tire scores well with above-average mileage, very low wear, light weight, and low fuel consumption. However, it's noted that production residues on new tires unnecessarily end up in nature during the first few kilometers of use. Overall, the Hankook Winter icept RS3 excels in dry and winter conditions but has room for improvement on wet surfaces.
View Full Test >>
2024 ADAC 17 inch Winter Tire Test
5th of 16 tires
  • The Hankook Winter i*cept RS3 receives a satisfactory rating for driving safety, with good performance on wet and wintery roads but falling short on dry surfaces. It lacks precision and feedback on dry roads, requiring steering corrections and exhibiting a tendency to oversteer. However, it performs well on wet and snowy surfaces with good braking and handling. It also has good environmental performance with a long lifespan, low abrasion, and good fuel efficiency, though manufacturing residues on new tires are a negative point.
View Full Test >>

2024 Tire Tests

2023 Tire Tests

2022 Tire Tests

Size Fuel Wet Noise
14 inch
185/60R14 82 T D B 71
165/70R14 85 T XL D B 71
185/70R14 88 T C B 71
185/60R14 82 T D B 71
175/65R14 82 T D B 71
165/70R14 81 T D B 71
175/65R14 86 T XL D B 71
175/65R14 86 T XL D B 71
185/70R14 88 T C B 71
165/70R14 85 T XL D B 71
185/60R14 82 T D B 71
185/70R14 88 T C B 71
175/65R14 82 T D B 71
165/70R14 81 T D B 71
165/70R14 81 T D B 71
175/65R14 82 T D B 71
175/65R14 86 T XL D B 71
165/70R14 85 T XL D B 71
15 inch
195/65R15 95 T XL C B 72
185/65R15 92 T XL C B 71
185/65R15 88 T D B 71
195/65R15 91 T C B 72
195/65R15 91 T C B 72
195/55R15 85 H D B 72
185/65R15 88 T D B 71
185/65R15 88 T D B 71
195/65R15 91 T C B 72
195/65R15 95 T XL C B 72
195/55R15 85 H D B 72
185/65R15 92 T XL C B 71
185/65R15 92 T XL C B 71
195/65R15 91 H C B 72
195/65R15 91 H C B 72
195/65R15 95 T XL C B 72
195/55R15 85 H D B 72
16 inch
205/55R16 91 H C B 72
215/70R16 100 T C B 72
205/60R16 92 H C B 72
205/55R16 91 H XL C B 72
205/55R16 91 H C B 72
205/60R16 96 H XL C B 72
205/55R16 91 H D B 72
205/60R16 92 H C B 72
205/55R16 94 H XL C B 72
215/60R16 99 H XL C B 72
205/55R16 91 T C B 72
205/55R16 94 V XL C B 72
205/55R16 91 H C B 72
215/70R16 100 T C B 72
205/55R16 94 H XL C B 72
215/60R16 99 H XL C B 72
205/55R16 91 T C B 72
205/60R16 96 H XL C B 72
215/60R16 99 H XL C B 72
205/55R16 91 T C B 72
205/60R16 96 H XL C B 72
205/60R16 92 H C B 72
205/55R16 94 V XL C B 72
215/70R16 100 T C B 72
205/55R16 94 V XL C B 72
205/55R16 94 H XL C B 72
17 inch
215/55R17 98 V XL C B 72
225/45R17 94 H XL C B 72
225/45R17 94 H XL C B 72
215/45R17 91 V XL D B 72
225/50R17 94 H D B 72
225/50R17 94 H D B 72
225/50R17 98 V XL C B 72
215/55R17 98 V XL C B 72
205/50R17 93 V XL C B 72
225/45R17 91 H D B 72
225/45R17 94 V XL C B 72
215/55R17 98 V XL C B 72
225/45R17 91 V D B 72
215/45R17 91 V XL D B 72
225/45R17 94 H XL C B 72
225/50R17 98 V XL C B 72
225/50R17 98 V XL C B 72
205/50R17 93 V XL C B 72
205/50R17 93 V XL C B 72
225/45R17 94 V XL C B 72
225/45R17 91 H D B 72
225/45R17 94 V XL C B 72
View All Sizes and EU Label Scores for the Hankook Winter I cept RS3 >>

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YouTube Review

Top 3 Hankook Winter I cept RS3 Reviews

Given 87% while driving a Volkswagen Golf (175/65 R14) on a combination of roads for 3,500 average miles
Hankook Winter I*cept RS3 tires were bought brand new in october of 2023, was manufactured a few months earlier and stamped as made in Korea. Tires were used on 1997 Volkswagen Golf Mk3, 1.9 TDI 66 kW (90 Hp), without ABS, TC or other driver assists.

First season/initial thoughts:
Dry roads - car was predictible, tires felt a little bit softer and less responsive, in comparision with summer tires (in my case it's 195/55 R15 2020's Michelin Energy Saver+), but it's a winter tire, so it's absolutly normal to have a slightly different feeling in steering response or handling when having in mind they're softer compound than summer tires. But they felt secure from city roads to country roads or motorways.
Wet roads - car was fully predictible too, I didn't had to face any aquaplaning, unexpected sliding or something similar, when driving in wet conditions, everything felt safe on all type of roads.
Snow - if we're talking about one of the most important winter tire quality, then Hankook Winter I*cept RS3's were perfect. There was zero problems in inclines, declines, corners, in slush or deeper snow, also in traction or braking on snowy roads (biggest part of driving was on country roads). And last winter in Lithuania we had enough deeper snow, colder temperatures (few weeks up to -25°C, usualy around -10°C), etc., despite that traction was great, handling too. And even when car was having a wheel spin (mostly when driving more agressive, with calm, easy going driving style - tires had more than enough traction and didn't spin the wheels, quick reminder - an old Golf Mk3 without traction control), it didn't stop moving, didn't start to slide in a middle of the corner uncontrollably, and I was a little bit shocked, because tires had plenty of playfulness and room for safe driving on the limit.
Ice - I didn't had much experience on icy roads last year, but in a few situations, they didn't felt too bad, so if you're driving safely enough in those icy conditions, you shouldn't have any problems. Considering fact, that they are non-studded and/or not soft compound tires, they do their job great enough.
Handling/road feedback - overall they felt secure and responsive enough, you felt that tire limits line great and tires gave enough response of what they're doing.
Comfort - in first season I didn't hear too much of the tire noise, didn't felt any major comfort issues overall, it was slightly noisier than summer tires, but no big deal.
Wear - I don't remember brand new tires depth, I believe it was around 7.5-8 mm, after winter season and about 5000 km's I measurred it, and it wasn't much of a difference, maybe ~ 0.5-1 mm less, in comparision when they were new.

Second season:
Winter tires season in Lithuania started only a month ago, so we didn't have any snow or ice yet, at least in my region, only dry or rainy days with temperatures around 0°C, with a light cold at nights and positive temperatures at days. On dry or wet roads they feel same as in last years, in snow or ice - we'll see, but main change is - noise. Tires became much more noisier, especially around 70-80 km/h, around 90-100 km/h they become less noisy again. And it's not the worst tire noise I have experienced in my life, but it's not the most fun too.

All in all - tires are great for their purpose, bought them after Jonathan winter tires review on Tire Reviews YouTube and I haven't regret this choice, because of their great properties on dry, wet, snowy or even icy roads. Price and quality rate was great too (~ 230 Eur for set of 4 tires, I should say thanks for small and narrow size, for me Hankook's price was a sweet spot, because budget tires set would have cost ~ 160-180 Eur and premium tires set would have cost ~ 300-500 Eur, so in middle price range, there wasn't much of a better choices), I would strongly consider buying them again, but off course - it would be nice if they would be less noisy.
Helpful 207 - tire reviewed on December 6, 2024