Snow traction is the strongest owner theme for the Falken Eurowinter HS449, praised in 22 of 31 written reviews, with wet and dry grip also regularly receiving favourable comments. Ice grip and value attract further praise, and 26 reviews are positive overall, averaging 84.9%. Longer-term accounts generally support good tread life, although three reviews, around one in ten, report disappointing wear. Noise is more often praised than criticised, but three reviews find it intrusive and another three mention a fuel-economy penalty. The two repeat reviewers had different experiences over time, so there is no consistent pattern of improvement or decline as it ages.
What owners mention most counted across 30 reviews
Tap one to read only the reviews that mention it.
Owner ratings averaged from 35 ratings
Owner score85%
Ice Grip93%
Wet Grip87%
Wear85%
Dry Grip85%
Comfort84%
Road Feedback80%
Snow Grip80%
Handling77%
Falken Eurowinter HS449 Reviews - Page 3
Score spread across 31 written reviews
miles
Review stage
93%
Member
Renault
185/60 R15 T
3,000 miles
A Combination of Roads
Average
there are many of these negative comments Falken HS 449, but trusting the judgment of a friend, I purchased and am very happy. I was able to try them in all conditions, wet and dry in the middle of all the other, the snow uphill no problem, I can safely forget the chains, it will be because the Renault Clio is a light car. Tires promoted with flying colors!
I was the first to review these tyres but they were very new and had only done about 1000miles and temperatures had not dropped below 4 degrees at the time of the review. I have now done 6000 miles and it's been down to -11 and 6 inches of snow encountered ... and dealt with , with ease.
The tyres remain quiet and you can sense and hear them approaching the limit very easily. On ice and snow they are very capable.
However they have worn more than I anticipated and that is my only reservation.
I had 4 Conti Winter Contact TS830's on my previous car which were excellent and after 2 winters / 8000 miles had only worn to 8mm. These are now on 6mm front and 7mm rear after 6000 miles. But they were £75 fitted whereas new Conti's were £115, so given the cost to wear, there is nothing in it. They will just get replace after next winter, after which I will probably change the car anyway.
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Overal for me this is a great winter tyre and not too expensive.
Dry
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Grip on dry is very good, though it's not excellent. Especially when the temperatures rises in winter above 7℃ you can feel the tyre performance drop (but i suppose that's for every winter tyre due to their rubber composition). When it's cold the performance is very good, it's responsive and if i want to do a small drift i really have to push my car.
Wet
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The tyre really stands out on wet, cold roads. It's responsive an very predictable. When i'm driving on some country roads i can tell when i'm going to let my rear end slide out, every time. (i slide it on purpose, not because of the tyres).
Snow
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I'm actually someone that goes for a drive when it has snowed. It's the first year i drive RWD so this was exiting. And 'oh my' did it perform. When driving normal i couldn't notice the difference between my RWD car and my previous FWD Alfa Romeo. Driving uphill in 5-6cm of snow was not a problem. I only got stuck once in about 12-14cm of deep snow, lightly uphill wanting to go standing still.
But again, here, very predictable.
This tyre got me interested firstly on looks. Wide lateral shoulder blocks and plenty of sipes. Having used several other winter tyre brands in the past and a interest in winter tyre development I thought I'd give them a try. Regular driving is satisfactory wet or dry but the hs449 come into its
Own up the hills through Derbyshire in around 4/5inchs of fresh snow and slush. The ford puma needs all the help it can get in snow and the hs449 worked better for me than previous high end brands I have tried.
An interesting one this. These tyres seem to produce mixed reviews, but I can honestly say that on snow, frozen roads or very cold but waterlogged roads, they are predictable, grippy and confident when fitted to a Subaru Outback. I drove the 30 miles into work this morning starting on 3 to 4 inches of fresh snow that had fallen on ice. This turned to deep slush, and then deep puddles and heavy rain, and not once did I feel compromised.I live in the Cairngorms and have 2 miles on unclassified twisting, undulating track to drive before I get to a B road, and the car never once mis behaved. Even a sharp off camber junction leading to a steep uphill section saw no dramas at all. Last week we have a flash freeze warning and I drove home with large patches of black ice on the same road, and again, the car just pulled through it all on these tyres. I have only been using them for 4 weeks, but it has all been in conditions that would have had the previous tyres (Geolanders) asking questions (hence the change). Even mucking about in my field in snow and mud the car was extremely predictable and controllable despite provoked 4 wheel drifts. All in all a very capable tyre in typical Scottish winter conditions.
These are very new and seems few people have them so I cant rate wear.I have covered 1000 miles so far, in temperatures ranging 4-11 degrees. No snow yet so I cant comment on actual effectiveness below zero, but sure they are going to be far superior to summer tyres. They are very quiet and grip well.
