The Hercules tire brand is known for offering a decent price range for its products. In this article, we will take a closer look at the brand's catalog and talk about how worthy Hercules tires are, considering their price range.
Are Hercules Tires Good?
Hercules's brand targets the driving audience for which a reasonable price matters a lot. At the same time, Hercules has at least 3 benefits that would motivate drivers to consider its tires: a reliable reputation, good quality for a reasonable price, and great design.
Hercules Reputation
Hercules has been operating in this industry since 1952. It is a subsidiary of American Tire Distributors Inc. and has the official name of Hercules Tire and Rubber Company. It operates from Ohio and focuses on the production of quality tires that it sells mostly in North America. The brand does not have strong marketing - the reason why it is not very popular compared to its competitors. However, the quality of the tires is decent and provides more than the minimum required performance and safety.
Hercules Price vs Quality
This tire maker is from the low-price class compared to the more popular brands. The low price is not necessarily associated with lower quality. Simply, the Hercules philosophy is predominantly based on the "word of mouth" advertising strategy rather than on mega-expensive marketing tools. As such, the price of the Hercules tire consists of its materials and labor, excluding the additional millions for advertising.
Hercules Design
Hercules has a talent for producing really good-looking tires. Once mounted on the vehicle, it looks imposing and temperamental.
Hercules Tire Review
NeoTires had the opportunity to do some test rides with Hercules tires. The testing team included amateurs, as well as professional mechanics, racers, and experts in the automotive field. Below, you can read the conclusions we made after testing several Hercules tires.
Hercules All-Season Tires
Hercules/Ironman IMOVE Gen 2 AS
The Ironman IMove Gen 2AS is a UHP all-season tire that was designed to serve various purposes and conditions for those who drive a sports sedan or similar passenger vehicles. It showed decent grip, very precise and agile steering, as well as highly promising traction.
Architecturally, the iMovie Gen 2 AS tire features an asymmetric design with an advanced tread compound. Massive tire shoulders, along with the five ribs, enhance the driving force distribution. Thanks to its modern design, the tire establishes close contact with the road. The brand has used quite a few technologies in this tire to marry together the sporty nature with decent comfort.
In wet conditions, the tire performed very well. It expels the water like a pro thanks to its longitudinal grooves and blade-shaped lateral grooves. Also, the tire maker has incorporated an advanced block geometry into the tire's sidewall construction. This significantly increases the degree of safety as well as optimizes all-season traction.
Last but not least, the tire looks very solid on the vehicle. This brings an aesthetic benefit rarely found among affordable tires. This line is available in diameters from 14" to 22". So any vehicle compatible with such a wheel diameter can benefit from the advantages of Hercules/Ironman IMOVE Gen 2 AS.
Hercules All-Season Tour 4.0 Plus
Structurally, the All-Season Tour 4.0 Plus has an asymmetric design. It is compatible with a wide variety of vehicles from sports coupes to small crossovers.
During testing, the team noticed its dry traction. It was agile, with slightly delayed acceleration at the beginning, but it recovered quickly. Also, the testing showed a high level of comfort. This tire is a little noisy when driving on urban roads. On the other hand, the tires are quite silent on highways. Check the quietest tires for a refined driving experience.
This product copes quite well with light snow conditions. However, it should be used in thin snow conditions. If the weather worsens, the Tour 4.0 Plus should be replaced with a specialized winter tire.
The performance tests showed pretty acceptable wet handling, great dry traction, and nice noise control. As for the shortcomings, the tread wears slightly faster in comparison to the in-group competitive alternatives.
Hercules Truck and SUV Tires
Hercules/Ironman Radial A/P
This tire is meant for light trucks and SUVs. It has a five-rib pattern architecture, which makes it a good tire for off-road conditions. Tests in highway conditions showed decent comfort and acceptable ride quietness. Still, this product is more suitable for challenging terrains.
The Ironman Radial A/P inhibits well potholes and small craters on the roads. This model adapts to uneven surfaces, making the ride pretty smooth. It keeps its traction along the entire ride. This is specific both on even surfaces and those that abound in loose soil, debris, and small rocks.
These capabilities are due to the multi-ply construction and the deep tread that ensures decent traction in various conditions. This tire is a trustworthy product when you need a decent ally in light all-terrain conditions.
According to the manufacturer, the Ironman Radial A/P tire incorporates a series of technologies to optimize rolling resistance. Thanks to the special tread compound, the tire brakes quickly and firmly.
Hercules/Ironman IMOVE Gen 2 SUV
The Ironman IMOVE Gen 2 SUV is an optimal product for highway conditions. It delivers a sporty feel to SUVs thanks to the asymmetric pattern, ensuring stable traction and preventing loss of grip both in wet and dry conditions.
The advantages of the tire are superb dry and wet traction. Comfort and quietness are also attributes worth mentioning as benefits. On the whole, the tire is highly reliable for its price tag.
Hercules All-Terrain Tires
Hercules Terra Trac A/T II
The Terra Trac A/T II has almost 30% more siping and almost 15% more lateral grooves compared to other models in the same line. Tackling extreme terrain does not require much effort for this tire.
This model contains a special silica compound whose function is to ensure grip and decent traction in various conditions. And the tire does. During testing, the Terra Trac A/T II performed splendidly on wet and dry all-terrain surfaces.
The noise suppression properties when driving on highways are surprising for an A/ tire. The Terra Trac A/T II superbly inhibits noisy frequencies and waves when counteracting wind while rolling.
This tire is just as reliable when it comes to light snow conditions. Due to its aggressive structure, it effectively bites through the snow layer delivering constant and firm traction. Handling in deep mud, on the other hand, is much of a disadvantage. If often driving in muddy conditions, mud-terrain specialized tires are recommended for better performance.
Bottom Line
The Hercules tire tests confirmed that the low price range does not equal low quality. Despite minor disadvantages, Hercules tires do great work in the specific environment they are meant for. The biggest shortcoming of Hercules tires is their relatively short tread life. But in the end, the low price always brings some sacrifices. Drive Safe!
