SEMA Show, Day One: 'Kontrol' is the word at Hankook

At Hankook Tire America Corp., control -- or more accurately, "Kontrol" -- is the new buzzword. Hankook is using this week's Specialty Equipment Market Association Show to introduce its Kontrol Technology to the United States market.

The technology has been available in a newer Hankook tire, the enfren, in South Korea. Hankook is exploring "the possible launch of a variation of this product for North American applications within the next three years," say Hankook officials.

The tire contains a number of technologies, including a special silica compound and "structural design efficiencies," among others.

Kontrol Technology is based upon four pillars, according to Hankook officials: performance, safety, comfort and environment. It uses "fuel efficiency profiling" to reduce rolling resistance.