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Last updated 7/10/2024 - Originally published 7/10/2024
Written by SimpleTire
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Falken, a subsidiary of Sumitomo tires with its roots in Japan, was first introduced into the world in 1983 as a flagship performance radial brand. On the other hand, the American tire maker General continues to be a celebrated brand with a legacy spanning over a century and is now part of Continental Tires. Falken and General brands offer reliable tires that can be used in different weather conditions on different vehicles, right from passenger cars to light trucks and SUVs. Among their all-weather tire range, the Aklimate and the Altimax 365AW are popular tire lines that offer year-round performance in dry, wet, and moderate to severe winter weather conditions.
Designed for passenger cars, the Falken Aklimate and the General Altimax 365AW are all-weather tires that claim to offer excellent traction, grip, handling, and longevity in dry and wet along with moderate to severe winter conditions. Both come with the Three Peak Mountain Snowflake certification, ensuring superior performance and control on ice and snow. So, which of these two is a better option? Let’s compare Falken Aklimate vs. General Altimax 365W tires based on our proprietary SimpleScore to know the right option.
Launched in 2023, the Falken Aklimate can be equipped on passenger cars, CUVs, and SUVs all year round thanks to its unique rubber compound that resists changing weather conditions. The all-weather touring tire features optimized sipe depths and rigid tread patterns for optimum grip and traction in dry, wet, and winter conditions. The Three Peak Mountain Snowflake certified tire has 3D Canyon Sipe Technology that allows strong traction in various driving conditions. Backed by a 65,000 mile limited manufacturer tread life warranty, the Canyon Grooves not only boosts snow performance but also ensures a comfortable, quiet ride.
With a fantastic SimpleScore of 8.9, the Falken Aklimate assures responsive handling, long-lasting tread, and great year-round traction.
A great all-weather companion, the General Altimax 365AW is designed for passenger cars and SUVs and provides enhanced traction, grip, handling, and longevity in dry, wet, and wintry weather thanks to the special rubber compound that maintains flexibility even in freezing conditions. Backed by a 60,000 mile limited manufacturer tread life warranty, the Altimax 365AW bears the Three Peak Mountain Snowflake symbol signifying great performance in snowy and icy conditions. To resist uneven wear and promote uniform wear, the General tire features Visual Alignment Indicators that alert drivers about any misalignment, the details of which can be viewed just by looking at the tires.
Boasting an 8.7 overall SimpleScore, the General Altimax 365AW promises great traction, grip, handling, and wearability around the year.
Traction in tires is essential to hold the ground and not let it skid when the vehicle is in motion. It becomes highly important if you are driving in wintry conditions of ice and snow.
Scoring an 8.4 in traction, the Falken Aklimate features a unique tread pattern with optimized sipe depths for surefooted traction performance in dry, wet, and snow. While the Advanced 4D Nano Design Technology of the new rubber compound boosts snow traction, the 3D Canyon Sipe Technology offers solid grip and traction in different weather conditions, including moderate to heavy snow.
Similarly, the General Altimax 365AW boasts an 8.7 traction score. Featuring an all-weather rubber compound, the General tire returns confident drive in dry, wet, and moderate to severe winter conditions. While the Three Peak Mountain Snowflake certification assures exceptional winter performance in snow and ice, the longitudinal grooves with connected lateral grooves allow quick water and slush evacuation from the tread for improved traction, grip, and control.
With a marginally better score, the General Altimax 365AW marches ahead of the Falken.
ADVANTAGE: General Altimax 365AW
Moderate and severe winter conditions demand superior steering response and control for a confident and safe ride in sub-freezing conditions. Both tires assure great handling in challenging conditions.
The Falken Aklimate returns an 8.6 handling score thanks to the Canyon Grooves that offer smooth handling in winter conditions and enhanced ride comfort. The Aklimate’s rubber compound maintains fantastic control and handling in wet conditions thanks to 4D Nano Design Technology, while the wide footprint leads to a large contact patch for increased traction, stability, and steering response.
A step ahead, the General Altimax 365AW scores 8.7 thanks to an optimized tread pattern and unique rubber compound that ensures confident handling and stability on dry, wet, snowy, and icy surfaces. The solid center rib with lateral grooves boosts steering response and stability at high speeds.
With a marginally better score, the Altimax 365AW wins the handling section, too.
ADVANTAGE: General Altimax 365AW
All-weather tires are preferred as they offer year-round use with a longer service life than a dedicated winter tire. Let’s check how the Aklimate and Altimax 365AW perform on the longevity scale.
Scoring an exceptional 9.7 longevity score, the Falken Aklimate sports 4D Nano Design Technology that uses a special rubber compound for enhanced durability and a long-lasting service life. While the inner construction resists the varying driving pressures and maintains the tire shape for longer tread life, the Falken is backed by a 65,000 mile limited manufacturer tread life warranty.
The General Altimax 365AW isn’t far behind and scores 9 in longevity. Thanks to its specialized rubber compound that promotes excellent wearability, the Altimax 365AW has a longer service life and the 60,000 mile limited manufacturer tread life warranty is a testament to this fact. Lastly, the Visual Alignment Indicators prevent irregular wear by informing the driver about the alignment status.
Despite an excellent fight, the General falls short of the Falken as it finally beats the Altimax 365AW.
ADVANTAGE: Falken Aklimate
All-weather tires are designed to offer superior traction, handling, grip, control, and longevity in dry, wet, and moderate to severe winter weather conditions. However, they are more suitable for regions that experience unpredictable weather conditions, while for those who usually experience temperatures below 45 degrees Fahrenheit, winter tires serve the best. Both the tires are fairly close to each other across different parameters, though there’s a significant difference in mileage warranty. Also, you’ll be in a better position to know about the conditions of your tires from the Visual Alignment Indicators on the Altimax 365AW.
If you reside in a region where there’s light snow, you may go for all-season tires as they not only provide excellent dry, wet, and light wintry performance but also have superb tread life.
To sum up, the General Altimax 365AW is ahead of Falken Aklimate in traction and handling while the latter lasts longer. While the margin of defeat is minimal, let’s check their prices to see if that can offset the shortcomings of these all-weather tires.
Comparing the prices of the 225/50R18 tire size, the Falken Aklimate costs around $177 per tire, and four such tires cost $708, while the General Altimax 365AW costs around $189 per tire, and four such tires cost $756 (a difference of $48).
Based on SimpleScore, you should choose the Aklimate if you:
You can opt for the General Altimax 365AW if you:
Still not sure which tire to buy? Fortunately, SimpleTire is here to help, and our helpful agents will be more than happy to assist you in selecting the right tire for your ride and budget.
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