Bridgestone Dueler H/L 400 is a decent solution for all-season highway driving. It’s exceedingly good on nice roads, both dry and wet. In winter, they lag behind in quality a bit, although these treads still offer a generally comfortable driving experience. In fact, a lot of the features are aimed at increasing comfort, and not performance.
So, let’s see what H/L 400 can offer as an all-season tire.
H/L 400 is definitely not a high-performance or all-terrain tire, the tread has a fairly average composition. This fact, as well as the decent quality, makes them one of the most frequent original choices for many top-tier cars by BMW, Toyota and others.
The base consists of two steel belts covered in nylon. Both are encased into polyester, which is a good decision if you want to improve comfort.
The treads themselves are nothing really special, although they have some innovative solutions.
The tread (and tires in general) are designed in such a way to provide a reliable and highly predictable performance. The pattern, shape and other characteristics are balanced by the algorithm. Consequentially, the handling has been dramatically improved.
Furthermore, the shoulders have been given open slots to improve the versatility and control. As a result, these treads behave pretty well even while turning. This maneuver often exposes steering problems. There are no such problems on H/L 400.
The tires are also reinforced by the variation of carbon black material called L.L. Carbon. This component slows down the tire wear, decreases chipping and generally improves the durability.
In addition to that, they used the technology called O-bead, which ensures that the tire shape is almost perfectly round all the time. Not only does it add to traction, but substantially improves the comfort of driving.
Bridgestone didn’t forget about hydroplaning, either. Oh, they didn’t. There are whole 5 circumferential grooves. Together, they reduce the hydroplaning so much that you won’t likely feel any slipping on wet surfaces.
On snow and ice, that’s another story. The decent gripping characteristics allow H/L to hold onto snow and mild ice with some success. However, there are no special provisions made to battle ice or snow. These tires are mostly for highway driving, there isn’t a lot of snow or ice on highways, in theory.
While traction could really be better, all the decisions made to improve the comfort on these tires paid off. The quality is described as well-rounded, but the smoothness of the ride, as well as quietness, has really been elevated to a superb level.
These tires fit vehicles like light trucks and crossovers the best, although they are far from all-terrain tires, and you really need to avoid going off-road with these on.
There are generally better options, but Dueler H/L 400 is a good option for its price. The traction could be much better, although if you don’t expect harsh weather in your region and if you value comfort during driving – H/L might be your choice.
But then, you really can’t know how much they’ll live for. The minimal expected time of service is three years, which is about 30,000 miles minimum.
Even so, you might give these tires a shot if you enjoy comfort and are willing to sacrifice some performance for it.
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