Kumho Ecsta PA51 

If you want "super hards" on your daily driver maximizing performance for all weather conditions, don't pass this tire up (UTQG 500 Traction AA Temp A). 20,000 miles mixed mileage, religious tire rotations and hawkish preservation of relatively high tire pressures (35 front, 32 rear) with no issues. Good longitudinal and lateral stability, very predictable and performs well under lateral stress (55 mph cloverleaf curves). Nearly unnoticeable difference in the dry and the wet, though it will slip in moderate snow. This is not a tire you would put on a saloon or luxury car, you will hear friction running it's course and as a very hard compound, "comfort" is not a factor I chose when purchasing the tire, the stock summer tires offered a quieter and smoother ride - but lasted about 15,000 miles. These Kumho PA51s are on pace for about 55,000 miles based on inspection results, and similar Kumho tire products I have purchased on average last between 50,000 and 70,000 miles.
Overall: 8.5/10
Endurance: 10/10
Dry Traction: 8/10 (It's not a summer or racing tire)
Wet Traction: 9/10 (Keeps traction with the road at highway speed in small puddled standing water)
Cornering: 9/10 (You can hear when the tire is at its lateral limit)
Response: 9/10 (If there is torsion lag, its hard to feel)
Snow: 6/10 (Go very very slow - take those 30mph corners at 10.)
Ride Comfort: 5/10 (You will feel the seams between the asphalt)
Noise: 6/10 (You will hear the tire manipulating physics)

I cam across these tires searching for my best "bang for buck" for UHPAS (Ultra-High-Performance-All-Season). There were no reviews yet as this is a fairly new model for Kumho. I have had a set of the "Ecsta" line in the past, so I had a general idea of how these "should" perform. I had them installed at the Acura dealership, mounted and balanced, along with an alignment. There is the typical "slickness" of the new tire. After about 200-300 miles, I tried to break them loose in full rain downpour and nothing! I was surprised, I also tried swerving right to left to slide....yet again nothing! These tires can handle everything I throw at them so far, and they haven't been fully broken in, so I'm super excited to see how they truly perform! I mean if you put the car in "Sport" mode it will break loose, but it quickly locks up and you can feel the grip. The car also stops a lot quicker and you can feel the responsiveness and feedback from the road, unlike my previous AS touring tires. These tires also do very well in turns, 50+mph and accelerate out with no issues of tire slide or screeching!


I had stock OEM Goodyear Eagle LS-2 on my car and they were absolutely horrible. No one should be allowed to have those tires on a car! That being said...luckily it was time for an upgrade on tires due to lack of tread and I found these!



Great tire, buy these for $108 a tire that's a steal for UHPAS tires!


Will report back after a few thousand miles!

Previous tires were Bridgestone Pole Position so these were a welcome change from the stuff sidewalls of the Bridgestones. I drive my sport wagon daily and wanted a tire that would have good road manners but also sporty feel if I felt so I inclined. Overall, very happy with my purchase. Sidewalls were softer so they gave the car a much more “touring” feel, which is nice for daily driving. Low road noise, no complaints driving in the rain (take that with a grain of sale since it’s a Subaru but still felt very good). Also did well in the snow for a high performance AS tire (didn’t get into too deep of snow but in the winter they did perform well). For the price it’s hard to beat. There is some grip that is given up, but in the future I plan on having a set of dedicated summer tires for performance. Also very happy with tire longevity. I had to replace two after an incident where a chunk of road was missing but I’d estimate I’ve gotten about 45k out of these tires. They are balding due to needing an alignment but I feel like I’ve gotten my moneys worth out of them. An excellent tire, highly recommend!

I have always bought goodyear tires but was on a budget when I first bought these tires. For the price you pay for these tires these go a long way. I was definitely not easy on these tires. Great in the snow and rain. Hardly any tire spin on wet or dry conditions. I will be buying another set of these for my car again and probably as long as I have it. Highly Recommend!

great tires, within 24 hours of having them mounted I drove my car 800 miles home and have put great miles on the car since! They generated a little more noise than I was expecting. that the only thing that caught me surprised. beyond that and short of a track environment, which these aren't appropriate for, they are phenomenal daily tires. I've thrown my G8 GXP into some corners VERY hot and these bad boys held on without breaking much of a sweat. unfortunately picked these up on a closeout sale and wont be able to buy more sooner. but absolutely thrilled with these. in rain they perform better than expected, but as a cautious Wisconsinite living in Tennessee i made sure i picked a tire with great siping for the bite through water. these are definitely a great tire!

I was concerned about choosing an appropriate tire for my turbo Miata due to the myriad of choices out there. Living in Alabama means both wet and dry traction are of the utmost importance, as it is usually very hot and usually very dry although we do have the occasional bouts of heavy rain which can overwhelm an inexperienced driver because the drains cannot dispel the water quick enough. So I did some research online as well as digging through my car magazine collection (Grass Roots Motorsports in particular) looking for tire reviews. The Khumos as well as The Tire Rack both came highly recommended so that's the direction I chose. I couldn't be happier. As a powersports owner I don't have much free time to go out looking for tires and a business to install them. Tire rack shipped them to my usual source for automotive repair and maintenance and within four days my little Miata was ready for rural Alabama roads. THANK YOU!!!

Great all around performance. Predictable handling at the limit.

Comfortable, predictable, and responsive tires. This is my second set and I am still impressed by the performance and value. My previous purchase was for a RWD vehicle and this set is on an AWD. They launch well and corner hard, but not too much noise in general use (albeit on grooved roads there is noticeable noise due to the grip). I don't have any snow experience with these, but general wet performance is fantastic. Braking has also been great with these, less squeal and more stopping power for those sudden situations. The wear is great so I expect this second set to last as well with little performance deterioration. If you want pure performance, pure comfort, or better mpg there are better options; but these are not only a great balance, but do each quite well.

Needed new tires, did a lot of research to find something that didn't break the bank. Wanted to avoid no name Chinese brands (never going this route again). Loved driving on extreme summers (RS3s and RE-71s) in the past but did not fit my needs for this car. Settled on all seasons for the tread life. So far I've found this tire to be a nice balance for daily commuting with the occasional spirited drive. Does a pretty good job of soaking up bumps. The steering is accurate and responsive with good mid corner stability. Dry grip and braking is more than enough for street driving. Can't comment on wet performance yet, no rain here in SoCal. Factor in the price and this tire is a great overall value. Only minor complaint is this tire does have noticeable tread noise. Will purchase again if I can get decent tread life.

Great tires, very smooth ride.

These tires are a fantastic value and they perform wonderfully. Tread wear is pretty amazing too. I had 70k on these and replaced them before they were down to the wear bars! Wet weather in the Northwest demands tread depth….otherwise I would likely have gotten another 10k out of them. This is my second set on the same car.

Bought these as a 3- season roadtrip / everyday driving tire for my otherwise autocross and track focused corvette. I have been very pleased with the performance overall.

In the dry they have plenty of traction for your modestly spirited canyon runs and backroad driving. In the wet they are confident, but may still hydroplane a little through deep puddles.

Road noise and comfort are good. Much better than the stiff sidewall 200TW autocross tires I would typically run, but its not gonna transform your hot rod into a luxury touring machine. No offensive tread noise or howl in my experience.

These tires do have good road manners, with resonably light steering, and good resistance to following tar snakes in the road. They do take potholes pretty well, where on 200TW tires I might get a spinal adjustment going over a pothole, these seem to be much more forgiving. Overall trouble free highway and around town driving experience.

Fuel economy performance is average, and treadwear has been great so far. I expect these tires will age out on a weekend driver before they wear out based on what I have seen.

I did have to drive these in a snow storm one time. I drove very cautiously and they gave enough grip to get around safely on plowed roads. Not recommended, but they will get you home if you're not a dummy.

Overall, I would recommend these for your sports car if you want good driving performance in a 3 season tire, but are more concerned with comfort and treadwear than ultimate grip.

These tires are great purchases in 05/2019 still going especially in NYC potholes and bumps. Finally got bubbles in them after this long. Impressed!