67
/ 100
Objective (60%)
–/100
No test data yet
User signal (40%)
65/100
8 owner reviews
Prices change daily — check the retailer for your size.
Head-to-head
Updated May 2026
Kumho Ecsta AST KU25 vs Kumho Ecsta PS31 — Compared (May 2026)
Our Relative Score blends 60% objective test data with 40% owner-review signal — so any two tires can be compared even if they were never tested on the same day.
VS
82
/ 100
Objective (60%)
–/100
No test data yet
User signal (40%)
77/100
258 owner reviews
Prices change daily — check the retailer for your size.
VerdictWinner: Kumho Ecsta PS31 — better comfort, wet and handling. It leads or ties in every category we score.
Read full
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Category breakdown
7 categories, side by side
Each bar is the Relative Score for that category. Expand a tile to see the test results and owner ratings behind it.
Dry
Score (0–100)
Ecsta PS31 leads by 3
Why this score
| Source | Ecsta AST KU25 | Ecsta PS31 |
|---|---|---|
| Tire Rack owners | – | 85 |
| Tyre Reviews owners | 83 | 83 |
| SimpleTire owners | – | 93 |
Wet
Score (0–100)
Ecsta PS31 leads by 15
Why this score
| Source | Ecsta AST KU25 | Ecsta PS31 |
|---|---|---|
| Tire Rack owners | – | 81 |
| Tyre Reviews owners | 66 | 78 |
| SimpleTire owners | – | 87 |
Snow
Score (0–100)
Why this score
| Source | Ecsta AST KU25 | Ecsta PS31 |
|---|---|---|
| SimpleTire owners | – | 79 |
Comfort
Score (0–100)
Ecsta PS31 leads by 34
Why this score
| Source | Ecsta AST KU25 | Ecsta PS31 |
|---|---|---|
| Tire Rack owners | – | 84 |
| Tyre Reviews owners | 49 | 78 |
| SimpleTire owners | – | 89 |
Noise
Score (0–100)
Why this score
| Source | Ecsta AST KU25 | Ecsta PS31 |
|---|---|---|
| SimpleTire owners | – | 89 |
Treadwear
Score (0–100)
Ecsta PS31 leads by 10
Why this score
| Source | Ecsta AST KU25 | Ecsta PS31 |
|---|---|---|
| Tire Rack owners | – | 82 |
| Tyre Reviews owners | 71 | 75 |
| SimpleTire owners | – | 88 |
Handling
Score (0–100)
Ecsta PS31 leads by 14
Why this score
| Source | Ecsta AST KU25 | Ecsta PS31 |
|---|---|---|
| Tyre Reviews owners | 65 | 79 |
Scores at a glance
| Category | Kumho Ecsta AST KU25 | Kumho Ecsta PS31 |
|---|---|---|
| Relative Score | 67 | 82 |
| Dry | 83 | 86 |
| Wet | 66 | 81 |
| Snow | – | 79 |
| Comfort | 49 | 83 |
| Noise | – | 89 |
| Treadwear | 71 | 81 |
| Handling | 65 | 79 |
Higher is better. The Relative Score follows your weights below; category scores do not change.
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Wet grip and treadwear start at “Important” — the two things buyers rank highest. Move the sliders and the scores update instantly.
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Recomputed
Headline score
67
/ 100
Tire A
82
/ 100
Tire B
Only categories both tires have data for count toward the headline score.
From owners
Pros, cons & observations
Themes extracted from owner reviews across retailers and review sites — not the opinion of TireWheelGuide.
The Kumho Ecsta AST KU25 is generally regarded as an affordable, entry-level tire suitable for daily commuting rather than performance-oriented driving. While users appreciate its dry-weather grip and aesthetic tread pattern, the tire is frequently criticized for significant road noise and inconsistent performance in wet conditions.
Pros
- Attractive and aggressive tread design
- Strong dry-weather traction and handling
- High value-to-price ratio
- Satisfactory tread longevity for daily driving
Cons
- Excessive and intrusive road noise
- Unpredictable and poor wet-weather performance
- Abrupt loss of grip when pushed to limits
- Not suitable for spirited or performance driving
Observations
- Users noted that the tire's stiff sidewall provides good steering feedback, which some drivers appreciate for daily handling.
- Performance characteristics are highly polarized, with some users reporting confidence in heavy rain while others report dangerous instability.
The Kumho Ecsta PS31 is widely regarded as a high-value, budget-friendly performance tire that excels in daily driving comfort and quietness. While it offers impressive dry grip and reliable wet weather performance for most drivers, enthusiasts often note that its soft sidewalls result in less steering precision and reduced feedback during aggressive cornering compared to premium ultra-high-performance alternatives.
Pros
- Excellent price-to-performance ratio
- High levels of ride comfort and low road noise
- Strong dry traction for daily and spirited street driving
- Predictable and capable wet weather performance for most conditions
Cons
- Soft sidewalls lead to vague steering response and 'squirm' during aggressive maneuvers
- Inconsistent wet weather performance reported by some users, particularly in deep standing water
- Tread life can be shorter than expected for some driving styles
- Increased noise levels as the tire wears down
Observations
- Users with smaller, lighter vehicles (e.g., Mazda Miata, Honda Civic) often praise the comfort and value, while those with heavier or more powerful vehicles report more pronounced sidewall flex and handling vagueness.
- Drivers running low-profile sizes on rough roads report a higher susceptibility to sidewall bubbles and damage from potholes, suggesting a need for road hazard coverage.
- The tire is frequently noted as a significant upgrade in comfort and noise reduction when replacing OEM run-flat tires.
Specifications
Specs side by side
| Attribute | A · Kumho Ecsta AST KU25 | B · Kumho Ecsta PS31 |
|---|---|---|
| Category | All Season High Performance tires | Summer Ultra High Performance tires |
| Vehicle type | Passenger Car / Crossover | Passenger Car / Crossover |
| Sizes available | — | 4 |
| Rim diameters | — | 17″ – 18″ |
| Tread depth | — | 10/32″ |
| UTQG | — | 460 A A |
| Sidewall | — | Blackwall |
| Max pressure | — | 51 psi |
Final verdict
Which one should you actually buy?
67
/ 100
Kumho
82
/ 100
Kumho
Winner: Kumho Ecsta PS31 — better comfort, wet and handling. It leads or ties in every category we score.
Pick tire B
You want the most comfortable ride
Kumho Ecsta PS31 scores 83 vs 49 on comfort.
Pick tire B
Your priority is wet-weather safety
Kumho Ecsta PS31 scores 81 vs 66 on wet.
Pick tire B
You enjoy sharp, responsive handling
Kumho Ecsta PS31 scores 79 vs 65 on handling.
Pick tire B
You want the longest tread life
Kumho Ecsta PS31 scores 81 vs 71 on treadwear.
Tire A · Kumho Ecsta AST KU25
Tire B · Kumho Ecsta PS31
More comparisons
Also compared with
Kumho Ecsta AST KU25 also compared with
Kumho Ecsta PS31 also compared with
How do we compare tires?
Every category score blends two independent signals. 60% comes from professional tire tests (braking distances, lap times, noise measurements) normalized against the best tire in each test and weighted toward recent tests. 40% comes from thousands of owner reviews collected from retailers and review sites. When a tire has only one of the two, we use what exists and say so.
Community buzz from Reddit and forums is shown for context only — it never changes the score.