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Firestone Firehawk AS vs Kumho Ecsta STX KL12 — Compared

Relative Score (0–100): the weighted average of the categories below, each 60% road tests and 40% owner reviews. Based on 0 + 0 road tests and 8 + 15 owner reviews. How we score

Firehawk AS leads, 64–61 Narrow edge

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Firestone Firehawk AS
Tire AFirestone

Firehawk AS

All Season High Performance tires

Provisional

Tests – · none yet Owners 63 · 8 reviews

Kumho Ecsta STX KL12
Tire BKumho

Ecsta STX KL12

Summer High Performance tires

Provisional

Tests – · none yet Owners 57 · 15 reviews

Category by category

Relative Score per category, 0–100. Open “Why this score” for the tests and owner ratings behind it.

  1. 65

    Dry

    Firehawk AS +4
    61
    Why this score
    SourceFirehawk ASEcsta STX KL12
    Professional tests (TWG score)≈ 66 (est.)≈ 63 (est.)
    Reviews found online6457

    Firehawk AS: 60% × 66.3 (est.) + 40% × 64.2 = 65

    Ecsta STX KL12: 60% × 63.4 (est.) + 40% × 56.9 = 61

    No road tests of dry for Firehawk AS. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.40).

    No road tests of dry for Ecsta STX KL12. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.40).

  2. 65

    Wet

    Firehawk AS +8
    57
    Why this score
    SourceFirehawk ASEcsta STX KL12
    Professional tests (TWG score)≈ 66 (est.)≈ 60 (est.)
    Reviews found online6452

    Firehawk AS: 60% × 66.4 (est.) + 40% × 63.8 = 65

    Ecsta STX KL12: 60% × 60.1 (est.) + 40% × 52.4 = 57

    No road tests of wet for Firehawk AS. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.56).

    No road tests of wet for Ecsta STX KL12. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.56).

  3. 61

    Snow

    Ecsta STX KL12 +2
    63
    Why this score
    SourceFirehawk ASEcsta STX KL12
    Professional tests (TWG score)≈ 65 (est.)≈ 66 (est.)
    Reviews found online5658

    Firehawk AS: 60% × 65.2 (est.) + 40% × 55.8 = 61

    Ecsta STX KL12: 60% × 66 (est.) + 40% × 58.2 = 63

    No road tests of snow for Firehawk AS. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.33).

    No road tests of snow for Ecsta STX KL12. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.33).

  4. 65

    Comfort

    Level
    65
    Why this score
    SourceFirehawk ASEcsta STX KL12
    Professional tests (TWG score)≈ 68 (est.)≈ 68 (est.)
    Reviews found online6161

    Firehawk AS: 60% × 67.8 (est.) + 40% × 61.2 = 65

    Ecsta STX KL12: 60% × 67.8 (est.) + 40% × 61.4 = 65

    No road tests of comfort for Firehawk AS or Ecsta STX KL12. The test half is the tested tires’ average (69): owners’ comfort ratings barely follow the road tests.

  5. 67

    Noise

    Level
    67
    Why this score
    SourceFirehawk ASEcsta STX KL12
    Professional tests (TWG score)≈ 67 (est.)≈ 67 (est.)
    Reviews found online6767

    Firehawk AS: 60% × 67.3 (est.) + 40% × 67 = 67

    Ecsta STX KL12: 60% × 67.3 (est.) + 40% × 66.8 = 67

    No road tests of noise for Firehawk AS or Ecsta STX KL12. The test half is the tested tires’ average (67): owners’ noise ratings barely follow the road tests.

  6. 66

    Treadwear

    Firehawk AS +5
    61
    Why this score
    SourceFirehawk ASEcsta STX KL12
    Professional tests (TWG score)≈ 66 (est.)≈ 63 (est.)
    Reviews found online6658

    Firehawk AS: 60% × 65.6 (est.) + 40% × 65.6 = 66

    Ecsta STX KL12: 60% × 63.3 (est.) + 40% × 58.1 = 61

    No road tests of treadwear for Firehawk AS. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.31).

    No road tests of treadwear for Ecsta STX KL12. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.31).

  7. 61

    Handling (owners)

    Firehawk AS +7
    54
    Why this score
    SourceFirehawk ASEcsta STX KL12
    Reviews found online6154
Scores at a glance
CategoryFirestone Firehawk ASKumho Ecsta STX KL12
Relative Score 64 61
Dry 65 61
Wet 65 57
Snow 61 63
Comfort 65 65
Noise 67 67
Treadwear 66 61
Handling (owners) 61 54

Higher is better. The Relative Score follows your weights below; category scores do not change.

Weight the categories that matter to you

Wet grip starts at “Important”. Treadwear starts at “Neutral” here: road tests measured it for at most one of the two tires, so it rests on owner reviews. Move the sliders and the scores update instantly.

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Neutral
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Less important
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Neutral
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Recomputed
Headline score

Firehawk AS

Ecsta STX KL12

Pros, cons & observations

Themes extracted from owner reviews found online — not the opinion of TireWheelGuide.

Tire A Firehawk AS

Pros

  • Exceptionally quiet and smooth ride quality
  • Strong dry handling and improved cornering response
  • Good water dispersion and wet road performance for most users

Cons

  • Potential susceptibility to hydroplaning in heavy rain according to select reviewers
  • Requires proper balancing to prevent irregular tread wear
All owner themes in the Firehawk AS review

Tire B Ecsta STX KL12

Pros

  • Excellent price-to-performance ratio
  • High tread life and durability
  • Strong wet weather grip and cornering stability

Cons

  • Potential for increased road noise over time
  • Inconsistent traction performance on certain vehicle chassis
  • Accelerated wear on poor road surfaces
All owner themes in the Ecsta STX KL12 review

Specs side by side

Attribute A · Firestone Firehawk AS B · Kumho Ecsta STX KL12
CategoryAll Season High Performance tiresSummer High Performance tires
Vehicle typePassenger Car / CrossoverSUV and 4x4
Sizes available47
Rim diameters15″ – 18″18″ – 22″
Tread depth11/32″11.5/32″
UTQG480 A A420 A A
Treadwear warranty50,000 mi—
SidewallBlackwallBlackwall
Max pressure44 psi50 psi
Sizes in common00

Which one should you actually buy?

Firestone Firehawk AS

Kumho Ecsta STX KL12

Narrow edge: Firestone Firehawk AS — better wet, handling and treadwear. Where the Kumho Ecsta STX KL12 is ahead, it is by less than 3 points. Firestone Firehawk AS rests on little evidence so far (0 tests, 8 reviews), so read this result as provisional. Kumho Ecsta STX KL12 rests on little evidence so far (0 tests, 15 reviews), so read this result as provisional.

Pick tire A Your priority is wet-weather safety

Firestone Firehawk AS scores 65 vs 57 on wet.

Pick tire A You enjoy sharp, responsive handling

Firestone Firehawk AS scores 61 vs 54 on handling.

Pick tire A You want the longest tread life

Firestone Firehawk AS scores 66 vs 61 on treadwear.

Pick tire A You want the most grip on dry roads

Firestone Firehawk AS scores 65 vs 61 on dry.

Tire A · Firestone Firehawk AS
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Tire B · Kumho Ecsta STX KL12
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Firehawk AS or Ecsta STX KL12?

Which is better in the wet, Firehawk AS or Ecsta STX KL12?

Firestone Firehawk AS, 65 vs 57 on our wet score.

Which grips better on dry roads, Firehawk AS or Ecsta STX KL12?

Firestone Firehawk AS, 65 vs 61 on our dry score.

Which is better in snow, Firehawk AS or Ecsta STX KL12?

Neither, by our numbers: 61 vs 63 on the snow score, within 3 points.

Which is quieter, Firehawk AS or Ecsta STX KL12?

Neither, by our numbers: 67 vs 67 on the noise score, within 3 points.

Which is more comfortable, Firehawk AS or Ecsta STX KL12?

Neither, by our numbers: 65 vs 65 on the comfort score, within 3 points.

Which lasts longer, Firehawk AS or Ecsta STX KL12?

Firestone Firehawk AS, 66 vs 61 on our treadwear score.

How do we compare tires?

Every category score blends two independent signals. 60% comes from professional tire tests (braking distances, lap times, noise measurements), each result compared with every other tire in the same test and newer tests counting more. 40% comes from owner reviews found online, adjusted for how generously each site rates. Both use one scale: the average tested tire gets 70, the best 100. When a tire has only one of the two, the missing half is estimated from the other and the score stays closer to average; with no road test and fewer than five owner reviews it gets no score yet.

Handling is the exception: road tests measure it inside the dry and wet scores, so its own row comes from owner ratings only and starts as less important.

Community buzz from Reddit and forums is shown for context only — it never changes the score. Full methodology