Tests – · none yet Owners 58 · 10 reviews
Hankook Icebear W300 looks discontinued: no new owner reviews or road tests in five years and no current EU tyre label.
Head-to-head
Updated
Hankook Icebear W300 vs Hankook Kinergy 4S2 — Compared
Relative Score (0–100): the weighted average of the categories below, each 60% road tests and 40% owner reviews (comfort 40/60). Based on 0 + 24 road tests and 10 + 3,649 owner reviews. How we score
Kinergy 4S2 is ahead, 71–62
Add your size for an exact match
/R
Both Amazon links then search this exact size.
TireWheelGuide may earn a commission from purchases made through these links.
Tests 79 · 24 tests Owners 60 · 3,649 reviews
Best test result: #1 of 16 in 2026 ADAC All Season Tyre Test - 185/65 R15 (curved aquaplaning)
“Softer alternative to HANKOOK KINERGY 4S2? Searching for alternarive to HANKOOK KINERGY 4S2 Good day to you! I recently decided to move to all-season tires. After checking reviews, costs and availability I went for HANKOOK 4S2. But i find them VERY stiff and not comfortable at all. (245 40 18). Would you please recommend an alternative with a softer ride? I am in Europe. Cheers and thank you!”
Category by category
Relative Score per category, 0–100. Open “Why this score” for the tests and owner ratings behind it.
-
62
Dry
Kinergy 4S2 +1072Why this score
Source Icebear W300 Kinergy 4S2 Professional tests (TWG score) · – / 23 tests ≈ 64 (est.) 83 Reviews found online 58 57 Icebear W300: 60% × 63.9 (est.) + 40% × 58.1 = 62
Kinergy 4S2: 60% × 82.6 + 40% × 56.5 = 72
No road tests of dry for Icebear W300. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.42).
-
62
Wet
Kinergy 4S2 +1678Why this score
Source Icebear W300 Kinergy 4S2 Professional tests (TWG score) · – / 23 tests ≈ 64 (est.) 87 Reviews found online 59 64 Icebear W300: 60% × 64.4 (est.) + 40% × 59.2 = 62
Kinergy 4S2: 60% × 86.6 + 40% × 64.3 = 78
No road tests of wet for Icebear W300. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.55).
-
–
Snow
No comparison72Why this score
Source Icebear W300 Kinergy 4S2 Professional tests (TWG score) · – / 18 tests – 79 Reviews found online – 61 Kinergy 4S2: 60% × 79 + 40% × 61.3 = 72
-
61
Comfort
Kinergy 4S2 +364Why this score
Source Icebear W300 Kinergy 4S2 Professional tests (TWG score) · – / 4 tests ≈ 67 (est.) 77 Reviews found online 57 55 Icebear W300: 40% × 66.9 (est.) + 60% × 56.9 = 61
Kinergy 4S2: 40% × 76.6 + 60% × 54.9 = 64
No road tests of comfort for Icebear W300. The test half is the tested tires’ average (69): owners’ comfort ratings barely follow the road tests.
-
–
Noise
No comparison66Why this score
Source Icebear W300 Kinergy 4S2 Professional tests (TWG score) · – / 18 tests – 66 Reviews found online – ≈ 67 (est.) Kinergy 4S2: 60% × 65.6 + 40% × 66.6 (est.) = 66
No owner ratings of noise for Kinergy 4S2. The owner half is the owners’ average (67): owners’ noise ratings barely follow the road tests, so the tests say nothing about how owners would rate it.
-
61
Treadwear
Kinergy 4S2 +667Why this score
Source Icebear W300 Kinergy 4S2 Professional tests (TWG score) · – / 9 tests ≈ 63 (est.) 71 Reviews found online 57 59 Icebear W300: 60% × 63 (est.) + 40% × 57.3 = 61
Kinergy 4S2: 60% × 71.5 + 40% × 59.4 = 67
No road tests of treadwear for Icebear W300. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.35).
-
61
Handling (owners)
Icebear W300 +556Why this score
Source Icebear W300 Kinergy 4S2 Reviews found online 61 56 -
–
Efficiency
No comparison54Why this score
Source Icebear W300 Kinergy 4S2 Professional tests (TWG score) · – / 18 tests – 54
Scores at a glance
| Category | Hankook Icebear W300 | Hankook Kinergy 4S2 |
|---|---|---|
| Relative Score | 62 | 71 |
| Dry | 62 | 72 |
| Wet | 62 | 78 |
| Snow | – | 72 |
| Comfort | 61 | 64 |
| Noise | – | 66 |
| Treadwear | 61 | 67 |
| Handling (owners) | 61 | 56 |
| Efficiency | – | 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.
Important
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Important
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Neutral
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Only one of the two tires has a score here, so this weight changes nothing in the head-to-head.
Less important
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Less important
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Only one of the two tires has a score here, so this weight changes nothing in the head-to-head.
Neutral
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Less important
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Not important
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Only one of the two tires has a score here, so this weight changes nothing in the head-to-head.
Recomputed
Headline score
62
/ 100
Icebear W300
71
/ 100
Kinergy 4S2
Only categories both tires have data for count toward the headline score.
Pros, cons & observations
Themes extracted from owner reviews found online — not the opinion of TireWheelGuide.
Tire A Icebear W300
Pros
- Outstanding traction and mobility in deep and compacted snow
- Predictable and progressive handling characteristics
- High value-to-performance ratio in winter conditions
Cons
- Weak performance in wet and slushy conditions
- Rapid tread wear, particularly in warmer temperatures
- Limited dry-weather feedback and handling precision
Tire B Kinergy 4S2
Pros
- Exceptional wet weather grip, braking, and aquaplaning resistance
- Strong performance and confidence in cold temperatures, light snow, and slush
- High overall value for money compared to premium tier alternatives
Cons
- Increased road noise and occasional highway 'whining' or howling between 120-140 km/h
- Some reports of faster-than-expected tread wear or uneven inner tread deformation
- Softer sidewalls can induce initial steering delay or a slight floating feel during aggressive cornering
What real owners are saying
From Reddit, forums and review threads. Not part of our score
Tire A
Hankook Icebear W300
We haven't collected enough community discussion about this tire yet.
Tire B
Mixed
Hankook Kinergy 4S2
Community members frequently view the Hankook Kinergy 4S 2 as a solid, budget-friendly alternative to premium all-weather tires like the Michelin CrossClimate 2, highlighting its strong wet traction and good snow performance for the price. However, users report mixed experiences regarding tread longevity, with some noting rapid or uneven wear, as well as drawbacks such as highway humming noise, a stiff ride, and twitchy handling on ice.
subaruoutback.org
·3 upvotes ·2022-11-09
“I had the Kinergy 4s2 tires and they were not good. They wore unevenly, especially on the outsides of the fronts and handling was poor. When cornering the tire felt like the sidewall was folding under which would explain the increased wear on the outside tread block of the tires . The alignment was verified to be perfect. Go with the CC2 or anything Nokian . I ran some old Nokian WRG2s and was very impressed. Id imagine the latest versions are also very good.”
r/tires
·2 upvotes ·2024-11-16
“We're able to get the Kinergy 4S2 from Discount Tires (America's Tires) for less than half the price of. the Cross Climate 2's. We plan to give them a try on a Nissan LEAF and Prius Prime. Hot take: Hit the "found a lower price" feature on the Discount Tire site and see what they offer you! We were very pleasantly surprised!”
r/croautomobili
·22 upvotes ·2025-10-29
“Zimske gume - premium ili neka srednja klasa? Nakon 2 proklizavanja u skretanju ovaj vikend (po kiši) zaključila sam da je vrijeme da kupim nove gume. Otkako sam uzela auto (prosinac 2022.) imam jedne te iste cjelogodišnje gume, Hankook Kinergy 4S2, 225/45/R17. Prošlu zimu kad je bilo snijega jedva sam kući s posla išla koliko sam se klizala po ulici, kiša još nekako ali snijeg i led katastrofa. Ove godine je i na kiši počeo proklizavati. Auto je zadnji pogon, 115ks ništa specijalno. Ono što me zanima je koliko ima smisla uzeti neke premium gume obzirom da godišnje radim oko 15k kilometara, većinski po gradu (Slavonija), tu i tamo autoput do Zg, možda 2 puta godišnje Mađarska/Austrija/Slovenija. Vidim da svi hvale Continental Wintercontact TS870 ali poprilično su skupe pa imate li možda preporuku za nešto jeftinije, a kvalitetno? Više me zanima da su dobre za kišu jer snijega nema nešto specijalno i sve će biti bolje nego ove koje sad imam. Što se dimenzije tiče imam jedne alu felge pa bih onda uzela istu dimenziju čisto da se ne moram izut iz cipela zbog troškova s kupovanjem još i felgi. TLDR: Zimska guma, 225/45/R17, zadnji pogon, što kupiti? Read more”
Top themes
#Affordable CrossClimate alternative#Wet weather traction#Snow and winter performance#Tread wear longevity#Cabin road noise#Ride stiffness and comfort
Based on 33 community posts
Specs side by side
| Attribute | A · Hankook Icebear W300 | B · Hankook Kinergy 4S2 |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Winter | All Season |
| Vehicle type | Passenger Car / Crossover | Passenger Car / Crossover |
| Sizes available | — | 95 |
| Rim diameters | — | 14″ – 20″ |
Which one should you actually buy?
62
/ 100
Hankook Icebear W300
71
/ 100
Hankook Kinergy 4S2
Winner: Hankook Kinergy 4S2 — better wet, dry and treadwear. Where the Hankook Icebear W300 is ahead, it is by less than 3 points. Hankook Icebear W300 rests on little evidence so far (0 tests, 10 reviews), so read this result as provisional.
Pick tire B
Your priority is wet-weather safety
Hankook Kinergy 4S2 scores 78 vs 62 on wet.
Pick tire B
You want the most grip on dry roads
Hankook Kinergy 4S2 scores 72 vs 62 on dry.
Pick tire B
You want the longest tread life
Hankook Kinergy 4S2 scores 67 vs 61 on treadwear.
Pick tire B
You want the most comfortable ride
Hankook Kinergy 4S2 scores 64 vs 61 on comfort.
Tire A · Hankook Icebear W300
Tire B · Hankook Kinergy 4S2
TireWheelGuide may earn a commission from purchases made through these links.
Icebear W300 or Kinergy 4S2?
Which is better in the wet, Icebear W300 or Kinergy 4S2?
Hankook Kinergy 4S2, 78 vs 62 on our wet score.
Which grips better on dry roads, Icebear W300 or Kinergy 4S2?
Hankook Kinergy 4S2, 72 vs 62 on our dry score.
Which is more comfortable, Icebear W300 or Kinergy 4S2?
Hankook Kinergy 4S2, 64 vs 61 on our comfort score.
Which lasts longer, Icebear W300 or Kinergy 4S2?
Hankook Kinergy 4S2, 67 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