Relative Score (0–100): the weighted average of the categories below, each 60% road tests and 40% owner reviews (comfort 40/60). Based on 19 + 14 road tests and 3,376 + 2,521 owner reviews. How we score
Ventus Prime 4 is ahead, 75–68
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Tests 77 · 19 tests Owners 57 · 3,376 reviews
Best test result: #1 of 45 in 2019 Summer 53 Tyre Braking Shootout (wet braking)
“Tire preferences? My MK8 has a little over 18,000 miles now and the stock tires look like they’ve already gone to sh*t? Hankook Ventus S1 evo3 aren’t as good as they advertise? What do you recommend for tires?”
Tests 77 · 14 tests Owners 71 · 2,521 reviews
Best test result: #1 of 21 in 2022 Auto Bild Summer Tyre Test (dry handling)
“Aim for rainy condition. Best are 1.Bridgestone Turanza 005 2.Hankook ventus prime 4.”
Relative Score per category, 0–100. Open “Why this score” for the tests and owner ratings behind it.
| Source | Ventus S1 evo3 | Ventus Prime 4 |
|---|---|---|
| Professional tests (TWG score) · 18 / 12 tests | 86 | 83 |
| Reviews found online | 60 | 73 |
Ventus S1 evo3: 60% × 85.6 + 40% × 59.8 = 75
Ventus Prime 4: 60% × 82.7 + 40% × 73 = 79
| Source | Ventus S1 evo3 | Ventus Prime 4 |
|---|---|---|
| Professional tests (TWG score) · 18 / 13 tests | 90 | 79 |
| Reviews found online | 68 | 75 |
Ventus S1 evo3: 60% × 89.6 + 40% × 68 = 81
Ventus Prime 4: 60% × 78.6 + 40% × 74.5 = 77
| Source | Ventus S1 evo3 | Ventus Prime 4 |
|---|---|---|
| Professional tests (TWG score) · 4 / 1 tests | 64 | 70 |
| Reviews found online | 56 | 67 |
Ventus S1 evo3: 40% × 64.4 + 60% × 55.8 = 59
Ventus Prime 4: 40% × 70.3 + 60% × 67.4 = 69
| Source | Ventus S1 evo3 | Ventus Prime 4 |
|---|---|---|
| Professional tests (TWG score) · 14 / 8 tests | 77 | 58 |
| Reviews found online | ≈ 66 (est.) | ≈ 66 (est.) |
Ventus S1 evo3: 60% × 76.9 + 40% × 66.4 (est.) = 73
Ventus Prime 4: 60% × 57.6 + 40% × 66.4 (est.) = 61
No owner ratings of noise for Ventus S1 evo3 or Ventus Prime 4. The owner half is the owners’ average (66): owners’ noise ratings barely follow the road tests, so the tests say nothing about how owners would rate it.
| Source | Ventus S1 evo3 | Ventus Prime 4 |
|---|---|---|
| Professional tests (TWG score) · 4 / 6 tests | 61 | 79 |
| Reviews found online | 42 | 67 |
Ventus S1 evo3: 60% × 60.8 + 40% × 41.5 = 53
Ventus Prime 4: 60% × 78.5 + 40% × 66.9 = 74
| Source | Ventus S1 evo3 | Ventus Prime 4 |
|---|---|---|
| Reviews found online | 59 | 72 |
| Source | Ventus S1 evo3 | Ventus Prime 4 |
|---|---|---|
| Professional tests (TWG score) · 15 / 9 tests | 68 | 84 |
| Category | Hankook Ventus S1 evo3 | Hankook Ventus Prime 4 |
|---|---|---|
| Relative Score | 68 | 75 |
| Dry | 75 | 79 |
| Wet | 81 | 77 |
| Comfort | 59 | 69 |
| Noise | 73 | 61 |
| Treadwear | 53 | 74 |
| Handling (owners) | 59 | 72 |
| Efficiency | 68 | 84 |
Higher is better. The Relative Score follows your weights below; category scores do not change.
Wet grip and treadwear start at “Important” — the two things buyers rank highest. Move the sliders and the scores update instantly.
Ventus S1 evo3
Ventus Prime 4
Per discipline: the average % of the best tire over every test both tires were in, and how many of those tests each one won. “Different tests” rows compare results from separate tests.
| Discipline | Category | Ventus S1 evo3 | Ventus Prime 4 | Δ | Head-to-head |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dry Braking | Dry | 96% #7/8 · 2025 Die Reifentester UHP Summer Tyre Test | 92% #16/16 · 2026 ADAC Summer Tyre Test | – | Different tests |
| Dry Handling | Dry | 98% #7/9 · 2024 AZ Summer Tyre Test | 99% #6/20 · 2024 AutoBild Summer Tyre Test | – | Different tests |
| Dry Handling (tester's mark) | Dry | 60% #8/8 · 2025 Die Reifentester UHP Summer Tyre Test | 90% #4/14 · 2025 Summer and All Season Combined Tyre Test | – | Different tests |
| Curved Aquaplaning | Wet | 87% #6/7 · 2024 Auto Express Summer Tyre Test | 93% #6/7 · 2025 Al Volante Summer Tyre Test | – | Different tests |
| Straight Aquaplaning | Wet | 98% #8/8 · 2025 Die Reifentester UHP Summer Tyre Test | 91% #16/16 · 2026 ADAC Summer Tyre Test | – | Different tests |
| Wet Braking | Wet | 94% #6/8 · 2025 Die Reifentester UHP Summer Tyre Test | 87% #14/16 · 2026 ADAC Summer Tyre Test | – | Different tests |
| Wet Circle | Wet | 98% #5/9 · 2024 AZ Summer Tyre Test | 98% #4/21 · 2022 Auto Bild Summer Tyre Test | – | Different tests |
| Wet Handling | Wet | 100% #2/9 · 2024 AZ Summer Tyre Test | 99% #2/8 · 2025 Moottori Summer Tyre Test | – | Different tests |
| Wet Handling (tester's mark) | Wet | 80% #3/8 · 2025 Die Reifentester UHP Summer Tyre Test | 90% #4/14 · 2025 Summer and All Season Combined Tyre Test | – | Different tests |
| Comfort (tester's mark) | Comfort | 100% #2/8 · 2025 Die Reifentester UHP Summer Tyre Test | 95% #4/7 · 2025 Die ReifenTester Summer Touring Tyre Test | – | Different tests |
| Noise | Noise | 100% #1/9 · 2024 AZ Summer Tyre Test | 99% #4/8 · 2025 Moottori Summer Tyre Test | – | Different tests |
| Noise (tester's mark) | Noise | 100% #2/8 · 2025 Die Reifentester UHP Summer Tyre Test | 80% #11/14 · 2025 Summer and All Season Combined Tyre Test | – | Different tests |
| Wear | Treadwear | 56% #13/20 · 2023 AutoBild UHP Summer Tyre Test | 77% #6/16 · 2026 ADAC Summer Tyre Test | – | Different tests |
| Rolling Resistance | Efficiency | 97% #3/8 · 2025 Die Reifentester UHP Summer Tyre Test | 95% #10/14 · 2025 Summer and All Season Combined Tyre Test | – | Different tests |
| Also published by the testers (not in the score) | |||||
| Price | Cost | 74% #6/13 · 2023 AutoBild Sports Car Summer Tyre Test | 69% #9/16 · 2024 ADAC Summer Tyre Test | – | Different tests |
| Total Cost of Ownership | Cost | #14/20 2023 AutoBild UHP Summer Tyre Test | #4/20 2024 AutoBild Summer Tyre Test | – | Different tests |
| Value | Cost | 58% #15/20 · 2023 AutoBild UHP Summer Tyre Test | 64% #5/16 · 2024 ADAC Summer Tyre Test | – | Different tests |
| Overall Ranking | Overall | #6/8 2025 Die Reifentester UHP Summer Tyre Test | #11/16 2026 ADAC Summer Tyre Test | – | Different tests |
Themes extracted from owner reviews found online — not the opinion of TireWheelGuide.
From Reddit, forums and review threads. Not part of our score
Community sentiment toward the Hankook Ventus S1 Evo 3 is mixed, with users frequently praising its strong dry and wet grip, comfort, and competitive pricing. However, notable drawbacks include relatively fast tread wear, reports of increasing road noise over time, and mixed experiences with OEM specs versus premium competitors like Michelin.
“Tire preferences? My MK8 has a little over 18,000 miles now and the stock tires look like they’ve already gone to sh*t? Hankook Ventus S1 evo3 aren’t as good as they advertise? What do you recommend for tires?”
“Small tire size change having different ratings? (Hankook Ventus S1 Evo3) Hi all, I'm looking for a good all round tire for my MX5 (I'm in the non snowy regions of the UK so summer tires) and a pretty popular recommendation are the Ventus S1 Evo 3s. At the MX5's stock size of 205/45/R17 they are rated at A for fuel and wet performance, and 68db of noise, which is great! However I'd like to size up to 215/45/R17, and for whatever reason the ratings drop to B for fuel and wet performance, and most importantly to me, 71db of noise. I was just wondering how such a small difference in size changes things quite drastically? I know these ratings aren't that important, but it seems strange to me they'd change at all Thanks! Read more”
“You will love the Ventus S1 EVO3's, I purchased a set back in May 2020 for $473 delivered. In your climate driving at Texas speeds (75-85) efficiency is gonna be about 270-295 Wh/m. I just ordered a set of the iON EVO AS to try out as I have a need for snow use but not bad enough for snow tires.”
Based on 33 community posts
Community opinion on the Hankook Ventus Prime 4 is largely positive, with drivers viewing it as a comfortable, quiet, and capable touring tire. Users frequently praise its strong dry and wet performance alongside its compelling price-to-performance ratio compared to premium alternatives like Michelin. Some uncertainties exist regarding long-term tread wear and slight fuel economy impacts, but owners generally report satisfactory everyday reliability.
“Found a cut on one of my tires, is it 100% cooked? Three month old Hankook Ventus Prime 4 and I found a cut/split. It’s holding air fine but it is cooked?”
“Hankook Ventus Prime 4 vs Kumho Ecsta HS52? Hey there! Went to this reddit after reading a lot of reviews on the website, a bit of a newbie in general. I have read about many models and settled on 2 possible ones due to pricing and availability in my country (not looking for any other options). In my price range and requirements I've settled on Ventus Prime 4 initially (50% cheaper than Primacy that my car came stock with), but have also seen some good stuff said about HS52. I was quite settled on the first one since it scored very well in 2022 Autobild review, but now that 2024 came out a lot of numbers are completely different (predicted tread life alone took a huge dive) and Hankook is now 4 positions lower than Kumho. To add to this, Hankook was only 10% more expensive thank Kumho in my country, but now there was a price drop and and now there is 20% price difference, so set of Kumhos comes out noticeable cheaper. Spec wise they seems very similar with some trade-offs in different departments. I'm not really looking to save as much money as possible, but with latest reviews I'm not sure if there is any improvement worth paying for. Any thoughts? Thanks. Read more”
“Top top top guma, stavio prosle godine kad sam kupio auto, odmah na Kupres isao, snijega i leda bilo dosta, ali izdale me nisu Imam i ljetne hankook ventus prime 4 isto odlicna guma”
Based on 41 community posts
| Attribute | A · Hankook Ventus S1 evo3 | B · Hankook Ventus Prime 4 |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Summer | Summer |
| Vehicle type | Passenger Car / Crossover | — |
| Sizes available | 110 | 66 |
| Rim diameters | 17″ – 22″ | 15″ – 20″ |
| UTQG | 200 - 420 A - AA A | 200 - 420 A A |
| Sizes in common | 25 | 25 |
Hankook Ventus S1 evo3
Hankook Ventus Prime 4
Winner: Hankook Ventus Prime 4 — better treadwear, efficiency and handling. Pick the Hankook Ventus S1 evo3 if noise and wet matter most to you.
Hankook Ventus Prime 4 scores 74 vs 53 on treadwear.
Hankook Ventus Prime 4 scores 84 vs 68 on efficiency.
Hankook Ventus Prime 4 scores 72 vs 59 on handling.
Hankook Ventus S1 evo3 scores 73 vs 61 on noise.
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Hankook Ventus S1 evo3, 81 vs 77 on our wet score.
Hankook Ventus Prime 4, 79 vs 75 on our dry score.
Hankook Ventus S1 evo3, 73 vs 61 on our noise score.
Hankook Ventus Prime 4, 69 vs 59 on our comfort score.
Hankook Ventus Prime 4, 74 vs 53 on our treadwear score.
Hankook Ventus Prime 4, 84 vs 68 on our efficiency score.
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
