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Hankook Ventus S1 noble2 vs Michelin Defender LTX M/S — 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 + 1 road tests and 693 + 10 owner reviews. How we score

Defender LTX M/S is ahead, 78–61

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Michelin Defender LTX M/S
Tire BMichelin

Defender LTX M/S

All Season

± 7Provisional

Tests – · 1 test Owners 82 · 10 reviews

Best test result: #2 of 13 in 2022 Consumer Reports All Season Truck Tires (tested tread life (miles))

Category by category

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

  1. 62

    Dry

    Defender LTX M/S +16
    78
    Why this score
    SourceVentus S1 noble2Defender LTX M/S
    Professional tests (TWG score)≈ 64 (est.)≈ 74 (est.)
    Reviews found online6083

    Ventus S1 noble2: 60% × 64.5 (est.) + 40% × 59.5 = 62

    Defender LTX M/S: 60% × 74.5 (est.) + 40% × 83.3 = 78

    No road tests of dry for Ventus S1 noble2. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.42).

    No road tests of dry for Defender LTX M/S. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.42).

  2. 67

    Wet

    Defender LTX M/S +14
    81
    Why this score
    SourceVentus S1 noble2Defender LTX M/S
    Professional tests (TWG score)≈ 68 (est.)≈ 78 (est.)
    Reviews found online6684

    Ventus S1 noble2: 60% × 68.2 (est.) + 40% × 66.1 = 67

    Defender LTX M/S: 60% × 78.2 (est.) + 40% × 84.2 = 81

    No road tests of wet for Ventus S1 noble2. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.55).

    No road tests of wet for Defender LTX M/S. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.55).

  3. 53

    Snow

    Defender LTX M/S +21
    74
    Why this score
    SourceVentus S1 noble2Defender LTX M/S
    Professional tests (TWG score)≈ 60 (est.)≈ 73 (est.)
    Reviews found online4376

    Ventus S1 noble2: 60% × 60.4 (est.) + 40% × 43 = 53

    Defender LTX M/S: 60% × 72.7 (est.) + 40% × 76 = 74

    No road tests of snow for Ventus S1 noble2. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.37).

    No road tests of snow for Defender LTX M/S. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.37).

  4. 65

    Comfort

    Defender LTX M/S +10
    75
    Why this score
    SourceVentus S1 noble2Defender LTX M/S
    Professional tests (TWG score)≈ 68 (est.)≈ 71 (est.)
    Reviews found online6378

    Ventus S1 noble2: 40% × 68 (est.) + 60% × 62.9 = 65

    Defender LTX M/S: 40% × 70.7 (est.) + 60% × 77.6 = 75

    No road tests of comfort for Ventus S1 noble2 or Defender LTX M/S. The test half is the tested tires’ average (69): owners’ comfort ratings barely follow the road tests.

  5. 53

    Treadwear

    Defender LTX M/S +26
    79
    Why this score
    SourceVentus S1 noble2Defender LTX M/S
    Professional tests (TWG score) · – / 1 tests≈ 59 (est.)75
    Reviews found online4485

    Ventus S1 noble2: 60% × 58.5 (est.) + 40% × 44.3 = 53

    Defender LTX M/S: 60% × 75.5 + 40% × 85.1 = 79

    No road tests of treadwear for Ventus S1 noble2. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.35).

  6. 63

    Handling (owners)

    Defender LTX M/S +17
    80
    Why this score
    SourceVentus S1 noble2Defender LTX M/S
    Reviews found online6380
Scores at a glance
CategoryHankook Ventus S1 noble2Michelin Defender LTX M/S
Relative Score 61 78
Dry 62 78
Wet 67 81
Snow 53 74
Comfort 65 75
Treadwear 53 79
Handling (owners) 63 80

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
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Neutral
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Less important
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Neutral
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Recomputed
Headline score
± 7

Ventus S1 noble2

± 7

Defender LTX M/S

Pros, cons & observations

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

Tire A Ventus S1 noble2

Pros

  • Exceptional ride comfort and smoothness
  • Very low road noise and quiet highway cruising
  • Strong dry traction and responsive handling

Cons

  • Rapid and uneven tread wear, frequently failing to meet mileage expectations
  • Poor traction and dangerous handling in snow, slush, and ice
  • Soft sidewalls leading to vague steering response or 'squishy' cornering feel
All owner themes in the Ventus S1 noble2 review

Tire B Defender LTX M/S

Pros

  • Exceptional tread longevity and mileage lifespan
  • Quiet and smooth ride quality at highway speeds
  • Strong year-round traction across dry, wet, and light snow conditions

Cons

  • High upfront purchase price
  • Subpar performance in deep mud, sand, and off-road environments
  • Limited ice and severe winter capability compared to dedicated winter tires
All owner themes in the Defender LTX M/S review

What real owners are saying

From Reddit, forums and review threads. Not part of our score

Tire A

Hankook Ventus S1 noble2

Positive

Community sentiment toward the Hankook Ventus S1 noble2 is largely positive, with owners highlighting its competitive price-to-performance value compared to premium alternatives like Michelin. Drivers frequently commend its quiet ride, wet grip, and respectable tread life, though some note reduced handling sharpness compared to dedicated summer tires and increased road noise after higher mileage.

s2ki.com

“Quote: Originally Posted by Chaotic1,Feb 9 2009, 06:49 AM Price per tire? Fronts: $63.00 x 2 + shipping (214/45zr-17) = $152.16 Rears: $71.00 x 2 + shipping (245/40/zr-17) = $164.15 Originally, I was only going to replace the rears with OEM tires because my fronts were in such decent shape, but I was able to get all four wheels for cheaper than the two rears so I went that direction instead. As promised, I'd continue to report on these tires and with todays showers and mixture of oil/grime and left over sand from the sleet we recently had, the tires are doing as well as expected. Of course with the sand, it is easy to break the rear-end loose but it breaks when expected, no surprises.”
r/tires ·2 upvotes ·2025-07-14

“Getting new tires I’m replacing my OEM tires (Hankook Ventus S1 Noble2 sized 235/50R19). They’ve got 80,000 miles on them. I’ve had a good experience with them. My tire guy has about 3 tires in the $200 (installed) range. Right now I’m leaning towards the Hercules Raptis ® R-T6X. Who has experience with these? Does that sound like a decent choice? I want to spend the money I need to on good tires, but don’t want to spend the most money just because. Read more”
bobistheoilguy.com ·2014-07-17

“My car originally came with 225/40/19 and 245/40/19, I then went to the other OEMs 225/45/18 and 245/45/18. But the 225/50/18 an 245/50/18 is the best yet. Way better ride, fills up the wheel wells and corrected the speedo error.”
Top themes
#value and price affordability#quiet and comfortable ride#treadwear and longevity#wet weather traction#all-season vs summer performance#comparison to premium brands

Based on 36 community posts

Tire B

Michelin Defender LTX M/S

We haven't collected enough community discussion about this tire yet.

Specs side by side

Attribute A · Hankook Ventus S1 noble2 B · Michelin Defender LTX M/S
CategoryAll-SeasonAll Season
Vehicle typePassenger Car / CrossoverSUV and 4x4
Sizes available8—
Rim diameters17″ – 20″—

Which one should you actually buy?

Hankook Ventus S1 noble2

Michelin Defender LTX M/S

Winner: Michelin Defender LTX M/S — better treadwear, snow and handling. It leads or ties in every category we score. Michelin Defender LTX M/S rests on little evidence so far (1 test, 10 reviews), so read this result as provisional.

Pick tire B You want the longest tread life

Michelin Defender LTX M/S scores 79 vs 53 on treadwear.

Pick tire B You drive through snowy winters

Michelin Defender LTX M/S scores 74 vs 53 on snow.

Pick tire B You enjoy sharp, responsive handling

Michelin Defender LTX M/S scores 80 vs 63 on handling.

Pick tire B You want the most grip on dry roads

Michelin Defender LTX M/S scores 78 vs 62 on dry.

Tire A · Hankook Ventus S1 noble2
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Tire B · Michelin Defender LTX M/S
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Ventus S1 noble2 or Defender LTX M/S?

Which is better in the wet, Ventus S1 noble2 or Defender LTX M/S?

Michelin Defender LTX M/S, 81 vs 67 on our wet score.

Which grips better on dry roads, Ventus S1 noble2 or Defender LTX M/S?

Michelin Defender LTX M/S, 78 vs 62 on our dry score.

Which is better in snow, Ventus S1 noble2 or Defender LTX M/S?

Michelin Defender LTX M/S, 74 vs 53 on our snow score.

Which is more comfortable, Ventus S1 noble2 or Defender LTX M/S?

Michelin Defender LTX M/S, 75 vs 65 on our comfort score.

Which lasts longer, Ventus S1 noble2 or Defender LTX M/S?

Michelin Defender LTX M/S, 79 vs 53 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