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Yokohama C Drive looks discontinued: no new owner reviews or road tests in five years and no current EU tyre label.

Head-to-head Updated

Kumho Ecsta HS51 vs Yokohama C Drive — Compared

Relative Score (0–100): the weighted average of the categories below, each 60% road tests and 40% owner reviews. Based on 6 + 0 road tests and 1,663 + 45 owner reviews. How we score

Ecsta HS51 leads, 73–71 Narrow edge

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Kumho Ecsta HS51
Tire AKumho

Ecsta HS51

Summer

Tests 75 · 6 tests Owners 69 · 1,663 reviews

Best test result: #1 of 20 in 2021 Auto Bild 16 Inch Summer Tyre Test (wet handling)

Yokohama C Drive
Tire BYokohama

C Drive

Summer

Tests – · none yet Owners 72 · 45 reviews

Category by category

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

  1. 74

    Dry

    Ecsta HS51 +3
    71
    Why this score
    SourceEcsta HS51C Drive
    Professional tests (TWG score) · 4 / – tests76≈ 70 (est.)
    Reviews found online7173

    Ecsta HS51: 60% × 76.4 + 40% × 70.5 = 74

    C Drive: 60% × 70 (est.) + 40% × 73.3 = 71

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

  2. 76

    Wet

    Ecsta HS51 +2
    74
    Why this score
    SourceEcsta HS51C Drive
    Professional tests (TWG score) · 4 / – tests79≈ 73 (est.)
    Reviews found online7375

    Ecsta HS51: 60% × 79 + 40% × 72.7 = 76

    C Drive: 60% × 72.8 (est.) + 40% × 75.2 = 74

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

  3. 69

    Comfort

    C Drive +3
    72
    Why this score
    SourceEcsta HS51C Drive
    Professional tests (TWG score)≈ 69 (est.)≈ 70 (est.)
    Reviews found online6974

    Ecsta HS51: 60% × 69.1 (est.) + 40% × 69.1 = 69

    C Drive: 60% × 70 (est.) + 40% × 74.3 = 72

    No road tests of comfort for Ecsta HS51 or C Drive. The test half is the tested tires’ average (69): owners’ comfort ratings barely follow the road tests.

  4. 66

    Noise

    No comparison
    –
    Why this score
    SourceEcsta HS51C Drive
    Professional tests (TWG score) · 2 / – tests65–
    Reviews found online≈ 67 (est.)–

    Ecsta HS51: 60% × 65.2 + 40% × 67.3 (est.) = 66

    No owner ratings of noise for Ecsta HS51. 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.

  5. 70

    Treadwear

    Ecsta HS51 +4
    66
    Why this score
    SourceEcsta HS51C Drive
    Professional tests (TWG score) · 4 / – tests73≈ 66 (est.)
    Reviews found online6567

    Ecsta HS51: 60% × 72.7 + 40% × 64.9 = 70

    C Drive: 60% × 65.9 (est.) + 40% × 66.5 = 66

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

  6. 68

    Handling (owners)

    C Drive +4
    72
    Why this score
    SourceEcsta HS51C Drive
    Reviews found online6872
Scores at a glance
CategoryKumho Ecsta HS51Yokohama C Drive
Relative Score 73 71
Dry 74 71
Wet 76 74
Comfort 69 72
Noise 66 –
Treadwear 70 66
Handling (owners) 68 72

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
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
Recomputed
Headline score

Ecsta HS51

C Drive

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 Ecsta HS51

Pros

  • Impressive wet and dry weather traction
  • Excellent value for money compared to tier-one premium brands
  • Low road noise and enhanced ride comfort

Cons

  • Soft sidewalls can cause a wobbly or loose feeling during aggressive cornering
  • Some users experienced faster-than-expected tread wear on the front axle
  • Occasional complaints regarding poor steering feedback and high-speed handling at the limit
All owner themes in the Ecsta HS51 review

Tire B C Drive

Pros

  • Excellent wet weather traction and hydroplaning resistance
  • High levels of ride comfort and low road noise
  • Predictable, progressive handling characteristics

Cons

  • Inconsistent tread life reports ranging from premature wear to high mileage
  • Some users report increased noise and stiffness as the tire ages
  • Mixed feedback on dry grip performance under aggressive driving conditions
All owner themes in the C Drive review

Specs side by side

Attribute A · Kumho Ecsta HS51 B · Yokohama C Drive
CategorySummerSummer
Vehicle typePassenger Car / CrossoverPassenger Car / Crossover
Sizes available27—
Rim diameters14″ – 18″—

Which one should you actually buy?

Kumho Ecsta HS51

Yokohama C Drive

Narrow edge: Kumho Ecsta HS51 — better treadwear and dry. Pick the Yokohama C Drive if comfort matters most to you.

Pick tire A You want the longest tread life

Kumho Ecsta HS51 scores 70 vs 66 on treadwear.

Pick tire A You want the most grip on dry roads

Kumho Ecsta HS51 scores 74 vs 71 on dry.

Pick tire B You want the most comfortable ride

Yokohama C Drive scores 72 vs 69 on comfort.

Tire A · Kumho Ecsta HS51
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Tire B · Yokohama C Drive
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Ecsta HS51 or C Drive?

Which is better in the wet, Ecsta HS51 or C Drive?

Neither, by our numbers: 76 vs 74 on the wet score, within 3 points.

Which grips better on dry roads, Ecsta HS51 or C Drive?

Kumho Ecsta HS51, 74 vs 71 on our dry score.

Which is more comfortable, Ecsta HS51 or C Drive?

Yokohama C Drive, 72 vs 69 on our comfort score.

Which lasts longer, Ecsta HS51 or C Drive?

Kumho Ecsta HS51, 70 vs 66 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