tirewheelguide
Head-to-head Updated

Kumho Solus KL21 vs Michelin Defender T+H — Compared

Relative Score (0–100): 60% professional tests, 40% owner reviews.

Defender T+H is ahead, 72–56

Check price on Amazon · Defender T+H or Solus KL21 on Amazon
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.

Tire AKumho

Solus KL21

All Season

Tests – · none yet Owners 51 · 14 reviews

Tire BMichelin

Defender T+H

Premium Touring All Season tire

Tests – · 1 test Owners 71 · 1 review

Category by category

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

  1. 55

    Dry

    Defender T+H +17
    72
    Why this score
    SourceSolus KL21Defender T+H
    Reviews found online4874
  2. 59

    Wet

    Defender T+H +15
    74
    Why this score
    SourceSolus KL21Defender T+H
    Reviews found online5575
  3. 54

    Snow

    Defender T+H +12
    66
    Why this score
    SourceSolus KL21Defender T+H
    Reviews found online4464
  4. 59

    Comfort

    Defender T+H +11
    70
    Why this score
    SourceSolus KL21Defender T+H
    Reviews found online5070
  5. –

    Noise

    No comparison
    68
    Why this score
    SourceSolus KL21Defender T+H
    Reviews found online–70
  6. 59

    Treadwear

    Defender T+H +14
    73
    Why this score
    SourceSolus KL21Defender T+H
    Professional tests (TWG score)–75
    Reviews found online5570
  7. 49

    Handling

    Defender T+H +23
    72
    Why this score
    SourceSolus KL21Defender T+H
    Reviews found online4972
Scores at a glance
CategoryKumho Solus KL21Michelin Defender T+H
Relative Score 56 72
Dry 55 72
Wet 59 74
Snow 54 66
Comfort 59 70
Noise – 68
Treadwear 59 73
Handling 49 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 and treadwear start at “Important” — the two things buyers rank highest. Move the sliders and the scores update instantly.

Important
NoneLessNeutralMoreMost
Important
NoneLessNeutralMoreMost
Neutral
NoneLessNeutralMoreMost
Less important
NoneLessNeutralMoreMost
Less important
NoneLessNeutralMoreMost

Neither tire has a score here yet, so this weight changes nothing.

Important
NoneLessNeutralMoreMost
Neutral
NoneLessNeutralMoreMost
Recomputed
Headline score

Solus KL21

Defender T+H

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 Solus KL21

Pros

  • Impressive treadwear and longevity reported by many users, with several achieving over 30,000 to 40,000 miles
  • Good ride comfort and low road noise under normal driving conditions
  • Affordable replacement pricing compared to premium tier brands

Cons

  • Extremely poor grip and significantly increased braking distances on fresh or compact snow and ice
  • Isolated reports of extreme premature wear or complete tread failure under 20,000 miles
  • Structural deformation issues reported by at least one user
All owner themes in the Solus KL21 review

Tire B Defender T+H

Not enough owner reviews yet to extract themes.

Specs side by side

Attribute A · Kumho Solus KL21 B · Michelin Defender T+H
CategoryAll SeasonPremium Touring All Season tire
Vehicle typePassenger Car / CrossoverSUV and 4x4
Sizes available5—
Rim diameters17″ – 20″—

Which one should you actually buy?

Kumho Solus KL21

Michelin Defender T+H

Winner: Michelin Defender T+H — better handling, dry and wet. It leads or ties in every category we score.

Pick tire B You enjoy sharp, responsive handling

Michelin Defender T+H scores 72 vs 49 on handling.

Pick tire B You want the most grip on dry roads

Michelin Defender T+H scores 72 vs 55 on dry.

Pick tire B Your priority is wet-weather safety

Michelin Defender T+H scores 74 vs 59 on wet.

Pick tire B You want the longest tread life

Michelin Defender T+H scores 73 vs 59 on treadwear.

Tire A · Kumho Solus KL21
Check price on Amazon
Tire B · Michelin Defender T+H
Check price on Amazon

TireWheelGuide may earn a commission from purchases made through these links.

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.

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

72

Leads

Defender T+H

Amazon