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Head-to-head Updated

Kumho WinterCraft Ice Wi51 vs Firestone Winterhawk 4 — 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 1 + 20 road tests and 0 + 6 owner reviews. How we score

Too close to call: WinterCraft Ice Wi51 69, Winterhawk 4 68.

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Kumho WinterCraft Ice Wi51
Tire AKumho

WinterCraft Ice Wi51

Winter

± 10Provisional

Tests 69 · 1 test Owners – · none yet

Best test result: #7 of 16 in 2021 Studless and Studded Winter Tyre Test (wet braking)

Firestone Winterhawk 4
Tire BFirestone

Winterhawk 4

Winter

± 4

Tests 68 · 20 tests Owners 60 · 6 reviews

Best test result: #1 of 16 in 2023 ADAC 16 Inch Tyre Test (straight aquaplaning)

Category by category

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

  1. 70

    Dry

    WinterCraft Ice Wi51 +21
    49
    Why this score
    SourceWinterCraft Ice Wi51Winterhawk 4
    Professional tests (TWG score) · 1 / 13 tests7045
    Reviews found online≈ 69 (est.)56

    WinterCraft Ice Wi51: 60% × 70.5 + 40% × 69 (est.) = 70

    Winterhawk 4: 60% × 45.2 + 40% × 55.7 = 49

    No owner ratings of dry for WinterCraft Ice Wi51. The owner half is estimated from its road-test score, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.41).

  2. 70

    Wet

    Winterhawk 4 +9
    79
    Why this score
    SourceWinterCraft Ice Wi51Winterhawk 4
    Professional tests (TWG score) · 1 / 20 tests7090
    Reviews found online≈ 70 (est.)63

    WinterCraft Ice Wi51: 60% × 69.6 + 40% × 70.1 (est.) = 70

    Winterhawk 4: 60% × 89.7 + 40% × 62.7 = 79

    No owner ratings of wet for WinterCraft Ice Wi51. The owner half is estimated from its road-test score, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.55).

  3. 66

    Snow

    Winterhawk 4 +7
    73
    Why this score
    SourceWinterCraft Ice Wi51Winterhawk 4
    Professional tests (TWG score) · 1 / 20 tests6580
    Reviews found online≈ 69 (est.)62

    WinterCraft Ice Wi51: 60% × 64.6 + 40% × 68.6 (est.) = 66

    Winterhawk 4: 60% × 80.3 + 40% × 62.4 = 73

    No owner ratings of snow for WinterCraft Ice Wi51. The owner half is estimated from its road-test score, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.32).

  4. –

    Comfort

    No comparison
    59
    Why this score
    SourceWinterCraft Ice Wi51Winterhawk 4
    Professional tests (TWG score) · – / 2 tests–59
    Reviews found online–59

    Winterhawk 4: 40% × 59 + 60% × 58.7 = 59

  5. 70

    Noise

    Winterhawk 4 +6
    76
    Why this score
    SourceWinterCraft Ice Wi51Winterhawk 4
    Professional tests (TWG score) · 1 / 12 tests7282
    Reviews found online≈ 66 (est.)≈ 66 (est.)

    WinterCraft Ice Wi51: 60% × 72 + 40% × 66.5 (est.) = 70

    Winterhawk 4: 60% × 82.1 + 40% × 66.5 (est.) = 76

    No owner ratings of noise for WinterCraft Ice Wi51 or Winterhawk 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.

  6. –

    Treadwear

    No comparison
    58
    Why this score
    SourceWinterCraft Ice Wi51Winterhawk 4
    Professional tests (TWG score) · – / 9 tests–57
    Reviews found online–60

    Winterhawk 4: 60% × 56.5 + 40% × 60.4 = 58

  7. –

    Handling (owners)

    No comparison
    52
    Why this score
    SourceWinterCraft Ice Wi51Winterhawk 4
    Reviews found online–52
  8. –

    Efficiency

    No comparison
    72
    Why this score
    SourceWinterCraft Ice Wi51Winterhawk 4
    Professional tests (TWG score) · – / 12 tests–72
Scores at a glance
CategoryKumho WinterCraft Ice Wi51Firestone Winterhawk 4
Relative Score 69 68
Dry 70 49
Wet 70 79
Snow 66 73
Comfort – 59
Noise 70 76
Treadwear – 58
Handling (owners) – 52
Efficiency – 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
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.

Less 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

Only one of the two tires has a score here, so this weight changes nothing in the head-to-head.

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
± 10

WinterCraft Ice Wi51

± 4

Winterhawk 4

Only categories both tires have data for count toward the headline score.

The professional test results behind the scores

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.

DisciplineCategoryWinterCraft Ice Wi51Winterhawk 4ΔHead-to-head
Dry Braking Dry 93% #10/16 · 2021 Studless and Studded Winter Tyre Test 92% #15/20 · 2026 Auto Bild Winter Tyre Test – Different tests
Wet Braking Wet 86% #7/16 · 2021 Studless and Studded Winter Tyre Test 82% #19/20 · 2026 Auto Bild Winter Tyre Test – Different tests
Wet Handling Wet 94% #13/16 · 2021 Studless and Studded Winter Tyre Test 94% #16/20 · 2026 Auto Bild Winter Tyre Test – Different tests
Ice Braking Snow 75% #13/16 · 2021 Studless and Studded Winter Tyre Test 94% #6/31 · 2025 ADAC Winter Tyre Test – Different tests
Snow Braking Snow 97% #12/16 · 2021 Studless and Studded Winter Tyre Test 99% #7/20 · 2026 Auto Bild Winter Tyre Test – Different tests
Snow Handling Snow 98% #10/16 · 2021 Studless and Studded Winter Tyre Test 97% #10/20 · 2026 Auto Bild Winter Tyre Test – Different tests
Snow Traction Snow 97% #15/16 · 2021 Studless and Studded Winter Tyre Test 97% #9/20 · 2026 Auto Bild Winter Tyre Test – Different tests
Also published by the testers (not in the score)
Price Cost 75% #4/16 · 2021 Studless and Studded Winter Tyre Test 60% #3/10 · 2023 Auto Bild SUV Winter Tyre Test – Different tests
Overall Ranking Overall #12/16 2021 Studless and Studded Winter Tyre Test #16/20 2026 Auto Bild Winter Tyre Test – Different tests

Pros, cons & observations

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

Tire A WinterCraft Ice Wi51

Not enough owner reviews yet to extract themes.

Tire B Winterhawk 4

Pros

  • Competitive pricing offering great value compared to premium brands
  • Good traction and performance in rain and snow conditions
  • Comfortable and exceptionally quiet ride quality

Cons

  • Steering feel can be relatively numb compared to ultra-high-performance summer tires
  • Potential quality control issues or manufacturing defects leading to difficult wheel balancing and vibration at high speeds
  • Mixed performance potential compared to top-tier premium winter alternatives
All owner themes in the Winterhawk 4 review

Specs side by side

Attribute A · Kumho WinterCraft Ice Wi51 B · Firestone Winterhawk 4
CategoryWinterWinter
Vehicle type—Passenger Car / Crossover
Sizes available5176
Rim diameters14″ – 20″14″ – 20″
Sizes in common4040

Which one should you actually buy?

Kumho WinterCraft Ice Wi51

Firestone Winterhawk 4

Too close to call: Kumho WinterCraft Ice Wi51 and Firestone Winterhawk 4 are within 2 points overall. Kumho WinterCraft Ice Wi51 is stronger on dry. Firestone Winterhawk 4 is stronger on wet, snow and noise. Kumho WinterCraft Ice Wi51 rests on little evidence so far (1 test, 0 reviews), so read this result as provisional.

Pick tire A You want the most grip on dry roads

Kumho WinterCraft Ice Wi51 scores 70 vs 49 on dry.

Pick tire B Your priority is wet-weather safety

Firestone Winterhawk 4 scores 79 vs 70 on wet.

Pick tire B You drive through snowy winters

Firestone Winterhawk 4 scores 73 vs 66 on snow.

Pick tire B You want a quieter cabin

Firestone Winterhawk 4 scores 76 vs 70 on noise.

Tire A · Kumho WinterCraft Ice Wi51
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Tire B · Firestone Winterhawk 4
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WinterCraft Ice Wi51 or Winterhawk 4?

Which is better in the wet, WinterCraft Ice Wi51 or Winterhawk 4?

Firestone Winterhawk 4, 79 vs 70 on our wet score.

Which grips better on dry roads, WinterCraft Ice Wi51 or Winterhawk 4?

Kumho WinterCraft Ice Wi51, 70 vs 49 on our dry score.

Which is better in snow, WinterCraft Ice Wi51 or Winterhawk 4?

Firestone Winterhawk 4, 73 vs 66 on our snow score.

Which is quieter, WinterCraft Ice Wi51 or Winterhawk 4?

Firestone Winterhawk 4, 76 vs 70 on our noise 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