Tests – · 1 test Owners 69 · 1 review
Best test result: #1 of 8 in 2022 Consumer Reports All-Season Tires (tested tread life (miles))
Head-to-head
Updated
Michelin Defender T+H vs Kumho Solus KL21 — 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 + 0 road tests and 1 + 14 owner reviews. How we score
Defender T+H is ahead, 70–54
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.
Tests – · none yet Owners 46 · 14 reviews
Category by category
Relative Score per category, 0–100. Open “Why this score” for the tests and owner ratings behind it.
-
69
Dry
Defender T+H +1752Why this score
Source Defender T+H Solus KL21 Professional tests (TWG score) ≈ 69 (est.) ≈ 58 (est.) Reviews found online 70 44 Defender T+H: 60% × 68.8 (est.) + 40% × 70 = 69
Solus KL21: 60% × 57.9 (est.) + 40% × 43.6 = 52
No road tests of dry for Defender T+H. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.41).
No road tests of dry for Solus KL21. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.41).
-
72
Wet
Defender T+H +1656Why this score
Source Defender T+H Solus KL21 Professional tests (TWG score) ≈ 72 (est.) ≈ 60 (est.) Reviews found online 73 51 Defender T+H: 60% × 71.9 (est.) + 40% × 72.8 = 72
Solus KL21: 60% × 60 (est.) + 40% × 51.1 = 56
No road tests of wet for Defender T+H. 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 Solus KL21. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.55).
-
65
Snow
Defender T+H +1352Why this score
Source Defender T+H Solus KL21 Professional tests (TWG score) ≈ 68 (est.) ≈ 61 (est.) Reviews found online 61 39 Defender T+H: 60% × 67.5 (est.) + 40% × 61.1 = 65
Solus KL21: 60% × 60.5 (est.) + 40% × 39.1 = 52
No road tests of snow for Defender T+H. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.32).
No road tests of snow for Solus KL21. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.32).
-
67
Comfort
Defender T+H +1651Why this score
Source Defender T+H Solus KL21 Professional tests (TWG score) ≈ 68 (est.) ≈ 64 (est.) Reviews found online 66 43 Defender T+H: 40% × 68.1 (est.) + 60% × 66 = 67
Solus KL21: 40% × 63.5 (est.) + 60% × 43 = 51
No road tests of comfort for Defender T+H. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.20).
No road tests of comfort for Solus KL21. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.20).
-
73
Treadwear
Defender T+H +1756Why this score
Source Defender T+H Solus KL21 Professional tests (TWG score) · 1 / – tests 76 ≈ 61 (est.) Reviews found online 68 50 Defender T+H: 60% × 76.1 + 40% × 67.9 = 73
Solus KL21: 60% × 60.6 (est.) + 40% × 50 = 56
No road tests of treadwear for Solus KL21. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.36).
-
–
Handling (owners)
No comparison44Why this score
Source Defender T+H Solus KL21 Reviews found online – 44
Scores at a glance
| Category | Michelin Defender T+H | Kumho Solus KL21 |
|---|---|---|
| Relative Score | 70 | 54 |
| Dry | 69 | 52 |
| Wet | 72 | 56 |
| Snow | 65 | 52 |
| Comfort | 67 | 51 |
| Treadwear | 73 | 56 |
| Handling (owners) | – | 44 |
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
Neutral
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Less important
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Neutral
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Less 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
70
/ 100
Defender T+H
54
/ 100
Solus KL21
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 Defender T+H
Not enough owner reviews yet to extract themes.
Tire B 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
Specs side by side
| Attribute | A · Michelin Defender T+H | B · Kumho Solus KL21 |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Premium Touring All Season tire | All Season |
| Vehicle type | SUV and 4x4 | Passenger Car / Crossover |
| Sizes available | — | 5 |
| Rim diameters | — | 17″ – 20″ |
| UTQG | 820 A - B B | — |
Which one should you actually buy?
70
/ 100
Michelin Defender T+H
54
/ 100
Kumho Solus KL21
Winner: Michelin Defender T+H — better dry, treadwear and wet. It leads or ties in every category we score. Michelin Defender T+H rests on little evidence so far (1 test, 1 review), so read this result as provisional. Kumho Solus KL21 rests on little evidence so far (0 tests, 14 reviews), so read this result as provisional.
Pick tire A
You want the most grip on dry roads
Michelin Defender T+H scores 69 vs 52 on dry.
Pick tire A
You want the longest tread life
Michelin Defender T+H scores 73 vs 56 on treadwear.
Pick tire A
Your priority is wet-weather safety
Michelin Defender T+H scores 72 vs 56 on wet.
Pick tire A
You want the most comfortable ride
Michelin Defender T+H scores 67 vs 51 on comfort.
Tire A · Michelin Defender T+H
Tire B · Kumho Solus KL21
TireWheelGuide may earn a commission from purchases made through these links.
Defender T+H or Solus KL21?
Which is better in the wet, Defender T+H or Solus KL21?
Michelin Defender T+H, 72 vs 56 on our wet score.
Which grips better on dry roads, Defender T+H or Solus KL21?
Michelin Defender T+H, 69 vs 52 on our dry score.
Which is better in snow, Defender T+H or Solus KL21?
Michelin Defender T+H, 65 vs 52 on our snow score.
Which is more comfortable, Defender T+H or Solus KL21?
Michelin Defender T+H, 67 vs 51 on our comfort score.
Which lasts longer, Defender T+H or Solus KL21?
Michelin Defender T+H, 73 vs 56 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