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Head-to-head Updated

Michelin Pilot Sport 4 vs Kumho Ecsta PA51 — Compared

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

Pilot Sport 4 is ahead, 80–68

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Tire AMichelin

Pilot Sport 4

Summer

Tests 84 · 21 tests Owners 75 · 12,676 reviews

Best test result: #5 of 9 in 2021 EVO Summer Tyre Test (overall ranking)

“The Pilot Sport 4's are great tires for dual duty use. You'll want to keep hot pressures below 37-38 PSI. Anything above that they get very greasy, very fast. In the cars I've driven with them (a few BMW M cars, a 911 I think if I remember), you'll usually set your best laps in the first 4-5 laps of a session depending on temps. Once they over heat heat, as with any street tire, you have to park them for an hour to get the temps down again (downside to steel radials). I'd also recommend Hankook RS4s if you want a more durable track tire. That's what I run. Very long lasting, but not as great in the wet as the PS4s would be. Road noise would also be an issue for street use.”

Tire BKumho

Ecsta PA51

All Season

Tests – · 1 test Owners 67 · 165 reviews

Best test result: #7 of 19 in 2022 Consumer Reports Ultra High Performance All-Season Tires (overall ranking)

Category by category

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

  1. 85

    Dry

    Pilot Sport 4 +17
    68
    Why this score
    SourcePilot Sport 4Ecsta PA51
    Professional tests (TWG score)87–
    Reviews found online8168
  2. 87

    Wet

    Pilot Sport 4 +19
    68
    Why this score
    SourcePilot Sport 4Ecsta PA51
    Professional tests (TWG score)90–
    Reviews found online8168
  3. –

    Snow

    No comparison
    62
    Why this score
    SourcePilot Sport 4Ecsta PA51
    Reviews found online–57
  4. 78

    Comfort

    Pilot Sport 4 +12
    66
    Why this score
    SourcePilot Sport 4Ecsta PA51
    Professional tests (TWG score)83–
    Reviews found online7163
  5. 74

    Noise

    Pilot Sport 4 +5
    69
    Why this score
    SourcePilot Sport 4Ecsta PA51
    Professional tests (TWG score)76–
    Reviews found online7272
  6. 70

    Treadwear

    Ecsta PA51 +1
    71
    Why this score
    SourcePilot Sport 4Ecsta PA51
    Professional tests (TWG score)7670
    Reviews found online6172
  7. 78

    Handling

    Pilot Sport 4 +12
    66
    Why this score
    SourcePilot Sport 4Ecsta PA51
    Reviews found online7866
Scores at a glance
CategoryMichelin Pilot Sport 4Kumho Ecsta PA51
Relative Score 80 68
Dry 85 68
Wet 87 68
Snow – 62
Comfort 78 66
Noise 74 69
Treadwear 70 71
Handling 78 66

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.

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

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Recomputed
Headline score

Pilot Sport 4

Ecsta PA51

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

The professional test results behind the scores

Each result is shown as % of the best tire in that test. “Same test” rows are the strictest comparison: both tires were measured side by side.

DisciplineCategoryPilot Sport 4Ecsta PA51ΔBoth?
Overall Ranking Overall 20% #5/9 · 2021 EVO Summer Tyre Test 67% #7/19 · 2022 Consumer Reports Ultra High Performance All-Season Tires −46.7 Different tests

Pros, cons & observations

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

Tire A Pilot Sport 4

Pros

  • Exceptional wet and dry traction with outstanding resistance to aquaplaning
  • Noticeable improvement in ride comfort and a reduction in cabin noise compared to standard run-flat tires
  • Progressive and predictable breakaway limits during spirited driving

Cons

  • Faster-than-average treadwear, particularly under aggressive driving or on rear-wheel-drive performance cars
  • Softer sidewalls can lead to a slight lack of initial steering precision and a vague feel at the limit for hardcore enthusiasts
  • Performance drops off significantly in cold, freezing, or snowy winter conditions
All owner themes in the Pilot Sport 4 review

Tire B Ecsta PA51

Pros

  • Excellent price-to-performance ratio
  • Strong dry pavement traction and cornering grip
  • Quiet and smooth ride quality

Cons

  • Inconsistent performance in heavy rain or standing water
  • Some reports of increased road noise over time
  • Limited availability in certain niche sizes
All owner themes in the Ecsta PA51 review

What real owners are saying

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

Tire A

Michelin Pilot Sport 4

Positive

Community opinion on the Michelin Pilot Sport 4 (and PS4S) is overwhelmingly positive, with users frequently praising the massive grip, excellent steering feel, and dramatic improvements in ride quality compared to OEM run-flats. While some note that they wear out relatively quickly and can be noisy on highways or sensitive to cold temperatures (below 40°F), they are widely considered a top-tier performance tire for both daily driving and spirited use.

r/Audi ·1 upvote ·2026-07-09

“If you have summer performance tires like the PS4s you 1000% require snow tires! I have a 2016 A6 with PS4s and they lose all traction under 5ish degrees Celsius. Snow tires are a must for northerners like us (from a Canadian)”
r/BoltEV ·5 upvotes ·2026-04-29

“Michelin Pilot Sport 4 tires are noisy (a followup) I have been asked on this sub if the PS4 tires on my wife’s Bolt are noisy, and I wasn’t sure how to answer. Well, we made two 60-mile round trips this past weekend, mostly on highways with 55 and 70 mph speed limits, and I have to say that the tires are kind of noisy. Certainly not as quiet as EV-oriented tires are. The grip is fantastic, so we really like them. If you are sensitive to noise, though, these Max Performance class tires are probably not for you.”
r/WRXSTi ·149 upvotes ·2025-07-09

“New tires Pilot Sport 4s got some new Pilot Sport 4s in 245/40/18. way different to my yokohama advan AS+. a lot more grip, obviously. very minimal to no sidewall flex. very good tires. i had pilot sport 3's on my 2013 hatchback wrx back in the day. feels good to get back on some good tires again.”
Top themes
#Exceptional grip and handling#Ride quality and noise#Tread life and wear#Cold weather limitations#PS4 vs PS4S comparison#Run-flat replacement upgrade

Based on 122 community posts

Tire B

Kumho Ecsta PA51

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

Specs side by side

Attribute A · Michelin Pilot Sport 4 B · Kumho Ecsta PA51
CategorySummerAll Season
Vehicle typePassenger Car / CrossoverPassenger Car / Crossover
Sizes available6213
Rim diameters16″ – 20″16″ – 19″
Tread depth—10.5/32″
UTQG—500 A A
Treadwear warranty—45,000 mi
Sidewall—Blackwall
Max pressure—51 psi

Which one should you actually buy?

Michelin Pilot Sport 4

Kumho Ecsta PA51

Winner: Michelin Pilot Sport 4 — better wet, dry and comfort. It leads or ties in every category we score.

Pick tire A Your priority is wet-weather safety

Michelin Pilot Sport 4 scores 87 vs 68 on wet.

Pick tire A You want the most grip on dry roads

Michelin Pilot Sport 4 scores 85 vs 68 on dry.

Pick tire A You want the most comfortable ride

Michelin Pilot Sport 4 scores 78 vs 66 on comfort.

Pick tire A You enjoy sharp, responsive handling

Michelin Pilot Sport 4 scores 78 vs 66 on handling.

Tire A · Michelin Pilot Sport 4
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Tire B · Kumho Ecsta PA51
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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.

80

Leads

Pilot Sport 4

Amazon