2022 ViBilagare Nordic SUV Winter Tire Test
WS51 is the SUV version of Kumho's latest friction tire Wi51. It's the stiffest tire here, with high priority on asphalt rounds, not winter grip. On ice it performs far from the best. The WS51 is difficult to master under pressure on both snow and ice, where all grip suddenly disappears at once and without warning. It does a lot better against aquaplaning where Kumho is the best of the bunch. The braking distance on wet asphalt is also good, and the steering feel for small steering movements as well. Unfortunately, the WS51 has problems with a loose rear-end both wet and dry roads with a skidding behavior in the evasive maneuvers and especially in wet corners. Nor is the noise level impressive. Difficult to control on the limit and poor winter grip result in a low score.