Kumho Ecsta PS31 Reviews - Page 2

When I received my Fiesta which I bought second hand with these tyres fitted new I was amazed at how well my 2005 Ford Fiesta Ghia 1.6 Duratec held on the roads... I'm from South Africa and drove it from Gauteng where I bought it to Cape Town where I was staying at the time... At 1st I didn't care what tyres were on there vehicle... To be honest, I didn't want a Ford cause of previous experiences when Ford and Mazda vehicles tended to look the same... I was still doubting my love for the vehicle on the drive down to Cape Town... Once I hit those windy bends along the coast in the Cape I fell in love with the Ford Fiesta and the Kumho Ecsta SP31 immediately... She held onto the bends so that it felt like I was back in my school days where I did middle distance running... I was in control of my body and the car and which ever way I leaned to in the bends with the steering firmly in my hands the car went... Was romance at once and its where I fell in love with the car... I held my lane through bends and curves with precision making sure I stay either to the inner line of the lane or precisely in the middle between the lines of the lane or just on which ever part of the road I wanted her to... Raced a RUN-X RSI which was around the same age as my Fiesta through traffic and even through all the accelerating, braking and bobbing and weaving on a wettish road surface she did as I wanted her to with my braking being precise as I had learnt my brake travel distance allowance of the tyres and vehicle... Kuhmo Ecsta SP31 tyres were made for that Fiesta as they were poetry in motion... Raced a 2007 Polo 1.6 which was a newer car than the Fiesta at night on the N1 highway going into Cape Town from Bellville and the grip from the start to the acceleration to the top end speed my Fiesta would allow (was Factory Governed at 195km is what the speed reading was on my speedometer) was with so much of ease that I found myself often running into the governer and having the vehicle run its fuel cut off-on process with me often thanks to the Kuhmo Ecsta SP31 tyres... I know it was cause of those tyres cause when I put new tyres on I wanted a tyre to last more than 40 000km to 50 000km not knowing I was going to be missing out on what I could do with the Kuhmo Ecsta SP31 tyres as I was advised at the time to get the Falken turds which were a harder compound tyre allowing the tyres to last longer... Not knowing my ride would be a harder ride, and that if I hit pot holes the rims would feel the punch as they later become un-balance-able and I had to send them in for repairs... The stopping with the Kuhmo were very responsive and urgent when needed... They did start to slide around quick corners on wet roads when they reached 35 000km which made for some fun driving... The Kuhmo Ecsta PS31 195/50 R15 tyres even saved me and a few mates lives the one drunken night when we were driving on the same N1 highway I would take from Bellville going to Cape Town just about every day... We came down the hill around a snake type bend and there was a carlaying in its side with its under carriage facing towards us on a dark area of the highway where the lights weren't working... Thanks to the vehicles quick responsiveness and the confidence I grew I the tyres I could swerve well hitting the brakes with a vehicle of 4 adults in it without the vehicle sliding or wanting to roll as I turned rather quickly on a dry road surface going down a hill at 160km/h and quickly coming to a stop not far from the vehicle nor from where I started to hit the brakes and swerve so that we could help the mptoist in the vehicle that had rolled... I don't know what speeds they were doing around the same bend I was going 160km/h that same night and at various times I would hit the speed governer of the vehicle down and around the same snake bend part of the hill, all I know is they weren't in a Fiesta nor did they have Kuhmo Ecsta SP31 tyres on their vehicle... Would I recommend them to anyone, obviously yes as I haven't had a tyre that has brought me so much pleasure as the Kuhmo. Ecsta SP31 has with regards to pleasure, speed, handling and control on wet and dry surfaces on long winding bends, long straights and short straights aswell as in short fast corners and turns in the city between the tall buildings as the Kuhmo Ecsta SP31 tyres have...

I have put on Kuhmo Ecsta HS52 195/50 R15 two days ago on my new second hand 2017/2018 Ford Fiesta 1.0 Ecoboost (my new Fiesta) in the hopes of having the same same effect as I was told by the salesman at the tyre garage that Kuhmo have discontinued the Kuhmo Ecsta SP31 tyres... I have a few questions now with regards to the Kuhmo Ecsta HS52 tyre:

*Is it true that they are discontinued??? And if so will I receive the same enjoyment and satisfaction as I once did with the Kuhmo Ecsta SP31 tyres on the Kuhmo Ecsta HS52???

*Why does the Kuhmo Ecsta HS52 give off a burning rubber smell when driving as I find when I stop at traffic lights and stop streets or even just at a shop I get this burning rubber smell from my car and when I feel the tyres they are quite hot and the roads haven't heat up yet as it's been a little rainy since I put the tyres on which I'm still driving nicely with as I have done a service on the vehicle and brakes being part of the surface Im really taking quite easy well driving tyres and brakes and oil and everything in... The car wants to bolt and just go-go-go while I'm trying to be responsible and sensible to the new parts and additives aswell as tyre... Are these tyres suppose to be giving off the smell as I have never driven in new tyres that have given off any smell??? Should I go back to the garage and ask to have them replaced??? Could it be a factory fault or am I all of a sudden doing something wrong like not speeding and doing what I have done with my of my new tyres and that's drive them in for 5 000km with slower than usual driving techniques and arrogance compared to in my past years???

This tyre does its job for day-to-day commute. It gives grip both on dry & wet road. However, for spirited drive, it needs much correction because the tyres limit is very low. But if going on highway such as Karak in the dry, you can put your trust in it because it will hold you. Just not so much on Ulu Yam roads where there’s a lot of high speed tight corners. In the rain, I wouldn’t recommend you driving on Genting roads because there really is no grip that you can get from this tyre. It’s maybe a hard compound and therefore it’s hard to get heat in it hence the no grip issue on wet road. The plus point of this tyre is the longevity with its 400 treadwear rating. After driving multiple times on Ulu Yam and Gohtong, there still is no sign of wear on the tyres. So I would recommend this tyre for someone who is on a budget driving it for daily commute only. I got it from Ah Kit (Shah Alam) in 2021 for RM145 per piece (195/55/15). Coming from a Bridgestone Potenza RE003, this really is a no match (i know it is not apple to apple comparison).

Been driving on these since I bought the car in 2017 (started with 225/45ZR17, then switched to 205/55ZR16 on stock wheels as 225/50 was too expensive). Mostly driven quicker than general traffic (not quite spirited though), with occasional hard driving when conditions permit (although the South African potholes tend to make that hard). I can't really comment much on their wet grip as I'm not the type to do something stupid in the rain, but apart from when I had unstable toe at the back it's never disappointed in the wet. In the dry, they're excellent. They don't break loose unless I'm very deliberate, and even then the car is very easy to control. That being said, they do wear very quickly. I'm looking at 20-25k km on a set with rotation. So if you're looking for durable tyres, you'd best look elsewhere. But if like me you don't drive that much, then they give excellent grip for the money. And I can't say much about noise, as this is after all an inherently noisy car. I can definitely recommend them.