Tires Kumho or Nokia

Update: Got the tires installed today. I noticed a major drop in road noise. I was using 9yr old Kumhos, that sat in the garage most of their life. Other than that, no noticeable difference going from 225/40 to 225/45.

225/40/19 snows are what i run on the stock wheel, the Kumho Wintercraft WP72 is a killer tire for the money ($173 on simple tire)

I’ve decided skip Winter tires for my Golf Sportwagen this year and just go with Nokian WR G4 All weather tires to replace the stock all seasons. My reasoning is I got another car ( VW Routan) with dedicated Winter tires and on the bad days I have the choice to either drive the other car with Winter tires or even better work from home whenever school is cancelled due to snow. Given my circumstances, the All weather Nokians for the GSW make a lot of sense.

We have had winter specific tires on vehicles from 4x4 big pickups to the VW rabbits. Have use Michelin X-ice, Blizzaks, Winterforce studded and Nokian Hakka's, both studded and unstudded. Would not go through a winter without the Nokians. Last winter the big 4x4 truck ran Nokian Rotiiva's and they worked but not as well as winter specific tires. Wife's Ford Escape - Nokian Hakka's non-studded. A great ride. Good traction and road feel, snow and ice as well as base clear pavement.

I have run Nokian R2SUV full winter and am now on Nokian WRG3. I used to have mounted and dedicated winter tires, but the Nokian All Weather (not all season) are a great solution (they invented snow tires in the 30's and pioneered All Weathers). The Nokian R2's are better than the Blizzaks, Michelin Pilot Alpin and Michelin X-Ice in snow/ice. The Nokian WRG3 are approximately equivalent, but without the spongy (and no braking from Blizzaks) on dry pavement. The Pilot Alpin and Nokian WRG3 are actually fun to drive.

I’m planning on giving All Weather tires a try myself. I will be going with Nokian WR G4 in the 195 65 15 91H size for my base model GSW S. All Weather tires are definitely a step up from all season tires in the Winter.

Nice, I look forward to reading your impressions. I've been trying to find some decent reviews as well. I have bought many sets of Nokian tires since I discovered them 15 years ago. WR and Z line for the cars and I've bought several sets of Rotiiva AT (Plus) for trucks I've owned and I've been very happy with them.

I used to buy Nokian. I would say they offer slightly better ice traction over the Michelins. However they typically cost half more, and last half as long

Generally the only times I've had issues with Kumho is on lower profile tires giving on the sidewall, but generally they are an all around good tire

The problem I’m trying to solve is that after about 1500 miles they’ve become very noisy. I mounted them in November last year and they were quiet at first. A while ago they began to get noisy at 35 mph but now they’re "singing" at all speeds. They’re directional tires and are mounted correctly. There’s only very slight scalloping on the right rear tire. One theory is that the rubber is wearing faster than the studs and as they project further they make noise. A Nokian dealer suggested the warming of the roads as spring approaches is somehow to blame. My wife’s Audi B5S4 has Hakka 8s and they’re older and quieter. The Hakka 9s are supposed to have an "improved " stud.