With the Kumho Tire Crugen GT Pro tiresA day on the track with four different cars, all equipped with Kumho's newest long-wear all-season tire gave us a peek into what this upstart tire company is all about: delivering more tire for the money.I'll be the first to say, tire shopping is not my favorite thing. I do it reluctantly and like most people, only when necessary. Or when it's an emergency, if I'm being honest, I mean, who looks forward to spending $1,000 on something that can be hard to decipher, with "premium" features that are not visible to the eye and that you first learn of when a mechanic looks at your tires and says "lady, you got real trouble." {{{shudder}}}AdvertisementAdvertisementLuckily, the competition among tire companies is heating up and it's all to your benefit. The top companies like Michelin, Bridgestone and Goodyear are being targeted by scrappy younger companies willing to put the work into designing and building a tire that can go the distance and deliver the same performance but at a bit of a discount. Kumho Tire is one of those companies. This story is 100% human-researched and written based on actual first-person knowledge, extensive experience and expertise on the subject of cars and trucks. Additionally, I was a guest of Kumho for this test drive but all opinions are my own.Meet Kumho, the Tire Company You've Probably Never Heard Of The Kumho Tire Crugen GT Pro – Credit: Scotty ReissLike its compatriots Hyundai, Kia and Genesis, Kumho Tire is a Korean tire brand with a relatively short story; founded in 1960, the company now delivers more than 60 million tires a year around the world. Earning more than $3 billion in annual revenue, the company is focused on the same things other tire makers are: innovating their product with new designs and materials to improve performance, from wet pavement performance to capability in light snow to lasting for years. As a tire designed to deliver more for the money than its competitors (sound familiar…?), Kumhos are generally priced below the top brands. A quick look at Tire Rack shows the prior model Crugen tires for $215 for a 18" tire; the comparable Michelin Defender is $278; the Bridgestone Dueler is $239 and the Goodyear Wrangler Steadfast is $259. The new Crugen GT Pro has just opened for ordering so retail pricing will be set soon.AdvertisementAdvertisementKumho Tire, while headquartered in South Korea, does a lot of its design and testing at its research facility in Ohio, giving the company true insight into the American car owner. Read: Kumho Tires Solus 4S Review: Does This Unique Design Deliver Quiet and Confidence?Long Wear and No Tire Rotating? That's the Goal! The brand new and yet unworn Kumho Tire Crugen GT Pro tires on a Mercedes-Benz GLC 300 – Credit: Scotty ReissPart of "knowing your customer" is knowing how they like to shop, which for tires can be "as little as possible." But still, buyers want a reliable tire with high integrity that they can depend on. All our most precious cargo rides on our tires, after all. So the industry has been focused on tires that last longer and don't have to be rotated as often, or possibly ever. Those two factors were priority details in developing the Crugen GT Pro tire which is intended for light SUVs, from the Toyota RAV4 and Kia Sportage to the BMW X5 and Genesis GV80. They are also capable for EVs, and Kumho says that the Crugen has sizes to fit 85% of all SUV/crossovers on the road, though there may be some speciality fitments that they can't accommodate. Thanks to advanced compounds and a new shape, with squared-up edges, the Crugen tires carry a 75,000 mile warranty and don't need to be rotated. Read: I Buy My Tires Exclusively From Costco, and Have for Years. Here's Why I Recommend it"GT" Adds Grand Touring Comfort to All-Season TiresThe BMW X5 equipped with Kumho Tire Crugen GT Pro tires on the auto cross course – Credit: Scotty ReissWe're used to the term GT to describe cars that are designed for longer drives and road trips; and we appreciate that they built with suspensions that absorb the bumps in the road, that keep an even keel so passengers don't get carsick and provide comfortable seating for hours and hours of driving. AdvertisementAdvertisementTo get that idea across, Kumho Tire added GT to the name of these tires, dubbed Crugen as a take on the word 'cruise.' The Pro version is the latest model that carries the new compound and longer warranty.And while cruising in good weather is ideal, it's not always reality, so Kumho designed these tires to be as capable in poor weather as on a beautiful, sunny day. Read: Should You Buy New Tires From Your Car Dealer? Maybe… Here's How to TellAll-Season Performance Is a True Gift The Crugen GT Pro tires felt slightly sticky and warm just after a track run – Credit: Scotty ReissThanks to the new compound that's pliable and grips the pavement well, the Crugen GT Pro tire is capable for use in light snow, rain and on light gravel. If you live someplace with occasional snow or reliably cold winters, this tire is a great choice. But often tires that perform in challenging conditions can be loud thanks to the grippy tread; here, GT lives up to its name, providing a quiet ride. It's worth noting that these are not winter tires and not hearty enough to do the job in significant snow or unplowed roads such as you might find in much of Montana, Maine, Canada or at higher elevations. Those conditions require snow tires. Read: What to Know About Tires Before You BuyGoing for a Spin with the Kumho Tire Crugen GT ProThe Crugen GT Pros after a day of track driving – Credit: Scotty ReissAs Kumho Tire was rolling out the new Crugen tire, they invited me to put them to the test on three different courses outside Seattle. The experiences let us try the tires at highway speeds, on a wet auto cross course and on a dry course in three different cars: An Audi Q5, a Mercedes-Benz GLC 300 and a BMW X5. Each was equipped with a single set of tires that groups of us rotated through all day. While the tires didn't get a lot of miles in, they did get a lot of abuse with hard braking, sliding and lots of tight, fast turns. Taking the Crugen GT Pros On the HighwayThe Crugen GT Pros take on the track at highway speeds – Credit: Scotty ReissThis was probably the most predictable test; we lapped an oval track getting up to speeds of about 55 or 60 MPH, typical speeds for a highway. What was not typical was the near-constant right turn of an oval track and the quick braking required when the car in front of us would brake. AdvertisementAdvertisementThe Crugen GT Pros handled nicely, both as a driver and as a passenger. We drove the Mercedes-Benz GLC 300 and the BMW X5 X40i on this test and both felt very capable and in control. The tires did their job.Would They Slide Through the Wet Track Course? The Kuhmo Tire Crugen GT Pro on the wet track – Credit: Kumho TireThis is the one where people get in the most trouble: Water on the road. Kumho set up an autocross course so we could slalom and hairpin-turn our way through and try to fishtail or slide through the course. But no luck; even at speeds that felt fast for this course, the Kumhos didn't give up much traction at all. Again, the cars performed well and the tires did their job. The Big Test: Autocross on a Dry TrackThe Audi Q5 on the dry autocross course – Credit: Scotty ReissThen, we headed to the most telling exercise of the day: Autocross. On a longer dry course we had more room to gain more speed and let the cars slide, if possible. With traction control off, and this time in an Audi Q5 and a BMW X5 X40i, we put the tires to the test over and over. It was fun (not gonna lie) but it was a bit of a challenge to get the cars to slide in these tires. Both the Audi and the BMW leaned into every curve and for a moment here and there I was afraid the brakes would fail, but I wasn't concerned about the tires. I could feel the grip.After each run we stopped to look at the tires, to observe the chewed tread and feel the heat of the tires, which were warm to the touch. I could see where the tires were doing their work and feel the pliability of the compound, which is the magic ingredient. I Have Kumho Tires On My Own CarMy new Kumho tires! – Credit: Scotty ReissI got to know Kumho a couple of years ago when I added a set of Solus 4S tires to my own car. What I haven't done is drive it like that on a track, but I can say they have performed quite well—though they are due for rotating and an inspection. AdvertisementAdvertisementAre Kumho's Crugen GT Pros as good as comparable Michelin or Bridgestone tires? I didn't get to test them side by side, but I can say this: I felt confident. They performed well on the track and based on my own driving experiences in my car, they perform nicely over time, too.But after taking the new Crugen GT Pros out on the track, I'm thinking two things: Maybe its time to replace my current tires with a set of Crugens so that when that winter squall pops up and leaves a dusting of snow on the road, I'll be prepared. And with a long warranty and no need to rotate them, I get to do what I love best: Shop for things other than tires.
