Michelin Pilot Sport A/S Plus: My Review

SeattleLion

I drove the first 1,000 miles in my Touring sport with the Bridgestone OEM tires. I live 25 miles east of Seattle, so we get a good deal of wet weather. During most of that first thousand miles it was oddly sunny. The Bridgestones stuck to the road like gum on your shoes. Then it rained. On Washington 18 crossing over Tiger mountain (only 1,300 ft high), I found myself hydroplaning in really shallow puddles, at 70 MPH.

Then, a thousand miles ago, I installed Michelin Pilot Sport A/S Plus tires. Don't confuse these tires with the Pilot Sport PS2's. They are nothing at all like them. The A/S in the name designates all season. Unlike the Bridgestones, these tires are rated for low temperature use. The manufacturer says they will work in "light snow". Clearly these are not snow tires.

During the first thousand miles driving with the Pilots, there was a little sun, and quite a bit of rain.Unlike the Bridgestones, the Pilot A/S's never hydroplaned. In one notable puddle on Wa 18, I threw up a giant wake that went over the jersey barrier and splashed oncomoming cars. With these tires, wet roads feel dry. Handling is just as good (at least on roads) as the Bridgestones. Hard cornering at speed produced no tire squeal and the car stayed on a steady line.

Tire Rack rates these tires in the middle of their ultra performance tires. I selected the Pilot A/S because of their ability to operate at freezing temperatures. We don't get much snow here, but we do go down to about 20 deg F in December. My Z is my daily driver, but I can work from home or hitch a ride from my wife in ther 4WD Tacoma if it does snow.

The Pilot A/S's are expensive. Sam's club had theme at $326 for the 19X245 fronts and $345 for the 19X275 rears. Install and road hazard warranty adds another $15 a wheel. This is the first time I spent this much for tires; especially when the OEM tires were less than 2 months old.

The Pilot A/S tires seem to reduce road noise, but not to the the degree that the car is "civilized". You can clearly hear the road. But it feelx a bit quieter in the cabin. I didn't buy my Z for a quiet "pillow top" ride.

After a thousand miles would I do it again? Absolutely. If anything, the Pilot A/S tires make the Z more road-friendly and they take the worry out of cold weather.

FERRARI

I love the Pilots..to me there is no better tire.. I have been using them for years on a lot of different types of sports cars......but I dont think you will get anywhere here giving them great reviews.......I sure didnt get anywhere here

christian370z

Nice review, well designed A/S tires can perform pretty well in wet conditions without a doubt. I had great experiences with the Goodyear Eagle F1 A/S set that I had on my '96 Saab and that thing would drive beautifully through rain and light snow (when the tires were fresh).

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Nikon FM

Nice review, thanks for the local conditions/descriptions too

I drove the OEM tires to 22k miles (through one winter and two track days) and was just plain lucky on my I90 daily runs…lots of hydroplaning. I have the Hankook V12s on now and handling is definitely better in the wet but not so much as your description……Thanks! these tires may perhaps become my next DD tires.

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kenchan

i use to use those tires on my G35C when i took my car out in cold temps. works great all around. just is not a great looking tire.

but hell, i rather have performance than just looks if you have to drive in rain.

the Uni-T works great in warmer temps even in rain. 50F is about the break point though.

vividracing

great review! great job!

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kenchan

you're like a kindergarden teacher with all the enthusiastic thumbsups.

ukmastermind

What the Tire wear of the OEM Bridgestones' VS. the new Michelin's? If the Michelins outlast everything else, which a tire rep hinted at, it's prolly worth the extra cost?

spearfish25

400

Destroys the 140 rating of the RE050As with regard to longevity.

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SeattleLion

The Pilots come with a 48,000 mile wear guarantee.

kenchan

they sound like those tires you buy 4 for $100.

ukmastermind

Are they quieter than the stock Bridgestones? it seems like the 2 most popular tires on this forum are the stock Potenza's and the Hankook Ventus V12's, BUT the Bridgestones are pretty darn loud and wear down fast

SeattleLion

They are much quieter. The noise level is down a lot with the Michelin's. Actually more than I expected given the Tire Rack reviews. They are so quiet I can clearly hear even a small stone hit the inside of the wheel well. the biggest benefit is that they drive on wet roads with absolutely no problems.

kenchan

seattle- just wait until it's about mid worn. they will become just as loud as the S03's were. i know from experience. hahahahaha.