Michelin Performance Tires

Initial Review, 10,000 Miles on Tires
April 13, 2013

While only 10000 miles have been driven on these set of winter tires, their first impression has been a very good one. Traction in deep snow is remarkable, the ride is quiet, and grip and performance are predictable. I did notice that the ride is stiff, however, but among other parameters, this is not a concern. Looking forward to gathering more experience during the 2013-2014 winter season.

Initial Review, 75,000 Miles on Tires
April 15, 2013

I have 205/55R16 size tires on my car. Brand new they're no better in the snow than my 97,000 mile old OEM Michelins that I replaced! Sliding and spinning everywhere no matter how slow you go. I had them "road force balanced" when new and rotated them every 4000 miles along with watching how they were wearing to adjust tire pressure accordingly. Longevity is excellent but they're absolutely terrible in the snow. I now have 75,000 miles on these and they're at 3/32". They handle corners better now that they're almost slicks. I've been driving on these through 2 winters now. Was hoping to get a good compromise between cornering and snow capability. I'll just get a set of performance tires to get me through the next 4-8 seasons. I might as well get the tires I want if all-seasons don't work any better! I'm not about to waste money on winter tires.

Initial Review, 500 Miles on Tires
April 09, 2013

Purchased this tire to replace Pilot Sport A/S Plus and switch to summer/winter dedicated sets. I cannot say enough things about how awesome the performance is! Fantastic dry grip, fantastic wet grip and amazingly, extremely good ride quality and noise for a tire of this performance level. I wasn't going for that specifically, but it sure is a nice bonus for a max performance tire that I daily drive on. I can't say much about wear yet, as I've only had them on for about 500 miles. I do autocross as well, and I will follow-up with a review on their performance, but I am expecting great things. For someone who wants all the grip you could realistically use on a street tire, without any of the compromises of the others in its league, this is your tire.

Initial Review, 1,000 Miles on Tires
April 02, 2013

OK....just purchased a set of these tires, replacing a set of Goodyear tripletreads. First impressions as I have only had them a week:

QUIET! Wow.....huge difference from the Goodyears. From day one the old tires were loud, which over time became monotonous. New tires are a nice change.

Responsiveness.....not so much. Most of my cars are shod with performance rubber. This is my first venture intot he land of "luxury touring". While not a deal breaker, these tires are soft.....you can feel the sidewalls squishing on sterring/cornering input. Cant feel the road through them either....as I describe it, like driving on marshmallows.

Fuel Economy.....on my instant average display, these are getting 3-4 higher MPG than the Goodyears. Nice. This wil save some serious scratch if it holds up over the life of the tires. Thats a 10% bump in mileage!

More to come in time, but overall....so far the tradeoff for my typical 60mile each wau highway commute is worth it. Im getting old as the quiet is actually more appealing on this daily drive than the performance handling.

Initial Review, 5,000 Miles on Tires
April 04, 2013

I drive my 328i to work most days, and live in Edmonton, Canada - where we can get all four seasons in an afternoon, and our winter takes its toll on everything. I bought the Michelins because they were held out to be a great combination of ride, handling, traction and wear. They replaced the rock hard run flats that came stock with the BMW - yikes... Anyways, I was very impressed with the Michelins on everything, from dry straight to twisty wet - except the ice. At anything below freezing, the Michelins turn into hockey pucks. It makes driving more fun, but less safe!!!

I would absolutely recommend these to fellow BMW drivers, but would also recommend that they look at some of the lower cost alternatives - like the Pirellis, Contis or even the Kumho Ecstas. I will likely take a look at replacing these with a 4 Season (NOT all season) tire like the Pirelli or Kumho 4S - just so long as I don't have to take a huge hit on performance. As it is, the Michelin is a fantastic "almost" all season tire, and if I lived in Europe or south of the Snow belt, I'd buy it again. Or maybe I should just move to So Cal...

Initial Review, 50,600 Miles on Tires
April 08, 2013

I have a set of these Michelin LX4 on my Odyssey EXL. I had always been happy with Michelin in the past on my Honda Accords and Nissan. They are generally more quiet than any other tires of comparable costs, particularly when they get olders (35K+). This set performs well for the most part with no exception. I rotated my tires every 7.5K so they wear evenly and keep the pressure between 35 to 40 psi depending on the weather (high pressure during the winter months). They are very quiet on the city and highway unless the road surface have grooves but never pave up in some states. I'd say that we did about 30K on high way and 20K in city. They are probably good for another 4-5K in the summer before I have to replace them. The tires traction is very good in dry, wet or light snow conditions now that the tread had worn out but it is used to be good in 4-6 in" of snow too when it was newer. I will likely replace them with the Michelin Defender which has a better tire life (60K+) for almost the same price. I think if the Defender is quiet as this tire, I will be happy.

Initial Review, 1,000 Miles on Tires
March 26, 2013

I replaced my Bridgestone Turanza Serenity tires with the Continental ExtremeContact DWS. I am very impressed with how quiet the ride is (I can faintly hear the engine at highway speed now), and the ride is smoother than the Bridgestones too. What impressed me most about the tires is the snow traction. This is not a car made to perform in the snow. My wife and small child got home from the airport in a snowstorm recently with no trouble and I was very happy to have chosen these tires, which were better in the snow than the Bridgestones ever were. I have a steep lip on my driveway, and it is difficult without 4WD in the snow - I was very surprised that the Continentals had no problem getting the car into the driveway that night.

The only negative I can say is that maybe they seem to drift a little bit more than the previous set I had on at highway speeds, but well worth it for the above improvements. I have only had them a couple months, so cannot speak to the durability yet, but at this price and performance vs. the Michelins I was considering, I would be ok to replace at 40k instead of 50k.

Initial Review, 10,000 Miles on Tires
March 30, 2013

I had a 2009 Genesis 4.6 and purchased my first A/S plus after my Michelin HXMX4's wore out at 40,000 miles. These tires were very responsive and a nice improvement during canyon driving. After 5,000 miles I traded the 2009 in for a 2012 Gensis 5.0 R Spec. I replaced the OEM Continentals after 1,000 miles, Conti's were too cushiony for a vehicle like the R Spec. Had the 245 45 ZR 19's put on and were night and day better than the OE Conti's. I enjoy driving in the canyon roads of southern CA and these tires have not disappointed. Tread wear is not an issue and wet/dry performance is impressive. For a vehicle with 429 HP these A/S Plus tires are doing a great job. I drove in the San Bernadino mountains a few weeks back after a good snowfall and I didn't experience any issues with traction. This is my second set, one for each vehicle, and I am extremely satisfied with these A/S Plus tires

Initial Review, 25,000 Miles on Tires
March 24, 2013

Good tire? Yes. Great tire? No. I would however rate this tire as better than most brands when it comes to purchasing a performance all season tire. So here's my story.
I purchased a new 2010 Audi A5 cabriolet for my wife, which came with Perelli (summer)tires as OEM, factory set up. I only recommend a summer tire if you don't mind spending big bucks every 15K miles. That's how long the Perelli's lasted.
So I wanted the best treadware tire for the money. After much researching, I bought the Michelins because I liked them saying they have a 45K mile warranty. The tires have performed great. My only issue is they won't see 45K miles. Doing mostly highway driving, they now have 25K miles on them and here I am on this site looking at more tires. Still, they are better than any summer rated, 15K mile $1700 set out there, for driving straight down the road to work in Oklahoma. I'm hoping to get another 7500 miles on them, but I definitely won't see them hit 45,000 miles. I'll let you know.

Initial Review, 1,000 Miles on Tires
March 31, 2013

I replaced the Goodyear Eagle RSA's that are OE for my V6 Fusion SE with these Michelins, and I am so happy with the performance of these tires. They ride so quietly than the Goodyears and has made a big difference on my highway commute to work everyday. There is little to NO road noise while traveling at higher speeds which is like night and day compared to the Goodyears! Traction is very good and they handle very well wet or dry. Cornering is just as good or better than the Eagles that they replaced. I haven't had a chance to try them on the snow yet, but I'm sure they will be just as good or better than the Goodyears. I am very impressed with these tires and for the price, you just can't go wrong. I will definitely buy these tires again!

Initial Review, 16,000 Miles on Tires
March 24, 2013

Excellent performance tire. But, i also have Conti high perf tires as well, and they are less expensive, and seem to perform just as well.

Initial Review, 11,000 Miles on Tires
January 26, 2013

I put these DWS after reading the reviews. They're comparable to the Michelin Pilot Exalto A/S. Snow traction with the awd was impeccable. I just got rid of the Audi and threw these on my new Subaru WRX. They are all-around great performing tires.

Initial Review, 38,000 Miles on Tires
April 01, 2013

I live in Florida, where the roads are pretty good.

At 38,000 miles, my back tires are nearly done, near the wear marks. Front tires still have the "DW" mark. Overall, I'm very happy with the treadlife; I've done suspension mods recently, driven the car hard and treadlife is still good.

For a summer performance tire, DWs are a nice balance of price, ride quality, traction, tread life, and wet performance.

When pushed hard, my car has plenty of grip and everything is predictable. Car feels very composed in the rain and we get plenty of rain here in Tampa.

I'm looking to buy replacement tires now and DWs are on my short list. Only reason I might pass on them would be to splurge on something finer like Michelin PSS.

***UPDATE - just bought them again today. They're just a great value with many good qualities. Mich PSS may have better responsiveness and traction but the DW's have longer UTOG, lighter weight and cost 25%+ less.

Initial Review, 270 Miles on Tires
April 04, 2013

An extremely comfortable "V" rated tire that is quiet and handles wet to dry asphalt without issues. Rolling resistance is excellent,not much pedal needed to get car going. Was going over 2 inch pot holes with NO drifting into the other lanes. Solid as expected but the sidewalls could be a tad tighter for unexpected corners. Overall I turned down the Avid s4 due to comfort, Michelin pilot sport no low profile on this heavy car and the michelin primacy MXV4 was not in the price these were for the same performance. The Bridgestone RE97AS is exactly what I was looking for in a Cross Touring tire. Will buy again in 2-3 years since they are priced extremely well.

Initial Review, 750 Miles on Tires
April 04, 2013

This is basically a fun HPDE / Autocross tire for me. I plan to switch to a different set of wheels/tires for daily driving. Last year I used Conti DW and Michelin Supersports for daily, autocross and HPDE use, howevever that was with a different car, so I can't make a direct comparison.

Ride quality is actually pretty reasonable given the "extreme" nature of this tire. Actually, ride has improved over the oem Dunlop SP Sport 2050 tires, however, some of that may be due to the smaller and lighter wheels. I'm sure a more recent max performance summer tire will ride better, and a gran touring tire better still, but these are quite reasonable for what they are, and not at the level of harshness of a run flat tire.

Noise is deeper and a little louder than oem, but still not bad. It is more noticeable at lower speeds (40-50mph) now. Smooth tarmac is still quiet, but rough tarmac, or concrete is where you will hear them.

OK, now for the performance aspect. So far I have just 2 days on track with these tires, 1 dry and 1 wet. I was very happy with them in both conditions. In the dry, these held up well for a 25 minute session. They did get slightly greasy feeling after a few hot laps, but much less so than the Supersports I last ran at this track and adjusting tire pressures helped dial that out. There is another comment on here saying that the traction is harder to judge for the beginner due to the lack of audible feedback. I did find it hard to judge traction in my first session, however once I had learned to understand the feedback after that first session, I found them to be very communicative and was able to push up to the limit of traction. I'm not a complete beginner, but neither am I that experienced yet. In the wet, they worked well on track and I also drove through some storms on the way home with no aqua planing.

Overall, I am very happy with these tires and would recommend them for anyone who wants an aggressive street tire.

Initial Review, 1,100 Miles on Tires
April 04, 2013

Great A/S tire. This is my 3rd set of A/S tires on my Golf R, and the first one I've been happy with. Previously, I had the junk SP Sport 01 A/S factory tires which were good in nothing. Then, I replaced them with Michelin Primacy MXM4's, which were quieter, but still lacked wet grip, dry grip, and steering feel.

These 970's feel almost to the level of dedicated summer tires in the dry and wet, with the advantage of increased wear, better ride, and cold weather performance. They are not meant for deep snow or ice, but I have no doubt that they will do fine in the minimal snow/ice we have in Delaware. This tire gives up little to the PS3's and SportContact summer tires I've used in pure traction and steering feel. If you are looking for absolute top performance, look to the Pilot Super Sport, S-04 Pole Positions, or the RE-11a with dedicated snows/winter tires. However, if you can compromise just a hair, I think you'll be happy with these tires.

Initial Review, 20,000 Miles on Tires
April 03, 2013

These are the best tires I have owned -- including Michelin, Pirelli, Bridgestone on Saab, BMW, Accord. These are my first Contis. I thought they were freaks that would degrade after wear-in, opposite other tires. They were amazing right out of the box. And they got better. I had top of the line Bridgestones. These are miles better in every category. Particularly wet traction (you can feel them slice through puddles) and dry cornering (sticky and plenty of warning before gradually letting go). Quiet too. There is nothing I don't like about these tires. Still early for true tire wear veal, but looks good so far. How did Conti do it? Most tires are trade-offs in different performance categories. These don't trade off anything. If I can get only 30k miles, they will be replaced by another set.

Initial Review, 7,000 Miles on Tires
March 27, 2013

I purchased this tire after speaking with a customer service representative when I asked for a viable option to the factory Michelin Pilot tires. I have been nothing short of delighted with these tires. They have a slightly harder tread compound than the Pilots did they maintain the cornering stability of the Michelins. Overall, I feel that they driver better than the Michelin Pilots and offer a better value due to better treadware and come in at a lower price point. I would enthusiastically recommend that you consider these tires as an excellent performing, outstanding value replacement tire for heavier SUV's that are used on-road.