Michelin Tires Reviews

Initial Review, 6,000 Miles on Tires
April 01, 2013

This tire is a on powerful heavy car and it is the best set I have ever owned. The wet traction is astonishing. The mileage not so sure about that but they have 30,000 warranty, so we shall see how close they get to that.

Initial Review, 50 Miles on Tires
April 06, 2013

Initial review-
Amazing grip, don't have to brake on on/off-ramps, these beat the Nitto 555's and Sumitomo HTZ3 by a wide margin. Added 275-35-18 tires and GT500 SVT rims to a stock GT Mustang, simply amazing tire in the dry. Have not driven in rain yet so will update down the road.
Tire rack confirmed these were date stamped late last fall, shipping in 4 days and balanced very well. Money well spent!! Running at 37 psi currently. These do seem to pick up small rocks and sand and shed it just as fast, no biggie its a max summer tire!

Initial Review, 500 Miles on Tires
April 22, 2013

Installed these on my 08 GT2 recently and am very pleased with them. Grip is amazing and very predictable. A better option than the Michelin Pilot sport Cups in my opinion. Be advised that the tread depth is 8/32 not 10/32. Track guys will love them.

Initial Review, 50 Miles on Tires
April 08, 2013

Just drove 50 miles home from having these tires installed. Was amazed at how quiet they were. Road noise was non existent on both highway and country driving! Last week on a trip on the old original BF Goodrich tires, they were so noisy we kept thinking we had a window open! Every groove in the road was a KaThump! No noise from the Defender's, WOW!

Initial Review, 150 Miles on Tires
April 16, 2013

I have to write this review to talk about these tires. First the Goodyear F1 RFT came stock. They were great in the rain, good dry traction especially on the 1/4 mile track, hooked and leapt off the line, however the ride was horrible. One think I really did like about the Goodyears, they have a protective lip that covers the rims, protects them from curbs. The turn in was terrible. The Goodyears lasted 14,000 miles. The insides wore past the wear bars, on factory alignment.

Now on to the Michelins, unbelievable difference in ride quality and road noise over the Goodyears. These are non-runflats so the side walls actually give. Better ride more compliant over bumps, so far no tramming (live in the D.C. area 495 on and off a lot). The best part is the turn in these tires are so willing to turn and give you so much more confidence than the Goodyears. I cant believe the grip they have, the harder you throw them into a corner the better the grip. Have not got them to squeal yet. That will happen next week at the track. Will update next week after the track. They look a lot more aggressive on my rims as well.

Initial Review, 100 Miles on Tires
April 08, 2013

The first summer tire I had on my car was the Conti DW, and I was blown away. They were a bit noisy, but wet or dry, they stuck like glue. Then I decided to go with an A/S tire, the Bridgestone 970 AS Pole Position; after 2100 miles they came off. Great tire, really, but not the tire for my car, not enough grip.

So while I contemplated going for the DW again, I thought I'd splurge and try the PSS. First thoughts, WOW. Quiet, quiet quiet. Shortly after having them installed, took them on a really twisty road or two north of Portland, up hwy 30 a bit. It was raining out a bit, so I thought the perfect time to try them out.

Wet grip? Outstanding. Very predictable, great on-center feel. They feel heavier than the AS tires, but I think that's just the increased level of grip and being so quiet. Dry grip? Got a chance to try that this weekend a bit. Again, outstanding. Did I mention they're quiet? Yeah, my MINI has never had it this good. Dry grip was great, I'd say this compares very well with the DW, but the PSS is quieter by far.

I plan on rotating every 2K to make sure I get the most out of them that I can as I tend to drive pretty aggressively when I do drive =)

Updates to come.

Initial Review, 600 Miles on Tires
April 22, 2013

Just got through the break-in miles, so this is an early review. These replaced Continental DW tires (30,000 miles, over three years) that became very noisy after 15,000 miles. The Bridgestones are incredibly quiet and smooth-riding - much nicer than the OEM Michelins, my prior summer tire, the Conti DW (when new), or my other set of aftermarket rubber, Michelin Pilot Alpin PA3 winter tires. Until the mold release compound wore off, they felt uneasy on the highway, but now they're much better at tracking straight at speed. They respond faster to steering corrections than the Conti DW. (The DW in this size are 2009 production, and I didn't want to get old stock.)

Initial Review, 500 Miles on Tires
April 18, 2013

First I'll admit - I've had terrible experience with Michelin tires in the past. For this vehicle, I wanted to purchase the Bridgestone Serentity Plus tires, but are hard to locate. So with that said, the Defenders were purchased based on research and input from the reviews. I've had a real surprise with these tires so for with the mileage increasing. I keep a log of every tank of gas and track mpg with all my vehicles since the first day of vehicle purchase. As of right now I am averaging 12-18% increase in mpg with these tires. Very interesting to see my 2006 Altima log a range of 31 to 33 mpg with the Michelin tires. (70% freeway 30% city)

Initial Review, 1,050 Miles on Tires
April 18, 2013

Excellent tire! Very much better than the replacement Firestone 500 Police, Kumho's, and particularly, the Goodyear Eagles Z-rated that came on the car. I had a tread separation on one of these at 24,000 miles - inexcusable on a Z rated tire at highway speeds. The Kumho's handled excellently, and probably gave slightly superior dry traction vs. the new Pilots, but were toast in 16M miles, which is ridiculous. Love all aspects of the Pilots to date. Well worth the very premium price.

Initial Review, 200 Miles on Tires
April 25, 2013

Just put these on my Cayman after wearing out my second set of Michelin PS2's and taking off my Michelin Alpin winter tires. They look great. Very different feel. Immediately more comfortable - softer ride, quiet, but there's a slightly "floaty" feel and a brief delay when you turn the wheel before the car turns. Still grips on a hard curve, its just the connection between driver and road is a little fuzzy compared to the other tires which, frankly, are punishing as every day drivers. Was only getting 32,000 miles out of the PS2's and needed more durability for my dollar. Haven't driven them in rain or snow yet. Will update. So if you switch from a dedicated high performance summer tires, which are all considerably more expensive and last half as long, be prepared to trade off some precision for comfort.

Initial Review, 500 Miles on Tires
April 18, 2013

The Michelins replaced General UHP tires which handled much better - but got noisy after about 25,000 miles. The Michelins have a higher sidewall even though they're the same size. So it's softer riding and much quieter. But I'm giving up on performance. Handling dynamics have changed - more understeer. The grip on the Altimax UHPs were progressive - telegraphing when they're about to break loose. The Michelins break loose a bit more abruptly. So the tire require a less sprited driving style. Perhaps not a fair comparison - comparing high performance summer tires with all seasons. Too soon to tell if there's any difference in fuel consumption. I expect a longer treadlife based on my previous experience with Michelins MXV's on a different car. I'll update this review after I've had experience driving the car in wet conditions.

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, 3,500 Miles on Tires
April 10, 2013

My 2001 had Yokohamas on it when I bought it (Used). Tread date on tire was 2007. I bought the car in 2009 and they were dry rotting by 2012. They were also very loud, with a high pitch hum on the highway. These Defenders are so much quieter I can't beleive it. No hum. Great handling so far. We never got a great snowfall here in Chicago so I can't rate them in deep snow but they did save my butt when a car pulled out of an alley on an icy road and these babies gripped! I had Harmonys on my old CRV but I like these even better.

Initial Review, 1,000 Miles on Tires
April 17, 2013

Absolutely awesome!

The Michelin Pilot Super Sport tire transformed my car:

1) Increased ride comfort
2) Reduced road noise
3) Increased responsiveness

I highly recommend these tires! :)




 

Initial Review, 5,000 Miles on Tires
April 21, 2013

This is my third set of tyres on my car. They replaced Michelin MXMV4s. They are amazing tires, though they do ride a bit firm. They are super quiet.

Initial Review, 17,000 Miles on Tires
April 17, 2013

A good tire for the price, a little noisier than expected, but if I wanted a quiet tire I would have gone with michelins. Previously had pirelli scorpion atr's, they were the best tires I ever had on my truck, did everything far beyond my expectations, but the price jumped up $300 for the set so I started looking at other options. Decided to try these out, I liked the all terrain tread for the snow and driving on the beach. So far holding up well, probably get 35 to 40,000 out of them, not bad for the way I drive. A lot of tread squirm for the first 2-3,000 miles but settled in after that, had to slow down a lot for the on/off ramp almost felt like I was going to lose it, but never lost traction though. But, after 2-3000 miles the uneasiness went away and the back end didn't fell like it was going to pass me anymore. They definitely don't handle like the pirelli's they replaced, it helps to remind me I'm driving a full size truck and not a sports cars. I'm sure I added about 10,000 miles to the life of the tires because of it. Not necessarily a bad thing.

Initial Review, 5,000 Miles on Tires
April 17, 2013

Bought this set of tires because I knew I'd be driving long distance over the winter. Never has any issues at highway speeds or within the city. Only issue I noticed was tight cornering at higher speeds (~25mph), as this tended to cause understeer. Everything else has been perfect.

Initial Review, 43,000 Miles on Tires
April 17, 2013

These are now discontinued tires replaced by the Latitude Tour. Like the truck like off road aggressive look of the Cross Terrain tires. The tread is still good but the tires are literally developing large deep cracks in the tread blocks and side tread blocks and the rubber is disintegrating to the point where they now have to be replaced per the recommendations of multiple tire shops. Guess it is time to replace as they are OEM 10 year old tires now.

Initial Review, 18,000 Miles on Tires
April 14, 2013

Possibly the best all season tire I've owned. Not great for snow, but excellant for rain and superior on dry pavement. The issue that I have with these tires is treadwear. With a softer compound on the outside blocks, it is impossible to wear the tire out FLAT across the tread. The 45K warranty only covers the tire if you wear it out evenly before 45K. Unless you drive like grandma, this warranty is a joke.

Initial Review, 70,000 Miles on Tires
April 21, 2013

These tires are amazing. We took the factory Michelin's off because we had a bad tire and installed these. They now have 70,000 miles on them with 5/32's left. The tires have worn great, they are quiet, and they ride much better than the Michelin's ever did. When these wear out we will own buy the Serenity Plus.