Michelin Winter Tires

Initial Review, 24,400 Miles on Tires
March 22, 2013

Six months ago, I bought the car used with 19,200 miles on it. At the time the tread depth was 5/32. Just had a 5,000 mile check and was told the tread depth is now 3/32 or less, and the tires need to be replaced. Original owners of the car bought it in Maine and resided in Florida for a couple of years, so I cannot speak to their driving habits, however, I have driven about 75/25% local miles. The tires is supposedly rated for 50,000 miles, and the car will have about half that when the tires are replaced. While they are quiet and ride comfortably, the durability is completely unsatisfactory.Though the tread is now worn, this past winter I have not found them to handle well on wet roads and snow.

Initial Review, 45,690 Miles on Tires
March 22, 2013

I have almost 47K miles on these tires and still have 5/32 of tread remaining. I have rotated the tires every 5K miles. I am very pleased with the handling in both sumer and winter and extremely pleased with the mileage. I have never had tires last more than 30K miles in the past. When these tires are finally worn out, I will replace them with exactly the same tire.

Initial Review, 10,000 Miles on Tires
March 29, 2013

outstanding tire, awesome in wis winters. my wife drives the truck in the winter as her bird sleeps the winter away. if she is totaly happy with them I am a happy camper. they are very quit at freeway speeds and she drives as if she is driving her Trans Am. No complaint as far as handling again would highly recomend. little pricey, but you get what you pay for.

Initial Review, 5,000 Miles on Tires
March 31, 2013

These are my first winter tires and compared to the horrid Energy LX4s that were OE on the van, these cut through snow and ice like nothing I've ever seen before. Sure, if you drive fast on packed snow and jam on the brakes you can break traction, but in normal driving I never lost grip.

As soon as I put them on, I noticed how quiet and smooth they are - far superior to the OE tires. Handling and cornering is a bit 'squishier' than the OE tires, but I got used to that very quickly.

For me, the real benefit is the extra margin of confidence that when I hit the brakes or need to turn corners on the snow/slush/ice that covers Toronto from December to April, my van will respond as I expect. I have not had any close calls or nervous moments with these tires, in contrast to the LX4s I ran through last winter, or my previous all-seasons on other vehicles.

I very strongly recommend these tires to others.

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, 2,000 Miles on Tires
March 21, 2013

I replaced Michelin MXV4s with Michelin Pilot Exalto A/S tires in November 2012. Even during the recent winter season in Rochester, NY, I have seen noticeable improvement in handling characteristics for both dry and wet/snow conditions. Traction is excellent in all situations despite having only RWD and traction control. Ride characteristics and noise levels are also noticeably improved.

Initial Review, 9,000 Miles on Tires
March 21, 2013

I have 9,000 miles on these tires and they have just started to show a little wear. I think they will last me at least another two seasons. Best snow tire I have ever used, at least on the Mini Cooper S. The traction was incredible in the snow overall. Once the tires got moving, I rarely lost traction, and most of the time I was trying to lose traction to see how they handled. Acceleration in light snow was the only "little" complaint. It usually took a second or two to get going. All other acceleration was great. When the temp is under 30F, the tires handle great for a snow tire. I took it onto a dry track at 15F, and even at high speed it was extremely stable. Even cornered well. Once the temp gets above freezing, the tires get soft at around 75mph. Overall the best winter tire I have used because you will tell a difference. Highly recommended.

Initial Review, 2,000 Miles on Tires
March 20, 2013

Bought these to replace my all seasons for winter--we had 2 huge storms and these were awesome--my focus was a whole new vehicle--I found myself going where 4WD pickups with the wrong tires were getting stuck. And the best part--utterly comfortable on dry roads--though a could tell a negative difference once temps were above 45 .
For a winter tire overall excellent!

Initial Review, 5,000 Miles on Tires
March 23, 2013

In Vermont, we run winter tires pretty much from November until April, so it's important to choose wisely when shopping for a new set. These Eagle Ultra Grip GW-3 winter tires replaced Michelin Primacy Alpin PA3 winter tires, and I couldn't be happier with the selection. Every objective measure of performance (and satisfaction) went up with the Goodyear tires: grip on icy surfaces; deep snow performance; slushy and wet road traction; and overall comfort (NVH). And on dry, cold roads, I really appreciate the stability and responsiveness of a performance winter tire -- especially in a heavy, V8 powered sedan. It's been a 'real' winter this year, and these tires have exceeded my expectations. Highly recommended.

Initial Review, 20,000 Miles on Tires
March 25, 2013

This is the best set of tires we have ever owned. These Michelins are on my wife's Honda Pilot and I must say I am thoroughly impressed. They effortlessly handle our Upstate New York Winters and the tread life is outstanding. After witnessing the performance of these tires I switched the tires on my Toyota to Michelins as well.

Initial Review, 50,000 Miles on Tires
March 19, 2013

Got this tyre 2 winters ago for my outback. At the time it was just about the cheapest snow tyre around. My original outback died last autumn and I got another outback, and i kept the graspics on their rims. I am a confirmed michelin fanboy and was jealous of my GF who had michelin xices on her van. But my graspics have performed flawlessly. I kept them on last Summer and simply pumped them up to 36psi. My commute is 55m each way and I drive 78-90mph traffic and Smokey permitting. Tyres still have 1/3 left up front and 1/4 at the back at 50k miles (was the other way around on my original car). My GF's xices are worn after 20k miles. The tyres have pulled through ice and snow flawlessly. The graspics are also much better in the dry than the OEM tyres which are plainly awful. 4wd is no use if you don't have the right tyre-I spun out in a snowstorm on the OEM all season tyres. If you live in a winter climate region I wholeheartedly recommend the graspics.

Initial Review, 4,500 Miles on Tires
March 19, 2013

This is my first ever set of winter tires, so I can't really compare them to any other tire, except all-seasons. My first misconception was that the tires would make my car invincible in the snow - they didn't. You still have to be mindful of how you're driving. Having said that, I've only driven a handful of times in the snow with these tires, and I fully enjoyed all of them. I could drive twice the speed of the other cars, in a lane that was still snowed in and had barely any tracking. I've also played around in a parking lot with about 2-3 inches of fresh snow and the responsiveness of these tires is very good. You will still slide if you're braking too quickly or turning too sharply, but much less than with the all-season tires that I've had in the past. I had one experience with deep snow, and it wasn't a good one. I tried to plow through a foot of snow in my driveway and got stuck. Not really the tire's fault, but I did notice that FWD with an open differential is not very good for those instances. That's why I think that your drive train will play a big part in the overall performance of these tires. Last thoughts - they look nice and meaty, noise level is low, and ride comfort is great. Not recommended for spirited driving, but excellent for everyday use. I would like to compare these to the Bridgestone Blizzaks, if I ever get the opportunity. Snow tires are fun!

Initial Review, 2,000 Miles on Tires
February 13, 2010

These General Exclaim UHP tires are actually my second set purchased for my GTI 337. I was so impressed with my first set that replaced my factory Michelin Pilot Sports, that I felt compelled to do the same once again. I haven't had much time to really test this set yet given that I just installed them in December, and this has been a record setting snowfall this winter. This car and these tires aren't exactly snow ready. I am impressed how I managed to get around given 72 inches of snow so far this winter. I partly credit all of the features of my car like, electronic differential lock, traction control, ABS, and driver skills. I've been practicing all of my driving years in the snow. I wouldn't recommend it to the unskilled. The transition from my previous set of UHP's to the new set demonstrated a noticeable difference. Due to the full tread depth, hydroplaning resistance is spectacular again, along with wet traction, and ride quality. The dry traction, cornering limits, and steering responsiveness are lower than when well worn to eliminate tread squirm, but generally excellent all the same. I look forward to another spirited and agressive driving experience with these tires. I will keep you informed as always.

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

I purchased these tire right before winter and am happy with them for the most part. They get a little hard below 20degrees but seem to get better after a few miles. They are good in snow and very good in the rain. They seem to be wearing very well so far and hope they give better tread life than the Michelin Cross Terrain that they replaced. I did notice a increase in mileage of almost a mile per gallon which I was impressed by. All in all I would buy them again.

Initial Review, 5,000 Miles on Tires
March 12, 2013

Bought this tire in lieu of winter and I am glad I did. A little pricey but well worth is if you live where you experience all four seasons. Probably the best tire I have owned.

Initial Review, 4,200 Miles on Tires
March 16, 2013

This is my second review of this tire, and THIRD season of use. They continued to perform beyond what I expected from a winter tire. Braking on ice is completely drama-free. These tires stop right NOW when you want them to.
I would say the tire's worst performance occurs on rough unpacked "cruddy" snow. There, the directional stability becomes iffy and the car feels like it's just floating over the snow as opposed to digging through it. (This may be because my tires are 205 instead of the OEM 195, less weight per surface area)
I did a lot of highway driving with this tire and they made no annoying road noises at high speeds and had no problem standing up to warm highway use in terms of wear. In fact, the tires appear to have lost only 0.5mm of tread over 4200 miles (half of which was dry highway!) Wow!!
I love these tires and I will always use Michelin winter tires and recommend them to everyone I know.

Initial Review, 10,000 Miles on Tires
March 12, 2013

Dealer installed new on this car when I purchased the car. They are super quite and fantastic at any speed . Cant relate to winter driving living in south Florida. This is the factory recommended all season tire for the S500 4matic. At 10k miles they look like day 1 of use.

Initial Review, 20,000 Miles on Tires
March 15, 2013

These were great tires. Mine wore out quickly but this was not unexpected as I had the suspension setup on the car with a -1 degree camber on the rear and -.5 degree negative on the front. Caster and toe were set to factory Honda specs. These tires gave excellent dry traction and cornering stability as they were used on a sporty Civic that had been lowered 2 inches and had a fully adjustable autocross suspension setup. I am considering purchasing these tires for my 2012 Civic Si that is fully stock and has not been modified in any way just to see how many more miles I can get out of them. These are a great set of All Season tires for spirited driving or for those wanting the flexibility of an All Season but with the performance of a Max Performance Summer Tire. These Pilot Sport A/S Plus' were used in Northern Arkansas for the majority of their life and were purchased over a summer tire due to the inclement weather conditions that Arkansas receives during the winter months. Obviously I wouldn't recommend venturing out into a blizzard with these tires but they fared will on freshly snowed roads and over a few day old black ice spots along the highways. Spring and Summer times rainy and dry days are what these tires were meant for and they are made to be driven hot!

Initial Review, 62,900 Miles on Tires
March 15, 2013

I don't suppose anything is really perfect, but this Michelin tire is close enough to award it a 10. Quite simply, it responds to every situation a driver might ever face, even in severe winter driving. Noise is nonexistant and the comfort level at over 60,000 miles is still first class. I've never owned another tire and wouldn't hesitate to recommend this one to anybody. It's that good.