Michelin Pilot Sport All-Season 4 Review

The Michelin Pilot Sport All Season 4 stands as an ultra-high-performance tire that brings the best in all seasons, where it offers pretty great wet and dry traction values. Though its snow performance is what surprises you the most. Let’s check all of these performance factors and more.

Tire Sizes

The Michelin Pilot Sport All-Season 4 comes in 16 to 22 inches wheels, and they come with the following specifications.

• Speed ratings: Y on all.
• Load ratings: SL and XL.
• Tread depth: 10/32″ on all.
• Weight range: 19 to 35 lbs.
• Treadwear warranty: 45k miles.
• UTQG rating: 540 AA A.

External Construction

The Michelin Pilot Sport All Season 4, having an asymmetric tread design, showcases a unique approach.

Starting from its central section, here 3 main ribs are seen (which create four circumferential channels).

As one can see all these ribs are very different from one another, where the central most rib carries lateral in-groove notches (facing the right side in the image), along with rectilinear siping.

These features are similar to the rib on the left as well.

While the rib on the right comes with biters facing the shoulder and circular siping.

Similarly the shoulders prominently differ form one side to another as well.

On one shoulder side, there are zigzag lateral grooves combined with linear and circular siping, while the opposite side integrates both lateral and longitudinal siping along with snow vices.

Find all the tires compared with Michelin Pilot Sport All Season 4.

Dry Performance

When evaluating the effectiveness of dry traction, it is essential to consider a range of factors such as the tire’s structure, composition, and tread design, which influence how well a tire adheres to the road in dry circumstances.

This is often quantified through tests measuring, tire’s acceleration capability, stopping efficacy and cornering (combined with steering feedback). And the Michelin Pilot Sport All-Season 4 excels in all these areas.

Let’s start with the grip.

Directional Grip

Now this grip depends on the central tread region of the tread, as that part gets the most of the weight concentration is the middle, it makes sense why central lugs are so significant here.

In light of this, the Michelin Pilot Sport All Season 4 emerges better showcasing remarkable performance in dry braking, where it stops on par with the Continental DWS06 Plus (which is the best in the category of high performance all season tires).

PS. You can check out my list of top UHPAS tires here: https://tiredriver.com/best-ultra-high-performance-all-season-tires/

Why is that?

Well the three central ribs of the Michelin tire, coming in with an asymmetric design, are furnished with multiple gripping elements, often referred to as ‘biters’ or in-groove notches.

And a notable feature of these biters is their diverse angular alignment. This ensures not only a consistent straight/longitudinal grip but also multi-directional stability, (crucial for lateral traction during handling, explained below).

Overall Handling

Constructed with a lighter framework and a more rigid composition, the Michelin Pilot Sport All Season 4 is always ready to perform, where it offered one of the fastest lap times (on average).

It features reduced tread depth and minimized tread voids, each playing a pivotal role in enhancing the tire’s traction. Let me explain how each of this factor helps this tire here.

• So having a lighter weight reduces inertia, allowing for improved grip and steering responsiveness.
• It’s firmer composition enables the lugs to maintain a strong grip on the road, thus amplifying the steering responsiveness.
• And with diminished tread depth, it prevents excessive lug bending during cornering or braking, fostering more direct steering.

Though still there’s one thing you should know about the tire’s steering, where sometimes, the quick steering made the front lose grip, causing the car to slide forward, and the back end could spin easily, making it harder to take back the control (of the car).

For Your Info: Among all the tires I’ve reviewed in the ultra-high-performance all-season category, the Pirelli All Season Plus stands out, offering the superior overall dry handling.

Fuel Usage & Tread Life

Fuel efficiency and tread life are both inherently tied to the tire’s rolling resistance, weight, tread depth, and overall composition.

And although the Michelin Pilot Sport All-Season 4 doesn’t shine in both these aspects, it still offers an above average performance.

Its slightly heavier build although seems to escalate rolling resistance, (as lugs get to have more weight pressure on them), its relatively stiffer rubber composition still keeps things at bay

Same goes for the tread life, where the harder rubber compound takes a while to reach down to 2/32″ of replacement levels.

So it makes sense why you get a good enough 45k miles warranty here.

Side Note: It’s tread life is similar to that of Continental DWS06 Plus, (having UTQG of 560).

Wet Traction

The performance of a tire under wet conditions can be primarily judged by analyzing the overall wet grip/handling and resistance to aquaplaning.

Wet Grip

Now the Pilot Sport All Season 4 is average in wet conditions compared to other tires in the category, I mean it performs better than some but that isn’t something you’d place at the top.

Even though the tire grips the wet road well, its hard to handle at times, where its quick steering sometimes make the front of the car lose grip, leaving the back of the car with the tendency to slide out a bit.

So why is that?

Well, the core issue lies in the absence of a modern rubber blend, often a mixture of silica and advanced tread technology. This substantially enhances the tire’s tread flexibility, which is a critical factor in achieving optimal wet grip.

Basically main wet grip comes from siping, which contract/expand creating suction for the water particles (which are sucked in the slits, allowing the rubber/biters on the tread to grab the slightly dried up surface).

So the Michelin not allowing the sipes with optimal flexibility hampers their ability to create a good enough suction power, thus compromising grip efficiency.

For Your Info: Out of all tires I reviewed in the high performance all season category, the Continental ExtremeContact DWS 06 Plus offers the best overall wet handling.

Hydroplaning

Hydroplaning is another word for floating of a tire on a watery surface, wherein a thin layer of water creates a barrier between the tire and the road, causing a loss of traction.

To combat this, tires are equipped with “grooves” that offer channels for water evacuation.

And here, there are no major complaints with the Pilot Sport All Season tire, which offers multiple voids all over the tread, efficiently dispersing water out, and ensuring reliable float speeds.

Winter Traction

Even though the Michelin Pilot Sport All-Season 4 is promoted as a year-round tire, it sadly lacks the distinguished 3-Peak Mountain Snowflake certification, which signifies a tire’s superior ability to accelerate 10% better on snowy surfaces.

Though still, compared to other tires in the high performance all season category, the Michelin Pilot offers the best results.

I mean there are 3 main tests involved here, namely, braking efficacy, acceleration and cornering, and Michelin rocked all of them.

Side Note: Out of all winter performance aspects, the most impressive was how the tire allowed for significantly higher speeds into and through turns, showcasing superior lateral traction.

The tire basically comes in with a highly asymmetric pattern, where it features a combination of lateral, curved (circular), and linear siping and notches. And all of these retain snow particles really well, forming superb snow to snow contact.

This type of contact is preferable here, as it creates greater friction compared to rubber to snow contact.

Road Vibrations

The quality of a tire’s ride is significantly influenced by its ability to absorb road irregularities. And it depends heavily on its internal and external structure.

In this regard, the Michelin Pilot Sport All-Season 4 slightly disappoints, given its relatively stiff tread rubber and a harder inner cap ply (predominately).

And so needless to say, this results in a “less cushioned” driving experience.

Side Note: Out of all the ultra high performance AS tires I’ve reviewed so far, the General G MAX 07, provides with the best overall ride comfort. You can review this tire here: https://tiredriver.com/general-g-max-as-07-review/

Noise Comfort

Regarding road noise, while the tire isn’t overly noisy, it still produces a distinctive, higher-pitched sound that varies with the road type.

And the main source of this noise comes from air turbulence at the tread, especially through gaps in the shoulder area.

Unlike quieter tires which often have features to block this, air flows freely through these gaps and collides with the surrounding (tread) walls, producing sound.

However, on the upside, the tire does incorporates a variable pitch technology. With its unique rib designs, it produces various sound frequencies that counterbalance each other, aiding in noise reduction, nonetheless.

Speaking of noise comfort, you’d find a much better performance on Kumho Ecsta PA51, (review).

Summing Up

So what’s the verdict? Well, the Michelin Pilot Sport All Season 4 exhibits an impressive performance across varying conditions.

With responsive and quick steering, it displays commendable traction both in dry and wet settings.

While it might not be the frontrunner in every aspect, its overall performance remains above average.

In terms of comfort, there’s room for improvement, particularly concerning road vibrations and noise.

However, its winter traction is particularly commendable, emerging as a standout among its peers in the high-performance all-season category.

But keep in mind, that this winter performance comes at a cost, literally, it’s one of the most expensive (UHPAS) tire out there right now.