Michelin now has Pilot Sport 4s in 245/35-21 with acoustic foam

[TMeister]

Just picked these up today. Build date was 0919. Saw them at Tirerack with limited supply. But my local Discount Tire got them direct from Michelin for me even though they were not in their catalog yet.

Just need to wait a little for warmer weather here and I'll get them on the car.

 

[TMeister]

Got them out on the road. They are very quiet. A lot quieter than the OEM 19's Goodyear Touring tires that were on there. Of course those tires have about 1/2 tread left so not comparing accurately here. The new tires make the car feel more stable in city driving. No discernible difference in feeling of road bumps. They did pick up a lot of of the chip seal gravel just like the Pirelli P-Zeros on the 911 do but only for the first pass down the road. Likely from the mold release agent. It'll be a while before I stress them. Gonna put a hundred or so easy miles on them first.

 

[Mike Robinson]

So, you believe they are noticeably more quiet than the same Michelin's without the foam???

 

[TMeister]

So, you believe they are noticeably more quiet than the same Michelin's without the foam???

No. Comparing two tires which both have foam. These new 4s and the original tires on the car. I just looked and the OEM ones are actually Goodyear Touring M&S T0 with acoustic foam. And they are in 19 inch. So definitely not comparing like tires.

 

[Mike Robinson]

I see. My new MS came with Goodyear tires and they’ve been surprisingly good. I’ve only had Michelin tires on my cars for many years. When my current tires need replacement, I will likely buy Michelin’s. My decision will be whether to get foam or no foam. Most of the articles I’ve read indicate very little benefit from the foam. What say you??

 

[brianman]

I have the strange urge to burn through my perfectly good OEM 4S just for the upgrade in foam.

 

[TMeister]

I see. My new MS came with Goodyear tires and they’ve been surprisingly good. I’ve only had Michelin tires on my cars for many years. When my current tires need replacement, I will likely buy Michelin’s. My decision will be whether to get foam or no foam. Most of the articles I’ve read indicate very little benefit from the foam. What say you??

I would say in my opinion that the foam is not going to make much difference. I wanted the Pilot Sport 4s rather than the Super Sport and the 4s in this size is only offered with the acoustic foam. I've got perhaps a million miles of driving on all kinds of tires and the biggest factor I see is tire age. So that's why the new tires are so much quieter than the old ones. And it gets worse as tires age and tread depth gets low.

The only way to do the comparison is with identical tires with only the acoustic foam as the variable. Hard to do that until Michelin introduces a 245/35-21 without foam. One could do this comparison with the Pilot Super Sport, it is offered in both types.

Here's a pic of the foam insert I took before they were mounted. It looks like any other open cell acoustic foam. I did not feel it to see how dense it was. The foam looks just like sound deadening foam I have used to make quiet enclosures for sound measurements. Logically if designed correctly I believe certain frequencies could be reduced. But I have no empirical data to support this.

 

[Sandollars]

Is something wrong with the Michelin Primacy tires? Just curious as that's what I was planning on putting on as my next set which, knock on wood, should be about 20k miles out still.

 

[TMeister]

Is something wrong with the Michelin Primacy tires? Just curious as that's what I was planning on putting on as my next set which, knock on wood, should be about 20k miles out still.

Just depends on what you are looking for. First off, no Primacy branded tires are available in 245/35-21 and most are an all season tire. I was looking specifically for a high performance summer tire and have experience with the Pilot Sport 4s so wanted that.

Just a side bar... tire selection is such a personal matter. One has to do a lot of research, gather opinions, look at technology in compounds, belts, sidewall construction, etc, etc. And don't forget price. It gets quite complicated. How about matching your driving style? The list gets pretty deep. Nothing wrong with selecting a tire that meets your individual goals. That's why there are so many types.

Many people don't want to research and that's fine too. Try going in to a tire shop with an open mind and see how their questions work for you. Assess if they ask things that make sense. In 10 minutes you'll probably leave with a tire that works perfectly for you.

 

[Sandollars]

Just depends on what you are looking for. First off, no Primacy branded tires are available in 245/35-21 and most are an all season tire. I was looking specifically for a high performance summer tire and have experience with the Pilot Sport 4s so wanted that.

Just a side bar... tire selection is such a personal matter. One has to do a lot of research, gather opinions, look at technology in compounds, belts, sidewall construction, etc, etc. And don't forget price. It gets quite complicated. How about matching your driving style? The list gets pretty deep. Nothing wrong with selecting a tire that meets your individual goals. That's why there are so many types.

Many people don't want to research and that's fine too. Try going in to a tire shop with an open mind and see how their questions work for you. Assess if they ask things that make sense. In 10 minutes you'll probably leave with a tire that works perfectly for you.

Makes sense. I have 19's on my car. Too many potholes here in SoCal

 

[Mike Robinson]

I would say in my opinion that the foam is not going to make much difference. I wanted the Pilot Sport 4s rather than the Super Sport and the 4s in this size is only offered with the acoustic foam. I've got perhaps a million miles of driving on all kinds of tires and the biggest factor I see is tire age. So that's why the new tires are so much quieter than the old ones. And it gets worse as tires age and tread depth gets low.

The only way to do the comparison is with identical tires with only the acoustic foam as the variable. Hard to do that until Michelin introduces a 245/35-21 without foam. One could do this comparison with the Pilot Super Sport, it is offered in both types.

Here's a pic of the foam insert I took before they were mounted. It looks like any other open cell acoustic foam. I did not feel it to see how dense it was. The foam looks just like sound deadening foam I have used to make quiet enclosures for sound measurements. Logically if designed correctly I believe certain frequencies could be reduced. But I have no empirical data to support this.

View attachment 400368

Very helpful, thanks!

 

[BornToFly]

The foam is a nightmare if you ever need a patch from a flat from a nail. We had to deal with that in my wife's X. NEVER buying tires with foam again!!!!

 

[dark cloud]

The only way to do the comparison is with identical tires with only the acoustic foam as the variable. Hard to do that until Michelin introduces a 245/35-21 without foam.

you would just buy 2 sets of those tyres and rip the foam from one set.

 

[tubaprde]

Just picked these up today. Build date was 0919. Saw them at Tirerack with limited supply. But my local Discount Tire got them direct from Michelin for me even though they were not in their catalog yet.

Just need to wait a little for warmer weather here and I'll get them on the car.

Do these come in the 19" size to fit a base wheel model S? i might want to upgrade from mx4s if available... i love PS tires, in the past had PS1s and PS2s on bmws and mercedes

 

[dzmconstr]

And made in the USA I might add.

 

[TMeister]

The foam is a nightmare if you ever need a patch from a flat from a nail. We had to deal with that in my wife's X. NEVER buying tires with foam again!!!!

Actually, the Discount Tire guy brought it up without prompting that many shops will say it is hard to do but that it is not. He said it is no harder than a non-foam tire to repair. You cut the foam out around the puncture, repair normally and then use some of the rubber cement from the patch kit to stick the foam back down. I looked and this is actually documented by Michelin and Continental. Your experience will guide your decision (foam vs not) but I think you likely found a poorly informed repair facility.

 

[jboles]

Actually, the Discount Tire guy brought it up without prompting that many shops will say it is hard to do but that it is not. He said it is no harder than a non-foam tire to repair. You cut the foam out around the puncture, repair normally and then use some of the rubber cement from the patch kit to stick the foam back down. I looked and this is actually documented by Michelin and Continental. Your experience will guide your decision (foam vs not) but I think you likely found a poorly informed repair facility.

Which Discount Tire in the Treasure Valley area do you go to that knows how to properly work on Teslas?

 

[TMeister]

Which Discount Tire in the Treasure Valley area do you go to that knows how to properly work on Teslas?

Well... I'm not gonna say if they do or don't because they don't actually get to work on the car. Just the wheels and tires. I dismount/mount my winter and summer sets on the car. But the guy who was familiar is at the Store on Eagle Rd just south of Ustick.

 

[samppa]

Looking at that photo, seems it would be en easy diy to just add foam inside new tyres before they're mounted on the rims..

 

[evmusic]

I would like to make a comment regarding the Michelin tires with foam. If you ever get punctured a tire you have to buy a new tire. I have learned in the hard way. The issue with the tire with foam that normal puncture the tire shop just can easily fix it to plugh it up and polish up the tire internals. They just simply cannot do the same procedure with the foam. Brace they have to remove the foam where is the puncture but in that way the tire become not balanced. So, before you buy tires. With foam think about this.