Went wiht Michelin AS3 MISTAKE
#1
Went wiht Michelin AS3 MISTAKE
Couldn't decide on PSS or AS3, went with S3 as I live where at times when is does get cold but never snow ice on the road, North Georgia Mountains. Gets below 40 of course but I will take my chances. On way to work with AS3 hit the curves as usual and wow was it scary, seemed to flop/roll over when pushed into curves. My original equip were better handling. Good ride but nothing to write home about. Having the PSS put on Monday.
2012 Coupe S automatic
2012 Coupe S automatic
#2
Not being snarky here. But are you aware you need to break tires in? Usually around 500 miles is needed before you do much high speed cornering or driving in general. Also, if you came from runflats, there is going to be more give from the sidewalls and you will lose some of that 'on rails' feeling. Also, depending on tread depth, outgoing tires will handle slightly better (depending on the type of tire) due to less tread depth to flex when making turns. As a tire ages, the handling characteristics improve with heat cycles and less tread to flex.
#3
#4
Clone post is basically when you have 2 of the same posts. If you use the Desktop site on the left hand side there is a link called "New Posts". This will show ALL new posts, so when I clicked it, I saw that you had 2 identical posts. So I covered both posts but posting on one and linking to the other.
#5
#6
#7
what tire pressure were you running? michelins always seem to want higher pressures
on my all4 with pilot super sports i am running 42 psi front and 37 psi rear, set with a tire pyrometer i borrowed from a race team
have over 10k agressive miles and they are wearing evenly across the tread
i rotate every 4k miles to coincide with oil/filter change
i would guess the as3s would be similar
on my all4 with pilot super sports i am running 42 psi front and 37 psi rear, set with a tire pyrometer i borrowed from a race team
have over 10k agressive miles and they are wearing evenly across the tread
i rotate every 4k miles to coincide with oil/filter change
i would guess the as3s would be similar
Trending Topics
#8
6th Gear
iTrader: (23)
I'm surprised to hear this, and was one of those who had touted the AS3 in your earlier thread.
Question: what suspension do you have? A standard (soft) suspension paired with a non-runflat tire may not be a good combination for hard cornering. My cars all have coilover or JCW suspensions (very firm) which work well with both the PSS and AS3. Don't expect to find a huge difference between those two tires when it comes to steering response and cornering.
Question: what suspension do you have? A standard (soft) suspension paired with a non-runflat tire may not be a good combination for hard cornering. My cars all have coilover or JCW suspensions (very firm) which work well with both the PSS and AS3. Don't expect to find a huge difference between those two tires when it comes to steering response and cornering.
#10
I've had Pilot AS3's for about a year or so. I think they're FANTASTIC! (not sarcasm) My current setup is Koni Yellows with H&R Cup springs, 19mm rsb and 17x7 O.Z. Ultraleggera's on 205/45/17s. I have supreme confidence in these tires. I drive VERY aggressively (not like an a-hole, just like how a MINI should be driven). These tires have never once "squealed" or "squirmed" under hard cornering and are extremely predictable and progressive. Just pure confidence. Treadwear is NIL. After 15K miles there's almost no wear.
Warm weather cornering is excellent, they feel better than the Conti DW summers(Y-speed) I had last year.
Cold weather cornering is very good. I've taken off ramps at 70mph with temps in the teens and they had plenty of grip. Light-snow traction is "meh". But they're "no seasons".
All this being said, I'm gonna switch to a set of Michelin Pilot Super Sports in the summer and run dedicated snows next winter.
I'm surprised you don't like them (not being condescending). I say that because the A/S 3's are based on the technology found on the PSS's (Vario-patch, high silica compound ect). The A/S 3's are basically 90% of the PSS's that just so happen to work in temps below 40F. Maybe you were accustomed to the stiff side-walls of the RFs? Those can give the impression of crazy good turn-in but ultimate grip is much less in the end...
Last edited by iclancy82; 01-17-2015 at 03:34 PM.
#11
I have the sport suspension, stock everything other than tires and soon to be installed cold intake and JB+ tuner. I did go to the 215/45-17 from the 205/45-17. Have 35 lbs of air all around. And yes I feel its tire roll over, not body roll.
Last edited by bluecoupeS; 01-17-2015 at 06:57 PM.
#12
The 215/45's sidewalls are 5mm taller vs the 205/45's (92mm vs 97mm or 1.6%). The difference in aspect ratio should be almost imperceptible but it's there nonetheless. Combine that with a "non Run Flat" sidewall and I could see how the A/S 3's feel "soft". I'm not a tire aspect ratio expert, I crunched the numbers on the website below:
http://www.rimsntires.com/specspro.jsp
Which runflats came with the car? Conti 3 SSR? Potenza RE050A? P-Zero RF? I can't find the article, but Car and Driver recently did a comparison test pitting the Pilot Sport A/S's vs the Pilot Super Sports on a BMW F90 328i. The difference in track times, steering response and skid pad grip were almost neck and neck. Anotherwords unless you plan on auto-crossing, the difference you'd see in getting the PSS isn't a whole lot. You have REALLY good tires on your car right now lol. They just don't have concrete for sidewalls
http://www.rimsntires.com/specspro.jsp
Which runflats came with the car? Conti 3 SSR? Potenza RE050A? P-Zero RF? I can't find the article, but Car and Driver recently did a comparison test pitting the Pilot Sport A/S's vs the Pilot Super Sports on a BMW F90 328i. The difference in track times, steering response and skid pad grip were almost neck and neck. Anotherwords unless you plan on auto-crossing, the difference you'd see in getting the PSS isn't a whole lot. You have REALLY good tires on your car right now lol. They just don't have concrete for sidewalls
#13
From the first post in your other thread on this subject:
"The PSS isn't going to be as stiff as a runflat either. The Roadster S requires 38 psi and my installer set the A/S 3's at 34. Correcting the pressure made a significant difference."
The 2012 MINI Coupe owner's manual calls for a pressure of 41psi when the tire is cold for a 205/45-17. 35 psi is too soft for spirited driving no matter what tire you choose, especially in the winter when the tire doesn't gain as many psi after being driven on.
"The PSS isn't going to be as stiff as a runflat either. The Roadster S requires 38 psi and my installer set the A/S 3's at 34. Correcting the pressure made a significant difference."
The 2012 MINI Coupe owner's manual calls for a pressure of 41psi when the tire is cold for a 205/45-17. 35 psi is too soft for spirited driving no matter what tire you choose, especially in the winter when the tire doesn't gain as many psi after being driven on.
#14
even the owners manual can be wrong
as i said in previous post ... using a tire pyrometer to set tire pressure on my all4 with michelin pss, i ended up at 42 psi front and 37 psi rear (cold)
the turnin is as good as if not better than the oem pirelli p7 summer rfs, the ultimate grip is far greater and the ride is much better
per alex @ tirerack, the as3 is about 95% of the pss in the dry but wears much better
up the tire pressure in your as3s
as i said in previous post ... using a tire pyrometer to set tire pressure on my all4 with michelin pss, i ended up at 42 psi front and 37 psi rear (cold)
the turnin is as good as if not better than the oem pirelli p7 summer rfs, the ultimate grip is far greater and the ride is much better
per alex @ tirerack, the as3 is about 95% of the pss in the dry but wears much better
up the tire pressure in your as3s
#15
even the owners manual can be wrong
as i said in previous post ... using a tire pyrometer to set tire pressure on my all4 with michelin pss, i ended up at 42 psi front and 37 psi rear (cold)
the turnin is as good as if not better than the oem pirelli p7 summer rfs, the ultimate grip is far greater and the ride is much better
per alex @ tirerack, the as3 is about 95% of the pss in the dry but wears much better
up the tire pressure in your as3s
as i said in previous post ... using a tire pyrometer to set tire pressure on my all4 with michelin pss, i ended up at 42 psi front and 37 psi rear (cold)
the turnin is as good as if not better than the oem pirelli p7 summer rfs, the ultimate grip is far greater and the ride is much better
per alex @ tirerack, the as3 is about 95% of the pss in the dry but wears much better
up the tire pressure in your as3s
Also unrelated question... How the hell does everyone have a picture of their car along with a list of mods at the bottom of their replies? I've been trying to figure out how to set that up for a year and a half lol. Damn technology...
#16
Look for the term "sig" or "signature" in all of the stuff on the left-side of the window here on the site. Or go to the "User CP" (command post?) and look for anything that says sig or signature.
#17
Interesting setup (42F/37R). Does that reduce understeer? I usually run 36/36 since the "door jamb" recommends 32/32. As long as it doesn't create "snap oversteer" I'd like to try a similar setup. As it stands now my car is extremely neutral and predictable, neither under or oversteer.
Also unrelated question... How the hell does everyone have a picture of their car along with a list of mods at the bottom of their replies? I've been trying to figure out how to set that up for a year and a half lol. Damn technology...
and it makes sense given the front weight bias
as for snap oversteer, i don't have it ... the rear breaks away in a very predictable way and i can even throttle steer my all4 ... my all4 has factory sport suspension with sport package (18x7.5 et 52 alloys with 225/45R18s ... my michelins are up sized to 225/50R18) and the only suspension mod is a front upper strut bar, i have a TSW front lower brace queued for install
in the 1970s, i tracked my 1976 rabbit ... it was heavily modded ... 160 wheel hp @ 9,000 rpm (from 76 crank hp @ 6,500 stock and 7,000 redline), shocks, springs, brakes, wheels, tires, front and rear sway bars, front and rear upper strut bars and front lower brace
i found 3 causes of snap oversteer on that car
1 ... too much rear sway bar ... mine was adjustable ... backed it off from stiffest to softest setting ... the 76 rabbit had no sway bar stock
2 ... too high rear tire pressure ... i doubt that even pressure is optimal on any model mini given the front weight bias (i wonder about the 2 seat models weight distribution)
3 ... lifting the throttle while cornering, even a little ... compared to rwd cars, best cornering technique calls for lower corner entry speed and full throttle all the way through the corner ... never lift, ever
#18
#19
#21
Once more into the breach...
All season tires do nothing well. They aren't great at anything.
The best choice is having two dedicated sets of wheels and tires. (summer and snows). Then you just have to realize that the snow tires are just that. Snow tires... designed to go like heck in the snow and cold. They do not offer the same grip as a summer tire, so you just don't ask them too... (or at least shouldn't...lol) If you don't live where the temp is constantly below 40F you really have no need of snow tires.
My summer tires are Michelin PSS, and the snows are Blizzaks. (snows in a 195-55-16, and summer in 215-45-17) The snows go on mid November, and come off in late March...
If you have chosen to have all season tires, you shouldn't ***** about them...
All season tires do nothing well. They aren't great at anything.
The best choice is having two dedicated sets of wheels and tires. (summer and snows). Then you just have to realize that the snow tires are just that. Snow tires... designed to go like heck in the snow and cold. They do not offer the same grip as a summer tire, so you just don't ask them too... (or at least shouldn't...lol) If you don't live where the temp is constantly below 40F you really have no need of snow tires.
My summer tires are Michelin PSS, and the snows are Blizzaks. (snows in a 195-55-16, and summer in 215-45-17) The snows go on mid November, and come off in late March...
If you have chosen to have all season tires, you shouldn't ***** about them...
#22
#24
To the OP tires need break in time.