It's time for a set of tires for my '11 JCW at a whopping 17k miles. Prior owner (up to 15k) never had the tires rotated and therefore two are worn to the bone and two are in good shape. I have no intentions of sticking with run flats. So, I've read reviews and watched the forum here.

The consensus here and my experience suggests that Michelins are worth the cost. The question is, which tire? I've seen nothing but glowing reviews of both the PSS and the A/S 3 (winter performance excepted). Does anyone have a direct comparison between the two? Based on Tire Rack's comparison, the AS 3 seems to be 90-95% of the PSS and on even exceeds other summer tires. Is that 5-10% in performance worth the trade off in wear to go up to the PSS? My car is a daily driver and commuter - I only do 30 miles a day or so. I like spirited driving and zero intentions of racing or auto crossing. I live in DFW so I am not concerned with winter performance. The city shuts down on the two days a year the cold stuff hits.

 

Keep in mind that a survey rating of 9.2 or whatever for dry handling or wet braking or whatever
for a HP All Season or UHP All Season tire does not precisely equal a 9.2 or whatever for a
Max Performance summer tire.
A higher level of performance is expected for Max Perf tires than UHP A/S for the same
numerical rating.

 

For sure. I actually compared the two by Tire Rack's track test of each. I ignored the subjective scoring and just looked at the objective performance. There is some direct comparison since they used the same car for both sets of tests. I realize track and ambient temps vary the results between the two tests, so that's why I'm asking here.

 

I am one of the test drivers.

I would say your giving up 10-15% of your dry grip. Your also compromising the "riding on rails" cornering feel. Imo that is the PSS's best attribute. Your picking up 50% better wear than PSS, according to Michelin.

 

Hard to get a better source than that. Thanks for the feedback; that makes up my mind! (Hint: not the all seasons)

 

I opted for the AS/3 for the CM All4. I had PSS on my Clubman before and they are awesome, but I wanted a high-performance tire with a bit better wear rating and a bit better wet traction. Both are amazing tires though.

 

PSS is good in the wet, but it takes more finessing that the 3. I stood on the PSS on the huge switchback in the wet and it gripped as hard as I could push it.

If I came off the skidpad in the wet and stood on it before my hands were mostly unwound, the 3 may grip better, or recover easier in that circumstance.

 

BTW Alex - I believe you just processed my order for my A/S3. I hear they are few and far between as far as availability with Michelin. Thanks!

 

Love my A/S 3's

 

I currently own a '12 r56s. My previous Mini was an "08 r56s with a sports suspension and 17" runflats. At 11,000 miles, I gave up and bought some Cooper tires. Solved all the runflat problems.
My current '12 R56S has 16" wheels, and I endured the Conti runflats for 30,000 miles. I switched to Michelen AS3 in the same 195/55x16 size. I have lost no sensation in steering and the ride improvement is off the charts.

 

The answer is straight forward, and whether you will ever need winter tires. In DFW, I'm 99% sure you don't and won't, but I don't know if you like to drive to visit an aunt in Colorado for Xmas.

If you don't need winter tires, definitely get PSS's.
They are a fantastic, reasonably long lasting, summer tire. But don't expect anything good out of them on snow or ice.

If you do need winter tires, and can't justify another set of winter shoes, you have no choice but to compromise with A/S 3's. They are good as far as all-season tires go, but you will absolutely feel the difference between PSS and A/S 3's.

Unless you have to compromise - don't.

a

 

Ordered 4 AS at Costco for my 11' Justa to replace the OEM tires ... to be installed next week ... Michelins are currently $70 off. I have a different set of wheels and tires (Bizzaks) for winter which were put to GOOD use this year !

 

I just got home from Costco after taking off the relatively new Conti runflats that came on my "mini certified" 2010 MCS with sport package (17" wheels). Here in the Detroit area the road are horrible. Some pot holes would actually move the front or the rear of the car six to twelve inches it hit soooooo hard.

I went 215/45/17 Pilot A/S 3. Quieter, rides better. Will know more this week when I put a few more miles on it. Only thing is, the only ones they had in stock were "W" rated. Cost more. Stiffer. My thought was it was closer to the runflat, but would still ride better so I just did it instead of ordering the "V" rated.

Question: Do the "V" rated ride even better? What did I gain or give up by doing the "W" instead of the "V"? There are tons of posts about various tires but no one ever mentions the different speed ratings and how they effect the ride and handling.

 

BTW no knock on Tire Rack. I've used them in the past with great results. Currently, one of my best friends works in the Tire Shop at Costco so there was no decision for me. Nothing is better than having a friend balance your tires and the fact that I can go back there whenever for free....

 

It depends on what wheels are currently on your mini if Costco will work for you. I know at both of the local Costco near me they both said they won't install Michelin pss on the car because the oem tires on the s are run flats and it doesn't have a spare so it's against company policy.

 

Costco is pretty strict. The rule as my friend described it to me is the tire has to be within 3% of the factory size. The run flat issue never came up.

Me going from 205/45 to 215/45 (more common and cheaper) was right at 3% so they wrote it up. There are a couple of cars like Minis where this is normal and accepted.

It also depends on what's on the car. Like a truck for example. If it has a lift and comes in with 33" tires, Costco will replace them with 33"

...and you can always bring in the wheels and they'll mount anything you want, but I believe the warranty is different then.