I've decided document my experience over the next 20k-50k miles with Michelin's new (revised) Pilot Sport A/S 3+ on my 2013 4-door Golf TDI.
I've noticed that a lot of TDI drivers are interested the the UHP All-Season category (I know I am) because they want to take advantage of the nice handling of the MKVI platform while maintaining confidence in the tires when it gets cold or really wet. These drivers may not do track days or autocross, but they do like to have fun in the twisties and blasting up on-ramps.
There are lots of great UHP all-seasons and I'm not implying that this one is the best, but it's the one I chose and it is among the top in it's class. It also seems to be frequently cross-shopped by TDI drivers on this site.
My driving style-
I think my driving style and environment will give the A/S 3+ a good all-around test. My weekday commute is relatively short city driving, but I frequently take curvy back road drives after work to get the TDI up to full operating temp and give it and the tires a good workout.
I also do a fair amount of towing. I mainly tow our 1500# camper or my 500# ATV + trailer. The treadwear of this tire has come into question before. If it wears unreasonably faster in normal unloaded conditions than the 500 treadwear rating implies, then it will be evident when I throw towing into the mix.
Lastly, I do encounter dirt/gravel roads on a semi-regular basis when visiting family or camping. How durable will it be under those conditions?
Initial thoughts and impressions
All the specs and detailed info about the tire are readily available on Tire Rack, Discount Tire, and Michelin's website so I won't post that here, but the specific size I will be using is the stock size of 225/45/zr17.
I have exactly 75 miles on the tires now lol. They were mounted yesterday at my "local" dealer and I drove home and then to work today and it was raining every one of those miles.
While that is entirely too few to judge the grip of the tire I did notice an immediate difference (compared to the stock conti's) in turn-in and mid-corner grip in the wet. I drive the same route to work and there are a few corners that I try and "apex" for fun and the stiffer sidewall is very evident....especially mid-corner.
That being said; the tires have not been harsh on small bumps or road imperfections. My perception of that might be slightly skewed as the conti's were pretty worn and very loud on some of the rougher sections of my commute and any new tire with full tread depth would have made things more quiet, but I digress.
Future Plans
My current plan is to update this thread after the tires have about 1k miles on them and they are somewhat "broken-in". Then I will update every 5k miles when I rotate them and provide a few thoughts, current tread depth, and any special driving situations during those 5k miles. i.e. lots of towing, highway roadtrips, aggressive driving, or special weather/road conditions such as heavy rain, snow, gravel...etc.
Here are some pictures for fun. I really like the look of the tire overall. You can definitely see that it's based on the "famous" Pilot Super Sport, especially on the shoulder of the tire which is cool.
ORG_DSC03774 by DerekG710, on Flickr
ORG_DSC03778 by DerekG710, on Flickr
ORG_DSC03779 by DerekG710, on Flickr
ORG_DSC03781 by DerekG710, on Flickr
ORG_DSC03783 by DerekG710, on Flickr
*Update #1- 4/13/16
Miles on tires- 75
Tread Depth- 10/32nds on all four corners measured on 4 places across tire.
I've noticed that a lot of TDI drivers are interested the the UHP All-Season category (I know I am) because they want to take advantage of the nice handling of the MKVI platform while maintaining confidence in the tires when it gets cold or really wet. These drivers may not do track days or autocross, but they do like to have fun in the twisties and blasting up on-ramps.
There are lots of great UHP all-seasons and I'm not implying that this one is the best, but it's the one I chose and it is among the top in it's class. It also seems to be frequently cross-shopped by TDI drivers on this site.
My driving style-
I think my driving style and environment will give the A/S 3+ a good all-around test. My weekday commute is relatively short city driving, but I frequently take curvy back road drives after work to get the TDI up to full operating temp and give it and the tires a good workout.
I also do a fair amount of towing. I mainly tow our 1500# camper or my 500# ATV + trailer. The treadwear of this tire has come into question before. If it wears unreasonably faster in normal unloaded conditions than the 500 treadwear rating implies, then it will be evident when I throw towing into the mix.
Lastly, I do encounter dirt/gravel roads on a semi-regular basis when visiting family or camping. How durable will it be under those conditions?
Initial thoughts and impressions
All the specs and detailed info about the tire are readily available on Tire Rack, Discount Tire, and Michelin's website so I won't post that here, but the specific size I will be using is the stock size of 225/45/zr17.
I have exactly 75 miles on the tires now lol. They were mounted yesterday at my "local" dealer and I drove home and then to work today and it was raining every one of those miles.
While that is entirely too few to judge the grip of the tire I did notice an immediate difference (compared to the stock conti's) in turn-in and mid-corner grip in the wet. I drive the same route to work and there are a few corners that I try and "apex" for fun and the stiffer sidewall is very evident....especially mid-corner.
That being said; the tires have not been harsh on small bumps or road imperfections. My perception of that might be slightly skewed as the conti's were pretty worn and very loud on some of the rougher sections of my commute and any new tire with full tread depth would have made things more quiet, but I digress.
Future Plans
My current plan is to update this thread after the tires have about 1k miles on them and they are somewhat "broken-in". Then I will update every 5k miles when I rotate them and provide a few thoughts, current tread depth, and any special driving situations during those 5k miles. i.e. lots of towing, highway roadtrips, aggressive driving, or special weather/road conditions such as heavy rain, snow, gravel...etc.
Here are some pictures for fun. I really like the look of the tire overall. You can definitely see that it's based on the "famous" Pilot Super Sport, especially on the shoulder of the tire which is cool.
ORG_DSC03774 by DerekG710, on Flickr
ORG_DSC03778 by DerekG710, on Flickr
ORG_DSC03779 by DerekG710, on Flickr
ORG_DSC03781 by DerekG710, on Flickr
ORG_DSC03783 by DerekG710, on Flickr
*Update #1- 4/13/16
Miles on tires- 75
Tread Depth- 10/32nds on all four corners measured on 4 places across tire.
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