Michelin Pilot Sport AS/3
 

Pilot Sport A/S 3 | Michelin Tires

Probably too late for anyone to be buying tires for this winter, but I thought I'd give a review anyway. All the "it won't work, you have to have snow tires" naysayers said not to use all season tires in winter where it snows. Well, I live in Jackson Hole, Wy., and it snows here, and it gets cold! I've been driving my 2003 S all winter so far with my new Michelin Pilot Sport AS/3s with no problems. It had Pilot Super Sports when I bought it. They were truly horrible on snow. The issue I had was that I didn't want to switch tires twice a year, or have 2 sets of rims, especially since I might be taking trips to Arizona, California and Oregon during winter, where I have relatives. Also, it can snow any month of the year here, and often does from Sept. until May. Do you mount snow tires in Sept. and remove them in May? I have a pickup truck for when it gets really bad. For the rest of the time, the AS/3s work fine. Sure, something like Blizzaks (or studded snow tires, or for Pete's sake, chains) would be better when the snow gets deep or the roads get truly icy, but with intelligent driving, the AS/3s are no problem. 90% of the winter our roads are dry, since we have a lot of snowplows. Of course you need to be really conservative braking, accelerating and cornering on packed snow or ice, but that's true with snow tires too! On dry and warmer roads they feel every bit as good as the Super Sports did, maybe even with a little smoother ride with more precise steering. YMMV.

Bring on the flames; it was 0° F here this AM!

P.S. My downhill and randonee skis fit inside just fine :dance:!

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There are many levels of competence on the road and for some it's a necessity to have full snows while for others it's not worth the hassle. Having said that, I prefer having the most grip I can afford.

There's more snow on your driveway than California has seen all winter - really. No, really. It's awful. Glad your tires are working out, too bad about that front license plate! :/

I just recently took a chance and put these tires on the front of my 2007 Boxster S, and so far I've been quite pleased. My motivation was primarily that the Sport PS2 is absurdly expensive and lasts half as long, possibly less. I don't live in a snowy area (interestingly we're covered by snow right now, and I'm not going to try driving in it) but I just could not justify the PS2 with the short life expectancy, plus these AS/3s will hopefully do better in the rain.

Still running the PS2s on the back and they have a good bit of life left in them, but if these work out well for the front I'll slap them on the back once the PS2s are worn. I'm curious how yours do long-term so please keep us updated!

Don't drive in heavy rain. Squirrely machine! :eek:

Haha - yeah, I'm very careful and thanks. To be perfectly honest I was always a little surprised at how well the PS2s (even with the old, worn pair up front) gripped in the wet, but I don't push it in those conditions. It's my daily driver so sometimes downpours are unavoidable. :D

I was just thinking about this debate when I saw all those hundreds of stranded cars in Atlanta, dozens of accidents.... in a whopping 2 inches of snow. My guess is that nearly all were on all season tires.


A-all seasons in snow require a driver to have some skill, a job that would be a piece of cake in winter tires
B- all season tires are only marginally better than summer rubber once you hit ice patches. It's not really about the snow.
C- the Atlanta debacle underlines how quickly conditions can get away from what an all season can handle. A matter of minutes.

My guess is that they were all crappy drivers with no clue about how to drive in icy conditions, and even winter tires aren't going to help most of them.

Winter tires are a relatively new thing, and we all got by just fine on all-seasons for decades before they came along. I have no doubt they have better grip under the right conditions, but are they necessary? Not at all, and I'm not about to buy (and store) a second set of wheels for the slight advantage they may give.

I have the Michelin all season tires on my car, and they have worked well in dry, wet, and snowy conditions. Great tires. The only problem I'm having is that they are now about 5 years 40k km old and they have gotten quite hard, even though there is lots of tread left. They really went over the cliff in the last year but before that they were excellent. I could still get another season out of them if I wanted to, just need to go a little lighter on the throttle coming out of corners.

^ My winter tires are nearly 4 years old but are in PERFECT condition.
Winter tires are a win win. Significantly safer in the winter while exending the shelf life of your pricey summer/spring performance tire.

And I disagree completely about winter tires not helping those Atlanta drivers that spun off in barely 2" of snow.
Wrong tread pattern -- no bite on ice. They slide.
Most on AS tires drive slow in these conditions but don't know how to use the pedals. A winter tire at slow speed makes it much, much easier for them.
I've done both. It's night and day.

Great tires.....
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I think Timco's showing off!

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This is the tread of my latest winter tires - namely the Pirellis winter sottozero . Note the none symetrical tread pattern. Winter tires reduce my insurance rates.Less spinning out on corners when I hit the gas. Way better than the symetrical Blizzaks.

Won't be putting on the Michelin pilot sport a/s until late April. They were not that good in snow/ice last fall. Feel better with snow tires on.....be warned!
Guy:)

:cool:............

For good reason. I don't think my car has been that clean since I bought it. :p

"Better than Blizzacks"... that's saying something because they're excellent tires.

Let me qualify that.
My new pirelli snow tires are better than my old Blizzaks(6 yo hockey pucks?). Whether the new Blizzaks have the non symetrical tread I don't know.
Cheers, Guy.

oh right, thanks.

No type of tire works well on wet ice, studs are required but are now outlawed in most states.

It only take one stupid and/or drunk driver for you to test the emergency lane change and/or braking capability of your all season tires in snow...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JGfvyPtYR0Y

agreed. But a winter tire is still miles ahead of an all season over ice. As much as full car length stopping distance in the test below, with controlled cornering. And one car length is all the difference in the world. Most winter driving accidents would be avoided with that much leeway.

see the 2:09 mark below.
Tire Rack Tire Test - Winter/Snow vs. All-Season vs. Summer Tires on Ice - YouTube

traditionally we only get half a dozen snow falls in this area, but icing we get all the time.

That test was not done on wet ice, the difference in all 3 tests would be much less based on my experience growing up in the mountains of PA.

You people are all missing my point :matchup: (except maybe Timco and Mark_T). Read my original post again. I never said that The Michelin AS/3s were as good as snow tires, or that everyone should use them. I simply pointed out that I've been pleasantly surprised with them, and they have suited my needs well. Everyone knows dedicated snow tires work better on ice and snow :rolleyes:!

^ nobody said you did.

while you may be an experienced driver, most are not. The results you've had with an all season tire over substantial snow rely heavily on your competency as a driver. Driving over snow with the wrong tread pattern is a skill set most simply do not have.
All season tires, on a RWD car, in more than 2" of snow and plenty of dry ice, under hands of only average driving ability are a bad winter mix.

And it really depends on your definition of DD. I drive my Box all winter, but on snow days it's the truck. So frozen road, or wet road, I'm in the Box and it does far better with these than the Sumis but will never be the 4x4 nor do I expect it to be. I have no doubt a snow tire will indeed work better in powder, but snow over ice or straight slush really is what it is, and short of a bigger vehicle most tires will act the same. My opinion is these give you the best balance of year round performance without the extremes of performance tires or snow tires.

Plus, compared to my Sumis, these are like driving on soft clouds, super smooth and quiet and zero road noise. Very responsive.

And that's why I just drive the truck on bad winter days. Regardless of tire, that car is not a snow day car. Sure, it's still reliable but once you've driven a 4x4 on snow days, you realize how much safer and reliable it is if you find a gutter, have to swerve, go up any slight incline, drive down a hill, or anything other than flat and plowed.

+1, yeah, what he said :)!

I'll just add one more point because I see this done so often when people discuss non-winter tire performance on snow and ice. People here often say "they're doing well". Or one forum member even posted that he was able to hold a straight line on summer rubber in snow on his drive home as if that was some sort of accomplishment.
This sort of feedback isn't really saying much at all about the merits of non-winter tires in wintery conditions. A tire proves itself in conditions that require it to punch above its weight when things don't go to plan and they need to take evasive action or stop suddenly. For instance, when some dimwit on all season-tires misses a corner and ends up in the oncoming lane straight at you. Or when the car in front of you locks up and you have to dart quickly to left or right, or perhaps you're boxed in and have no choice but slam into the wide pedal. That's when a non-winter tire proves itself. You are only as safe as the upper limit of your tire. Believing that a tire is performing well when you are NOT really testing its limits in any way is simply overstating the effectiveness of the tire.
I'm glad to hear you guys have back up vehicles, but those of us who dont' have one should not be driving a RWD car on all season tires in any kind of snow that is accumulating beyond an inch or in temps well below freezing. This simply is not safe for you or the other motorists. Leave the car at home or switch over to winters in the early part of the month you typically see snow. It's simple logic, the better an all season tire performs in winter the worse its going to do in the summer. The better it performs in summer, the worse its going to perform at the exact momment you need it to pull you out of danger.

As Bobby Ore told us in Stunt Driving School: "Never drive beyond your ability or the ability of your equipment!"

As I tell people often: How can you compare your brand new tires to 4+ year old tires you considered worthless enough to disgard?

Let's start here. This thread was about the Michelin AS/3 tires. I am pretty sure AS stands for All Season, which includes winter. It's a year round balance, not meant for extremes either way.

"The Pilot Sport A/S 3 tire is designed to provide Michelin's highest level of all-season performance, emphasizing dry road handling and wet road grip while retaining all-season traction for occasional light snow."

As to the forum member who made the claim you mention, what if he was driving in a sane manner and leaving plenty of room between him and the car in front, and driving defensively at an appropriate speed for conditions? This statement discounts the driver's responsibility to drive as per conditions, and no tire on earth can overcome that. It all begins with the driver, and tires are a factor, but the blame for any weather related accident or loss of traction accident remains with the driver exceeding their car's ability to handle conditions regardless of tire.

From their website:

"Pilot Sport A/S 3 tires feature Michelin’s Helio compound made with sunflower oil combined with their Extreme Silica Technology to increase traction at low temperatures and on wet roads."

What do we consider to be "low temps" and "well below freezing"? I feel pretty safe with these tires at 10˚ or less, and do not think I am putting anyone at risk when driving within my car's abilities as per conditions, period. I feel like I made an informed choice, based on mfg data, and recommendations from my tire dist, and internet reading. Again, if the road is frozen solid, ALL tires will be less effective.

Ask Paul Walker about the right tire for conditions....and how driver error contributes to an (any) accident where grip loss is a factor, not the unforeseen.

No one is saying a snow tire is not specifically designed to be better in dead cold winter or in snow or on ice, but I am saying my tire is plenty safe and safer than a performance tire when driven as per conditions. Maybe a Boxster is not the best choice of car, period, if you live in such a climate and do not have a different vehicle for winter / snow driving?

Worry not-
 

I HEREBY DECLARE; ALL CITIZENS SHALL HEREBY SELL THERE CURRENT VEHICLES AND PURCHASE A NEW ALL WHEEL DRIVE VOLVO WAGON FOR WINTER MONTH'S TRANSPORT.

I have spoken. That is all for now. Proceed with caution my fearful flock.

Aye, by any chance do they also supply half tracks?

Best we can do...

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for the man who has everything?
Nash Metropoliton Customized- If only we got enough snow here...:cheers: