Installed Michelin Pilot Sport All Season 4 21" tires on Taycan 4S -- my review & results

[jasonh]

How much did you pay ?

$428ea for fronts, $499ea for rears - Plus installation

Sponsored

 

[RCorsa]

I live in the seattle area as well and want to switch my 2022 Turbo S tires (6000miles) as well so I can drive all year as my car came with p zeros which are garbage except July-sept.
Last year car sat in the garage with my f8 all winter which was a bummer.

 

[Avantgarde]

What shocks me still with stock Conti’s are their H speed rating. I remember the first day I took delivery of my car and seeing that little red sticker on the dash. I almost took it off as i was certain that was a mistake (thought maybe had something to do with the winter time transport of the car). It reminded me my Europe days 15 years ago. My dealer would put that exact same sticker whenever i switched to full blown winter tires from all seasons on my 4 banger diesel opel, and the 210kmh limit would bother me even then (V rated winters were pretty common even then). Then i checked the taycan’s tire wall and could not believe my eyes. A brand new porsche with 305 30 21 tire spec comes out of factory with an H rating!!? And these are not some hardcore winter tires, just usual standard all seasons. I mean set aside porsche’s decision to be satisfied with this but why even manufacture that tire in the first place i don’t understand. It should be outright illegal to give an H rating to a 305 wide tire with a 30 wall. Its like “hey i am manufacturing these massive 18 wheeler truck tires but they are rated to carry only 100 lbs of weight because they are all-seasons”. And yes i know “it does not matter given speed limits in the US” but then 90% of performance specs don’t matter either..

 

[f1eng]

What shocks me still with stock Conti’s are their H speed rating. I remember the first day I took delivery of my car and seeing that little red sticker on the dash. I almost took it off as i was certain that was a mistake (thought maybe had something to do with the winter time transport of the car). It reminded me my Europe days 15 years ago. My dealer would put that exact same sticker whenever i switched to full blown winter tires from all seasons on my 4 banger diesel opel, and the 210kmh limit would bother me even then (V rated winters were pretty common even then). Then i checked the taycan’s tire wall and could not believe my eyes. A brand new porsche with 305 30 21 tire spec comes out of factory with an H rating!!? And these are not some hardcore winter tires, just usual standard all seasons. I mean set aside porsche’s decision to be satisfied with this but why even manufacture that tire in the first place i don’t understand. It should be outright illegal to give an H rating to a 305 wide tire with a 30 wall. Its like “hey i am manufacturing these massive 18 wheeler truck tires but they are rated to carry only 100 lbs of weight because they are all-seasons”. And yes i know “it does not matter given speed limits in the US” but then 90% of performance specs don’t matter either..

I would expect rubber compounds which remain pliable at freezing temperatures and tread blocks designed to move about to give good drainage will have considerable hysteresis heating and it will be the heat and possible throwing tread that can happen leading to the rating rather than load.

They almost certainly only make them in 305/30 sizes because of customer demand, it certainly isn’t technically ideal but people do like the look of wide low profile tyres.

I am just as bad, I know the 19” wheels are much better for winter or all-season tyres but don’t like their styling so bought 20” for winter.

 

[Draman]

I'm glad this is possible. The Pro contacts are terrible and I was really dreading eventually replacing them with the same thing

 

[shinne]

How did you figure out the 315/30-2 fit? Did you just order them? The reason why im asking is it looks like tirerack is the only company that current has them so I don't want to order them and find out they don't fit my wheels.

 

[jasonh]

How did you figure out the 315/30-2 fit? Did you just order them? The reason why im asking is it looks like tirerack is the only company that current has them so I don't want to order them and find out they don't fit my wheels.

They are on my 4S for the past few weeks on the stock mission-E wheels. No issues so far. They are quiet and I don’t hydroplane except in deep puddles. Handle well around corners too.

I checked the sizing on a tire size calculator (https://tiresize.com/calculator/) to make sure the diameter was within a few tenths of a percent and Discount Tire in Kirkland worked with me to make sure the fit and had enough clearance.

Recommended!

 

[shinne]

Thanks for the info.

As for your process did you for checking the diameter. You just checked the diameter of the tires?
Because the Contacts are 28.3 tire diameter, and then the michelins in 315 are 28.5.

I plugged 305/30r21 into a size calculator and looks like 315/30r21 are within a margin of error you said which was .7%. Looks like this opens up to different tires completely.

 

[jasonh]

Thanks for the info.

As for your process did you for checking the diameter. You just checked the diameter of the tires?
Because the Contacts are 28.3 tire diameter, and then the michelins in 315 are 28.5.

I plugged 305/30r21 into a size calculator and looks like 315/30r21 are within a margin of error you said which was .7%. Looks like this opens up to different tires completely.

This is almost exactly what I did! I checked the tire diameter for both the stock fronts and rears. The goal was to make sure the front/back tire diameter difference was minimal.

The big worry I could not do much about up front was that going to wider rear tires would rub, or be too close for comfort, to any suspension components or the wheel well. Which is where Discount Tire helped me out by test-fitting the first rear tire.

 

[shinne]

Alright looks like i'll be going with these but on a Etron GT. Having winter tires in California doesn't make sense but I often enough to Tahoe where I need some kind of snow/ice performance.

 

[whitex]

Lastly, the Procontact RXs were never that great in the wet even when newer,

That was my first impression of them on my Taycan (20" stock tired from factory). I picked up my car in the middle of winter and drove it home across the country, so put winter tires on it (Porsche approved Goodyear UltraGrip Performance Gen 1). They did well across America as well as in PNW. When I switched back around mid April to brand new factory all-seasons Conti RX Pros, OMG, the traction in the wet was horrible in comparison to the winters (subjective drive feeling, wasn't looking to compare, yet still noticed a big difference). Using them up for now, but not planning on buying them again. I think Porsche cost optimized on the stock tires. I wonder if Michelin CrossClimate2's would work well year round for the PNW.

 

[Jonathan S.]

[...] I wonder is Michelin CrossClimate2's would work well year round for the PNW.

For a mix of dry & wet roads in Seattle, then snow up at Snoqualmie or Crystal, CC2 would be absolutely perfect.

I recently wrote the following in response to a private message inquiry:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1RPjOhBtbZzQFepaUBmOAnNO7pMzH6v0zvpPI-C40gpw/edit?usp=sharing

 

[jasonh]

That was my first impression of them on my Taycan (20" stock tired from factory). I picked up my car in the middle of winter and drove it home across the country, so put winter tires on it (Porsche approved Goodyear UltraGrip Performance Gen 1). They did well across America as well as in PNW. When I switched back around mid April to brand new factory all-seasons Conti RX Pros, OMG, the traction in the wet was horrible in comparison to the winters (subjective drive feeling, wasn't looking to compare, yet still noticed a big difference). Using them up for now, but not planning on buying them again. I think Porsche cost optimized on the stock tires. I wonder is Michelin CrossClimate2's would work well year round for the PNW.

They probably would be good tires for the job - unfortunately they are not an option for 21” rims.

 

[whitex]

They probably would be good tires for the job - unfortunately they are not an option for 21” rims.

Personally I think 21” are too low profile for Washington roads, which are horrible.

 

[Redhot2474]

I have a Taycan 4S with the Mission E 21" wheels. After ~25,000mi, the original Continental Procontact RX tires were worn enough that they hydroplaned on a light rain. Its replacement time. This is what I did. I searched the forums and didn't find this info anywhere else, so I'm sharing it. I hope its useful!

Use Case

Car is a daily driver. It is not tracked. I live in the Seattle WA area and I want to be able to drive the car most of the year. So, summer tires are not appropriate. We do get some snow in the winter, but not enough to justify a dedicated set of snow tires. Lastly, the Procontact RXs were never that great in the wet even when newer, so I would like to upgrade to something better.

Result

Go with a set of all-season tires to better deal with the weather. Spend the money to get GOOD ones so they will perform decently during wet weather and during "spirited" dry-weather driving. So, what all-season tires are available? In the stock sizes, you get Continental Procontact RX All-Season NF0. That's it. So, how do we improve on this? <Cue hold music here...> After doing some homework, its the rear 305/30-21 tires that are the limiting factor. So, what if we go up in size a bit to 315/30-21? Bingo! I can now get Michelin Pilot Sport All Season 4 tires with the proper load ratings.

Data

OEM Mission E 21" Wheels

Original OEM Tire: Continental Procontact RX All-Season NF0
Front Size
21" - 265/35-21 - Load Range: 101H XL
Rear Size
21" - 305/30-21 - Load Range: 104H XL

New Tires: Michelin Pilot Sport All Season 4 - Non NF
Front Size
21" - 265/35-21 - Load Range: 101Y XL
Rear Size
21" - 315/30-21 - Load Range: 105V XL MO1 (Yes - Mercedes AMG Spec...)

So - Do they fit?

YES. I had them installed by Discount Tire in Kirkland WA and they took the time to verify the clearances. The extra 10mm width is not a problem. The change in rear tire diameter is very minor - 28.2" (stock 305/30-21 tires) to 28.4" (315/30-21) - a change of 0.7%. For reference, the front tires are 28.3" (265/35-21) in diameter - right in the middle. I have the tires inflated to partial load pressures. Per the manual, this is 38lbs front / 36lbs rear for a Taycan 4S with two rear seats.

Initial impressions

NOTE: This is completely unscientific since I'm comparing new tires to worn out tires.

• The tires have stiffer sidewalls so there is more road feel in the steering wheel.
• Highway noise level in the cabin is not noticeably different.
• Rolling resistance feels slightly lower (better).

I'll comment again in a few weeks once I have some road time with them. In particular, I will be looking for any changes in range.

Last Thought - To use or not to use NF tires

For my use case, this is a non-issue. I'm not pushing the car to get the last few percent out of the tires. I'm much more worried about pedestrian issues like not hydroplaning, good grip in a variety of conditions, decent wear, and having fun driving this wonderful car.

Still liking these tires? How do you find them now since you have some driving time behind you?

Sponsored