Tyres for front wheel drive hot hatch

[anonymous-user]

If you do any track driving steer clear if the Rainsports. A friend shredded a fresh set in half a day on a Megane R26. The Michelins are far better or as suggested the AD08R.

Michelin PS Cup2 are also great in the dry and in track although not in the wet.

[Zarco]

832ark said:

I wonder if there’s some confusion between the PS4 and the PS4S? The S is the one you want, the replacement for the SuperSport. The PS4 is just their mid-range sporty tyre.

PS4 is still a very good tyre. The PS4S is no doubt better but isn't available in 18" size.

I have always run Michelin on hot hatch (PS4 on my Megane 275 currently). Good performance wet and dry, and reasonable longevity too (I guess about 8-10k road miles from the fronts).

I'll be trying Goodyear Eagle F1 next. Judging by reviews they are a step on from PS4.

[nickfrog]

Elatino1 said:

If you do any track driving steer clear if the Rainsports. A friend shredded a fresh set in half a day on a Megane R26. The Michelins are far better or as suggested the AD08R.

Michelin PS Cup2 are also great in the dry and in track although not in the wet.

I would steer clear of Michelins on the track too, the sidewalls are far too soft. The only road tyre I might track, and with caution, would be a 105 Yoki. As for the Cup2s, great compound but again, the carcass is a road one. AD08Rs is my choice for a tyre than can do both environments. Not the outright grip of the Cup2 but more stable, resilient and affordable as it works even on the original 7.5mm thanks to the stiff construction.

[anonymous-user]

I've not had any problems with the Cup2 on track fitted to a 1350kg car, great tyre but not the best wearing. The AD08R is better in the wet and marginal in the dry and does wear less. The rainsport is a joke tyre on track and lacks precision on a dry road.

[832ark]

Zarco said:

832ark said:

I wonder if there’s some confusion between the PS4 and the PS4S? The S is the one you want, the replacement for the SuperSport. The PS4 is just their mid-range sporty tyre.

PS4 is still a very good tyre. The PS4S is no doubt better but isn't available in 18" size.

I have always run Michelin on hot hatch (PS4 on my Megane 275 currently). Good performance wet and dry, and reasonable longevity too (I guess about 8-10k road miles from the fronts).

I'll be trying Goodyear Eagle F1 next. Judging by reviews they are a step on from PS4.

I’d take the MPSS over the PS4 where the PS4S isn’t available and indeed do on my FWD hot hatch.

[Haltamer]

nickfrog said:

I would steer clear of Michelins on the track too, the sidewalls are far too soft. The only road tyre I might track, and with caution, would be a 105 Yoki.

Hmm, Whilst I haven't done any full-on track with either tyre, Out of the two, I'd say I much prefer the feel of the PS4 over the V105 - I have got "XL" rated PS4 fitted, mind you, so I'd say the sidewall stiffness is similar if not greater on the PS4.

I'd also rate the PS4 longevity and NVH over the V105:- I'd say there isn't much in it in terms of raw grip, but the feel of the PS4 I would say allows me to use more of the available grip.

( 's omitted to avoid confusion; I have the non-S version of the PS4 )

[RossJM]

arj7 said:

Have you got a front wheel drive?

Yeah FWD but only 200bhp so I can't comment on hot hatches at the ~300bhp mark.

[Loplop]

snotrag said:

Rainsports are often reccomended by the same people who used to run Toyos T1's.

They are reasonably good value tyres, particularly in the wet (duh) and very good value. They do also work well on lighter cars (like the Toyos did), popular for wet trackdays for Clios/MX5s etc.

They are not in the same league as Pilot Sports, or Goodyear Eagles (which I prefer to Michelins usually).

Purely anecdotal but I've had quite a lot of experience with Rainsport 3s, I put a set on my 540i when they were first released to replace the Rainsport 2. They're a great tyre. Soft - some people recommend going up by a load rating but even then they're soft. - but grippy, they may not feel like it initially, they're a tyre you sort of have to have faith in that they're going to load up and grip the first few times you press on with them.

I'd argue that they're better in the wet than reviews suggest, a PS4 might still be a 'faster' tyre on a track because they're closed conditions with reviewers more likely to push through a situation that might otherwise give them anxiety during normal road use, not once have I felt like a set of RS3s were going to give up on me during the rain. This includes a stint on the autobahn in my friends 330ci Clubsport, this was 3 up with a boot full of luggage, quite happily plodding along at 100mph excluding areas that demand a lower speed through corners.

Speaking of the 330, we did 3500 miles on a set of brand new RS3s through Europe this year, ending with several laps around the Nordschleife. The rest of the car is completely standard and no doubt a set of semi slicks would've been immeasurably faster in the dry but not once did the car feel dangerous or lacking in grip. The second set of sessions took place on a damp track, this was completely different, we were passing quite a few people in the wet.

They're a brilliant tyre for the money, even if they're a bit Jekyll and Hyde in the way that you have to trust them in the dry, but they're confidence inspiring in the wet. In my opinion the Rainsport 3 is the cheapest/most budget tyre you should consider, then there's quite a leap to the Conti Premium Contact 6, then the F1 Asymmetric 5, followed by the PS4 and F1 Supersport.

[Zarco]

Prompted by this thread, I started to do some research.

This guy does some excellent reviews:

https://youtu.be/3rQoBeUH9hY

Even one dedicated to the mysteries of Michelin and the PS4/PS4S:

https://youtu.be/aMv64liOqIE


Strangely no mention of Rainsports at all. Can't imagine why

[Loplop]

Zarco said:

Prompted by this thread, I started to do some research.

This guy does some excellent reviews:

https://youtu.be/3rQoBeUH9hY

Even one dedicated to the mysteries of Michelin and the PS4/PS4S:

https://youtu.be/aMv64liOqIE


Strangely no mention of Rainsports at all. Can't imagine why

I believe he has mentioned Rainsports on several occasions, even recommended them in his mid range category, I assume supply will be down to the fact that Michelin owns Uniroyal and it wouldn't do to have their flagship tyres be compared to a midrange tyre from their budget brand.

[Kolbenkopp]

832ark said:

I’d take the MPSS over the PS4 where the PS4S isn’t available and indeed do on my FWD hot hatch.

Same here, 245PS Mk7 GTI.
Working very well. and Hyundai now have a version made specically for the i30N (225/40R18, 92 (Z)Y Michelin Pilot Super Sport HN XL). Which is what I'd stick on next.

[nickfrog]

Haltamer said:

nickfrog said:

I would steer clear of Michelins on the track too, the sidewalls are far too soft. The only road tyre I might track, and with caution, would be a 105 Yoki.

Hmm, Whilst I haven't done any full-on track with either tyre, Out of the two, I'd say I much prefer the feel of the PS4 over the V105 - I have got "XL" rated PS4 fitted, mind you, so I'd say the sidewall stiffness is similar if not greater on the PS4.

I'd also rate the PS4 longevity and NVH over the V105:- I'd say there isn't much in it in terms of raw grip, but the feel of the PS4 I would say allows me to use more of the available grip.

( 's omitted to avoid confusion; I have the non-S version of the PS4 )

Yeah sure the PS4 is the better tyre but if you do want to track it, the front outside shoulders will go very quickly when the 105 stiffer construction might survive a little longer.