Michelin Pilot Sport 4 and Super Sport are both high-performance summer tires that are designed to provide improved performance in hot weather. SuperSport has a higher contact patch and numerous sipes along with optimized shoulders, providing improved dry and wet traction.
Whereas Sport 4 has a higher void ratio, which helps to avoid hydroplaning and provides decent grip and handling in all conditions.
The SuperSport tire is much better in terms of performance, but due to the higher contact patch, it may wear out more quickly, resulting in lower mileage.
Table of Contents
Comparing Both Tires
Michelin Pilot Sport 4
Michelin Pilot Super Sport
Sport 4 has an asymmetrical tread pattern with a relatively higher void ratio, which minimizes its contact patch. This tire is marginally inferior on the dry roads due to the smaller contact area and unoptimized shoulder structure. Due to fewer sipes, it loses grip on wet surfaces, but its hydroplaning resistance is remarkable because of its broader voids. It has lower rolling resistance due to its lower contact patch with the road, allowing a greater tread life.
The SuperSport has an asymmetrical tread design with narrow grooves and a lower void ratio, allowing higher contact patch with the road. The higher contact patch allows the tire to grip the road more effectively, while its improved shoulder design with numerous sipes improves handling in both dry and wet conditions. Due to multiple sipes, it performs well on wet roads, but struggles in extreme wet conditions due to its narrow grooves. It is not expected to offer higher mileage because of its higher contact patch, resulting in a higher treadwear.
Road Grip Comparison
Sport 4 has a lower contact patch, which reduces its grip in dry conditions. Therefore, it has a higher dry braking distance as compared to SuperSport. On the other hand, it has a medium wet grip due to the fewer sipes engraved in its tread, increasing its wet braking distance. Thus, this tire performs lower than its counterpart on wet roads as well.
The contact patch and road grip have a direct relation since the SuperSport tire has a higher contact patch with the road, therefore, it performs better on dry roads. That’s why its dry barking distance is lower than other tire. The tire sipes, in addition to the contact patch, play an important role in wet gripping. The wet braking distance of SuperSport is also lower than the sport 4 due to its numerous sipes. Hence, this tire in terms of gripping performs better in both dry and wet conditions.
Handling Comparison of the tires
The wide-open shoulder design of Sport 4 tire reduces the grip by allowing a lower shoulder’s contact patch with the ground, resulting in lower dry handling speed than the other tire. Due to the lack of sipping on its shoulders, its wet handling speed is also lower than its competitor. As a result, it has lesser handling capabilities on both dry and wet roads than its counterpart.
SuperSport has a compact shoulder design, allowing a higher shoulder contact patch, improving its dry handling. Whereas its shoulder sipes provide good steering control on wet roads, making its wet handling speed higher than its counterpart.
Comparison of Hydroplaning Resistance
Sport 4 tire has wider grooves that allow easy passing of water, retaining its grip. Therefore, it performs better on flooded roads, having a higher floating speed than SuperSport, making it a superior tire in this situation.
The tire with the wider grooves can successfully travel through watery surfaces and maintain road grip. Unfortunately, the grooves of SuperSport are narrow, resulting in a lower floating speed than the other tire, which makes it inferior.
Comparison of Rolling Resistance
Rolling resistance plays an important role in a vehicle’s fuel consumption. The lower rolling resistance causes less fuel consumption. The Sport 4 tire has a lower rolling resistance than the SuperSport tire due to its lower contact patch. This reduced the frictional force between the road and the tread of the tire; thus, it requires less fuel to keep moving.
Rolling resistance is the amount of force required to keep the tire rolling. The contact patch of SuperSport is higher, and if the contact patch is higher, it will have high rolling resistance then there will be more force required to overcome it. Consequently, it has lower fuel efficiency.
Comfort and Noise Comparison
The grooves of Sport 4 are wider generating more noise due to the back and forth striking of air particles in its large voids. This reduces comfort while driving at high speeds.
If you’re looking for a less noisy tire, then SuperSport is the better option. It generates lesser noise as compared to its rival due to its narrow grooves, providing lesser volume for the entrapment of air particles.
Durability and Treadwear Differences
Sport 4 has a strong frame with twin steel belts reinforced by spirally wrapped plies, which improves tread quality and treadwear resistance. The tread rubber on the tire is slightly tougher, which diminishes the tire’s grip and handling but allows it to be used for longer durations. The lower contact patch reduces rolling resistance, resulting in better endurance and strength of this tire.
On the other hand Super Sport tire has a complex interior structure that is reinforced by spirally wound Twaron cord and twin steel belts. It has good grip and handling on the road, but the tire will quickly wear due to its softer tread compound and higher rolling resistance caused by a higher contact patch.
Quick Summary
- Both the tires are maximum performance summer tires.
- Both dry and wet grip of SuperSport is better than its rival.
- The handling capability of SuperSport is higher in all conditions.
- Due to the higher void ratio of Sport 4, it effectively prevents hydroplaning.
- Comparatively, SuperSport has higher rolling resistance and lower fuel efficiency.
- Sport 4 has increased treadwear resistance and allows higher mileage.
- Sport 4 tire has a lower noise level than the SuperSport.
