Tests – · none yet Owners 74 · 8 reviews
Bridgestone Potenza GIII vs Michelin Pilot Super Sport — Compared
Relative Score (0–100): 60% professional tests, 40% owner reviews.
Pilot Super Sport leads, 76–72 Narrow edge
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Tests 75 · 1 test Owners 79 · 1,506 reviews
“OK. PSS vs. PS4S. I used both of these on my 2011 GT500. In general the PS4S is an modest upgrade over the PSS. Slightly better dry grip. Bigger improvement in wet grip. Better grip when not warmed up yet. I did not that the PS4S is more sensitive to very cold (below freezing) temperatures, so I put the GT500 away a little sooner for winter. For my GT350, I switched to the A/S 3+ (275/35/R19 front, 285/35/R19 rear) and have been really liking them. I am sure they are slower on a track, but on the street they just grip and scoot on corners or straight aways (slightly less grip on a hard launch - but haven't tried launch control yet). It is very nice not having to worry about rain or cold. Still plan to put her in storage before the first snow to avoid the salt.”
Category by category
Relative Score per category, 0–100. Open “Why this score” for the tests and owner ratings behind it.
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76
Dry
Pilot Super Sport +581Why this score
Source Potenza GIII Pilot Super Sport Professional tests (TWG score) – 77 Reviews found online 80 87 -
74
Wet
Pilot Super Sport +276Why this score
Source Potenza GIII Pilot Super Sport Professional tests (TWG score) – 73 Reviews found online 76 80 -
67
Comfort
Pilot Super Sport +572Why this score
Source Potenza GIII Pilot Super Sport Reviews found online 65 75 -
–
Noise
No comparison70Why this score
Source Potenza GIII Pilot Super Sport Reviews found online – 75 -
65
Treadwear
Pilot Super Sport +368Why this score
Source Potenza GIII Pilot Super Sport Reviews found online 65 70 -
79
Handling
Pilot Super Sport +281Why this score
Source Potenza GIII Pilot Super Sport Reviews found online 79 81
Scores at a glance
| Category | Bridgestone Potenza GIII | Michelin Pilot Super Sport |
|---|---|---|
| Relative Score | 72 | 76 |
| Dry | 76 | 81 |
| Wet | 74 | 76 |
| Comfort | 67 | 72 |
| Noise | – | 70 |
| Treadwear | 65 | 68 |
| Handling | 79 | 81 |
Higher is better. The Relative Score follows your weights below; category scores do not change.
Weight the categories that matter to you
Wet grip and treadwear start at “Important” — the two things buyers rank highest. Move the sliders and the scores update instantly.
Neither tire has a score here yet, so this weight changes nothing.
Potenza GIII
Pilot Super Sport
Only categories both tires have data for count toward the headline score.
Pros, cons & observations
Themes extracted from owner reviews found online — not the opinion of TireWheelGuide.
Tire A Potenza GIII
Pros
- Outstanding dry grip with great road feedback and minimal squealing at the limit
- Reliable and confident wet-weather performance
- Good tread longevity and durability over high mileage
Cons
- Can be noisy during family trips or extended highway driving
- Performance in wet conditions can occasionally be perceived as average compared to its stellar dry performance
- Sensitive to precise tire pressure adjustments to achieve optimal comfort and performance
Tire B Pilot Super Sport
Pros
- Phenomenal dry grip and cornering stability
- Precise steering response and excellent road feedback
- Better-than-expected tread wear and mileage for a performance tire
Cons
- Reduced grip and traction in cold weather (below 15°C)
- Mediocre performance and tendency to aquaplane when tread wears down in heavy rain
- High price point compared to some alternatives
What real owners are saying
From Reddit, forums and review threads. Not part of our score
Bridgestone Potenza GIII
We haven't collected enough community discussion about this tire yet.
Michelin Pilot Super Sport
The Michelin Pilot Super Sport is widely praised by the community as a benchmark high-performance street tire offering outstanding dry grip, sharp cornering capability, and decent ride comfort for daily driving. Many drivers note that its successor, the Pilot Sport 4S, improves upon it—especially in cold and wet conditions—while several users highlight downsides such as poor winter/snow capability, premium pricing, and eventual rubber degradation or tread cracking as the tires age.
“I bought my 2006 C2S last September. It came with Pirelli P Zero Rosso N spec tires that were 3 years old and had about 80% of tread life remaining. I drove about 8000 miles and relaced them yesterday with Michelin Pilot Super Sports. They grip much better than the Pirellis. The biggest surprise is the car is now much much quieter than it was. I had no idea how noisy the old tires were until I got rid of them.”
“Re: Best summer tires & Best winter tires! I run PSS on my M Roadster during the summer and do a couple of weeks each summer of some very fast paced driving with our car club on mountain roads. I have tried a number of tires over the years and PSS for me have the best balance of wet and dry traction with a great feel for how close you are to the edge of performance. I have been getting 2 years on the rear tires and 3 years on the front tires. Another brand of very good winter tire is Nokian Hakkapeliitta R2's.”
“Another option would be Bridgestone RE-11 or Yokohama AD-08. Both have slightly more dry traction than the PSS. The big advantage of both of these in my experience is that they have a much stiffer sidewall than the PSS. The assists with response and much less roll over which on heavier cars (like the C63 or my current M3) makes a noticeable improvement. The downside is a slightly stiffer ride, especially on the AD-08. The RE-11 are only a slight trade off in comfort for the advantages noted above. Oh yeah, PSS have better tread wear too For street driving, the PSS are the best. If the car sees track time, I would personally lean towards RE-11. I ran both on my M3 and enjoyed the steering response and grip improvement of the RE-11 over the PSS but mainly because I get out several times a year to the track. When my C63 arrives, I will swap out the wheels (and use them for winter wheels), sell the OEM tires and put after market wheels and RE-11 tires on the car.”
Based on 364 community posts
Specs side by side
| Attribute | A · Bridgestone Potenza GIII | B · Michelin Pilot Super Sport |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Summer | Summer |
| Vehicle type | Passenger Car / Crossover | Passenger Car / Crossover |
| Sizes available | — | 50 |
| Rim diameters | — | 17″ – 23″ |
Which one should you actually buy?
Bridgestone Potenza GIII
Michelin Pilot Super Sport
Winner: Michelin Pilot Super Sport — better dry, comfort and treadwear. It leads or ties in every category we score.
Michelin Pilot Super Sport scores 81 vs 76 on dry.
Michelin Pilot Super Sport scores 72 vs 67 on comfort.
Michelin Pilot Super Sport scores 68 vs 65 on treadwear.
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How do we compare tires?
Every category score blends two independent signals. 60% comes from professional tire tests (braking distances, lap times, noise measurements), each result compared with every other tire in the same test and newer tests counting more. 40% comes from owner reviews found online, adjusted for how generously each site rates. Both use one scale: the average tested tire gets 70, the best 100. When a tire has only one of the two, the missing half is estimated from the other and the score stays closer to average; with no road test and fewer than five owner reviews it gets no score yet.
Community buzz from Reddit and forums is shown for context only — it never changes the score.