Tests – · none yet Owners 62 · 22 reviews
Head-to-head
Updated
Dunlop Direzza DZ102 vs Michelin Pilot Sport 4 — Compared
Relative Score (0–100): the weighted average of the categories below, each 60% road tests and 40% owner reviews (comfort 40/60). Based on 0 + 21 road tests and 22 + 12,691 owner reviews. How we score
Pilot Sport 4 is ahead, 84–64
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Tests 85 · 21 tests Owners 76 · 12,691 reviews
Best test result: #1 of 45 in 2019 Summer 53 Tyre Braking Shootout (dry braking)
“Those are Pilot sport 4 (all season). If it had s after the 4 it would be the summer high performance version. I put the pilot sport 4 on wife's GTI autobahn 2016. Great handling tire, stiff side walls, not the smoothest ride but best overall.”
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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65
Dry
Pilot Sport 4 +2287Why this score
Source Direzza DZ102 Pilot Sport 4 Professional tests (TWG score) · – / 20 tests ≈ 66 (est.) 89 Reviews found online 64 85 Direzza DZ102: 60% × 66.3 (est.) + 40% × 63.8 = 65
Pilot Sport 4: 60% × 89.1 + 40% × 84.5 = 87
No road tests of dry for Direzza DZ102. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.42).
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67
Wet
Pilot Sport 4 +2390Why this score
Source Direzza DZ102 Pilot Sport 4 Professional tests (TWG score) · – / 20 tests ≈ 68 (est.) 93 Reviews found online 66 85 Direzza DZ102: 60% × 68.1 (est.) + 40% × 65.9 = 67
Pilot Sport 4: 60% × 93.1 + 40% × 84.7 = 90
No road tests of wet for Direzza DZ102. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.55).
-
62
Comfort
Pilot Sport 4 +1577Why this score
Source Direzza DZ102 Pilot Sport 4 Professional tests (TWG score) · – / 6 tests ≈ 67 (est.) 83 Reviews found online 58 72 Direzza DZ102: 40% × 67.1 (est.) + 60% × 58.2 = 62
Pilot Sport 4: 40% × 83.4 + 60% × 72.4 = 77
No road tests of comfort for Direzza DZ102. The test half is the tested tires’ average (69): owners’ comfort ratings barely follow the road tests.
-
–
Noise
No comparison71Why this score
Source Direzza DZ102 Pilot Sport 4 Professional tests (TWG score) · – / 13 tests – 73 Reviews found online – ≈ 67 (est.) Pilot Sport 4: 60% × 73.4 + 40% × 66.6 (est.) = 71
No owner ratings of noise for Pilot Sport 4. The owner half is the owners’ average (67): owners’ noise ratings barely follow the road tests, so the tests say nothing about how owners would rate it.
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60
Treadwear
Pilot Sport 4 +1171Why this score
Source Direzza DZ102 Pilot Sport 4 Professional tests (TWG score) · – / 3 tests ≈ 63 (est.) 78 Reviews found online 56 60 Direzza DZ102: 60% × 62.6 (est.) + 40% × 55.9 = 60
Pilot Sport 4: 60% × 78.1 + 40% × 59.5 = 71
No road tests of treadwear for Direzza DZ102. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.35).
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61
Handling (owners)
Pilot Sport 4 +2081Why this score
Source Direzza DZ102 Pilot Sport 4 Reviews found online 61 81 -
–
Efficiency
No comparison76Why this score
Source Direzza DZ102 Pilot Sport 4 Professional tests (TWG score) · – / 14 tests – 76
Scores at a glance
| Category | Dunlop Direzza DZ102 | Michelin Pilot Sport 4 |
|---|---|---|
| Relative Score | 64 | 84 |
| Dry | 65 | 87 |
| Wet | 67 | 90 |
| Comfort | 62 | 77 |
| Noise | – | 71 |
| Treadwear | 60 | 71 |
| Handling (owners) | 61 | 81 |
| Efficiency | – | 76 |
Higher is better. The Relative Score follows your weights below; category scores do not change.
Weight the categories that matter to you
Wet grip starts at “Important”. Treadwear starts at “Neutral” here: road tests measured it for at most one of the two tires, so it rests on owner reviews. Move the sliders and the scores update instantly.
Important
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Important
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Less important
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Less important
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Only one of the two tires has a score here, so this weight changes nothing in the head-to-head.
Neutral
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Less important
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Not important
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Only one of the two tires has a score here, so this weight changes nothing in the head-to-head.
Recomputed
Headline score
64
/ 100
Direzza DZ102
84
/ 100
Pilot Sport 4
Only categories both tires have data for count toward the headline score.
The professional test results behind the scores
Per discipline: the average % of the best tire over every test both tires were in, and how many of those tests each one won. “Different tests” rows compare results from separate tests.
| Discipline | Category | Direzza DZ102 | Pilot Sport 4 | Δ | Head-to-head |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Also published by the testers (not in the score) | |||||
| Overall Ranking | Overall | #7/8 2015 Australian Motor 235/35 R19 Tyre Test | #7/9 2022 AUTO Straßenverkehr Summer Tire Test R19 | – | Different tests |
Pros, cons & observations
Themes extracted from owner reviews found online — not the opinion of TireWheelGuide.
Tire A Direzza DZ102
Pros
- Excellent price-to-performance ratio
- Strong dry pavement grip and cornering stability
- Surprisingly high levels of ride comfort for a performance tire
Cons
- Rapid or inconsistent tread wear
- Inconsistent wet weather performance and hydroplaning resistance
- Increased road noise as the tire ages
Tire B Pilot Sport 4
Pros
- Exceptional wet and dry traction with outstanding resistance to aquaplaning
- Noticeable improvement in ride comfort and a reduction in cabin noise compared to standard run-flat tires
- Progressive and predictable breakaway limits during spirited driving
Cons
- Faster-than-average treadwear, particularly under aggressive driving or on rear-wheel-drive performance cars
- Softer sidewalls can lead to a slight lack of initial steering precision and a vague feel at the limit for hardcore enthusiasts
- Performance drops off significantly in cold, freezing, or snowy winter conditions
What real owners are saying
From Reddit, forums and review threads. Not part of our score
Tire A
Dunlop Direzza DZ102
We haven't collected enough community discussion about this tire yet.
Tire B
Positive
Michelin Pilot Sport 4
The community widely regards the Michelin Pilot Sport 4 line as a premium upgrade offering exceptional dry and wet grip, precise handling, and superior ride comfort compared to OEM or run-flat tires. While celebrated for performance, users frequently discuss its high price tag, faster treadwear, and noticeable drop in EV efficiency. Some drivers also note increased road noise and reduced traction when temperatures drop near freezing.
mbworld.org
“Quote: Originally Posted by ua549 In over 55 years of driving I've never gotten more than 20k miles on a set of tires. Michelin Pilot Sport is the worst at 6k miles twice in a row with free factory replacements though I've gotten 18k miles on Michelin AS3 tires once or twice. Dunlop Sport is second at 15k miles. Overall Pirelli Cinturato P7 are the longest wearing tires I've owned over the years at 20k miles consistently. I swap out run flat tires if they come on a new car. I believe that heat is a major cause of tire wear. Even after a 2 mile trip @ 35 mph the tires on my E300 register about 120°F. Cold they are between 80°F and 85°F. In the dead of winter they are 5° colder. The OEM tires on my 5 year old '18 E300 got 12k miles. The car has 20k miles on it now and the P7 tires are about 40% worn. My experience with Summer tires is 15 to 18k max. The only Summer tires that I have owned that lasted more than 20 were the Pilot Sport PS4...which BTW is one of their marketing highlights, longer tread wear...though still shorter than all seasons which normally are rated for 30k or more.”
r/CarTrackDays
·1 upvote ·2020-07-03
“The Pilot Sport 4's are great tires for dual duty use. You'll want to keep hot pressures below 37-38 PSI. Anything above that they get very greasy, very fast. In the cars I've driven with them (a few BMW M cars, a 911 I think if I remember), you'll usually set your best laps in the first 4-5 laps of a session depending on temps. Once they over heat heat, as with any street tire, you have to park them for an hour to get the temps down again (downside to steel radials). I'd also recommend Hankook RS4s if you want a more durable track tire. That's what I run. Very long lasting, but not as great in the wet as the PS4s would be. Road noise would also be an issue for street use.”
r/tires
·2 upvotes ·2026-07-28
“Those are Pilot sport 4 (all season). If it had s after the 4 it would be the summer high performance version. I put the pilot sport 4 on wife's GTI autobahn 2016. Great handling tire, stiff side walls, not the smoothest ride but best overall.”
Top themes
#Wet and dry grip#Run-flat replacement upgrade#Treadwear and longevity#Cold weather performance#Road noise and comfort#EV range and efficiency#Comparison to Continental tires
Based on 246 community posts
Specs side by side
| Attribute | A · Dunlop Direzza DZ102 | B · Michelin Pilot Sport 4 |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Summer | Summer |
| Vehicle type | Passenger Car / Crossover | Passenger Car / Crossover |
| Sizes available | — | 62 |
| Rim diameters | — | 16″ – 20″ |
Which one should you actually buy?
64
/ 100
Dunlop Direzza DZ102
84
/ 100
Michelin Pilot Sport 4
Winner: Michelin Pilot Sport 4 — better wet, dry and handling. It leads or ties in every category we score.
Pick tire B
Your priority is wet-weather safety
Michelin Pilot Sport 4 scores 90 vs 67 on wet.
Pick tire B
You want the most grip on dry roads
Michelin Pilot Sport 4 scores 87 vs 65 on dry.
Pick tire B
You enjoy sharp, responsive handling
Michelin Pilot Sport 4 scores 81 vs 61 on handling.
Pick tire B
You want the most comfortable ride
Michelin Pilot Sport 4 scores 77 vs 62 on comfort.
Tire A · Dunlop Direzza DZ102
Tire B · Michelin Pilot Sport 4
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Direzza DZ102 or Pilot Sport 4?
Which is better in the wet, Direzza DZ102 or Pilot Sport 4?
Michelin Pilot Sport 4, 90 vs 67 on our wet score.
Which grips better on dry roads, Direzza DZ102 or Pilot Sport 4?
Michelin Pilot Sport 4, 87 vs 65 on our dry score.
Which is more comfortable, Direzza DZ102 or Pilot Sport 4?
Michelin Pilot Sport 4, 77 vs 62 on our comfort score.
Which lasts longer, Direzza DZ102 or Pilot Sport 4?
Michelin Pilot Sport 4, 71 vs 60 on our treadwear score.
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.
Handling is the exception: road tests measure it inside the dry and wet scores, so its own row comes from owner ratings only and starts as less important.
Community buzz from Reddit and forums is shown for context only — it never changes the score. Full methodology