Tests 54 · 2 tests Owners 52 · 25 reviews
Head-to-head
Updated
Firestone Firehawk SZ90 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 2 + 21 road tests and 25 + 12,714 owner reviews. How we score
Pilot Sport 4 is ahead, 82–55
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Tests 85 · 21 tests Owners 76 · 12,714 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.
-
55
Dry
Pilot Sport 4 +3287Why this score
Source Firehawk SZ90 Pilot Sport 4 Professional tests (TWG score) · 2 / 20 tests 58 89 Reviews found online 51 84 Dry Braking (% of best) · 1 shared test · wins 0–1 94% 98% Dry Handling (% of best) · 1 shared test · wins 0–1 96% 100% Firehawk SZ90: 60% × 57.9 + 40% × 51.3 = 55
Pilot Sport 4: 60% × 89.3 + 40% × 83.9 = 87
-
53
Wet
Pilot Sport 4 +3689Why this score
Source Firehawk SZ90 Pilot Sport 4 Professional tests (TWG score) · 2 / 20 tests 51 92 Reviews found online 56 84 Wet Braking (% of best) · 1 shared test · wins 0–1 82% 99% Wet Handling (% of best) · 1 shared test · wins 0–1 90% 100% Firehawk SZ90: 60% × 50.8 + 40% × 56 = 53
Pilot Sport 4: 60% × 92.5 + 40% × 84.4 = 89
-
52
Comfort
Pilot Sport 4 +2476Why this score
Source Firehawk SZ90 Pilot Sport 4 Professional tests (TWG score) · – / 6 tests ≈ 64 (est.) 82 Reviews found online 45 72 Firehawk SZ90: 40% × 63.8 (est.) + 60% × 44.7 = 52
Pilot Sport 4: 40% × 81.6 + 60% × 71.7 = 76
No road tests of comfort for Firehawk SZ90. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.20).
-
58
Noise
Pilot Sport 4 +1270Why this score
Source Firehawk SZ90 Pilot Sport 4 Professional tests (TWG score) · 1 / 13 tests 53 73 Reviews found online ≈ 66 (est.) ≈ 66 (est.) Noise (% of best) · 1 shared test · wins 0–1 95% 99% Firehawk SZ90: 60% × 52.8 + 40% × 66.4 (est.) = 58
Pilot Sport 4: 60% × 73.2 + 40% × 66.4 (est.) = 70
No owner ratings of noise for Firehawk SZ90 or Pilot Sport 4. The owner half is the owners’ average (66): owners’ noise ratings barely follow the road tests, so the tests say nothing about how owners would rate it.
-
57
Treadwear
Pilot Sport 4 +1471Why this score
Source Firehawk SZ90 Pilot Sport 4 Professional tests (TWG score) · – / 3 tests ≈ 61 (est.) 78 Reviews found online 51 60 Firehawk SZ90: 60% × 61 (est.) + 40% × 51.2 = 57
Pilot Sport 4: 60% × 78.1 + 40% × 59.5 = 71
No road tests of treadwear for Firehawk SZ90. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.36).
-
53
Handling (owners)
Pilot Sport 4 +2881Why this score
Source Firehawk SZ90 Pilot Sport 4 Reviews found online 53 81 -
62
Efficiency
Pilot Sport 4 +1476Why this score
Source Firehawk SZ90 Pilot Sport 4 Professional tests (TWG score) · 1 / 14 tests 62 76 Rolling Resistance (% of best) · 1 shared test · wins 0–1 85% 93%
Scores at a glance
| Category | Firestone Firehawk SZ90 | Michelin Pilot Sport 4 |
|---|---|---|
| Relative Score | 55 | 82 |
| Dry | 55 | 87 |
| Wet | 53 | 89 |
| Comfort | 52 | 76 |
| Noise | 58 | 70 |
| Treadwear | 57 | 71 |
| Handling (owners) | 53 | 81 |
| Efficiency | 62 | 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
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Less important
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Neutral
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Less important
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Not important
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Recomputed
Headline score
55
/ 100
Firehawk SZ90
82
/ 100
Pilot Sport 4
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.
In the overall rankings of 1 tests that ran both, Firestone Firehawk SZ90 finished ahead 0 times and Michelin Pilot Sport 4 1 times.
| Discipline | Category | Firehawk SZ90 | Pilot Sport 4 | Δ | Head-to-head |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dry Braking | Dry | 94% | 98% | −3.9 | 0–1 in 1 shared test Newest: 2017 Auto Bild UHP Tyre Test · 245/40 R18 |
| Dry Handling | Dry | 96% | 100% | −3.7 | 0–1 in 1 shared test Newest: 2017 Auto Bild UHP Tyre Test · 245/40 R18 |
| Wet Braking | Wet | 82% | 99% | −17.0 | 0–1 in 1 shared test Newest: 2017 Auto Bild UHP Tyre Test · 245/40 R18 |
| Wet Handling | Wet | 90% | 100% | −10.5 | 0–1 in 1 shared test Newest: 2017 Auto Bild UHP Tyre Test · 245/40 R18 |
| Noise | Noise | 95% | 99% | −4.1 | 0–1 in 1 shared test Newest: 2017 Auto Bild UHP Tyre Test · 245/40 R18 |
| Rolling Resistance | Efficiency | 85% | 93% | −8.4 | 0–1 in 1 shared test Newest: 2017 Auto Bild UHP Tyre Test · 245/40 R18 |
| Also published by the testers (not in the score) | |||||
| Overall Ranking | Overall | #9/9 | #1/9 | – | 0–1 in 1 shared test Newest: 2017 Auto Bild UHP Tyre Test · 245/40 R18 |
Pros, cons & observations
Themes extracted from owner reviews found online — not the opinion of TireWheelGuide.
Tire A Firehawk SZ90
Pros
- Strong dry and wet surface grip
- Effective water displacement and braking performance
- Competitive price point
Cons
- Excessive road noise
- Rapid or uneven tread wear
- Unpredictable handling and stability issues
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
Firestone Firehawk SZ90
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.
r/JettaGLI
·59 upvotes ·2026-09-27
“Reminder: Tires are the key to this car Just replaced my Michelin Pilot Sport 4 AS tires with a new set ahead of the rainy season. Lasted 36K miles. It was the best mod to the car and a fresh set reminded just how good a brand new set is. The car is glued to the road, riding wonderfully smooth and quiet. Spend the money, get the best tires for you. The tune can wait. And it will need it.”
r/BoltEV
·5 upvotes ·2026-04-29
“Michelin Pilot Sport 4 tires are noisy (a followup) I have been asked on this sub if the PS4 tires on my wife’s Bolt are noisy, and I wasn’t sure how to answer. Well, we made two 60-mile round trips this past weekend, mostly on highways with 55 and 70 mph speed limits, and I have to say that the tires are kind of noisy. Certainly not as quiet as EV-oriented tires are. The grip is fantastic, so we really like them. If you are sensitive to noise, though, these Max Performance class tires are probably not for you.”
f30.bimmerpost.com
“Quote: Originally Posted by weston.__ I will be going down the non-rft route, Pilot Sport 4. You're not the only one to say the ride quality with non-rft is a massive improvement and this is the reason why I will change once the time comes. I went from Bridgestone S001 RFT to 'go-flats' and have found the suppleness an obvious difference. Since I put the pressure to the mid point between the low and high load plated pressures I have yet to have any of the heartstopping thumps come through the suspension that the Bridgestone seemed prone to.”
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 · Firestone Firehawk SZ90 | B · Michelin Pilot Sport 4 |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Summer | Summer |
| Vehicle type | Passenger Car / Crossover | Passenger Car / Crossover |
| Sizes available | — | 62 |
| Rim diameters | — | 16″ – 20″ |
| UTQG | — | 300 - 320 A - AA A |
Which one should you actually buy?
55
/ 100
Firestone Firehawk SZ90
82
/ 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 89 vs 53 on wet.
Pick tire B
You want the most grip on dry roads
Michelin Pilot Sport 4 scores 87 vs 55 on dry.
Pick tire B
You enjoy sharp, responsive handling
Michelin Pilot Sport 4 scores 81 vs 53 on handling.
Pick tire B
You want the most comfortable ride
Michelin Pilot Sport 4 scores 76 vs 52 on comfort.
Tire A · Firestone Firehawk SZ90
Tire B · Michelin Pilot Sport 4
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Firehawk SZ90 or Pilot Sport 4?
Which is better in the wet, Firehawk SZ90 or Pilot Sport 4?
Michelin Pilot Sport 4, 89 vs 53 on our wet score.
Which grips better on dry roads, Firehawk SZ90 or Pilot Sport 4?
Michelin Pilot Sport 4, 87 vs 55 on our dry score.
Which is quieter, Firehawk SZ90 or Pilot Sport 4?
Michelin Pilot Sport 4, 70 vs 58 on our noise score.
Which is more comfortable, Firehawk SZ90 or Pilot Sport 4?
Michelin Pilot Sport 4, 76 vs 52 on our comfort score.
Which lasts longer, Firehawk SZ90 or Pilot Sport 4?
Michelin Pilot Sport 4, 71 vs 57 on our treadwear score.
Which rolls more easily, Firehawk SZ90 or Pilot Sport 4?
Michelin Pilot Sport 4, 76 vs 62 on our efficiency 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