Head-to-head Updated

Michelin CrossClimate vs Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S — 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 + 27 road tests and 152 + 6,614 owner reviews. How we score

Pilot Sport 4 S is ahead, 83–75

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Michelin CrossClimate
Tire AMichelin

CrossClimate

All Season

± 6

Tests 75 · 2 tests Owners 74 · 152 reviews

Best test result: #1 of 14 in 2018 New and Worn Summer Tyre Test (noise)

Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S
Tire BMichelin

Pilot Sport 4 S

Summer

± 4

Tests 82 · 27 tests Owners 86 · 6,614 reviews

Best test result: #1 of 15 in 2021 Auto Bild 19 inch Summer Tyre Test (dry braking)

“A note about the pilot sport 4 S: in cold weather (below 5 degrees) even if it isn't icy, the tyre compound hardens and has dramatically reduced grip. They are excellent summer tyres though, good in the wet too. These days I run Uniroyal rainsport 5 and they're very good.”

Category by category

Relative Score per category, 0–100. Open “Why this score” for the tests and owner ratings behind it.

  1. 76

    Dry

    Pilot Sport 4 S +17
    93
    Why this score
    SourceCrossClimatePilot Sport 4 S
    Professional tests (TWG score) · 2 / 25 tests7894
    Reviews found online7492

    CrossClimate: 60% × 77.8 + 40% × 73.9 = 76

    Pilot Sport 4 S: 60% × 94.3 + 40% × 92.1 = 93

  2. 76

    Wet

    Pilot Sport 4 S +12
    88
    Why this score
    SourceCrossClimatePilot Sport 4 S
    Professional tests (TWG score) · 2 / 26 tests7586
    Reviews found online7891

    CrossClimate: 60% × 75.5 + 40% × 78 = 76

    Pilot Sport 4 S: 60% × 86.4 + 40% × 90.7 = 88

  3. 69

    Snow

    No comparison
    –
    Why this score
    SourceCrossClimatePilot Sport 4 S
    Professional tests (TWG score) · 2 / – tests71–
    Reviews found online66–

    CrossClimate: 60% × 70.9 + 40% × 65.6 = 69

  4. 74

    Comfort

    Pilot Sport 4 S +5
    79
    Why this score
    SourceCrossClimatePilot Sport 4 S
    Professional tests (TWG score) · – / 6 tests≈ 70 (est.)70
    Reviews found online7684

    CrossClimate: 40% × 70.5 (est.) + 60% × 76.3 = 74

    Pilot Sport 4 S: 40% × 70.4 + 60% × 84.2 = 79

    No road tests of comfort for CrossClimate. The test half is the tested tires’ average (69): owners’ comfort ratings barely follow the road tests.

  5. 69

    Noise

    Level
    69
    Why this score
    SourceCrossClimatePilot Sport 4 S
    Professional tests (TWG score) · 1 / 20 tests7170
    Reviews found online≈ 67 (est.)≈ 67 (est.)

    CrossClimate: 60% × 70.8 + 40% × 66.6 (est.) = 69

    Pilot Sport 4 S: 60% × 70.3 + 40% × 66.6 (est.) = 69

    No owner ratings of noise for CrossClimate or Pilot Sport 4 S. 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.

  6. 74

    Treadwear

    CrossClimate +2
    72
    Why this score
    SourceCrossClimatePilot Sport 4 S
    Professional tests (TWG score) · 1 / 1 tests7470
    Reviews found online7574

    CrossClimate: 60% × 73.8 + 40% × 74.8 = 74

    Pilot Sport 4 S: 60% × 70.2 + 40% × 74.1 = 72

  7. 73

    Handling (owners)

    Pilot Sport 4 S +17
    90
    Why this score
    SourceCrossClimatePilot Sport 4 S
    Reviews found online7390
  8. 76

    Efficiency

    CrossClimate +4
    72
    Why this score
    SourceCrossClimatePilot Sport 4 S
    Professional tests (TWG score) · 2 / 23 tests7672
Scores at a glance
Michelin CrossClimate vs Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S: scores by category (0–100)
CategoryMichelin CrossClimateMichelin Pilot Sport 4 S
Relative Score 75 83
Dry 76 93
Wet 76 88
Snow 69 –
Comfort 74 79
Noise 69 69
Treadwear 74 72
Handling (owners) 73 90
Efficiency 76 72

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.

Important
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Important
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Neutral
NotLessNeutralImportantMost

Only one of the two tires has a score here, so this weight changes nothing in the head-to-head.

Less important
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Less important
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Important
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Less important
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Not important
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Recomputed
Headline score
± 6

CrossClimate

± 4

Pilot Sport 4 S

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.

DisciplineCategoryCrossClimatePilot Sport 4 SΔHead-to-head
Dry Braking Dry 99% #2/14 · 2018 New and Worn Summer Tyre Test 94% #8/8 · 2026 Autobild Sports Cars Summer Tyre Test – Different tests
Dry Handling Dry 90% #7/14 · 2018 New and Worn Summer Tyre Test 100% #2/8 · 2026 Autobild Sports Cars Summer Tyre Test – Different tests
Straight Aquaplaning Wet 94% #4/11 · 2017 All Season VS Winter Tyre Test 100% #1/8 · 2026 Autobild Sports Cars Summer Tyre Test – Different tests
Wet Braking Wet 87% #9/14 · 2018 New and Worn Summer Tyre Test 90% #7/8 · 2026 Autobild Sports Cars Summer Tyre Test – Different tests
Wet Handling Wet 96% #4/14 · 2018 New and Worn Summer Tyre Test 90% #6/8 · 2026 Autobild Sports Cars Summer Tyre Test – Different tests
Noise Noise 100% #1/14 · 2018 New and Worn Summer Tyre Test 98% #4/8 · 2026 Autobild Sports Cars Summer Tyre Test – Different tests
Rolling Resistance Efficiency 100% #1/8 · 2017 Auto Bild All Season Tyre Test 98% #2/8 · 2026 Autobild Sports Cars Summer Tyre Test – Different tests
Also published by the testers (not in the score)
Overall Ranking Overall #9/9 2018 ADAC All Season Tyre Test #1/10 2026 ACE Summer Tyre Test – Different tests

Pros, cons & observations

Themes extracted from owner reviews found online — not the opinion of TireWheelGuide.

Tire A CrossClimate

Pros

  • Exceptional tread life and durability
  • Strong wet-weather grip and hydroplaning resistance
  • Reliable traction in light snow and cold conditions

Cons

  • Tendency to pick up and retain small stones in the tread pattern
  • Noticeable drop in performance as tread depth decreases
  • Potential for reduced fuel economy compared to dedicated summer tires
All owner themes in the CrossClimate review

Tire B Pilot Sport 4 S

Pros

  • Exceptional grip and predictable handling in both dry and wet conditions
  • Noticeable reduction in road noise and improved ride comfort compared to competitors and run-flats
  • Sharper steering response and improved cornering stability

Cons

  • High initial purchase price
  • Rapid tread wear reported by some aggressive drivers and track users
  • Soft sidewalls can cause a slightly vague or laggy initial response during rapid steering transitions
All owner themes in the Pilot Sport 4 S review

What real owners are saying

From Reddit, forums and review threads. Not part of our score

Tire A

Michelin CrossClimate

We haven't collected enough community discussion about this tire yet.

Tire B

Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S

Positive

The community widely regards the Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S as a benchmark max-performance summer tire, praising its outstanding dry and wet grip, stability, and daily driving refinement. Common criticisms focus on its premium price, rapid tread wear on high-powered heavy vehicles or hot track sessions, and significantly reduced grip in cold weather. Many enthusiasts consider it an ideal street tire, though some note softer sidewalls compared to predecessors or recommend dedicated track tires for hard circuit driving.

r/CarTalkUK ·4 upvotes ·2025-01-26

“A note about the pilot sport 4 S: in cold weather (below 5 degrees) even if it isn't icy, the tyre compound hardens and has dramatically reduced grip. They are excellent summer tyres though, good in the wet too. These days I run Uniroyal rainsport 5 and they're very good.”

r/tires ·1 upvote ·2026-08-03

“I tried conti’s and took them off the car after 2 days and went back to ps4s. Obviously on a closed course they feel very floaty around 130 and I’ve had the Michelin’s up to 165-170 and they stay planted. Depends if you drive those speeds, but like Watkins glen you’ll legally notice the difference. It was shocking at first.”

uk-polos.net ·2021-09-21

“If you can burn through a set of rock hard Bridgestones in 8k miles then you must be driving like a nutter. Most will see 20k miles on the fronts. You also talk about "throwing" the car around. If you're flinging the car around, I think you'd find the car a lot more predictable on 4 tyres of the same type rather than those on the front axle being a lot gripper than those on the rear axle. I'd recommend 35psi fronts and 33psi backs, if you were running 4 x PS4s. Back end stability is a little way off the likes of a Golf GTI when you start flinging it around - rear axle grip for both wheels on a bend would be far better with multilink rear suspension (which the Polo doesn't have). I've momentarily lost the back end once when I had all Bridgestones on. My 2018 Polo GTI went tail happy doing some moderate acceleration out of a large roundabout (so large it was almost straight) when I had 4000.miles on - bone dry road on a warm day. In the outside lane, a Golf GTD gunned it at twice my rate of acceleration, with no drama. That was the incident that made me decide to ditch the Bridgestones for PS4s.”

Top themes
#Wet and dry grip#Track day durability#High price vs alternatives#Tread life and wear#Cold weather performance#Sidewall stiffness and comfort

Based on 208 community posts

Specs side by side

Attribute A · Michelin CrossClimate B · Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S
CategoryAll SeasonSummer
Vehicle typePassenger Car / CrossoverPassenger Car / Crossover
Sizes available—110
Rim diameters—17″ – 22″

Which one should you actually buy?

Michelin CrossClimate

Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S

Winner: Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S — better dry, handling and wet. Pick the Michelin CrossClimate if efficiency matters most to you.

Pick tire B You want the most grip on dry roads

Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S scores 93 vs 76 on dry.

Pick tire B You enjoy sharp, responsive handling

Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S scores 90 vs 73 on handling.

Pick tire B Your priority is wet-weather safety

Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S scores 88 vs 76 on wet.

Pick tire B You want the most comfortable ride

Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S scores 79 vs 74 on comfort.

Tire A · Michelin CrossClimate
Tire B · Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S

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CrossClimate or Pilot Sport 4 S?

Which is better in the wet, CrossClimate or Pilot Sport 4 S?

Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S, 88 vs 76 on our wet score.

Which grips better on dry roads, CrossClimate or Pilot Sport 4 S?

Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S, 93 vs 76 on our dry score.

Which is quieter, CrossClimate or Pilot Sport 4 S?

Neither, by our numbers: 69 vs 69 on the noise score, within 3 points.

Which is more comfortable, CrossClimate or Pilot Sport 4 S?

Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S, 79 vs 74 on our comfort score.

Which lasts longer, CrossClimate or Pilot Sport 4 S?

Neither, by our numbers: 74 vs 72 on the treadwear score, within 3 points.

Which rolls more easily, CrossClimate or Pilot Sport 4 S?

Michelin CrossClimate, 76 vs 72 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