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Head-to-head Updated

Michelin Defender T+H vs Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S — Compared

Relative Score (0–100): 60% professional tests, 40% owner reviews.

Pilot Sport 4 S is ahead, 81–72

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Tire AMichelin

Defender T+H

Premium Touring All Season tire

Tests – · 1 test Owners 71 · 1 review

Best test result: #1 of 8 in 2022 Consumer Reports All-Season Tires (tested tread life (miles))

Tire BMichelin

Pilot Sport 4 S

Summer

Tests 80 · 27 tests Owners 82 · 6,570 reviews

Best test result: #2 of 10 in 2020 Auto Bild UHP 19 inch Tyre Test (overall ranking)

“Depending on the size they are absolutely overkill for street use on stock motor. I just installed a set of 245 ps4s on 17x9 rpf1s and its almost impossible to trigger the abs and traction co trol. The car is on absolute rails. That being said, if you have the money, there is not really any negatives from that. I intend to use mine on track days. Felt the cup 2s were overkill for 2 to 3 track days a year.”

Category by category

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

  1. 72

    Dry

    Pilot Sport 4 S +18
    90
    Why this score
    SourceDefender T+HPilot Sport 4 S
    Professional tests (TWG score)–91
    Reviews found online7489
  2. 74

    Wet

    Pilot Sport 4 S +11
    85
    Why this score
    SourceDefender T+HPilot Sport 4 S
    Professional tests (TWG score)–85
    Reviews found online7585
  3. 66

    Snow

    No comparison
    –
    Why this score
    SourceDefender T+HPilot Sport 4 S
    Reviews found online63–
  4. 70

    Comfort

    Pilot Sport 4 S +5
    75
    Why this score
    SourceDefender T+HPilot Sport 4 S
    Professional tests (TWG score)–70
    Reviews found online7081
  5. 68

    Noise

    Level
    68
    Why this score
    SourceDefender T+HPilot Sport 4 S
    Professional tests (TWG score)–69
    Reviews found online70–
  6. 73

    Treadwear

    Defender T+H +2
    71
    Why this score
    SourceDefender T+HPilot Sport 4 S
    Professional tests (TWG score)7570
    Reviews found online7072
  7. 72

    Handling

    Pilot Sport 4 S +14
    86
    Why this score
    SourceDefender T+HPilot Sport 4 S
    Reviews found online7286
Scores at a glance
CategoryMichelin Defender T+HMichelin Pilot Sport 4 S
Relative Score 72 81
Dry 72 90
Wet 74 85
Snow 66 –
Comfort 70 75
Noise 68 68
Treadwear 73 71
Handling 72 86

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
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Important
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Neutral
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Neither tire has a score here yet, so this weight changes nothing.

Less important
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Less important
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Important
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Neutral
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Recomputed
Headline score

Defender T+H

Pilot Sport 4 S

Only categories both tires have data for count toward the headline score.

The professional test results behind the scores

Each result is shown as % of the best tire in that test. “Same test” rows are the strictest comparison: both tires were measured side by side.

DisciplineCategoryDefender T+HPilot Sport 4 SΔBoth?
Tested Tread Life (Miles) Other 100% #1/8 · 2022 Consumer Reports All-Season Tires 62% #6/22 · 2022 Consumer Reports Ultra High Performance Summer Tires +38.5 Different tests
Overall Ranking Overall 100% #1/8 · 2022 Consumer Reports All-Season Tires 50% #2/10 · 2020 Auto Bild UHP 19 inch Tyre Test +50.0 Different tests

Pros, cons & observations

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

Tire A Defender T+H

Not enough owner reviews yet to extract themes.

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 Defender T+H

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

Tire B

Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S

Positive

The Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S is widely praised by the community as a premier max performance summer tire, offering exceptional dry and wet grip, precise steering feel, and refined road manners for daily driving and spirited street use. While some users note higher pricing and relatively quick wear on heavier vehicles or hot tracks, it remains a benchmark choice that many enthusiasts gladly return to despite alternatives like Continental or Kumho.

r/Corvette ·1 upvote ·2026-07-14

“I live in north east ohio and have a 730 wheel horsepower zr1. I have the pilot sport 4s summer tire. When the car was stock I could drive it in 45 and up and feel safe. Now at 730 it’s a little so so around 48 degrees. As far as rain. I have never felt like I was out of control with the car up to 75-80 in a fkin monsoon worth of rain. I had 10K miles on them with plenty of burnouts and plenty of 170 mph pulls and they had excellent tread life still, I had to replace due to a nail and an object in the road ruining the sidewall on the other one. I know everyone says they don’t last for shit, but 10K miles on a ZR1 track alignment and I had plenty of tread on them. I bet they’d go 20-30K miles with my driving style no problem.”
r/Golf_R ·1 upvote ·2021-03-17

“I run the all seasons on my Golf because I drive ~400+ miles per week in all matter of weather. The high tread wear rating and all-weather grip make more sense for me. But, having run the max performance PS4s before, if you’re cool with having two sets, they are basically impossible to beat. Absolute magic tires.”
r/WRXSTi ·149 upvotes ·2025-07-09

“New tires Pilot Sport 4s got some new Pilot Sport 4s in 245/40/18. way different to my yokohama advan AS+. a lot more grip, obviously. very minimal to no sidewall flex. very good tires. i had pilot sport 3's on my 2013 hatchback wrx back in the day. feels good to get back on some good tires again. Read more”
Top themes
#Dry and Wet Grip#Tread Life and Wear#Price vs Value#Track Performance Limits#Daily Comfort and Noise#Alternatives Comparison

Based on 104 community posts

Specs side by side

Attribute A · Michelin Defender T+H B · Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S
CategoryPremium Touring All Season tireSummer
Vehicle typeSUV and 4x4Passenger Car / Crossover
Sizes available—110
Rim diameters—17″ – 22″

Which one should you actually buy?

Michelin Defender T+H

Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S

Winner: Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S — better dry, handling and wet. It leads or ties in every category we score.

Pick tire B You want the most grip on dry roads

Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S scores 90 vs 72 on dry.

Pick tire B You enjoy sharp, responsive handling

Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S scores 86 vs 72 on handling.

Pick tire B Your priority is wet-weather safety

Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S scores 85 vs 74 on wet.

Pick tire B You want the most comfortable ride

Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S scores 75 vs 70 on comfort.

Tire A · Michelin Defender T+H
Check price on Amazon
Tire B · Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S
Check price on Amazon

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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.

81

Leads

Pilot Sport 4 S

Amazon