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Head-to-head Updated

Michelin Pilot Sport A/S 3 vs Michelin Primacy 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 + 10 road tests and 7 + 40 owner reviews. How we score

Primacy 4+ leads, 78–76 Narrow edge

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Michelin Primacy 4+
Tire BMichelin

Primacy 4+

Summer

± 4

Tests 85 · 10 tests Owners 71 · 40 reviews

Best test result: #1 of 16 in 2024 ADAC Summer Tyre Test (abrasion)

Category by category

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

  1. 77

    Dry

    Primacy 4+ +1
    78
    Why this score
    SourcePilot Sport A/S 3Primacy 4+
    Professional tests (TWG score) · – / 9 tests≈ 74 (est.)82
    Reviews found online8271

    Pilot Sport A/S 3: 60% × 73.8 (est.) + 40% × 81.9 = 77

    Primacy 4+: 60% × 82.4 + 40% × 71.1 = 78

    No road tests of dry for Pilot Sport A/S 3. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.42).

  2. 80

    Wet

    Pilot Sport A/S 3 +1
    79
    Why this score
    SourcePilot Sport A/S 3Primacy 4+
    Professional tests (TWG score) · – / 9 tests≈ 78 (est.)82
    Reviews found online8475

    Pilot Sport A/S 3: 60% × 78 (est.) + 40% × 84 = 80

    Primacy 4+: 60% × 82.1 + 40% × 74.6 = 79

    No road tests of wet for Pilot Sport A/S 3. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.55).

  3. 71

    Snow

    No comparison
    –
    Why this score
    SourcePilot Sport A/S 3Primacy 4+
    Professional tests (TWG score)≈ 71 (est.)–
    Reviews found online71–

    Pilot Sport A/S 3: 60% × 70.8 (est.) + 40% × 71.2 = 71

    No road tests of snow for Pilot Sport A/S 3. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.32).

  4. 70

    Comfort

    Primacy 4+ +1
    71
    Why this score
    SourcePilot Sport A/S 3Primacy 4+
    Professional tests (TWG score) · – / 1 tests≈ 69 (est.)73
    Reviews found online7169

    Pilot Sport A/S 3: 40% × 69.1 (est.) + 60% × 70.6 = 70

    Primacy 4+: 40% × 72.8 + 60% × 69.3 = 71

    No road tests of comfort for Pilot Sport A/S 3. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.20).

  5. –

    Noise

    No comparison
    72
    Why this score
    SourcePilot Sport A/S 3Primacy 4+
    Professional tests (TWG score) · – / 7 tests–76
    Reviews found online–≈ 66 (est.)

    Primacy 4+: 60% × 76.2 + 40% × 66.3 (est.) = 72

    No owner ratings of noise for Primacy 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.

  6. 70

    Treadwear

    Primacy 4+ +15
    85
    Why this score
    SourcePilot Sport A/S 3Primacy 4+
    Professional tests (TWG score) · – / 4 tests≈ 68 (est.)95
    Reviews found online7270

    Pilot Sport A/S 3: 60% × 68.4 (est.) + 40% × 71.6 = 70

    Primacy 4+: 60% × 94.9 + 40% × 69.6 = 85

    No road tests of treadwear for Pilot Sport A/S 3. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.36).

  7. 81

    Handling (owners)

    Pilot Sport A/S 3 +14
    67
    Why this score
    SourcePilot Sport A/S 3Primacy 4+
    Reviews found online8167
  8. –

    Efficiency

    No comparison
    78
    Why this score
    SourcePilot Sport A/S 3Primacy 4+
    Professional tests (TWG score) · – / 8 tests–78
Scores at a glance
CategoryMichelin Pilot Sport A/S 3Michelin Primacy 4+
Relative Score 76 78
Dry 77 78
Wet 80 79
Snow 71 –
Comfort 70 71
Noise – 72
Treadwear 70 85
Handling (owners) 81 67
Efficiency – 78

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
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

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
± 8

Pilot Sport A/S 3

± 4

Primacy 4+

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 Pilot Sport A/S 3

Pros

  • Exceptional grip in both wet and dry weather conditions
  • Outstanding cornering stability and steering responsiveness
  • Stiff sidewalls providing superior handling compared to competitors

Cons

  • Noticeable and bothersome road noise
  • Heavy tire construction
  • Shorter than expected tread life for certain drivers on abrasive surfaces
All owner themes in the Pilot Sport A/S 3 review

Tire B Primacy 4+

Pros

  • Strong wet and dry grip and braking confidence, often cited as a big improvement over Bridgestone, Dunlop and Nexen tyres, including on powerful cars and PHEVs that previously spun their tyres
  • Comfortable, compliant ride with soft sidewalls that suits softly sprung and family cars
  • Low and even tread wear, with several owners reporting little visible wear after 5,000–10,000 miles and one reporting about 60,000 km in hot climates

Cons

  • Road noise and drone, especially on rough asphalt, was described as severe by several owners (Skoda Yeti, Lexus), contradicting other reports of quiet running
  • Reduced grip and confidence in cold, damp conditions, with two UK owners saying the tyre behaves like a budget tyre
  • Premium pricing, with some owners questioning value when life fell short of expectations
All owner themes in the Primacy 4+ review

Specs side by side

Attribute A · Michelin Pilot Sport A/S 3 B · Michelin Primacy 4+
CategoryAll SeasonSummer
Vehicle typePassenger Car / CrossoverPassenger Car / Crossover
Sizes available666
Rim diameters19″ – 20″16″ – 21″
UTQG500 AA A—
Sizes in common00

Which one should you actually buy?

Michelin Pilot Sport A/S 3

Michelin Primacy 4+

Narrow edge: Michelin Primacy 4+ — better treadwear. Pick the Michelin Pilot Sport A/S 3 if handling matters most to you. Michelin Pilot Sport A/S 3 rests on little evidence so far (0 tests, 7 reviews), so read this result as provisional.

Pick tire B You want the longest tread life

Michelin Primacy 4+ scores 85 vs 70 on treadwear.

Pick tire A You enjoy sharp, responsive handling

Michelin Pilot Sport A/S 3 scores 81 vs 67 on handling.

Tire A · Michelin Pilot Sport A/S 3
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Tire B · Michelin Primacy 4+
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Pilot Sport A/S 3 or Primacy 4+?

Which is better in the wet, Pilot Sport A/S 3 or Primacy 4+?

Neither, by our numbers: 80 vs 79 on the wet score, within 3 points.

Which grips better on dry roads, Pilot Sport A/S 3 or Primacy 4+?

Neither, by our numbers: 77 vs 78 on the dry score, within 3 points.

Which is more comfortable, Pilot Sport A/S 3 or Primacy 4+?

Neither, by our numbers: 70 vs 71 on the comfort score, within 3 points.

Which lasts longer, Pilot Sport A/S 3 or Primacy 4+?

Michelin Primacy 4+, 85 vs 70 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