Photo comparison of 235/40 vs. 225/40 Michelin Pilot Super Spot on Stock Austins

[napadirt]

dr_mat,

It's not placebo. It's plain as day. Others report the same changes, less body roll, rougher ride.

I am not surprised at VW's tire choice. They are a good all around tire. The A/S Pirelli's are probably acceptable to 95% of their customers, espeacially those in regions where it snows. Let's also be honest the GTI is not a pure sports car, e.g. 911, it's a daily driver woth mass appeal so A/S trires are a good choice.

 

[carterruss]

dr_mat,

It's not placebo. It's plain as day. Others report the same changes, less body roll, rougher ride.

I am not surprised at VW's tire choice. They are a good all around tire. The A/S Pirelli's are probably acceptable to 95% of their customers, espeacially those in regions where it snows. Let's also be honest the GTI is not a pure sports car, e.g. 911, it's a daily driver woth mass appeal so A/S trires are a good choice.

I think the Michelin A/S would be a good compromise though. I've heard good things.

 

[jjm51]

You are welcomed John! Glad it was helpful. Good luck with your new wheels/tires. These Michelin PSS transform the way the car drives. Not just more grip.

thanks again.

this is a good discussion going on in this thread. even from dr_mat.

learning lots.

thanks napadirt and everyone else.

 

[dwvw]

There's tons of back room dealing going on when a car manufacturer chooses it's suppliers. Cost, supply, warranty, etc.

 

[dr_mat]

Hey, it's not that I don't believe you guys.. I do doubt it makes a lot of difference to the actual amount of body roll, but I know that different tyres can make all sorts of actual, objective, differences to the handling of a car. I just want to add a note of self-assessment to people. I read so often that people are persuading themselves that so-and-so modification has been great, more responsive, more power, better mpg etc etc and 99% of the time it's just placebo and they're just inclined to look for the positives than they were before they spent their money. OR, in a lot of cases on the Corrado forum, people are comparing a brand new third party component against a 15 year old OEM component. No surprise which one is better .. but "how would it compare against a new OE component?" is the question I'm asking.

FWIW I've gone through cheap-ass Kwik Fit specials (roasted those during one track day), Goodyear Eagle F1s (excellent all round but no longer available in the size), Toyo Proxes (good in the dry, very hard compound, very hard handling, scary in the wet), Uniroyal Rainsports (more practical in the UK..), and now have some Champiros (similar to the Toyos..) on a set of wheels I picked up cheaply. I've been around the block once or twice. (This is all on the Corrado obviously.. a car that chews a set of front tyres in 6500 miles.)

There are a lot of variables around what makes a good tyre for a car, and to some extent there's no single answer - particularly there's different answers for people in different climates and with different driving styles.

I am open to experimentation, however.. tyres don't last forever, so try them out. You'll have to buy some more in a year or two anyway and if it doesn't work out, just switch next time around..

 

[Geoffcuz]

Has anyone tried the Pilot sport 3 how do they compare?

 

[MAGICGTI]

Can't thank you enough for this thread, ordered 235/40 for the Austins at Costco.

$793 installed for Y-rated, can't wait to sell the 1k mile Pirellis.

 

[cooloregon]

I'll take the award for most improved mk7.

[/URL][/IMG] I don't know about that......

 

[Gstyle2015Mk7]

You can actually put 245 with no problem


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[Whomiked]

Any update on tread wear and ride quality after breaking them in?

 

[jmasse]

There are many things stated incorrectly in this thread and I will try to briefly break them down.

1. Going with 235's is not the best idea. You are actually going to a taller tire which will cause the TPMS problems along with potential ABS concerns. Overall diameter of the tire is very critical, not just whether it fits.

2. It is comical to listen to owners change from A/S Pirelli's to a max performance Michelin and then rave about the 235 difference. It is not the 10mm width that made the difference, it is the completely different design tire.

In summary, stick with the 225's and pick a tire that provides what you want out of the car. Max Performance/Mileage/Ride Quality/Noise Reduction.....and you cannot have all of those without compromise. I personally run the Michelin PSS and could not be happier, but I wanted more lateral grip and steering response. They provided that without any ride quality concerns I was able to notice.

Hope this helps.

 

[Swoope]

1. Going with 235's is not the best idea. You are actually going to a taller tire which will cause the TPMS problems along with potential ABS concerns. Overall diameter of the tire is very critical, not just whether it fits.



Hope this helps.

not accurate at all. as long as the 4 tires are the same diameter the car does not know the difference. the tire pressure monitoring is done by the abs sensors and will go off if a tire changes diameter / as when you get a flat..

i run the stock 225 40 18 daily. i run 235 45 17 on track, i have run 245 40 18 because i had to while getting some tires mounted. all worked fine. and the 245 40 18 are almost an inch taller.. only downside here was the speedometer was off.

did have to reset the tpms when i changed tires.

beers

 

[flipflp]

Wow the things the internet comes up with.

There is going to be little to no difference between these two tire sizes for 99% of the world. On the street, compare just about any tire brand or model, a 235 is going to act identical to the 225 unless you're driving at 10/10ths on a race track.

The words "body roll" are being thrown around like those round black rubber things on the ground somehow can affect what the 3000 lbs on top of it do when G-forces are in play. What you are likely feeling is a stiffer side wall, allowing less flex and making the car feel flatter, but the suspension is not responding any differently. "Body roll" is unchanged.

That said, Michelin does give the spec for a 235 tire on an 8"-9.5" wheel. When you mount a 235 on a 7.5" wheel, you're giving up some of that stiffer side wall because the tire is technically "too wide" for the rim. A narrower tire can actually be "faster" on the track if your mechanical grip needs are still met. That's because of the stiffer/tighter sidewall, which is something Pilot Super Sports are good at without being obnoxious.

Bottom line, this is somewhere between an appearance mod and a placebo, but if you're happy, I'm happy.

 

[jmasse]

Wow the things the internet comes up with.

There is going to be little to no difference between these two tire sizes for 99% of the world. On the street, compare just about any tire brand or model, a 235 is going to act identical to the 225 unless you're driving at 10/10ths on a race track.

The words "body roll" are being thrown around like those round black rubber things on the ground somehow can affect what the 3000 lbs on top of it do when G-forces are in play. What you are likely feeling is a stiffer side wall, allowing less flex and making the car feel flatter, but the suspension is not responding any differently. "Body roll" is unchanged.

That said, Michelin does give the spec for a 235 tire on an 8"-9.5" wheel. When you mount a 235 on a 7.5" wheel, you're giving up some of that stiffer side wall because the tire is technically "too wide" for the rim. A narrower tire can actually be "faster" on the track if your mechanical grip needs are still met. That's because of the stiffer/tighter sidewall, which is something Pilot Super Sports are good at without being obnoxious.

Bottom line, this is somewhere between an appearance mod and a placebo, but if you're happy, I'm happy.

It's not "what the internet came up with", I have been in the tire business for 18 years and most tire changes are detrimental and not helpful at all. There is a reason the car came with 225's. Changing tire sizes is not the same as it used to be....manufacturers spend a ton on engineering and research around tires especially on performance tires. Do what you want, I am just trying to help people make their car better and not waste money and meaningless changes.

 

[flipflp]

It's not "what the internet came up with", I have been in the tire business for 18 years and most tire changes are detrimental and not helpful at all. There is a reason the car came with 225's. Changing tire sizes is not the same as it used to be....manufacturers spend a ton on engineering and research around tires especially on performance tires. Do what you want, I am just trying to help people make their car better and not waste money and meaningless changes.

Did you read my post?

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