Best Hot Hatch Tyres

Soldato
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It's not just the wet grip, some of the track tyres are very good in the wet. It's that semi-slicks are very prone to aquaplaning.
 
Soldato
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Plus they are worse when cold. So you get a high power car with them cold trying to put the power down in the wet and off they go.
 
Soldato
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The RE71's, 660's and A052's don't need to heat up to be fast. -But in hot conditions they can overheat and get greasy with continuous use.

The Rivals, tolerate heat better, but they usually need a lap to get up to temp. (They aren't terrible on the first lap though)
 
Soldato
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Apologies for the lack of response, i expected any replies would show in Alerts and thought this thread had died.

I ended up going with Eagle F1 A5 as the price was good (and I hadn't read this, fail). I'll report back how I'm finding them when I manage to get out, compared to the last set of Eagle F1 A2. Yeah my tyres last that long.

I think if I had read this I would have gone PS4 and I have a lot of respect for the brand using their motorcycle tyres which are excellent. Maybe by the time I need the next set they will have decided to import the PS4S. Maybe.
 
Soldato
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Are Pilot Sport 4s still the way to go? Are they really worth the £175 per corner price tag?

Have a Mk7 Golf GTI @ 300hp/400nm and current tyres need replacing.

The Michelin 4S is the best tyre I've used, and I'm fairly sure I've used pretty much all of the top UHP tyres over the last 10 years or so. The thing that completely justifies the price tag on the 4S is how hard wearing they are. It's absolutely witchcraft how they provide so much grip yet don't seem to wear.

The independent tests showed that you'll almost go through 2 sets of Sport Contact 6s to every set of Michelin 4S.

The Pilot Sport 4 is a good tyre but isn't anywhere near as hard wearing or has the steering feel of the 4S. The Eagle F1A5 would be my choice over the standard Pilot Sport 4.
 
Soldato
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Are Pilot Sport 4s still the way to go? Are they really worth the £175 per corner price tag?

Have a Mk7 Golf GTI @ 300hp/400nm and current tyres need replacing.

Never seen them at that price, usually around the £150 mark. Guess it depends in the size.

But as others have said, PS4S are still the way to go but F1A5 are a good alternative if you can't find the stock.
 
Soldato
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The Pilot Sport 4 is a good tyre but isn't anywhere near as hard wearing or has the steering feel of the 4S. The Eagle F1A5 would be my choice over the standard Pilot Sport 4.

This is interesting to hear. I may be due a new set of tyres by the end of the year. Currently have F1AS3. PS4S seems to be the go to choice, but I can only get the PS4 in my size. I'd assumed they'd be much the same, but Tyre Review did a comparison of the PS4/CS6/F1AS5 and said the same, that the Goodyear actually felt the sportier tyre over the Michelin. They are also a fair bit cheaper.
 
Caporegime
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The independent tests showed that you'll almost go through 2 sets of Sport Contact 6s to every set of Michelin 4S.

This alone seems a great selling point regardless of the extra cost! I'll be looking at the 4S all-round when mine run low :)

Edit - Crap, my Mini GP2 wheels are 17" and these seem to start at 18! Damn. Cup 2's on the rear atm so the previous to last owner spared no expense it seems...
 
Soldato
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Avoid F1AS5 great grip & great wear but weak overall...had 3 failures on 3 different corners in the last year! Never buying them again!!
 
Soldato
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Let me know how they are, I have the same car and thinking of going with a stage 1 tune with it

I have a tune too, on the standard non performance pack GTI - these tyres have made a huge difference in feel while accelerating out of corners!

With all the extra torque from the tune, and no LSD to help me out, the car now feels like it's wanting to pull through the corners, rather than push like it used to do when getting on the throttle.

Went with a full set in the end, and by going full set they offer £50 cash back - so £586 fitted all in. Seemingly money well spent right now!
 
Soldato
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Avoid F1AS5 great grip & great wear but weak overall...had 3 failures on 3 different corners in the last year! Never buying them again!!

Could you elaborate on this, what happened? Blowouts? I've had several sets of F1AS tyres over the years, I'm on a set now which is approaching 4 years old, and I've not had any issues. Is there a known issue with just the latest model?
 
Associate
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I have a tune too, on the standard non performance pack GTI - these tyres have made a huge difference in feel while accelerating out of corners!

With all the extra torque from the tune, and no LSD to help me out, the car now feels like it's wanting to pull through the corners, rather than push like it used to do when getting on the throttle.

Went with a full set in the end, and by going full set they offer £50 cash back - so £586 fitted all in. Seemingly money well spent right now!
Thanks for the update - I have the same setup (non PP GTI) and already notice issues with grip pre-tune so I'll be looking into these tyres soon
 
Soldato
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Avoid F1AS5 great grip & great wear but weak overall...had 3 failures on 3 different corners in the last year! Never buying them again!!

I had a couple start to bulge on the side wall. But it was years ago and an older gen.

I found them much noisier than PS3s too. Not sure if they improved it.
 
Associate
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I had a set of F1 AS5 fitted 18 months ago and the fronts are being replaced on Thursday with the same F1 AS5 again. No issues with them whatsoever. Wear, comfort, grip, all fine, they are a great all round tyre and very good value.

Possibly not the all out "best" tyre, but for the most part I bet I'd struggle to appreciate the difference between those and PS4s in 90% of my journeys.
 
Soldato
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This is interesting to hear. I may be due a new set of tyres by the end of the year. Currently have F1AS3. PS4S seems to be the go to choice, but I can only get the PS4 in my size. I'd assumed they'd be much the same, but Tyre Review did a comparison of the PS4/CS6/F1AS5 and said the same, that the Goodyear actually felt the sportier tyre over the Michelin. They are also a fair bit cheaper.

Yeh there was nothing wrong with the PS4 at all, but it doesn't have the magic that the Pilot Super Sport and Pilot Sport 4S in them to make them last forever. The Goodyear Eagle F1A5 is a big step forward from the A3 and is a bargain by comparison to the Michelins. On my girlfriends car, they have worn about as fast as the PS4 too. Ultimately, if it comes to the PS4 or the F1A5, just get whichever is cheaper. They're very much of muchness and both are excellent all round tyres.
 
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