Tests – · none yet Owners 66 · 32 reviews
Dunlop Sport Maxx 050+ vs Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S — Compared
Relative Score (0–100): 60% professional tests, 40% owner reviews.
Pilot Sport 4 S is ahead, 83–67
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Tests 81 · 27 tests Owners 84 · 6,539 reviews
“Tire condition after 1st track day. PS4s on a GR86 First 2 pics are drivers front, rest pass front. This was at CMP, temps mid 70s, mostly cloudy. Lowered TP to 31psi. Highest I saw on track was 36 psi. The driver side l thought looked good, but passengers side inner looks like they melted. Is this track rubber I picked up or due to mostly turning right on this clockwise circuit?? Also was pleasantly surprised to only have used 1/16 of tread depth after 110 minutes on track. Given what I have read, thought the ps4s would be all used up. Maybe on a hot track surface they would have been eaten up. Read more”
Category by category
Relative Score per category, 0–100. Open “Why this score” for the tests and owner ratings behind it.
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66
Dry
Pilot Sport 4 S +2692Why this score
Source Sport Maxx 050+ Pilot Sport 4 S Professional tests (TWG score) – 92 Reviews found online 65 91 -
67
Wet
Pilot Sport 4 S +2087Why this score
Source Sport Maxx 050+ Pilot Sport 4 S Professional tests (TWG score) – 86 Reviews found online 66 87 -
64
Comfort
Pilot Sport 4 S +1074Why this score
Source Sport Maxx 050+ Pilot Sport 4 S Professional tests (TWG score) – 70 Reviews found online 58 81 -
–
Noise
No comparison68Why this score
Source Sport Maxx 050+ Pilot Sport 4 S Professional tests (TWG score) – 69 -
66
Treadwear
Pilot Sport 4 S +571Why this score
Source Sport Maxx 050+ Pilot Sport 4 S Professional tests (TWG score) – 70 Reviews found online 67 72 -
69
Handling
Pilot Sport 4 S +1988Why this score
Source Sport Maxx 050+ Pilot Sport 4 S Reviews found online 69 88
Scores at a glance
| Category | Dunlop Sport Maxx 050+ | Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S |
|---|---|---|
| Relative Score | 67 | 83 |
| Dry | 66 | 92 |
| Wet | 67 | 87 |
| Comfort | 64 | 74 |
| Noise | – | 68 |
| Treadwear | 66 | 71 |
| Handling | 69 | 88 |
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.
Neither tire has a score here yet, so this weight changes nothing.
Sport Maxx 050+
Pilot Sport 4 S
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 Sport Maxx 050+
Pros
- Reliable and confident dry grip for high-speed cornering and handling
- Impressive tread wear and long-lasting durability over tens of thousands of kilometers
- Good value for money relative to premium European brands
Cons
- Excessive road and cabin noise, particularly at motorway speeds
- Stiff and harsh ride quality over bumps and rough surfaces
- Mediocre to poor wet-weather traction with tendencies to slip or aquaplane
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
What real owners are saying
From Reddit, forums and review threads. Not part of our score
Dunlop Sport Maxx 050+
We haven't collected enough community discussion about this tire yet.
Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S
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.
“Am I the owner of the newer PS4s?😁 Hello everyone, new in the sub and just want to share my love for the Pilot Sport 4s. This is the third set and I love it. To me they are the perfect compromise beetween performance anche tyre wear. Last set last me 43k km, I do lot of highway and some spirited drive when possibile. I also had a set of Sport Contact 7, awesome grip, to me better than the PS4s, almost too much for my stock Golf. They also wear out faster. I saw yesterday the review of Potenza Sport Evo and they promise very week, maybe next time I’ll try!”
“I’ll say this. Going from the Pilot Super Sport to the Pilot Sport 4 S of the same size, I’m disappointed in the soft sidewall of the 4 S. This is an 8.5” wide wheel with 235/40/18 tires. The left-right fast slalom action got a bit mushy like the weight transfer was slowed down when I switched to the 4 S. I think a shorter sidewall 4 S would perform better in this way, or the same tire on a 9” wide wheel too. That said, the dry and wet grip is exceptional. To save money, I’d recommend the Continental ExtremeContact Sport.”
“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.”
Based on 104 community posts
Specs side by side
| Attribute | A · Dunlop Sport Maxx 050+ | B · Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Summer Ultra High Performance tires | Summer Max Performance tires |
| Vehicle type | Passenger Car / Crossover | Passenger Car / Crossover |
Which one should you actually buy?
Dunlop Sport Maxx 050+
Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S
Winner: Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S — better dry, wet and handling. It leads or ties in every category we score.
Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S scores 92 vs 66 on dry.
Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S scores 87 vs 67 on wet.
Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S scores 88 vs 69 on handling.
Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S scores 74 vs 64 on comfort.
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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.