Yokohama AD08 vs Michelin Pilot Super Sport
 

Just thought I would write down my thoughts about the two tires incase anyone was thinking about the two.

In 2010 I ran the Yoks and in 2011 I ran the Michs. I got about 10K miles on both sets. I tracked 3 days on the Yoks and 5 days on the Michs. During both years I was 100% stock. The camber settings were -1.0 fronts and -1.5 rears.

Daily driving: I think both sets are awesome for driving around town. Both provide a lot of grip through the corners on the street. With the Michs getting two more track days in the 10K, I think the Michs would get a lot more miles than the Yoks if they never saw the track.

Wet driving: I thought both tires were good in the wet. I drove one wet track day on each of the sets of tires. They were just regular track days and not competition, so I can't say I was on the edge and I don't know which one would be better, but I do know I felt confident on each tire on the track. On the street, I thought both were fine. Niether made me feel nervous or uncomfortable.

Track driving: This is where there are huge differences. From day one I loved the Yoks. I thought they had a ton of grip, the sidewalls are firm, and the tires gave me a lot of confidence. My last track day on the tires I had 4/32s left and I felt like a track god! That day is one of my favorites. I was able to put down my best lap time yet at Pacific Raceways. If you want my opinion, buy the AD08s, you will not be dissapointed.

Now for the MPSSs. I had picked up some nails after my last track day with the Yoks so I had to get a new set of tires. I had read about the new Michs and how Ferrari are making these tires OEM. The articles also talked about how much grip these tires had, so I thought I would give them a try. Well, before my first lap out I had put on 1500 miles to break them in. I attacked the track like I had in the Yoks, and it scared the crap out of me. Turn 5 at PR (Pacific Raceways) is my favorite, and that corner bit me (thank goodness for DSC). So I settled down and realized there's a bit of tread squirm because now I am on about 8-9/32s instead of 4/32. Rookie move. But I never got all my confidence back with those tires. They screech very loudly around the corners. The sidewalls don't have the stiffness that the Yoks have, it felt like the tires were being pulled under the car and it felt like I was in a big Cadillac in the corners.

This is the part of the review that really upsets me. I was able to put down almost the same times at PR in the Michs as the Yoks. So I guess the grip is there, but it sapped all my confidence, and I never felt comfortable on the track with the Michs. I was very happy when the tread wore out and I got to buy a new set of tires, which I went back to the AD08s.


Here's a video comparo of the two tires at Pacific Raceway.

Here's a second comparo video It's a bit unfair because for one, it's a difference between my first and second time at ORP. Also when I went back for my second time there I had put on SS brake lines, and I was running HP+ pads (they were awesome) I also had installed an OMP racing seat and had a 6 point harness to keep me in place. The Yoks still gave me a ton of confidence over the Michs.

Also on the Michs (I was stock) and my camber was set at -1.0 fronts and -1.5 rears.
This time round on the Yoks, I had -1.3 fronts and -1.7 rears.

Thanks for the review, you have answered what I speculated.

Just went through some pictures and found some before and after pics of the Michelins. This is probably the main reason I didn't like the Michelins, the sidewalls were not stiff enough for me. I had bumped the tire pressure up to 37 psi and I guess that wasn't enough. The car always felt sloppy with the Michelins, but it was really bad on the last track day, and it felt like the tires were being pulled under the car. The two pictures are the same tire.


The first picture is on the first day I tracked the tire (with about 1.5k miles) and the front right camber was set to -1.0.

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The second picture is on the fifth track day (with about 10k miles) and the rear camber was set to -1.5. You can see on the edge of the tread/sidewall bits of the outer shell were being torn away on the last run.

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Also you can see on the Michelins there is a nice rounded edge from the tread to the sidewall and the sidewall angles inward. On the Yokohamas there is more of a 90 degree angle from the tread to the sidewall. I have read somewhere that this almost makes the 225s a 235.

The Yoks have not produced the edge of the sidewall wear that I have gotten on the Michelins and on the OEM REO40s.

Someone get this man some more camber!

How many kms and track days did you get of the AD08's ?

According to his first post he got approx 10k miles out of both sets of tires and tracked the AD08's 3 times. So much for the PSS 300 tread wear rating.

Hard to overcome lost confidence.

For street use, did you notice the MPSS getting any better MPG in DD conditions over the AD08's? I don't track my car, just some spirited back road driving now and then so 90% of the time I'd lean towards the tire with better tread wear and better economy if there was a difference between the two.



5 vs. 3 track days is 67% more track miles on the MPSS, thats a lot

Yes it is.

I didn't notice any difference in MPG. If you're looking for better tread wear I would recommend the MPSSs.


I have always figured 150-200 on the track is like 1000-2000 miles on the street.

I have three track days on my new set of AD08s and a few k miles on them; though on three different tracks. In the next day or two I'll measure the tread depth and take a picture of them to show how well the corner of the tire holds up compared to the MPSS.

Nice review, thanks for sharing!

Nope, the tire pressure is too low, which will greatly increase wear and cause outer corner blistering

scrubbing way out on the sidewall

https://www.rx8club.com/attachment.p...1&d=1357413753

Here's an update. Last year I ran a set of Yoks AD08s, I also upgraded my suspension with a more aggressive alignment, which I think helped out with my treadwear. My front camber was -2.0 and my rears were -1.6, front toes were 0.0 rear toes were .12

I got 15K out of the set with 5 track days. As you can see in the pictures below they held up really good. I had about 3mm left. I just got a new set of Yok AD08 Rs and I can't wait to try them out.


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