Tire Description

Pilot Sport Cup Track & Competition DOT radials benefit from the same attention to detail that has earned Michelin repeated successes at major endurance races like the 24 Hours of Le Mans, 12 Hours of Sebring and Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta. The Pilot Sport Cup was developed for enthusiasts who participate in track events, as well as for serious drivers on the road. Pilot Sport Cup tires are not intended to be driven on extremely wet roads with standing water where there is the risk of hydroplaning, or in near-freezing temperatures, through snow or on ice. The Pilot Sport Cup features a dual zone, side-by-side tread compound with the outboard compound optimized for dry traction and handling while the inboard compound is focused on wet traction. These tread compounds are molded into an asymmetric tread design that features a massive outer shoulder rib to further enhance steering response and cornering stability while circumferential grooves and independent tread blocks on the tread design's inboard portion enhance wet traction.NOTE: Original Equipment Pilot Sport Cup + (Plus) tires for BMW and N-Spec tires for Porsche applications feature a slightly different tread design with a thin circumferential groove around the outboard shoulder. The Pilot Sport Cup's internal structure includes two full-width, steel belts reinforced with Michelin's Banded At Zero (BAZ) technology to stiffen the tread area and help prevent contact area distortion during aggressive acceleration, cornering, braking and high-speed use. The dimensions of traditional front and rear companion sizes were developed to avoid diameter differences that can adversely affect electronic driver's aids and all-wheel drive systems. Pilot Sport Cup tires are molded with 6/32" of tread depth in their grooves and are left unshaved for use on damp tracks. While Pilot Sport Cup tires do not require shaving for dry track use, their lap time performance will improve slightly if shaved to approximately 4/32" deep tread to begin competitive road racing/track use in dry conditions, however this will sacrifice significant tread life. Caution: Pilot Sport Cup tires are not recommended for high-speed driving on extremely wet roads/tracks with standing water where there is the risk of hydroplaning. This is especially true of shaved or worn tires. Drivers should drive cautiously at reduced speeds in these conditions.

Customer Reviews

This is an awesome tire for the track especially if you are coming off of using traditional Max performance street tires. I ran Eagle F1 GS-D3's in 2006 at open track days on a few road courses with good sucess. In 2007, I moved up to the Pilot Sport Cup's and dropped several seconds off of my lap times AND was consistent throughout the run sessions. While this may not be the best track tire out there, it is an EXCELLENT transitional tire from street to track. In other words, don't just jump right into "Race" track tires (tire wear rating of 40) without getting used to a similar "track" tire (tire wear rating of 60-100) first. This tire has excellent steering turn-in, responce, and turn-back capabilities. It is AWESOME at letting you know when you are AT or Near the limit. It gets up to temp quickly but does not tend to overheat (and drop performance like other tires that I have driven). That is why I feel that it is a great "learning" tire before getting into really high performance track tires. Now the draw back. You really need to have your alignment settings correct if you want to get high miles out of them. I have a FWD car that I had been fighting with the TOE and Camber settings. It has a solid rear axle, which means I 3-wheel (lift the inside rear tire) at high lat. This puts extra load on the outside front which just destroys the outer tread blocks. Cords will be showing in no time. I would prefer symetric inner and outer tread design so I could re-mount the tires and get a little more life out of them. I threw out the tires with cords showing on the outer, while the inner was in near perfect condition. One last piece of advise: If you could only have ONE set of street AND track tires on your car permanently, these tires are it. If you drive on the street mostly and seldom on the track, then consider the Eagle F1 Supercar. If you are track junky that drives on the street just to get to the track, then get the Michelin Pilot Sport Cup!

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