PILOT SPORT CUP 2

<p>These replaced Continental SportContact 7, which in turn replaced the standard-fit Michelin Pilot Sport 4S, of which I had gone through two sets of (total of about 30,000 summer miles).</p><p>The additional noise was noticeable from pulling away from the tyre place, but so was the immediacy in the turn-in. Over the next few hundred miles I pushed them harder and harder and it was clear that they offered significant additional grip and confidence over the Continentals, which I considered a useful upgrade in every sense over the OEM Michelins.</p><p>Trying to find the limits of grip was difficult, on the right surface and once at full temperature they really seemed impossible to unstick unless I truly went in too hot. When grip was finally relinquished they tended to skitter very slightly, but this was always well telegraphed and controllable.</p><p>They also make commendably little noise, starting to squeal only at the very limit which is good if you prefer a stealth approach! Much quieter than the SC7 or PS4S.</p><p>I was cautious in lower temperature running and kept an eye on pressures, using this as an analogue for temperature, however even in pretty cold weather (an early Furka Pass start saw 3°C on the in-car display!) they proved grippy and reliable, although I was always wary that they would not be at their best in such conditions.</p><p>Considering this, and their position towards the more extreme end of road tyres, I would say their cold weather performance is remarkable, but as these are purely summer tyres for me this will rarely even be a concern. It's still nice to know that you can drive them in cool conditions without having to tiptoe around and worry about sliding off the road if you have to take evasive action.</p><p>I also had the opportunity to test them in a variety of wet conditions, from patchy damp through typical wet roads to absolute monsoon conditions and again they proved far more resilient than I was expecting. OK, they are new and so still have decent tread depth (even it this is noticeably less than other tyres from new), but in the conditions I drove in they still gripped well and communicated plenty.</p><p>What I haven't yet done are any track miles, nor have I driven at speed in the wet where standing water and aquaplaning might be a concern i.e. on a motorway. Others who have used Cup 2 advised me to watch the warm up and make sure they are at temperature before leaning on them so I was conscious to do that, and although I've not been on track I certainly gave them a thorough Alpine workout on all kinds of surface from smooth, new tarmac, through rough and bumpy worn roads, to sections of pavé and they always provided confidence and tremendous levels of grip.</p><p>Let's see how they wear; it seems I get about 10k miles out of a set of tyres on this car so it will be interesting to see how the Cup 2 compare. The price I paid was more than the SC7 but less than PS4S cost, so in that sense they are actually well priced, if not the total bargain that the Continentals are.</p>

Had them on a fully stock 3rd gen Clio RS with Cup package, used them 50/50 road/small racetrack. Definitely not the fastest semislick, but the most civilized ones - extremely predictable at the limit, surprisingly good in wet and low temps (do not aquaplain on highway at 140 kph at full wet conditions). NVH similar to Bridgestone Potenza Sport. Sadly the wear was horrible, although I assume it was mostly due to a combination of stock (ca. -0,5 deg) camber and track usage.

Quite pricey tyres, yet very grippy and also confortable once you let a few psi out of them.

My ratings are based on a road driven car, I do not think this is an ideal road tire.
This tire takes some time to get some heat into it. Often I think on the road it takes too long or you never actually get it up to temps depending on your drive, ambient temps and speeds.
When the tires are cold (or don't have sufficient heat in them), the grip levels aren't that great, I've lost rear traction around round abouts even after driving the car a while and thinking there was heat in the tires. I think a tire like the Pilot 4S or the new upcoming S5 will be a better street tire.

After the run in check (at 2000 km), replaced the OEM Pilot Super Sport with Cup 2 (265/35 R19 and 285/30 R20).
They really stick like s**t to your shoe! But you need first to heat them up AND accordingly adjust the tire pressure! It's the most heat sensitive tire I had until now...you can start at 20°C and 2,3 bar and end up with almost 3 bar at 70°C on the highway. So, before doing another lap, get out, check the pressure and adjust at around 2.1-2.2 bar. Front-back variation, at your own discretion, depending on how do you want your car to behave.
They are so sticky that even cold they SUCK the pebbles in the parking lot and the MPG is worse than with Pilot Super Sport (from 9 to 11-12 l/100 km).
Road feed back is amazing, it's like you feel the road with your own palm faces. And the are more comfortable than the Super Sports! I guess the side wall is not that stiff. Who knows.
Now the bad part: it absolutely does hate cold and wet conditions. As in, no grip. Try to pull away from a stop at a roundabout, you only get shudders from the back and not much forward momentum. So you need to time your starts accordingly (more time and space to the next incoming car).
But with care, you can manage it. During a long trip, I also drove in snowy conditions (unexpected, it was only September) and it went ok. Just take care and no sudden movements.