Writing about the
Michelin Primacy 4 given
54% (215-55-16-)
Driving on
a combination of roads for 20000
spirited miles
I fitted the Primacy 4 after using the Bridgestone ER300. It lasted for around 3 years before I replaced the primacy 4 with the Kumho HS52.
The reason I chose this Michelin is because of all the good reviews online.
The Primacy 4 from the moment I drove from the tire shop, they felt slippery and floaty which is not really what you want from a new tire. These tires always slipped under hard acceleration and they never stopped slipping. My car is only a 1.4 TSI with 122BHP so nothing really powerful, yet the primacy 4 is just that bad in dry grip.
On the highway, It was comfortable and quiet (quieter than the ER300 I had before) but on worn highways where there are some dips in the surface, the car would just feel floaty and does not make me feel confident.
In the wet they were good, However, I live in a hot and dry climate and I rarely care about wet performance for a tire.
If you notice, all online reviews focus on wet performance and very little on dry performance. This turns out to be the reason why the primacy 4 are well regarded online.
For comfort however, these are quite comfortable and make speed humps seem smoother than other tires. But at what cost? I would choose dry grip over comfort any day.
For braking, dry braking was about average, not impressive for a new over priced Michelin. Wet braking was good.
For Wear, the tires lasted for just over 3 years and have done about 33,000 km, The thing is, I have never replaced tires because they are worn to the limit. Where I live, all tires dry rot way before ever wearing down. So all the good wear performance mean nothing for me when choosing a new tire, unless they start testing new tires for dry rot maybe!
So in conclusion, for my use and the climate here, Wear performance mean nothing, wet performance mean very little (If it is pouring down, I would just choose not to drive anyway). Comfort was good. Road feedback was average but the Passat B7 does not provide that much feedback either. Dry grip was just not good at all, always slipping under high acceleration and dry braking was above average.
I have replaced the primacy 4 with the Kumho HS52. In comparison, the HS52 has much better dry grip, they actually feel like new tires, they are less comfortable that the primacy 4 but I would choose dry grip over comfort. For wet grip, I haven't tested it but I live in hot dry weather anyway, so rarely do we have rain so don't care that much.
To describe the primacy 4 in short sentences:
Does not grip well in the dry at all. feels slippery
Feels floaty and does not induce confidence.
Very good in the wet.
Comfortable and quiet.
Would not buy again, even if they were cheap.