e-man

Hey guys. I recently bought Michelin Pilot A/S 3 tires in 245 40 18, 97Y load/speed rating. They ride very stiff. I am thinking of switching to A/S 3s in the same size in 97V. V is the minimum speed rating for the 3GS with 18s. Is anyone running V rated tires on their car? I am looking for a more comfortable ride, but I'm wondering how much performance/handling I will sacrifice going down from Y to V. Thanks in advance.

e

worker

the speed rating is not about the stiffness of the tire wall. It's about how fast it can safely spin.

I don't think there is a rating for side wall stiffness.

e-man

That's true, but all else being equal, a tire that has a lower speed rating will have a softer side wall than the same tire with a higher speed rating. The 2006 GS430 with 18s requires at least a V speed rating, but I've always run Y. I'm pretty sure a V speed rated tire will offer a slightly more compliant ride, but what I don't know is how much performance, cornering, etc., will suffer.

burny

The Nitto 555's on my wifes car are V rated i believe. Great tire.

Simmsled

Michelin Primacy MXV4 (V Rated) All Seasons
Rides very smooth.

worker

But all else are not equal. The speed rating is for going strait. The faster you go strait, the less stress on your tire wall.

e-man

Simm -- what size are you running?

Simmsled

245/45 18 on all 4 corners

They are a +1 size, but it works just fine and fills out the gap a bit. Rides beautifully.

e-man

How is the handling/cornering?

KevGS460ML

You won't feel any difference at all going from V to Y, I guarantee you that. You will notice a slightly softer ride going from 40 to 45, but you will suffer on handling, and (my opinion) the looks. Generally, lower profile tires look a whole lot better. Also, by changing the size on your tires will also affect your speedometer. If you want a softer ride, then the ES, or LS is what you want :-)

e-man

But there must be a difference in the way the tire feels, right? After all, the Y rated tire must have more structure to be able to withstand the higher speeds over extended periods of time, right? I was always told that higher speed rated tires have stiffer sidewalls and handle better than lower speed rated tires. Also, it seems that Tire Rack has classified the Y rated A/S 3 tire in the ultrahigh performance category whereas the V rated tire is in the high-performance category.

KevGS460ML

Absolutely, the structure would be slightly different to handle the higher speed over a period of 1 hr, which is how they measure it. However, the difference in the structure would maybe be felt if your car has absolutely ZERO suspension (shocks, springs, etc) component. These cars were designed to be stiff as compared to the ES, and LS. If you want a softer ride, the first thing you should think about is your suspension, and the VERY last thing are your tires. Tires are more for traction, ie wet vs dry vs snow.

e-man

I hear what you're saying, but prior to getting the AS 3s, I had a set of Bridgestone serenity pluses on the car. I can tell you from first-hand experience, those tires positively soaked up the bumps. However, that said, the handling was terrible. My point is that certain tires can make a difference in ride quality and I'm just trying to figure out whether within the same tire make, model, and size, whether a V rated tire will handle differently then a Y rated tire.

XxGoKoUxX

I would take "soaking up" over cornering anyday..... Then again I don't drive my car like I stole it

Only harsh turn I make are on the on and off ramp for the highway.

I'm on Continental PureContacts (I believe 97V speed rating).

Great tires so far, I believe i'm at 15 or 20k by now, and everyone who looks at the tire tells me they look like they're still new.

e-man

I feel the same way, but those Serenities made even the most simple turns feel like the tires were going to roll under themselves. And as for on and off ramps on the highway, forget about it. A lot of lean and dive.

Here's the thing. You can't have it all. It's a compromise. And I'm willing to compromise some handling to take the harsh edge off the tires. If going from a 97y to a 97v will do that, then it's worth the switch. If not, then obviously it's not.

And back to the question as to whether you can feel then difference between a V and a Y rated tire, if there is no difference in feel, then why wouldn't everyone just save the money and get the lower rated tires (assuming it complies with their cars minimum rating).