Best Tires for the Volkswagen Passat 3.2 FSI 250BHP

Having replaced the Pilot Sport 3s on my Passat as they had zero feel, realized the car itself has zero feel, the F1s atleast have a bit more than the Pilot Sport 3. Grip has always been very good, and for a solid car with a 3.2 donk over the front wheels, and AWD, she handled well, surprising a few passengers over the last 2 years. However, a solo and spirited drive home over 160kms appears to have been too much for them, causing blisters on the outside of the tires and now effectively lacking in grip too, meaning I need two new front tires. I won't be replacing them like for like, I do have occassional fleets of car throwery around corners, and Februarys excitement was a prolonged effort admittedly, but I do expect tires to last longer than 20000kms, especially when 85% is the slow city dribble. Otherwise a good tire.

I'm still undecided on these. I bought a Passat 3.2 4motion recently and it came with some pretty crap tires. So as a priority I had the fronts replaced with PS4. They are noticeably more grippy, but I don't have confidence in them as I can't feel what they are doing, I just have to turn the wheel and hope they will grip. Admittedly my last car was a saab 9-5 and it had Bridgestone RE003 on her, she was responsive and gave good feedback.
I need to get the backs done now, but I am considering moving the PS4s to the back and chucking some RE003s to the front, alteast that was I can be sure if it is the car that fails to give feedback or the tires.

First 100+ miles or so is quite scary. They have next to no grip, and are lethal in damp conditions. They feel completely detached from the road surface, like driving on a bars of soap. When the dealer warns you about this, take them seriously. It was very easy to loose traction even in a 4motion and literally slide on corners at anything over 30mph.

Once run in, then the sealing agent wears off and they start to perform. The grip is consistent, and the tires are very progressive even in greasy conditions. When really pushed they don't break away liek the nokians, but rather "judder" in a controlled manner as they repeatedly lose and gain grip around a tight corner.

Turn-in is however severely delayed. I think the side wall is alot softer than expected. The grip is there but the lag is very noticeable and takes alot of getting used to. The car just doesn't feel like you've started the turn and then it bites, and until you are used to it, you end up turning too much then backing off, not great at higher speeds. Also I found gentle curves at Autobahn speeds are also a little unsettling, with the car feeling quite detached and "floaty".

In the wet they are confident performers, clearing standing water quite well and with good braking. Not the best aquaplaning resistance i've experienced in a straight line, but they do not "pull" when one tire hits a deep standing water.

It's winter properties are very good, with almost no loss of traction unless pushed. Handles snow and icying roads, with esp lighting up the dash only when I am heavy on the throttle. Once the sipes open up the tires feel very attached to the road surface, (I doubt very much if they would work at all in wet snow in the first 100 miles or so....) Slush, like standing water does not appear to clear as fast as the Nokians I had before, but then again at such a wide profile I am very impressed.

All in all I would buy them again. Just gotta remember to be patient after fitting! They came recommend for heavier cars and SUV's, offer great winter/wet weather performance while maintaining a wide profile and higher speed rating. Good choice for UK milder winter, with lots of rain, and random snow/sleet, and have stood up well to Welsh, Scottish and German winter road conditions without issues. Time will tell if the wear rate is as good as claimed.

The car came with a mixture of Autogrip F107/Autoguard tires. These are O.K. in the dry but lethal in the wet. Even with 4 motion 4WD, without warning at roundabout speeds all four would suddenly break away in the wet. The spare was an Avon ZZ3 and soon as I put the Avon tires on the car will now go around a roundabout without the back end sliding. Do not buy these tires! Spend a little more and get a midrange tire.

Excellent value for money at £96 per tire. Replaced budget Autogrip/Autoguard which have no grip at all in the wet. A little bit of road noise at Motorway speeds, but they give confidence in the wet. Recently driven in snow and they performed well. I was quoted £1200 for a set of four premium tires at Kwik-fit and these come in at £384 for four. I will keep buying these while they are available.