Getting the best road tires can be rewarding – your driving or riding performance will be better. There are so many tires available, but the problem is finding the right brand.
Over the years, Bridgestone and Michelin have been at lock horns for which is better in road performance and ride functionality.
In this guide, you will find out what there is to know about both long-lasting tire brands.
Bridgestone Tires
Bridgestone Corporation is one of the largest tire manufacturers, and other car parts in the world, today. This Japan-based (Kurume, Fukoka) company was founded in 1931 by Shojiro Ishibashi.
Bridgestone got its name from the founder’s surname. It started off with manufacturing footwear until it ventured into tire making. Unfortunately, business wasn’t so good until 1984 when Bridgestone Corporation was established.
Later, in 1988, Bridgestone bought Firestone – another tire manufacturer based in the USA. Today, it is one of the biggest names in the tire industry.
Michelin Tires
Michelin is a French tire manufacturing company – one of the oldest. It was founded by two brothers- Eduoard and Andre Michelin, in 1889. It started off with rubber making until it advanced to bicycle tires.
Years later, these brothers did what had never been done – they made the first pneumatic tires in the world. These tires replaced the older type which was impossible to replace. Oftentimes, it is said that Michelin created the first modern tire.
In 1934, the Michelin brothers discovered the run-flat tire, which is now found on many major roads today.
They were also responsible for the first radial-designed tires found in most passenger vehicles with benefits such as good fuel economy, stability, etc.
This tire company can be said to bring modernization into the tire industry.
In 1989, Michelin acquired two other tire companies – Uniroyal Inc., and B.F. Goodrich Company.
Bridgestone and Michelin are the two biggest tire manufacturing rivals you may ever come across – for many years, there have been controversies on who is the better brand.
Even though that might be a little difficult to answer because preference is based on car owners themselves, it is still important to get closure.
While these brands have some differences, they share certain qualities.
Both tire manufacturers are expensive – Michelin tires cost slightly higher than Bridgestone. Therefore, you may not find them budget-friendly if that is what you want.
Durability is one critical characteristic both tire manufacturing companies take more seriously. They want to be able to provide tires that are good for the road and can last for as many years as possible.
Therefore, you shouldn’t expect anything less from their tread warranties.
Another thing they both share is safety. They produce safe tires packed with excellent traction, making them both suitable for dry and wet conditions. So, you don’t have to worry about going out any season or any time of the day with either of them.
More importantly, Michelin and Bridgestone incorporate advanced technologies into their tires to deliver maximum road performance – especially in racing. Their high-end tires are some of the best racing tires in the world currently.
Indeed, both tire manufacturing companies share some important qualities.
What Tire Models Bridgestone is Known For?
Bridgestone makes as many tires as you expect them to – all built with modern technologies for passenger cars, trucks, etc. However, three models of their tires are the best-sellers on the market, and they include the following:
Bridgestone Potenza RE980AS Tire
Bridgestone Potenza is an ultra-high performance tire (tire) designed for sports cars, sedans, and scoupe cars.
It is an all-season tire built to be effective in dry and wet conditions and granting as much speed as possible. It also has predictable handling and is backed by a 50,000 treadwear warranty.
Bridgestone Potenza RE980AS Tire has an asymmetric noise-optimized tread pattern and 3D full-depth sipes for stability.
It further has three polyester sidewall plies and two polyester tread plies to improve balance and enhance ride comfort. Overall, this tire is durable and can maintain performance over time.
Bridgestone DriveGuard Tire
Another all-season high-performance tire from this brand is the DriveGuard Tire. It is a perfect run-flat tire designed to support a car without them. It is also an incredible choice of tire for long-wearing and maximum durability.
The DriveGuard Tire offers great riding comfort with good flexibility, coupled with precise handling, balance, and traction control.
It is suitable to use on dry and wet roads, as well as in light snow conditions. It has a 60,000 mileage warranty.
However, before the tire becomes suitable for any vehicle, a Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS) must have been installed.
Bridgestone Turanza QuietTrack Tire
One of the best choices of Bridgestone tires with no road noise is the Turanza QuietTrack.
There are many tires the company has manufactured but none beats this one; it is currently the choice for most popular cars on the road.
Besides, it has advanced features, such as 3D full-depth sipes, and open shoulder slots for better performance.
Apart from dampening road-noise, this tire delivers a comfortable driving experience with good control in wet and snowy conditions. It is the perfect winter tire built with a long-lasting performance.
The Turanza QuietTrack Tire offers an 80,000-mile warranty.
Other incredible Bridgestone models to go for include; Bridgestone Dueler, Bridgestone Ecopia, Bridgestone Blizzak, etc.
What Tire Models Michelin is Known For?
Likewise, some popular models of tires Michelin has from the thousands manufactured include the following:
Michelin Pilot Super Sport
A high-performance summer tire for passenger cars is the Michelin Pilot Sport. It was the perfect replacement for the Pilot Sport PS2; however, this same tire has been modified to come as the Pilot Sport 4 S.
Michelin Pilot Sport was born out of the need for an endurance racing tire for the best street performance. It is packed with some exclusive features, thus, ranking the 8th position out of 63 Super Max Performance tires.
Additionally, Michelin Pilot Sport has the ultimate precision handling and an average mileage warranty, i.e., 30,000 miles. Lastly, it has a better braking system than most competitor tires.
Michelin CrossClimate
Michelin CrossClimate is one of the world’s best touring tires guaranteed for all-season performance. It is an ideal choice for passenger cars, as it is packed with long-lasting safety and good mileage. It has a mileage warranty of 50,000 miles.
This tire has all-weather traction, i.e., dry and wet conditions. However, Michelin CrossClimate is not the perfect winter tire to get since it cannot survive extreme conditions.
Michelin Defender
A good Michelin tire that you can never go wrong with is the Defender. It is made with an Evertread compound to deliver top-notch durability and long-lasting performance.
It is designed for light trucks and SUVs, with a mileage warranty of 70,000 miles.
Apart from its durable tread life, this tire has better traction even for extreme conditions – wet grip and snow tractions.
This Michelin tire offers two exclusive benefits better than other Michelin models and its competitors – Eco-friendly performance and Fuel Efficiency.
Other models like the Michelin X Tour, Michelin Energy, Michelin Latitude, Michelin Primacy, etc., are also better choices to go for. You can check out these Michelin offers to see what is most suitable for your automobile.
Differential Features Between Both Brands: Bridgestone Vs Michelin
In this Bridgestone vs Michelin guide, it is important to set out the differences between the two brands to know precisely what makes one better than the other. As impressive as both brands can be, there are a few factors or differential features that set them apart, and they are:
Quality
Both brands have incredible qualities when it comes to their different models of tires. However, Michelin seems like the better brand for quality than its competition.
Michelin being an old manufacturing company lives constantly to improve the quality of its tires.
It takes designing, patenting, and revolutionizing more than you can imagine. Little wonder it was the manufacturer of the first radial tires – Michelin X.
On the other hand, Bridgestone focuses on the production of tires for sports cars, trucks with good fuel economy.
For car owners that want a great set of tires that consume a lot less fuel, it seems to be a worthy choice.
Michelin wins this round, however.
Durability
An important attribute people look for before buying anything, especially when it involves car parts like tires is durability.
No one wants to keep spending every now and then on a particular item when there are better ones on the market that will deliver a better performance.
With good durability, you are assured of long-lasting use.
In this differential feature, Michelin is the better brand when it comes to durability. It focuses on energy optimization, tread life quality, grip-ability, and braking more than Bridgestone.
Furthermore, the tread life warranties are slightly higher than the latter, making them the most durable choice.
Affordability
If you are looking to buy a set of tires for a fair price, Michelin and Bridgestone may not be the best brands to look at because they are expensive.
The manufacturers spend a lot of money on Research and Development, making them not budget-friendly.
However, if you would like to proceed with them, it is important to know which out of the two offers a fairly expensive price over the other.
Michelin wins here because the different models of tires are not as expensive as compared to that of Bridgestone. This company provides tires for everyday use at a great value for money.
Although you may find out that some Michelin models are more expensive than similar models from its competition; it still doesn’t change the fact that the former has a better price offer.
Ride Comfort/Road Noise
One other thing most vehicle owners look for in a tire before buying one is the comfort it delivers while driving on the road. Having that ride comfort, without worrying about wear and tear or noise is bliss.
Bridgestone and Michelin’s tires deliver a good amount of road comfort more than other competitors in the industry.
Unfortunately, there are limits, which make one brand better than the other – in this case, Bridgestone over Michelin.
Bridgestone uses a Resonance Noise Attenuated Technology (RENOA) to reduce high-frequency sounds when the tires roll. Therefore, you could say that it delivers a lower to no road noise than Michelin.
Handling
The competition between the Japanese and French brands is a tough one when it comes to handling. The two brands deliver precise handling whether in winter and summer or dry and wet conditions.
Confidently, you can decide to use either of them on the road with a guaranteed level of safety.
However, if you are to make a wise decision, Bridgestone has better handling than some Michelin models.
For instance, Michelin CrossClimate is not suitable for extreme weather conditions, which on the other hand, Bridgestone is.
Tread Pattern
If you are looking for the perfect winter tires or ALL-season tires, the answer lies in the tread pattern. Michelin tires have a better tread life than Bridgestone, making them an all-season choice; however, they are not the perfect winter tires – the competition is.
Tire Warranty Cover
The tires Bridgestone and Michelin manufacture have a good range of warranty cover. This tire warranty cover, also called mileage warranty determines the durability and the number of years of active use.
Ideally, the range is always between 30,000 to 100,000 miles which means 3 to 10 years of use. From the different models of the two brands reviewed above, Bridgestone seems to have a better tread warranty cover than Michelin.
Most Standout Features For Each Brand
Michelin
- Great Treadlife
- Energy Saver
- Good Braking System
Bridgestone
- Impressive fuel economy
- Zero Noise Potential
Verdict: Which Brand is Better?
Finding your season tires between Michelin and Bridgestone is a difficult thing to do because the two brands are impressive.
The debate has been going on for years, and the result still remains inconclusive on which is the better brand.
However, the decision often lies with a vehicle owner on what type is suitable for their vehicle or not.
Being a car owner comes with you making a lot of important, life-changing decisions.
You need to get the high-end parts and accessories for your automobile because your safety, ride comfort, and road performance depends on them.
If you are able to do this, you will spend a lot less on care and maintenance.
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