I'd read that I wasnt the only one to experience this, so I thought I'd post this in the hope it might save you a few quid...

15,000 miles ago I bought 4 * Pirelli Pzero Assymetrical 255/40 19"s for a very scary price
2,000 miles later the two fronts had become lumpy and had to be replaced.
I returned them for investigation and Pirelli sent me a report stating it was due to my car or my driving-style
so I bought another 2 of the same, again for a huge price
The tyres seemed to be okay and did a decent enough job and wore down to 2mm within that 15,000 miles

I've just had 4* FalkenFK-452 fitted, for only £600 all incl.
Smoother, quieter, much quicker turn-in, no slap over road imperfections.

It now have a much better car. Huge improvement.

Falken may have a cheapo image, but I'm really impressed by these!

Chris

 

Chris,

I have the same Falcon 452s on my XK8. Can't beat the price. I have about 5K miles on them now and I am catching a little road noise as they're wearing. Tires on the XK8 only make it about 15K, maybe 20K.

Next tire set, which will be my X350, I'm going to try the Hankooks. They're very inexpensive, but have high ratings even compared to the "pricey" tires.

 

I just did a depth analysis on my Hancooks steve, going to update my 'Ahhh, new rubber' thread in the XK8 section (unless I moved it to tires earlier, not sure) with my observations on wear and mileage to date. Still pretty happy with them so far.

 

During a period of comparitive poverty, I put Falkens on. They didn't last but maybe 12,000 until they were down to slicks in the rear. I'm back to Pirelli's and have had no issues. They are wearing like bricks.

 

...with the sound to boot! (and I'm not speaking about the rear storage compartment) Pirellis last a little longer, thats for sure.

 

I've put Falkens on two different cars; Saab and Jaguar. Never got more than 15,000 miles out of them. They start nice and end badly. I've had good luck with Continental (I seem to be the only one) and Michelin. You pay a premium for the Michelin's however they'll go 40k miles or more.

 

I putted on the Michelin pilot sport A S. Did a very good job and had a 40K warranty. The Pirelli don't last long and as said had bubble on the tire.

I got mine at the costco in san francisco. Set of 4 cost me $1200 installed. So far so good after 10k.

 

I too have been happy the Conti' and may go with them again. Tire companies spend so much on advertising, we think of any brand that does not spend like crazy as being a "less" tire and that is not necessarily so.

 

Dumb me, the XJ8 does have Continentals! It was the XJ-S that has Pirelli's. Whatever is on sale and isn't a Falken I'm usually ok with. I've been stuck with Falkens twice in the last ten years on Jaguars because Sears was the only place that had the right size and in stock... and Sears seems to like to stock Falkens. I should never have settled on them the second time, but I figured they'd have fixed things in the 10 years time.

 

That's funny; I ended up with Falkens from Sears for the same reason. I don't go to sears anymore. I buy tires from Tire Rack and get them installed at a local shop. I'm on my second set of Conti's and I'm quite happy with them. Keep the pressure up and rotate them and they'll do just fine.

 

A year ago whe I bought my 05 XJR with 45K miles, It came with 2 Falken 452s and 2 Pirellis. I looked down my nose at the Falkens, because of a bad experience 15 years ago, and determined to replace them at the first opportunity.

Well it's 7K miles and a year later and and the Falfins have made a believer out of me. They are doing as well as the Pirellis in all respects except one and, given the price, I may go for Falkens when the Pirellis ware out. The one respect where the Pirellis shine is steering. They take a really hard corner a lot better than the Falkens which tend to under steer/plow. In all other respects I can't tell one from the other with these tires.

 

I'm starting to sound like a Hankook fanboy, but nearly anything is better than the OE P-Zeros, in my opinion. I did get 32k out of them, but the Hankooks are 1/3 the price, and so far they are superior in EVERY way to the Pirellis. Apparently the Hankooks are made in the most advanced tire mfg. facility on earth. Good design, superior manufacturing and quality control beat "reputation" any day in the real world. That is how the Japanese essentially put the British auto industry out of business in the U.S. in the '60s & '70s.

 

I've only read a couple of comparison reports and couldn't find them if asked, but the Hankooks rated close to the top in performance tests and surpassed quite a few brands that cost 3 times as much.

I'm swearing they'll be on my next car that needs tires...even if Discount tire offers a better deal on other tires.

 

What series Hankooks are you talking about?

 

My 05 came with Michelins on 18" dynamic wheels. They seemed to serve me fine, but were pricey to replace. When I changed the wheels to 20" sepangs I went with Falken 452s and have zero complaints. If there has been any decrease in comfort or increase in noise, I haven't been able to detect it. BIG thumbs up for the Falkens.. and their price was great!

 

The Hankooks I bought are the V12 EVO. You can get them at Tire Rack, but Discount Tire here in Houston had them as well...just needed to get them from the warehouse in Dallas. They price-matched the Tire Rack pretty close, and you get the usual A++++ service from Discount.