Had 11,000 miles on my 20" Dunlops and it looked like I would get about another 5,000 out of them when I got a nail in the left rear sidewall. Since Dunlops were on backorder the dealer offered me Pirellis. I had Pirellis on my 04 XK8 that didn't last 13,000 miles so I went to the Tire Rack site and found that there is a new Michelin tire that just came out and the reviews were pretty good. They were $400 cheaper than the Dunlops so I gave them a try. I only have 500 miles on them but here's what I got so far:

Handling is incredible, it doesn't feel like the same car. In turns it just keeps turning, all feeling of push is gone. Be careful as these tires respond immediately. Haven't had them wet yet.

Comfort could be better, they feel a bit stiffer and bouncier than the Dunlops. Although I have triple checked the air pressure to 30 psi front and 33 psi rear, they feel as though they are a couple of pounds over-inflated. Front end felt light at first but I am starting to get used to it.

Tires normally come with a 30,000 mile tread wear warranty (what?) except for staggered wheels (oh, which applies) which come with a 15,000 tread wear warranty. Still sounds like they will wear pretty good.

The 255/35ZR20 and 285/30ZR20 set was $1360 plus $65 freight, no tax. Tire rack will recommend an installer in your area which charges about $95. I had Tire Kingdom do it and I was out the door for $1600 with road hazzard guarantee.

 

I'm going to push my OEM Dunlops another 5K before replacing them. When I do, I will be buying a full set of OEM-size Hankook Ventus V12 evo K110's. Rated 8.4/10 in customer reviews on TireRack.com, and much less than the Continentals I was considering.

Consider this review by the owner of an 03 XK8:

These tires replaced the OEM Pirellis at 20,000 miles. The difference was phenomenal!! Much quieter and better riding, with driving dynamics at least as good. These tires have spent the bulk of their lives in the rainiest part of the Pacific Northwest, so we have lots of experience with wet traction, which is excellent with these tires. I can't emphasize enough that the real strength of these tires is their quietness and good ride. The rear tires now probably have about 3,000 - 5,000 miles left on them, and the fronts have significantly more miles left on them.

 

You can't go wrong with Michelin's.

 

I went from Toyo Proxes to the Hankook Ventus V12. The Toyos were too loud. The Hankoooks ride better, handle great and were inexpensive to boot. Love 'em. I should mention these were on my 2001 XK8 Coupe. My 07 XK has new Dunlops but when they wear out, I'll go back to Hankook.

 

What are the new Michelins called?

 

Er, the clue is in the thread title

 

Sorry...

 

I have found that the Michelin pilot sport PS2 (not the All Season...they were not near as good as the ultra high performance regular PS2) was the best tire on my 08 XKR bar none. I wish I had a comparison to the Hancook mentioned here but I don't. I can say that any tire after the Michelin PS2 was simply lacking in the unbelievable grip that the PS2 had (really did feel like on rails...almost to the point of being scary). I am a little suspect of comparing the older XK8 as it is really quite a different car and in my view not anywhere near the machine that the new XK is either in horsepower or chassis dynamics. I really find it hard to believe that the Hankook is as good and would love to hear a direct comparison of someone that has had them both (V12 vs PS2) on a recent higher horsepower (2007-on) XK or XKR.