Well I took the car down to drive to talk with a car detailer and I drove about a 1/4 mile and the TPM light came on. Turned around and drove back to the garage and checked the tire pressures. Found 28psi in the rear driver tire. I was not happy so I took off the tire and filled my plastic tub and checked for leaks. Saw the bubbles and found a small nail in the inside edge. So I took it to my tire guy and we talked it over and I had him plug it. I plan on replacing the rears around Sept. so if this holds I should make it. I'll see after I put a week on it. Considering I'm only using it around town and to the golf course it shouldn't be a problem. I guess this year will be tire year as I need to replace the 4 on my Lexus next month. Funny the price for 4 Michelin tires was $800 and the price for 2 Michelin 's for the jag was $700. I guess it could have been worse and I would have had to change it on the road.

 

I assume you will replace all 4 if you go with MPSS. When my Pirelli rear 295 tires wear out I'll replace them with 305 Pirelli's and after the 305's wear out I'll replace all 4 Pirelli tires with MPSS. I also assume you have Dunlop's on the front. You may want to replace the rear Dunlop's with the same to get more usage out of the front tires. I have about 5,700 miles on my car and I will need new tires at about 11,000 miles.


These cars have so much torque and lack rear suspension traction. Around the city the XKR feels so much quicker and more powerful than a GT-R because the torque is instant and the GT-R's turbos lag because the turbos need time to spool first. This instant power also is hard on the rear tires.

 

I've put 305 Pirellis on mine, simply because I couldn't get MPSS quickly enough. They fit fine; no rubbing. Traction & noise are OK - more grip than the previous Pirellis, but that's because they're new with full tread.

NB for other readers: DGL & I both have the Dynamic Pack which comes with wider rear wheels. 305s may not fit on the standard XKR rears.

 

If memory serves, I put a full set of 4 Bridgestone S-04s on the car for about $800-$900. Worthy of consideration as they rate only one notch below the Michelins.
If your pocketbook lets you swing a full set of Michs, then they are probably the best out there, but I had trouble bridging a $400 gap from the Bridgestones for the gains. Very happy on the S-04s....

2-cents

 

I, just last week, replaced the four Michelins with A/S Continental DWS's, the same tire I have on both my Lexus and Audi. As the rubber compound should last far longer than the high performance tires, I figure I'll probably get a couple of years, or more from these tires, opposed to the incredibly fast wearing Michelins. The Conti DWS tires represent a very credible option for dry/wet handling and as far as I'm concerned, match the Michelins in every respect in terms of road manners. In my opinion, unless you're tracking your car, the wear rate of the high performance tires is completely unacceptable and is certainly not offset by any performance advantage, at least in comparison with the DWS. I'm sure there are other A/S tires that would be good choices, but I've had over 200,000 miles of experience with the DWS on my other cars and can vouch for both their performance and longevity.

 

So you switched from Michelin Pilot Super Sports to Conti DWS's..... How is the feel? I hear both are very quiet road tires.

 

Just an FYI as I took the car out for a drive today and it appears that the tire plug is holding. I have been checking tire pressure all week and finally had time to go for a ride. Nice day here with temps of 82* and nice breeze. Good convert weather so we took an 80 mile drive through parkway and back country roads. Nice drive and it looks like the tire will hold until I get my 2-3K more miles and then scrap them. But just before I replace them I'll find a place to turn off the traction and have at it.

 

Yes, exactly. My Michelins were well into their lifespan, so the handling qualities had diminished significantly, however, if anything, I'd say that the DWS's are every bit as good and perhaps even better, if considering their wet road grip. As I've said, I have had these tires on all my vehicles for a number of years and have nothing but praise for their performance.

As to your query on quietness, they are very quiet and they maintain this quality well into the tire life.

 

The DWS is indeed a highly respected A/S tire, and probably my favorite to date. Good choice!