I'm purchasing a very low mileage '07 XK Coupe next week. I will need to buy new tires, though. I've been running Michelins on my three other Jaguars (XJ6, XJs, XJ8.) What is a good choice for the XK?

 

Most people love the Michelin Pilot Super Sport

 

You can get any kind of brand recommendation in these Forums you care to read. My recommendation is go with any of the top 3 rated brands at Tire Rack. Go Michelin if you care to spend the money and the other 2 if you would save $200 or $300 on a set of 4.

The price and extras at your local tire store will vary + or - another $100 or so. I have run all 3 of the top brands at one time or another on my Jags with complete satisfaction. Think thur carefully the type of thread you need, Summer Hi Perf or All Season.

 

I have good luck with NTB. They've matched or beat TireRack's price considering the shipping and install price. Plus it's easier to deal with the vendor who sold and installed the tires should there be an issue. A friend bought some P Zero's that had a bubble after 500 miles from TireRack and it ended up being a hassle. They took them back and all, but he had to pay more in the end.

As for tires, I have Pilot Sport A/S and the rears wore down after 6K! $777 for the two installed; I am getting them mounted from NTB tomorrow morning.

I really love the Potenza Pole Position S0* if you either live in a warm climate or just want a seasonal tire. The performance in dry and wet is truly amazing. I was told a lot some LeMans teams use them for wet weather tires. I would buy them again, but need a more year round tire.

 

I have a similar relationship with a Tire Plus store. The guy I talk to there consistently beats Tire Rack and even Discount Tire Direct on the price of the tire. The install and balancing is a wash. If I have any issue with the tires I deal directly and locally with them.

Still, some people may save some good money if they can't negotiate with a local dealer. But given this economy, you should be able to find somebody locally that will cut you a deal.

I am running Michelin Pilot Super Sports and they are silent and stick like glue, but as Moses says they wear out quick!

Personally, I'd stay away from Khumo. They're on par with Goodyear. Not a very good tire.

 

What is the average life span of the front and rear tires (miles) that most people are experiencing?

 

Just curious to those who have the Michelin's; How have they been re the warranty?
PSS A/W are showing 45,000 miles, with the rear being for 22,500 miles.
If they are gone at 6,000, are they coming through for you?
Even the PSS Max are showing a warranty of 30,000, with 15,000 for the rear tires.
Just curious if they are standing behind what they promise.
Especially since the 20" OEM Dunlops on my XKR lasted over 20,000 for the rear tires, which always wear faster than the fronts.
The Dunlops may be worth the extra $$ if they last 3X longer than the Michelins.
Thanks!

 

+1 for dealing locally. My Firestone always matches Tire Racks price (including delivery of course).

Vince

 

A rather obscure question....

I cant speak for my Jag, as I'm still in my first year, but the question of "tire life" always returns to a universal truth, regardless of car.

Mileage vs grip are opposites.
People who shop for high mileage tires do so at the expense of grip.
People who shop for grip do so at the expense of high mileage.

I shop for grip (even to the point of owning winter and summer sets), and on past cars two years was about all I would get from each set.

Vince

 

Be realistic about your needs for grip. Not everyone carves the canyons on their way to work, or laps tracks on the weekend. If you're more of a cruiser then even an all season with high mileage is probably fine. I always choose Michelin, but that's because I've always been happy with them, and you really can't go wrong with them. Maybe that can be said of all the main brands.

But if you need a truly high performance tire then you need to more carefully consider matching specific preferences to different tires, and the need for wet traction on a daily driver would be an obvious difference from someone who drives it in only fair weather.

Bruce

 

BTW discount tire is offering a $100 rebate on 4 tires. I saw this on slickdeals.net. Maybe NTB can price match?

 

I'm with Bruce's recommendation for taking a good look at the type of driving you will be doing and selecting the appropriate tires.

Unless you are a dedicated, mad-canyon racer, there is really hardly any need to buy the highest performance tire that will wear off in 5K miles. As a long time racer I can safely say that a rather moderate degree of high performance driving skill will more than make up for the differences between the top tire and a bottom tire performance differences.

I'm using a dealer installed tire that came on my car when I purchased it; it is a Hankook Ventus V12 Evo. Pretty decent tires, very quiet ride, good shock absorption and decent handling. It is actually one that my old racing sponsor also recommends for the car and, he is a Goodyear dealer and official racing tire distributor. They have about 8K on them and hardly see any wear.

Albert

 

Went to NTB to get the rear tires installed. $788 out the door. One thing, not sure if this is a concern... the rears are now Pilot Sport A/S Plus and the older fronts are Pilot Sport A/S. My take is the Pilot Sport A/S is no longer offered? The "look" the same other than the name.

Wow, what a difference with new rears! The car is so well planted in the back. Gave it the shot it needed. The tires looked fine before, but I guess the way they sit (according to the tire shop manager), they just wear in the middle and that's that. I am picky about tire pressure and measure/adjust it weekly. I never go above what the door says.

 

So, did you get any rebate from Michelin since they failed to last the warrented time? Just curious.... since they only warrent 1/2 for the rears if they are a different size than the fronts. But you did get considerably less than the 15,000 promised by Michelin.
Thanks

 

Ya right, that would be the day. The tires were on the car when I bought it, but I do have the receipt from original owner (knowning how many miles I got from the tires). I asked the manager at NTB and he says staggered tires never get a tread warranty in all honesty. Have you had a rebate in a similar circumstance. If it happens again, I will make a stink, but I'll have more leverage since buying the tires myself.

 

You guys have been great providing your thoughts. I have been leaning towards the Pilot Super Sport tires, although I am a bit put off by the noise and tread life issues I've heard and read. The last XK I test drove was an '09 with Dunlops, original equipment I think. The ride was harsh and disappointing. I chalked that up to the tires. I used to run Pirelli's on my '87 XJ6 and '96 XJS and when I went to Michelin's on both cars I was blown away. It was like having an entire new suspension. Of course, the new XK is much tighter than either of those cars. Bottom line - this will be my daily driver; I will not do any canyon racing with it; I live in the Dallas area and our "summers" are nine months long and winter has no snow (I have other cars I'll drive if that happens) but we do have rainy seasons. I typically have been buying all season tires but I've read a lot of complaints about noise and hard rides for the XK appropriate tires. It can get pretty confusing. I think Discount Tires has a 30-day return guarantee if not happy so that may be my best route to take. Any other experience out there with all season tires on an XK or is that just not "Jaguar appropriate"?

 

Thumb's up on the Hankook's. I'm enjoying mine.

 

I tried a set of hankook Venus v12's on my porsche 911 turbo and did not like them. The ride was very unstable, especially when the tires had less than 1000 mi on them. They were fairly quiet, had comparable wear to Michelin ps2's, and performance wasn't too far off. However, it felt like you were driving on a street with grooves all the time. They were 1/2 the price of ps2's, but I will never buy inferior tires again.
Having said that- that was my experience with my Porsche- maybe the xk is not as sensitive to the tires, so it may not be an issue.

 

Check out the Bridgestone Potenza Pole Position's if they have them in your size. Considering you live in Dallas, you'll get year round use from them and they are truly amazing tires. Quiter and better in the rain than the Pilot's. Well priced as well.

 

On my XK, none of the above. Very stable, quiet.

With all tires you need a "break-in" period to scrub off the mold vaxes from the very top layers of the tire. That likely explains the initial miles of instability.

Also, the 911 Turbo, due to its rear-engine configuration, is rather unstable at speeds so, not the best car for tire testing. It will be unstable with ANY tire.

Albert