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I am putting a new set of tires on my XK8. I am considering the Pirelli P7 Cinturato or the Pirelli P-Zero. I never drive my car in the snow/salt or winter, but I definitely have driven it in heavy rain and hate hydroplaning.
I realize that there is a large price difference, but how much of a difference will there be in handling, road noise, hydroplaning, and comfort? Does anyone have any experience with either of these tires that can give me some feedback?
Pirelli P7 Cinturato in my opinion are really good tyres and they have good grip and less road noise and a good ride, also the reviews say it is great in water and hydroplaning https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires...ll+Season+Plus
Going all the way back to 1986, our vehicles that have had Pirelli tires have come with them already installed. I do not purchase Pirelli tires because I have always found their treadlife to be ridiculously short. I have never had a set of Pirelli tires last longer than 15,000 miles regardless of the vehicle and to me, that is completely unacceptable....
From: Somewhere south of Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA
For what it's worth, when I purchased my XK8 a couple of years ago, it had Pirelli tires on it. Thought the car didn't handle as well as my C4 Corvette but just figured it was the softer suspension. I was also surprised at how fast they were wearing out in the 10,000 miles I've put on the vehicle. So, fast forward to about a month ago. Purchased four Continental Extreme Contact DWS tires from Tire Rack and wow, what a difference. Handles quite well now, much smoother at 100 mph, quieter and rides better, too. Think it would give the old Vette a good run for the money. And yes, it snows and rains quite a bit here in Michigan. Haven't had them out in the snow but they do alright in the rain.
Not sure if I'm allowed to do this or not but here's a comparison link from Tire Rack.
No surprise that the Pirelli's are the better tire for handling but...at about $150 per tire less than the Pirelli's, (just shy of $600 delivered to my installer vs about $1200 for the Pirelli's) I'm a very happy camper.
Scott
Last edited by Scottsgreenjag; Apr 22, 2017 at 07:35 AM.
Go with the Michelin Pilots. I have been very happy for 40,000 miles. I was very glad with the Pirelli P7 Cinturo wore out. They were always noisy to me.
If your not driving in winter conditions (ie temp below 50f), then you are much better off with some good summer tires.
Best I have by far are the Michelin Pilot Super Sports (now Pilot 4S), and I have had Pirellis, Yokohama, Continentals and Bridgestone's (s03) under mine to compare with. I like them for grip, low noise, tramlining and also aquaplaning, these PSS perform very good there as well from my experience, and considering the 4S would be slightly better again (have just installed them on the rears) this is what I would go for.
I have the Pirelli P7 Cinturato's on my 2003. They replaced the P-zeros that were on it. What a difference for the positive. They grip like glue. So far the wear is even. They really handle well with regards to hydroplaning and the road noise is less that the previous tires. I have been through some crazy Texas rain and never lost traction or felt like I didn't have control of the car. I am pretty fanatical about checking the tire pressure every week.
Quackedo, As you can see, everyone has their own favorites as I do. My 2003 XKR came with 20" Montreal's an Pireilli's...I don't remember the Name they called them but those High Dollar pieces of junk didn't last 10,000 miles and I was glad as they were very loud on the Highway......I bought Continental DW's for the Front and Continental DWS's for the Rear. I like them so much that I still use the same set-up on my 2005 XKR. They are quiet and don't cost near what the Pirelli's do! Big wide grooves in the Front and a double pattern on the rear for traction! Billy Clyde in Houston
... So, fast forward to about a month ago. Purchased four Continental Extreme Contact DWS tires from Tire Rack and wow, what a difference. Handles quite well now, much smoother at 100 mph, quieter and rides better, too. Think it would give the old Vette a good run for the money. And yes, it snows and rains quite a bit here in Michigan. Haven't had them out in the snow but they do alright in the rain.
I had the old (now discontinued) summer Continental ExtremeContact DW tires on my old X-Type based on a recommendation from a friend (experienced racer and autocross instructor) who put them on his wife's Miata. Truly a very smooth ride, quite reasonable dry grip and FREAKING AMAZING IN THE RAIN!!! With the amount of rain we get in the summer in Florida this made me extremely happy.
I was sorry to learn that the tire has been discontinued although Continental has a replacement - ExtremeContact Sport. It remains to be seen if it is better or worse than the old tire.
Over my years of autocrossing (Subaru Legacy GT 2.5, various Miata, Honda S2000) I've tried many street tires (the local club had a very active street tire category) including Sumitomo HTR Z III, Kumho Ecsta something, Yokohama S.Drive, Hankook Ventus somethings and more.
For our X100 cars I can't think of a tire I know that is better suited than the Continentals. The old DW was a real bargain but the new Sport seems to be going more upmarket. Too bad; I might go back to the Sumitomo's when the time comes. They weren't bad and priced nicely.
Last edited by WAFlowers; Apr 22, 2017 at 09:39 PM.
I had the old (now discontinued) summer Continental ExtremeContact DW tires on my old X-Type based on a recommendation from a friend (experienced racer and autocross instructor) who put them on his wife's Miata. Truly a very smooth ride, quite reasonable dry grip and FREAKING AMAZING IN THE RAIN!!! With the amount of rain we get in the summer in Florida this made me extremely happy.
I was sorry to learn that the tire has been discontinued although Continental has a replacement - ExtremeContact Sport. It remains to be seen if it is better or worse than the old tire.
Over my years of autocrossing (Subaru Legacy GT 2.5, various Miata, Honda S2000) I've tried many street tires (the local club had a very active street tire category) including Sumitomo HTR Z III, Kumho Ecsta something, Yokohama S.Drive, Hankook Ventus somethings and more.
For our X100 cars I can't think of a tire I know that is better suited than the Continentals. The old DW was a real bargain but the new Sport seems to be going more upmarket. Too bad; I might go back to the Sumitomo's when the time comes. They weren't bad and priced nicely.
W.A., I just purchased new DW's for the front about 6 months ago and had to get a new DWS for the rear and while I was at it I went ahead and matched up the pair.....That was a bout 3 weeks ago when I apparently had run over something and cut the Side-Wall on the Left rear....They told me that they had plenty of them in stock.....better run down and get a set!
I had Sumitomo's on my 2000 XKR and about all I remember about them was that they were "LOUD" sort of a Howling noise but they were "Inexpensive"! I won't say "cheap"!
From: Somewhere south of Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA
[QUOTE W.A., I just purchased new DW's for the front about 6 months ago and had to get a new DWS for the rear and while I was at it I went ahead and matched up the pair.....That was a bout 3 weeks ago when I apparently had run over something and cut the Side-Wall on the Left rear....They told me that they had plenty of them in stock.....better run down and get a set!
Billy Clyde in Houston[/QUOTE
Still available in Michigan, too. Hate to see them discontinued as I'm impressed with the DWS. Short 150 mile jaunt yesterday to one of our favorite dives for lunch over Michigan roads where it's full blown pothole season. Nothing like having an Autocross Road Course setup disguised as an Interstate...
Did you make it through the flooding down there okay?
Hope you don't mind me hopping on here. My 06 XK8 came with these wheels and Sumitomo 255/45R18s all around. Plenty of tread left so it's what I'm sticking with for now. My question on the wheels is if these are the original stock wheels and on the tires whether it is normal/standard to have the same all around. Something I read stated 45s in front and 55s in back. New to all of this performance tire stuff. Any help appreciated.
[QUOTE W.A., I just purchased new DW's for the front about 6 months ago and had to get a new DWS for the rear and while I was at it I went ahead and matched up the pair.....That was a bout 3 weeks ago when I apparently had run over something and cut the Side-Wall on the Left rear....They told me that they had plenty of them in stock.....better run down and get a set!
Billy Clyde in Houston[/QUOTE
Still available in Michigan, too. Hate to see them discontinued as I'm impressed with the DWS. Short 150 mile jaunt yesterday to one of our favorite dives for lunch over Michigan roads where it's full blown pothole season. Nothing like having an Autocross Road Course setup disguised as an Interstate...
Did you make it through the flooding down there okay?
As to the Flooding, I would have to say, "Which Flood?" To answer your question, "No problem for me, as I live on the West Side in Katy!"
Sorry to say, "I've never been to Michigan but always wanted to go up to the North!" I've heard it's beautiful...
My 06 XK8 came with these wheels and Sumitomo 255/45R18s all around. My question on the wheels is if these are the original stock wheels and on the tires whether it is normal/standard to have the same all around. Something I read stated 45s in front and 55s in back.
These look like stock Aris Jaguar wheels. For reference, the stock jaguar options for wheels/tires are listed under the lid of the armrest. The default is a "staggered" setup with wider wheels (and tires) on the back.
OK, lots of good info from you guys. I now know that I have 17" wheels for 245 50 17 tires all the way around...wouldn't have thought to look for larger wheels on the back so thanks for that info. I have decided on the Pirelli P7 and they seem fine so far. Drove them in heavy rain today and they work fine. They seem way better that the tires that were on the car and less road noise. The tires the car came with were shot so no real comparison there. Handling seems fine, I'll have to see how many miles they last. I only drive my cars in Summer-no snow or salt ever. I spend my winters on my boat in the Bahamas and keep my cars inside storage under a cover so they'll probably last quite a while for me. Thanks for the info and help, greatly appreciated.
I just purchased a set Continental DW's from Tirerack at close out prices for my Audi. Sorry to see them go, they are on my 2005 XKR and my 2011XK. According to the Tirerack charts, no other summer tire could match their performance at the price.
Regards,
I wish I'd had the money available to get a set of Continental DW tires for Kat while they were still available from TireRack but I had just bought her and paid for service and repairs. The next week when I could buy them they were all gone.
Pirelli Tires
