It is time to shop for tires.
currently have continental contisportcontact which howl at dspeed due to feathering on inside which i belive has been mutigated with camber adjustment.

I am considering Nitto Invo to reduce road noise and allow rotation of tires as it is bi-directional or Nitto NT 555 extreme performance.

Also looking at Michelin Pilot sport A/S Plus
and Pirelli P-Zero Nero All season.

I really like Pirelli but am after a quiet ride and heard bad reviews from others on other p-zero series tires. These seem to be a quieter build and curious if anyone has tried any of the above on an XK8.

Absolut flat out performance is not really the application. I want an aggressive, responsive tire but also quiet tire.

Any direct experience would be helpul.

Regards to all
Steven Hood

 

The dealer I bought my car from had new Michelin Pilot Sport A/S installed on it before taking delivery. That was over a year ago and I'm very satisified with the performance and ride.

 

My XK8 (with 19" wheels) had a nearly-new set of Hankook Ventus V12's on it when I bought it. I am very happy with them in terms of noise and handling and as an XJ-S owner, I have to like the name! I replaced the Conti's on a Mercedes with General Exclaim UHP's because of their high rating on Tire Rack and LOVED those tires, but you'll have to see if they're available in the size you need. Sorry if I've just complicated your decision!

 

very happy with Pilot Sport A/S (16") and Pilot Sport A/S Plus (18") on S-type's. Quiet tire, good grip. Not quite as quiet as the Michelin Primacy on my XJ...but sportier....

 

Just put Hankook Ventus V-12 on my R after reading many good reviews of them here and elsewhere. I am very pleased with them. I wanted an aggressive tire, but I am not a racer. I like to drive it hard sometimes and these fit the bill of a good performance tire, good riding characteristics for touring and good price.

 

I saw some positive comments on one of the X type forums about Vredestein tires. Couldn't find quite the right size for my 17's, but if your running 18's or 19's you can find some. Prices for 18's start at $190/ea. Heard they're quiet, handle well, and good life.

 

Many thanks to those who shared experience.

We don't get to make the decision very many times per car and it is amazing how important it is to satisfaction with the car.

Making out checks, looks like I get to ponder until next month and use my "slicks".
I will have to look in to Vredsteins, I have them on an old alfa and they stick real well and release very predictably when they do let go.

Kind Regards to All,
Steven Hood

 

I use falkens on our truck, sedan, and the XKR and have been always happy with their performance.

They have a nice touring tire lineup and I've never had issues with them. They sponsor our local autocross events and their R-compounds are considered a top choice for many. Price is great too, I'm currently running 275/40/18's on the rear which I got for $250 shipped on sale.

 

I'm a former marketing guy for Michelin, so I may pay more attention to tires than most people.

Just my opinion, but it just doesn't feel right to me to put an asian tire on such a beautiful british car. For me, the brands that feel right for this car are the european brands of Pirelli, Continental, Michelin.

I've just fitted Continental ExtremeContact DW to my coupe, 255 / 45 R 18 on 18 x 9 rims on all four corners. Rotation options are good, and I like the extra width in the front.

The tires are superb, and very highly rated by both users and experts.

By the way, if you've got Discount Tire in your area, use them. As a former tire industry guy, I can tell you they are usually the most professional outfit in town.

 

Just had a independent shop here in town offer me Micheline Pilot MXM4's for a 245/50/17 mounted and balanced for $232 a tire+tax. Guess I'll get those!

 

I'm on my 2nd set of Hancook Ventus V12s, i'm one of the primary supporters on here, getting them after they were first introduced a couple years ago. The prices have slowly risen from $110 ea to $165 ea...and for 19-inchers too, the expensive size; but still have the best features vs price that I have owned. Pirelli, Falken 452s, now 2x Hancooks. With the suspension repairs (raise the ride height 1/2") the front wear is SO much more even across the tread, and lasting longer that my last set.

I saw the tire thread, figured i'd give you my 'long term' experience notes.

 

Skid,

The Michelin MXM4s are EXCELLENT tires. I've owned several sets and currently have them on two other vehicles in the garage. I was looking for something more sporty on the coupe, but you will be very happy with those tires. And they wear like iron (as long as your suspension is properly sorted out).

 

I chose to buy performance all season tires, not summer tires, because the XK8 is my daily driver. I have had bad experience with summer tires in the rain as they started wearing down. Also the ride is smoother and quieter. I like to check all the reviews on tirerack.com

 

Thanks Coupe! They are certianly the best value at that price. Are they pretty quiet at highway speeds? That's something I always appreciate in a set of tires!

 

Dont know the significance of the tag...but I recently (3k miles ago) fitted Michelin Primacy MXM4's on my XJ, though not Pilots. I think the pilot is a bit more sporty perhaps. I call the Pilot Sport A/S's (and Plus) "quiet"....I'd call these dead silent. Again, probably a different tread and possibly construction - an all-season grand touring tire...but it does have the MXM4 tag, fWIW

 

Quiet as a church mouse, Skid. You'll love 'em.

 

You mentioned that you want to be able to rotate the tires. Keep in mind that the front rims are narrower than the rear rims, so rotating the tires can only be done by swapping the left wheels to the right side and vice-versa. No front to rear rotating.

 

Again thanks to all for sharing.

I feel common thoughts with most responders.

1. I understand, crossing the channel and having european tires on european car seems more right in the world. The Nitto Envo advertized as OK to reverse direction of rotation, allowing front and rear to remain staggered sizes and lesens fear of problems with existing tires (if suspension changes did not do the trick - seemed to stop getting worse). They seem to be vulnerable to featherin on the inside. tread seemed to be very cornering oriented and I live on a winding canyon road (oh, what a shame!). The on line reviews were very good with respect to handling and noise but I expect there may be a trade off in wear as they seem to be poular amosgst the drifting crowd. I have heard enough other good options that I probably will pass but remain intrigued if others have experience, love to hear about it.

2. Other than the noise which I belive was originating from out of camber condition, i have been very impressed with handling and stickyness of the continentals I may be getting older but rarely break them loose on the corners unless wet.

3. I probably will go with an all season tire as I probably am not agressive enough to warrant a summer only tire and avoid the Vegas run, etc. Probably more satisfied with additional wet performance.

4. The concept od "dead quiet" and remaining dead quiet over time is of extreme interest I think I need to shop the MXM michelins. I would be interested in exact model as there seem to be very subtle differences in names that give a lot of chang in attributes.

5. Happy to hear the Hankooks gave H2O boy better perormance after sorting out supsension. Interested in what happened as it seemed like photos were same between our cars. THe low mileage on your forst set was what had me discouraged (thanks - now decision is again more challenging).

6. I am very interested if anyone has had direct experience with the all season pirelli as reviews on other models indicated dramatic improvement over some michelin pilot sport models.

7. Good input as far as wider tires fitting on front to allow same all around. Looked at price of wheels, with two kids in college, got to keep wheels i got. It does bring up whether anyone has run any slightly wider, lower aspect ratio tires all around to maintain overall diameter, etc. More as a beefy look than needed as the 245/45/18 front and 255/45/18 rears do not suffer as problematically skinny in any way.

8. I agree Discount Tire or their local affiliate here America's Tire has consistently given me great service, and great deals. The do have a problem getting impact wrench all the way on or matching the size as I haver had lug nuts torn up a bit after only two visits (they were the only shop that touched them). That is going to be a tech to tech issue and happens everywhere. They are also good at matching offers and making a deal on btter tires if they do not have what you ask for.

Probably getting down to MXM michelin, Continental all season or Pirelli All season.

Normal pirelli's seem to have some negative issues on noise which can be very related to inflation pressure but there seems to be some consistency there.

Hankook also looks intersting as tread pattern has a lon sweep to it where it should stay in constant contact and reduce choppy noise.

Again thanks to all.

Steven Hood
1 AVguy

 

If the lug nuts get torn up, ask the manager to buy genuine replacements. They will only know that a problem has occurred if you tell them.

You might want to buy a deep *impact* socket of the correct size in 1/2 inch drive size and bring it in with you. The rest of the time you can leave it in the trunk with a breaker bar for your own use.

 

As a business owner, I agree, on bringing up problems. I only discovered months later when I had a flat. They were exceptionally accomodating on other fronts, not worth under cutting good will of the moment.

I follow on the carry your own socket thing, I do that with the alfa (I usually stand by or mount them myself as they have left hand threads on passenger side).

Regards and Thanks,
1avguy