Pireli P-Zero tires compared to other tires - The Unofficial BMW M5 Messageboard (m5board.com)

BostonRocket · 17th February 2002, 06:44

Hey all,

I am in the market for a new set of summer tires, and I am basically down to the wire now. I have heard good and bad things about the tire. My other choice is the Bridgestone S-03. I have ruled out the Pilot sports really only because I wanted to try a tire I have never used before.

I am more or less looking for a summer tire that will give me good grip in dry and wet, at least if not more than the Dunlops I had. The other criteria I was looking at was decent tread life. I have heard nightmare stories about Bridgestones, are they true? I have heard that P-Zeros are a harder compound which give it a bit longer life.

So if anyone of you knowledgable board members could maybe give their experiences with any of these summer tires, that would be great. I have read the archive messages, but I was hoping to get some more recent opinions, and also maybe some comments that do not focus on the Michelin pilots.

Thanks guys!

'Rocket

Black M5 · 17th February 2002, 07:52

Have some confidence.... They are the best! go for them

greg · 17th February 2002, 10:46

I have P-Zero's on the Porsche - best dry grip of any tire I've ever had - and certainly Ok in the wet. They also seem to be easier to mount/dismount than the S-02's I had, or the Kumhos I now have on the M5. Part of this is the design of the M5 wheel just makes it tough; part may be the flexibility of the sidewall compound.

tfung · 17th February 2002, 10:49

try the kumhos! I've heard great things about them, and they're half the price.. you can buy 2 sets of them for 1 set of anything else... you wouldn't need to worry about tread life if you have 2 sets..

BostonRocket · 17th February 2002, 18:18

greg,

Hmmm, good to hear that they provide amazing grip in wet and dry. Would you happen to have any opinions on the tire life?

tfung,

Hmmmm, Kumhos... good point about being able to buy two sets and not worry about life, hahha.

'Rocket

greg · 17th February 2002, 19:10

tfung: I've got 10k miles on them, still plenty left on the fronts; rears are getting down there on the inside (porsche is set up stock with more neg. camber than M5.)

BTW - I am VERY satisfied with my Kumhos on the M5 so far. Now that they're fully run in, if they give up anything in grip to the other contenders, you'd have to time laps on a racetrack to know the difference - they grip very well. Last night I was out in very heavy rain and never put a foot wrong....

M5xtc · 17th February 2002, 19:50

'Rocket,

I had the p-zeros on my '97 Boxster. This was a car I liked to drive in a "spirited fashion", with the majority of the miles in town and short commute trips.

I put about 16,000 miles on them...so I think their tread life is good. Also, we get plenty of rain in Nashville...never had a grip problem with them.

Don't be afraid of trying these tires!

Silverstreak · 17th February 2002, 21:24

My M5 came with Dunlops. I ran through them in 7,500 miles. I then switched to the Pirelli's. I've put about 7,000 on them with no appreciable wear. Grip, both wet and dry is excellent. They may be a little noisy, but otherwise they're great.

BostonRocket · 17th February 2002, 22:41

Wow guys thank you for some of the awesome responses so far. Keep them coming, but as of now, you guys have really sold me on the P-Zeros. Now here is another question relating to it, has anyone tried both the P-Zero Rossos, and the P-Zero yellows (original)?

Greg,

You mentioned before that the sidewall siftness may make it easier to mount, now do you think that would lead to the higher possibility of flat tires?

M5xtc,

Wow 16k in miles? would you buy these tires for your beast?

Silverstreak,

7k on the Dunlops? Wow, you must have really used them hard. I got almost 21k out of mine! Do you think the P-Zeros have a softer compound than the Dunlops?

Thanks guys, keep them coming!

'Rocket

chazzy · 18th February 2002, 02:37

'Rocket,

You know your PM box is full, right? Tried to PM you last night, but wasn't able to. You might want to check that your email address is correct, too -- you would have been notified of that.