Saturdat, after burrying my cars nose in a snow wall on an Italian mountain road at a ridiculously slow speed, I decided it’s time to ditch the shitty eco Pirelli P2000 tires that came with my Peugeot 306. They provide no grip at all in the wet and on snow, and dry performance is mediocre at best. They’re of very hard compound, and haven’t worn a bit in the 30,000 km’s I’ve driven them. Believe me, I abuse them quite a bit. They just won’t wear. And we all know that a good grip requires a softer compound. So they must go!
I’m looking for a good all season performance tire. Here’s a list of my needs, in order of importance:[ul][li]Good cornering. They must have a perfect and predictable grip in the dry. I like to throw my car around a bit, you see. ;)[/li][li]Good grip in the wet. Many a time my front wheels (disc brakes) have locked up while braking hard on the highway. This will not do. Since my car doesn’t have ABS, the new tires need to have a superb wet grip.[/li][li]Decent snow capabilities. Hardly an issue in the Netherlands, but I do drive the car throughout Europe at times. Especially ski destinations - and I hate putting on the snow chains for a tiny layer of snow.[/li][li]Comfortable ride. Not of top importance, but I’d rather not have the constant buzzing noise that some winter tires provide.[/li][li]Price. Safety comes first, and has its price. But I think that limiting the budget to NLG 1000 (USD 400) for four new tires has to be possible.[/ul][/li]So, any petrolheads out there with suggestions, before ClogMod hurts himself with his crappy Pirellis?
I suggest you start calling 'em “tyres” before a group of your fellow Europeans storm over and club you into unconsciousness for being too American…heh
I (aggressively) drive a Dodge Avenger, and as soon as I could, I replaced the GoodYear Eagles with BF Goodrich Comp TA4’s (or is it Comp 4 TA’s…I can never remember).
Anyhow, they stick to the road, corner superbly even in the rain and have low road noise. I’m not sure if you can access this in Holland, but go ahead and check http://www.tirerack.com for good deals. I ordered mine and they were delivered before I got home from work the next day…'course, I live in the States.
$0.02
I looked on the UK Pirelli site, and it recommends the P6000 for your car. They’re softer than the P2000 so will stick better in the wet, but will wear out faster. I had them on my previous car, and I was happy with them, but never had to drive them in the snow. If you only drive in snow from time to time, how about using chains or cables?
I do use chains in the snow, and probably will with the new tires too. It’s the circumstances that you ALMOST need chains I’m talking about. With better tyres (thanks Max ;)), I might last a little longer without putting them on.
We do have BF Goodrich tyres here, so I’ll ask around about the prices on those. My father Peugeot 406 has Pirelli P6000, and they handle very nicely in the dry. In the wet, however, Pirellis aren’t top notch to my experience, so it’s probably gonna be another brand.
FWIW, I have P6000s on my VW Cabriolet, and have never had any slipping problems in the wet, nor gotten stuck in the snow, either. YMMV ( Hmmmm. oddly apropriate )
What about those Firestone/Bridgestone Wilderness tires I keep hearing about? Those are probably good since they get so much media attention.
I’ll have to check what’s on my Subaru. I drove on roads covered in 3-4" of snow last night (they didn’t plow yet since it was still snowing) and I had great control with the AWD. I’m sure the tires also had something to do with it. I was trying to spin out and I couldn’t do it.
Then again you’re not in the US, so don’t know if it’ll be of any use to you.
Maybe you should consider the tires on my car. I never need to use snow chains and I never once got stuck in snow or lost traction on icy roads. But I live in Florida, so that might not be saying much.
I know you may not want to consider another suggestion for Pirelli tyres but may I be bold enough to recommend the P7000 SuperSports.
I put on a set on my '00 Jetta (Bora) GLX and they have performed marvelously in all conditions: Dry, snow, sleet and rain. In fact I am more impressed with their wet performance than their dry. I like to push my car in corners as well and I find that they are not as sticky in dry conditions as Dunlop P-Zero’s but they do wear a hell of a lot better too. It’s all a question of give and take.
In fact I liked the P7000 so much I put them on the family hauler (Volvo - V70 AWD turbowagon). They perfom marvelously through the worst winter conditions Canada can muster.
If you want to further improve your grip/handling characteristics you may want to do a plus 0 size up. In other words, take your 205/55/16’s and slap on a set of 225/50/16’s. The width to height ratio will remain virtually unchanged and your speedometer will not need recallibrations. You may find the steering a tad heavier at first but the traction will improve significantly. The P7000 has wonderful water dispersion characteristics so hydroplaning will not become a problem despite a wider contact surface on pavement.
The problem is the wheels: they can only carry 175 14". Hey, it’s what you guys call an economy car - which means “considerably sized hatch back” in Europe.
This limits me somewhat in my choice, but there’s still enough to go around. Quicksilver, I doubt the P7000 exist in my size, though.
I’lll check out tirerack.com and see what they tell me.
c_goat: your Subaru will have a better snow handling than my Peugeot even if it were on its bare alloys. The AWD makes it a perfect snow car. And what brand is that, anyway? P205? Pirelli?
But I do know that you should never EVER get any kind of Aqua-Tread type tire (the ones with the groove in the middle to make the water splash out of the way). I bought a used car that had them and they were the worst! They’re like little skies for your car in the winter, even though they’re supposed to be all-season. Bah! It’s crap, I tell ya’!
Coldy, what c_goat posted was the size and rating of the tire, not the brand or model. Translation:
P(passenger car tire)205(width in mm)/ 50 (sidewall height, as a %of width, in this case, half, or 102.5mm)/next would be speed rating, such as V or H, not posted R (radial tire)-15 ( rim size ). There you have it!
