JohnMetro

Hi guys

a little knowledge is a dangerous thing...

I desperately needed some new tyres, car is due for registration and no way the current tyres would pass - nearly bald!

I have a 1990 C4, currently running Conti Sport Contact 2's.
Front 205/50
Rear 255/40

I tried to replace with same tyres, but Continental is out of stock of the REAR tyres (in Australia) for at least 6-8 weeks. Fronts are available. So my tyre experts recommended and installed Pirelli PZero Rosso's all round.

After saying OK, I did a search on this forum (and the inter-web) and am now totally confused. Pretty much everyone says they are RUBBISH!!!

I picked up car today. After explaining this to my tyre people, they said take it for a drive, if you think rubbish, we'll take them back (full refund) and get you the Conti front's, put some temporary tyres on back (untl the correct Conti's arrrive in the country). My tyre guys are very accomodating.

Well, I took it for a spin this afternoon. 100% improvement on the nearly bald 5 year old Contis that were on it, BUT, there is no way I can safely drive around here at the limit to fully explore their performance. I decidede to keep the PZero Rossos.

Have I made a mistake? I can still swap in the next day or so - before I put any real mileage on them.

Please, anyone with first-hand knowledge, should I keep or swap over? I do less than 1,000 miles per annum ( weekend toy), so I'll be living with these beasts for a while.

PS. driving style? Currently, just solo weekend joy rides, includes some "spririted" driving on public roads - all withing legal limits of course (he he). No track days.

falcor

I would have gone for Conti's or Bridgestones as my first hand choice but I doubt the Pirelli's will put you in any trouble....they're not bad tires...and for your use should be more that adequate.

That said I dont have any personal experience with Pirelli's but I hope other will chime in and help you further.

JohnMetro

Thanks Falcor, yes, Contis were my first choice, but no rears available in the country for several weeks!

Cheers buddy

ACSGP

Are you looking for N-spec tyres? If so, your choices are quite limited.

IMO, the Conti CSC2s are not very good with low speed wet grip, and I changed mine on the Audi to CSC3s. Huge improvement, but no N-spec.

Alternatively, for N-spec, you can't go wrong with Michelin PS2s. Best performance tyre apparently, but not having used them on the 964, I can't vouch for them.

I just had the PS (not PS2s) replaced on the car, and the PS is really rubbish, so don't opt for them even if they are N-spec.

Currently running on Sumitomo HTR ZIIIs, and very happy with them. TireRack's review here:
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/...ay.jsp?ttid=93

Decided to go with them as they're great rubber for the price, and I'm going to 18's next year, and didn't want to spend too much on tyres.

JohnMetro

Thanks for the detailed feedback. Yes, I am looking for N spec. The Pirellis are N3. Again, I spent hours on the net last night, both on Rennlist and Google search. I have read both for and against N spec. I am happy to stick with them, and yes, it really does limit my choices.

I was interested in the Michelins, but unfortunately down under, the prices are horrendous!

Interresting your experience between PS and PS2. I'm still amazed that tyres from the same manufacturer can vary so much between models. This is why I am giving the Pirellis the benefit of the doubt... Most of what I have read about them being rubbish is NOT the Rossos...

Amroth

Hey John, I went through the same thing you did a couple of months ago. I was able to source new Pzero Rosso's for pretty good prices, but I was scared at how many people were slating them online.

In the end I got all four tyres replaced and guess what? They are good! Sure, they aren't the latest cutting edge tech, and they aren't very quiet (moderate road noise), but I hardly care because the performance is good and my car is pretty loud anyway. I took the car to 250km/h more than once, made many medium distance trips (2 hours+), and ragged them hard on emtpy roundabouts and back-roads.

I also wanted to try PS2's but, like you, the prices here are just crazy. I don't go cheap on my 964 in general but come on, almost twice the price of Pirellis?

So I drive a german car with italian shoes, and I'm cool with that. Besides, they are the sexiest looking tyres with the little red "Pzero" on the sidewall

Enjoy (Not safe for work!):

http://vimeo.com/8003153

Amroth

Looks good, I think I'll try the Sumitomo's once these ones are done

sml

Have you compared the following factors with online tire suppliers and shipping to Australia? ..
a) service
b) ease of transaction
c) delivery time
d) price

I haven't spent too much time researching tyres yet (have been working on steering wheels, coilovers, wheels, brake pads, etc), but I expect online suppliers will win on all fronts compared to suppliers in Australia.

Almost ordered Nitto NT01 tyres with wheels from the US this morning until I realised spacers are illegal in Australia. Back to the drawing board

JohnMetro

Hi Amroth.. you must be my long-lost twin

I agree 100% with much of what you say...
- I also don't mind spending good $ for my pride-and-joy, but no point in getting silly about it - yes, Michelins way too much$$$
- I can hardly hear the radio above my exhaust noise (cat bypass, woohoo),so that's not an issue for me either (makes me wonder how quiet some cars must be when they owners complain of tyre noise?)
- good to hear they run true at high speed... not often needed, but nice to know.

BTW, I confirmed today, although Pirelli is Italian, these are actually made in Germany, same as Michelin!!!

I'm starting to lean towards keeping them. Tomorrow is Friday, so I can still go back. After that may be to late... I'm taking the car up to our weekender on the northern beaches of Sydney this weekend. 50km's away, but much of it includes some nice twisty roads, I can give it a bit of revs... but by the time I get back Monday (over 100km in total) I would not feel right about asking my guys to take them back!

PS. Thanks for the link... I stumbled across similar when I was doing my "research" yesterday, and had to quickly shut down, before my female employees thought I was some kind of pervert!!!

Hi SML. It never even occured to me that on-line purchase would be an option. I buy so much other stuff online, not sure why I didn't think of this... suppose I assumed because of size/shipping costs not an option. ANyway, maybe a bit late for now. My tyre guys will exchange for me, but I think a total refund so I can buy online would be stretching the friendship (and be a bit mean and stingy on my part). But I'll remember for next time. Thanks.

doug751

I was running Bridgestone Potenza S-02 N3 . These provide great handling, but a harsh ride. I switched briefly to Michelin Pilot Exalto PE2 N0, which to be honest were horrible / floaty/ squishy on the 964. I switched back to new Bridgestone.

Amroth

Cool stuff John btw I have a cat bypass too

Your post about female employees passing while you ogle at pirelli babes made me laugh

Let us know how the tyres feel after your drive...

Greg_L

P-Zero Rosso's are fine tyres. My buddy has a set on his C2 and they perform great. I've driven the car fairly quickly in dry and damp conditions and they felt very decent.

evoderby

Here's what Porsche thinks about it:

http://files.porsche.com/filestore.a...ault&version=1


Tires are one of the most b*llshi**ed subjects on car forums ;-)

crg53

I just put on a set of Conti "Extreme Contact DW" and I am "extremely " happy with them, very quiet and good grip in all weather conditions.

Lil bastard

Well, no one can say that Pirellis are bad tires. There may be better ones, or ones you like better, but Pirelli is a time-proven brand. Also, the P-Zero Rosso will perform differently on different cars as will most tires.

I had the P-Zero Rosso on my Boxster and loved them despite many praising Conti's or Bridgestones over them. I drove a Boxster w/ Conti's and while it was a good tire also, I was underwhelmed. The Pirelli's gave good wear and pretty much linear performance right down to the wear indicators. I would buy them again.

I put BF Goodrich g-Force Super Sport A/S tires on my 964 earlier this summer. They're a Z-rated, 40k mi. (we'll see) All-Season tire, somewhat in keeping with the car as it originally came with BF Goodrich Comp T/As - 1990, the only year Porsche used Goodrich as a tire supplier for the 964.

They certainly won't have the ultimate performance of Summer P-Zeros, Pilots or Potenzas, but as it's a non-tracked fairweather Tourer, that would be overkill anyway. They also certainly don't have the pricetag either - I got all 4 mounted and balanced for under $500 out-the-door (due to a BF Goodrich promo at Tire Rack) - not at all bad for a set of shoes for a 911.

Tires are consumables and for this car, I wasn't going to pay for what I didn't need and I could care less what name is on the sidewall. The tires on my BMW 2002 have a higher performance rating, but this car is used to Auto-X and Rally, so it matters more there.

Cheers!