Move from away from AM Pirelli P Zero to PS4S or Conti 7s?

[PHFS]

Got my V12VS from an AM dealer in May on new AM Pirelli P Zeros. Not impressed, they feel very too hard, noisy and have a lack of traction/predictability.

So I know this is all personal, but keen to hear from experiences who have moved to PS4S or the newer Conti 7s. Will they really improve any of my gripes?

Also, if I do ever sell back to an AM dealer, will they want P Zero's on it, or would they be happy with PS4S?

Cheers

[AdamV12V]

Stock of P Zeros seem to be getting harder and harder to find so I wouldn't worry too much about selling it back after fitting a different brand of tyres providing it was a) a premium brand like Mitchelin or Continental and b) in the correct sizes and load ratings.

The topic of PS4S is hotly debated. Many here swear they are a huge improvement over the P-Zero's, others myself included (I now have PS4S on my V12VSM) found that there was very little between them. That said I found the MP4S cheaper than the P-Zeros at the time, and I certainly have not regretted the choice as they are a very good tyre all round. I have no experience of the Conti 7s but they also have a strong following of supporters. Very few people I have seen here that said they have fitted them to a V12V however. Just checking - do they make them in the right sizes / load ratings?

I suspect much depends on the age and wear of your outgoing tyres, if they were very aged >5yrs and close to bald then I suspect just putting new same make tyres will seem like a huge improvement anyway, so hard to compare a new brand/type to what the previous set were like 5yrs ago when they were also new and with full tread.

Edited by AdamV12V on Thursday 3rd August 10:58

[PHFS]

Thanks and yes there are always a few camps and point of views.

The P Zero's tyres were new and I have now done 2k miles. I just do not like them, so perhaps worth the spend to hopefully at least try to improve things. of course, could be wasted!

[CitySlicker]

P4S seem to suit more varied weather and temperatures but I don’t like how they perform in dry, warm conditions compared to the p zeros. I live in a hot climate and I will try the p zero corsas for my next stint but assuming you live in the UK they probably wouldn’t be the best choice if you’re driving in all conditions.

I don’t have any feedback on the differences concerning comfort or road noise but if you’re tyres are more than 3 years old they’re definitely passed their best! I can imagine there’s a tyre comparison article floating around somewhere on the net.

[dbs2000]

PHFS said:

=
Also, if I do ever sell back to an AM dealer, will they want P Zero's on it, or would they be happy with PS4S?

My old Vantage V12 had PS4S fitted, the car went on sale or return to the dealer and yep, I had to foot the bill for 4 crappy P Zeros. I did sell the other tyres to a mate though so not all was lost.

[Minglar]

There was a short thread running about this quite recently. May be worth a read. It was initially regarding DB9, but many of the replies were from owners of V12V variants.

https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

If you do a search on PH there has been an awful lot of conjecture on this issue over the years too. HTH a bit. BRM.

[Minglar]

dbs2000 said:

PHFS said:

=
Also, if I do ever sell back to an AM dealer, will they want P Zero's on it, or would they be happy with PS4S?

My old Vantage V12 had PS4S fitted, the car went on sale or return to the dealer and yep, I had to foot the bill for 4 crappy P Zeros. I did sell the other tyres to a mate though so not all was lost.

How strange. It was several years ago, so maybe things are different now, but when I bought my V12V from my local AM MD it was shod with Michelin tyres. The car was eighteen months old and had 4,000 miles on the clock. I’m fairly sure the previous owner had them fitted as Pirelli was always OEM. Corsa initially, and then standard was an nco. I immediately swapped them out for standard Pirelli P Zeros, but I will be reverting back to Michelins very soon. Personally I am not expecting too much in terms of performance and the price difference between the two makes was negligible. If tyres are old, any new ones will feel dramatically better, to start with at least. BRM.

[PHFS]

@CitySlicker - yeah UK so mid 20s at best and tyres still did not feel fully warmed up.

@dbs2000 - thanks, may either sell, or just keep inn garage then, as they have 6-7mm left.

@Minglar, good link. how did you get on with the move to PS4S's?

[Minglar]

PHFS said:

@CitySlicker - yeah UK so mid 20s at best and tyres still did not feel fully warmed up.

@dbs2000 - thanks, may either sell, or just keep inn garage then, as they have 6-7mm left.

@Minglar, good link. how did you get on with the move to PS4S's?

I’ll have to report back in a couple of weeks as the car hasn’t gone in yet. Will keep you posted. BRM.

[Import]

I decided to try the conti’s…so far I like them..

[Ninja59]

I am going out on a whim here, but hear me out. Have you checked the tyre pressures?

The sort of statements above are the sort of issues I had when the pirellis on my Vantage were anything from 1.5 psi to 4 and a bit psi over the recommended pressures.

It recently happened post a visit to an AM dealer and I ended up with 4 tyres all with different pressures in. The rear ones were 1 to 1.5 psi over, the front driver's side a mind boggling 2.5 psi over and the passenger front 2 psi over.

Reduced them back to standard pressure and normal service was resumed.

[Jon39]

dbs2000 said:

My old Vantage V12 had PS4S fitted, the car went on sale or return to the dealer and yep, I had to foot the bill for 4 crappy P Zeros. I did sell the other tyres to a mate though so not all was lost.

Dealer sells tyres. - Quite ironic.

Guess the OEM tyres for the Aston Martin Vantage GT12. A special edition V12 Vantage.

Michelin PS4S.

I hope that the dealer obtained a higher price for you.

[SHIFTY]

I am waiting for the Michelin PS 5 S if they are good enough for the DB12 then they are good enough for an earlier Vantage, rear tyres will not be available until end of year I have been informed.

Also latest Vantages use Michelin PS 4 S.

[Ninja59]

SHIFTY said:

I am waiting for the Michelin PS 5 S if they are good enough for the DB12 then they are good enough for an earlier Vantage, rear tyres will not be available until end of year I have been informed.

Also latest Vantages use Michelin PS 4 S.

Current Vantage is only using the PS4S on the V12. Pirellis are still on the normal and F1.

They are available the AML PS5S from the DB12 as I know someone that has them on their current Vantage!

[dbs2000]

Jon39 said:

Dealer sells tyres. - Quite ironic.

Guess the OEM tyres for the Aston Martin Vantage GT12. A special edition V12 Vantage.

Michelin PS4S.

I hope that the dealer obtained a higher price for you.

It was more than I paid for the car 2 years earlier, so I didn't care too much

[PHFS]

So after three weeks of local driving and a long drive to the lakes, this is what I think of the PS4S over the PZeros:

1. Ride: Noticeable improvement. Softer and less shock over road imperfections. Feels like the sidewalls have the right amount of flex for the car, but still keep that sharp turn-in and feel.
2. Grip: Noticeable improvement: The traction light is no longer continuously flashing like the PZeros. Feels far more predictable (but need a track day to really test that theory). The PZeros never seemed to get heat in them, and I think someone said on here, that they work far better in hot climates.
3. Noise. Slight improvement in road noise, but this is not by much.

So 2/3 and probably the 2 most important. I managed to sell the Pzero's already, cost to change of £450. No Idea why the Pzero's are standard fit by AM!

[SHIFTY]

Ninja59

Apologies I was comparing an early V12 Vantage (2017) to the latest V12 Vantage re Michelin PS4 S.

Just waiting for Michelin to sort themselves out re PS 5 S front's are available but not rears in the correct size for earlier V12 Vantages.

Edited by SHIFTY on Wednesday 30th August 18:19

[quench]

Ditched the Corsas on my V12VS long ago - not my favourite tire, either.

I ran PS Cup 2s for many years. I decided to try Conti Extreme Contact Sport 02's this spring. PS4's are great tires but I think they are over hyped and over priced. I can report that the Conti's are an excellent road tire - ample grip over a wide range of temperatures, and definitely more comfortable than the Cup2's. Great turn-in, too, which isn't the PS4's strongest point.