X1 F48 - Any opinions on Pirelli PZero as replacements?

[DJMC]

Original NON-RF 18" P7s nearing the end of their life on the front wheels. Spoke to Pirelli who advised P7 was discontinued April 2017 and PZero is the replacement. I'll put the new tyre on the rear and the half worn rear P7s on the front as convention advises.

Anyway... has anyone swapped to 225 50 18 PZeros on the current X1? How do you find them for handling/ride/noise compared to the originals?

Had PZero N0 on my Cayman and they were awful. The P7s have been good on the X1, especially in the snow.

If you have 19" or RF please do not comment.

Thanks for any help.

[Smuler]

Funnily enough when I saw your reply to the X1 or X3 buying advice thread was going to resurrect the other thread where we discussed tyres.

My Bridestones were delayed so I went the Pirelli PZero option. My tyre guy contacted Pirelli and made sure these tyres were okay for the X1. BMW Ok'd them too as it’s passed health check since.


I find the grip is better and handling feels a little sportier. Ride has however depreciated a little over bumps.
Can't say I noticed much difference on noise.

I’ve only done 1700 Miles in them so too early to assess wear. But I do drive the car hard so maybe I’m not a good benchmark.

Overall I’m pleased.

Edited by Smuler on Thursday 18th January 12:39

Edited by Smuler on Thursday 18th January 13:18

[Eddieslofart]

I like P Zero’s, but they do wear faster i’ve found. Got 10k from the last set, a couple of years ago mind, in Rosso format.

[msej449]

Be aware that there are at least 7 different types of PZero out there including the 'New PZero'. Traditionally, the PZero was aimed at heavier performance cars, so often disappointed owners moving to a lighter-weight model. I think a lot of the bad reviews you see arise from this. And it was never really an SUV design. For the OP's X1 I'd consider some all-seasons like the Michelin Cross-climate.

Edited by msej449 on Saturday 20th January 14:46

[Smuler]

msej449 said:

Be aware that there are at least 7 different types of PZero out there including the 'New PZero'. Traditionally, the PZero was aimed at heavier performance cars, so often disappointed owners moving to a lighter-weight model. I think a lot of the bad reviews you see arise from this. And it was never really an SUV design. For the OP's X1 I'd consider some all-seasons like the Michelin Cross-climate.

Edited by msej449 on Saturday 20th January 14:46

I wanted those, but they didn't do them in the X1's 18 inch size. It's a b*gger of a size to get tires to fit.

[tr7v8]

Not an X but I have Vredestein Vortis on the Cayenne & they have been brilliant. Very summer pattern though with long grooves. But for handling, wet & dry grip & quietness they are A1

[DJMC]

Need to be BMW * marked for warranty.

[msej449]

I'm pretty sure you don't have to replace with BMW '*' tyres from BMW to preserve your vehicle's warranty. The BMW '*' mark guarantees OE-quality of the tyre, but that's all. If the bmw '*' on offer from your dealer is cost-competitive, fine, but you can get replacement tyres from anywhere you want.

There is an issue with xDrive in that you must conform to the BMW 'certified' spec' of wheel size and tyre sizes for your model. People fitting silly low-profile wheels and tyres to xDrives (in fact, any sizes outside the spec') can cause major transmission problems. So do check with your Service Dept. as to what wheel/tyre sizes are OK with your VIN, before going to independent suppliers. In this respect, yes, getting the tyre from the dealer assures you it's (a) a certified size and (b) OE quality, the former being the really important thing.

The BMW website has a Wheel/Tyre configurator that lets you put your VIN in and then shows what BMW wheels/tyres will fit:

https://shop.bmw.co.uk/bmw-uk/en_GB/genuine-bmw-ac...

There's a small VIN slider in the centre below the main title image. However, they seem to change the URL regularly. The page is accessed form the bmw.co.uk page via 'Ownership>Accessories>Wheels&Tyres>Buy Now'

Your Owners Manual should also list the wheel and tyres for your model, but getting it confirmed by your dealer's Service Dept is always a good idea.

Edited by msej449 on Sunday 21st January 11:44

[DJMC]

Need to be BMW * marked for warranty.

[msej449]

DJMC said:

Need to be BMW * marked for warranty.

No they don't.

And are you just going to keep on restating the same wrong information?

This is why I suggested the OP contact their garage and specifically ask if BMW vehicle warranty demands they must use only BMW '*' tyres. Otherwise we'll just keep re-posting our views indefinitely.

Edited by msej449 on Sunday 21st January 18:59

[Smuler]

msej449 said:

No they don't.

And are you just going to keep on restating the same wrong information?

This is why I suggested the OP contact their garage and specifically ask if BMW vehicle warranty demands they must use only BMW '*' tyres. Otherwise we'll just keep re-posting our views indefinitely.

Edited by msej449 on Sunday 21st January 18:59

My Pirelli PZeros are star marked, but it isn't my experience across a range of cars that there is any necessity.

I rang BMW warranty on my 335i when changing 1, from RFTs and 2, from winters and no requirement for star marked was mentioned, plus AUC do not sell all cars with star marked tires. I've had warranty claims on all these cars. No problems.

[DJMC]

msej449 said:

No they don't.

And are you just going to keep on restating the same wrong information?

This is why I suggested the OP contact their garage and specifically ask if BMW vehicle warranty demands they must use only BMW '*' tyres. Otherwise we'll just keep re-posting our views indefinitely.

Edited by msej449 on Sunday 21st January 18:59

Sorry, I'm sure I only posted that ONCE???

@msej449 - thanks for the info. I'm going by the experience with my Porsche where their "N" mark IS a definite requirement for warranty. I'll call my BMW dealer (Sytner, same as my Porsche) and see what they say.

By the way, I would never buy my tyres from a BMW dealer. Being BMW * marked doesn't mean that only BMW dealers sell them.

[msej449]

DJMC said:

Sorry, I'm sure I only posted that ONCE???

Sorry, I didn't mean to get snippy, it's just that your post seemed to appear twice - browser rendering strikes again ....

Your point is still important: The BMW '*' rating genuinely addresses the problem that traditionally, the factory tyres on your car are of particularly rigorous quality. A tyre factory will do a specific run for a manufacturer and often, there's a quality person from the manufacturer inspecting what comes off the production line. Nothing but perfect will do. Or manufacturers inspect arriving tyres and will again reject anything they regard as sub-par, even if it's only cosmetic. So this leaves the owner with the question "How do I get similar quality replacement tyre?". The BMW '*' system deals with that.

However, having worked for a tyre manufacturer, I would say that there's not really an issue with getting the same brand/type of tyre from an independent supplier, even if it's not '*' marked. Or a premium quality tyre that BMW doesn't fit as OE. The difference in failures-per-1000-tyres is very small and once you take cosmetic rejections away, for me, it isn't significant. But of course, if your dealer's price is competitive then why not got for a '*' version?

The ancillary issue that I would emphasise, however, is that (as @DJMC is doing) you should trust your dealer's service department to provide a definitive list of what wheels and tyre sizes are 'certified' for your vehicle. Especially if it's an xDrive, which seems more sensitive to incorrect sizes. The secondary benefit of using '*' is that the dealer will supply the right size for your VIN and if, say, you have some aftermarket wheels, point out when these aren't certified.

On my previous BMW, I got my winter wheels, tyres and chains from my BMW dealer who also stored the unused set after swapping-'round. This car, they didn't have the tyre I wanted, so I went to an independent. But first I got a list from BMW of what sizes would be OK. They also pointed out that I needed to be aware of the bigger M-Performance brakes on my model limiting the choice.

Edited by msej449 on Monday 22 January 11:15

[Smuler]

I’d never buy tires from BMW (too expensive) and I am not confident in them either as they were looking to sell me RFTs when I’m not sure they are even suitable!
These Pirelli PZeros are * marked and my tire guy does say Xs are sensitive so I’ll stick to this. As I said it’s a difficult enough tire size to get tires for.

On my M3 I’ve gone for Michelin Pilot Sport 4S. Brilliant tho I’m sure I’ve read here that none of these are * marked.

[DJMC]

Not much choice away from * marked tyres anyhow. Only cheapies.

Have now ordered PZeros BMW * marked from my long-term tyre people. £160 each fitted. Compares to Camskill's £143 delivered, but plus fitting at £15 a tyre, so nothing in it.

The new ones are also marked "LS" (luxury sedan) and "4G" - the 4th generation of PZero apparently. Latest firmware etc. no doubt!?