Tyres for 159TI 19"

[Martin S]

As others have mentioned 235/40x19 tires are available from only a few manufacturers and are extremely pricey. After seeing discussions and chatting to one or two people I thought I'd try the 245/40x19 option on my 159TI TBI sedan. After shopping around I took my car to Motorsport Wheels & Tyres in Dandenong Sth, Vic late December and bought set of Kumho KU39 245/40x19 98Y for under $200/tyre fitted and balanced. Have only done few 100k's since but found them immediately much, much quieter and somewhat softer riding than ContiSports that were fitted as standard (which, incidentally wore out after 30,000ks of mostly easy and occasionaly moderate driving). No fouling of the wheel wells on full lock or over rough roads. I haven't had the car fully loaded since changing to these tyres (rarely is) but will be travelling 2 up with luggage to Qld and back from Melbourne over January so if no problems by end of that trip will have problem recommending this solution...

[Spiderman JP]

Same tyres as on my Spider, fantastic tyres......

[blueblood1995]

Why the Kuhmos? Were they recommended by Motorsport as a quieter ride? Did they comment on wear?
I currently have the factory fit Pirelli Zero Neros and will be keen to see what others have to say on the "durability" of a select range of tyres for the "heavy" 159.

[kaleuclint]

Yep -- I want to stick with PZero Nero (maybe GT) but there is usually much more competitive pricing with the 245s shared with HSVs than the 235s shared with Aston Martin.  But I don't want cheaper tyres at the expense of relining the wheelarches.  Following with interest.

[Martin S]

Thanks for your interest. Have just done 3,500km over 3 weeks over all kinds of roads including the appalling Pacific Highway north of Kempsey to the Gold Coast in both directions without a problem. Hit couple of huge pot holes on that section at some speed which bottomed out the suspension on to the bump stops front & back with no wheel arch fouling trouble at all. Drove for over over an hour in monsoonal rain on the freeway around Coffs Harbour (large nos. of motorists pulling off the road due lack of visibility & flooding) hitting sizeable patches of standing water and felt totally secure. Again can only repeat how much quieter & softer riding they are. At this stage have no problem recommending these tyres although can't comment on wear at this stage (nothing really noticeable after 4,000+ km though which is more than 10% of what I got from those Continentals...).

[oz3litre]

245/40/19 is definitely the way to go. They are far cheaper and you get a wide choice of brands. I had a set of the new Pirelli P1 Cinturatos fitted by Kmart, with lifetime free rotation for $287 each and we are very pleased with them. They give a much more comfortable and quieter ride than the PZero Neros and Contis that were on the car when we got it. They have done 30,222km so far, with little noticeable wear, so we are more than happy.

[emdalziel]

My experience with a Q4 is that on standard springs and with Eibach Pro-Kit springs fitted there are no problems with rubbing. The Eibachs give a similar lack of ground clearance to the Ti springs. The car came on Federal Formoza tyres that the previous owner fitted in place of the P Zeros. I went back to 235/40/19 PZero Neros and had slightly better grip than the Federals. I'm now running 245/40/19 Hankook Ventus Evo 2 S1 K117. With spirited driving and a mix of -2 and then -1 degrees of negative camber, I wore through the inside edges of the fronts pretty quickly. I've fitted another two last Friday. They come in at $249 each fitted from Jax. They are probably on the soft side for most tastes, but I feel they are consequently give a fair bit more grip than the Pirellis.

The 245/40/19 tyres also cancel out the speedo error in the pre-Ti Q4. So the odometer reads low now. 

[kaleuclint]

I've now had a set of Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymmetric 2 fitted in 245/40/19; made in Germany and OE for Porsche 911.  Maybe I'm insensitive to tyres but I can't detect much difference from the PZero Neros in 235 as far as handling and ride goes.  The steering is possibly slightly heavier but that 's in comparison to how it was with scrubbed out fronts. 

The new ones are 98Y rated so guessing that even if the (indiscernibly) taller sidewalls might have offered more flex, that's been cancelled out by the stiffer construction.

Apparently it's in the wet that the Eagle F1s offer the most gains, but my Pirellis were fine in the wet anyway.

$889 in a three for the price of four deal incl. fitting at Goodyear Autocare in Croydon.

[kaleuclint]

I currently have the factory fit Pirelli Zero Neros and will be keen to see what others have to say on the "durability" of a select range of tyres for the "heavy" 159.

My OE PZero Neros have needed replacement for about the past three years according to everyone who's serviced the car (and who sell tyres).  Finally replaced them at 27500km which according to the shop is "pretty normal" for 19 inch wheels, though having committed to the replacement they seemed to think the Pirellis weren't in the worst shape at the rear.  Going up to 245 had to change them all anyway. 

I think I'd possibly be happier with 18 inch Ti wheels.

BTW -- the OE 17 inch CSC3s on the front of my Benz are at 70000km.  I have replacement CSC5s sitting in the garage but no need to fit them yet.

[oz3litre]

$889 in a three for the price of four deal incl. fitting at Goodyear Autocare in Croydon.

You did well on the price. Our 245/40/19 Pirelli Cinturato P1s have now done 40,000km and according to Kmart, will last another 10,000km before we need to replace them. I got the free lifetime 10,000 km rotation and balance deal with the tyres and I am sure that has helped. I will definitely get the same tyres again. That is the best mileage I have got out of any tyres on any car I have ever owned from memory.

[kaleuclint]

Beaurepaires are also doing a 'three for the price of four' deal on Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymmetric 2 at the moment.

Very happy with mine.  Massive grip, comfortable ride and can confirm owner reviews that rate them as outstanding in the wet.  Recommended.

[kaleuclint]

...and just keeping this topic bubbling along, I should point out that the biggest problem with finding tyres for the 159Ti is reconciling price with rating.  There are tyres available that are both quality and priced right, but not necessarily at or above 96Y rated.  I understand you can discuss this with your insurer (and who drives at 300km/h anyway?) but the car doesn't suddenly weigh less and 96Y is what it came with from the factory, so your policy may demand this.

[bazzbazz]

(and who drives at 300km/h anyway?)

Well for my birthday once I did hire a Porsche 911 Turbo and hit the 300kmh mark on a downward slope on the Ipswich bypass . . . . . scared the f@*k out of me when I noticed the speedo !!   

Baz

[kaleuclint]

http://www.motormag.com.au/features/1601/how-to-do-300kmh-on-a-public-road/

[blueblood1995]

Now in the market for a set of 4 for my 2010 JTD Ti.
Replacing the OEM Pirelli Zero Nero GTs after just 40k.
Inside front wear no issue after having the alignment sorted. Great even wear across width.

Research so far...
Recommendation from several tyre dealers in 235/40 has been the Michelin Pilot Super Sport.
Class leading grip in dry and excellent wet weather traction.
Wear is outstanding for a performance tyre.
Good reviews on www.tyrereview.co.uk.
$390 per tyre best I can find.

Conti Sport Contact 3s @ $405 (although they have a 4 for 3 offer at the mo)

Bridgestone S001s @ $445 (the family wagon, 2006 Subaru Liberty 3.0, always clad in Bridgestone Potenza's due to great wear @ typically 60k to 70k but price is offputting)

Pirelli P Zero Nero GTs @ $385 (out of stock nationwide, Pirelli not expecting stock for at least another 3 months ALSO better tyres available for money )

Pirelli P7 Cinturatos @ $320

This sounds silly but it didn't feel right putting anything but Italian rubber on my beloved but having researched there are clearly better value-for-money tyres available and so it makes sense to find an alternative from the OEM... (or NOT depending on who you talk too?)

First question based purely on appearance (since the 159 is a thing of beauty not to be ruined by a terrible set of "shoes"!)
How do the 245/40s look on the rim in terms of height and width?
Assuming increased sidewall is not noticeable (4mm increase ??) BUT what about the width? Is the line from tyre to rim still "clean"?

Second question... what about the speedo?

I've always been a bit of stickler for running correct sizes. Hoping others can allay any fears.

Thanks to all in advance!