So my rear tires were quite worn.

I was never particulary happy with the factory tires - Pirelli P Zero's - but was what the car had installed when I bought it.

I talked to my tire shop and after a lot of questions ( thanks specifically here in the forum to XJsss and JohnDalheimer, who pointed me in this diretion ) they made a craking deal on Michelin Super Sport's 3 all around.

****ck me senseless... they completly change the XJ.

Confort - they are much more confortable. No, the XJ doesnt glide now, but confort wise its VERY noticable wise vs Pirelli's

Economy - I have the tires recently and they need to "bed in" but to be honest, I drove already 200kms ( 120ish miles ) and it seems to be 10% worse in fuel economy

Handling - oh my... worlds apart. Near where I work, there is a large U bend ( quite large ) with a large runoff area... and nobody around usually there, neither its a residential area... so sometimes I fell nasty and do a bit of sideways there. usually the rear of the XJ "lets go" at 80-90km/h ( 60-70mph ) ... now I did the same, but I forgot the turn the traction control off. With the traction on + pirellis, at 60ish/40mph, the DSC would go nuts and try to grip the car. Now, at 90-100km/h, at 60mph, with DSC on, not even flinched. The car just turned - mega grip. Road was dry. So dont quote me on wet performance, but dry performance is mega.

Noise - OH MY... at 160km/h / 100 mph... there was road noise. A bit intrusive in fact if I had the stereo off for any reason. Now, nill. Wind noise - the usual. But on good surface, noise is exemplary.

Since I knew that I was upgrading the tires, I did a very un-scientific test - I launched my iPhone app to meter noise, and did a long strech of highway, that at the time I come to work its empty , at 120kmh/h, with the stereo off and roof closed - 78-79dB. Did the same thing today, same conditions , cruise crontrol at the same speed - 72dB.

All in all - so far, VERY HAPPY with the tires. I got myself a new Jag XJ for few hundred euros

 

Goncalo,

I'm glad you're pleased with your new Michelin Pilot Super Sports, an outstanding Maximum Performance Summer tire with great customer reviews. I considered them, too, but decided to buy the Continental Extreme Contact DSW06. Here's why:

I live in Atlanta, GA and, although it is the South, our winters are often below freezing and with occasional snow and icy roads. For this reason, I decided that an UHP All Season tire would be preferable to a Maximum Performance Summer tire, which lose grip in cold weather and are not intended to be driven in snow or ice.

Unfortunately, at this time Michelin does not manufacture a full set of UHP All Season tires in my sizes: front 245/40ZR20, rear 275/35ZR20. They have Michelin Pilot Sport A/S 3 for the rears only, but don't offer the front size. After researching all the choices, I decided to buy the Continental Extreme Contact DSW06. I started a thread for my review: https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/x...s-06-a-153244/

Stuart

 

I live in Portugal, more precisely in Lisbon where throughout the year, the lowest the temperatures drop in winter is ... 5-8c and that is COLD for us ( 40F for you peeps over the pond ).

Now is January, winter and its ... cold..... for us its now currentl 17C/65C ... so a DWS tire for us doesnt make sense

 

Both of us bought the best tires for our circumstances and needs.

 

Goncalo welcome to the Michelin side. I to as Stuart live in Atlanta and I have yet to find any traction problems running Pilot Super Sports. I am within a month or two (15k and counting) of getting a new set. As I have stated before I run the larger XJR sizes of 265/35Z20 front and 295/30Z20 rears and spec the BMW compound (noted with "*") on the sidewall. However, recently, Michelin has started production of Super Sports in the XJs 20" wheel "normal sizes" 245/40Z20 and 265/35Z30 these are offered in Michelin standard compound so they should be perfect for the XJ. I will say that I am hard on tires and that this is the first time on the XJ that the fronts wore a little faster than the rears, but on the next set I'll not try to hold off on the burn outs. IMHO there are many tire manufacturers out there, but none make a better and rounder tire than Michelin.

 

I'm thrilled with the new tires, they do make the difference in this car.

However mines are the *MO* compound - Mercedes. Dont know if it is harder or softer than the normal or BMW compound, but then , happy camper here

Just curious - how many miles in total you have on the tires ? 15k ?

 

Here in the US MO's are not available for the fronts, but if yours are MO front and rear they should be fine and the compound should be what Mercedes wanted in characteristics that enhanced their approach to handling, plus from what I've seen MO tires have 10/32nds tread depth and BMW (*) have 9/32nds initial tread depth. As for wear I do have 15k on them and will hope to get maybe another 1 to 2k more. I may have not stated earlier that I have added the XJR front sway bar and that seems to work well with the larger tires.

 

15,000 miles on a set of tires would appear at first glance to be abysmal tread life. However, because of staggered fitment (different sizes front and rear), cross-rotation is not possible and, therefore, treadlife is half or less of what would ordinarily be expected. So, for an Ultra High Performance Summer tire like the Michelin Pilot Super Sport a 30,000 mile treadlife is within the range of expectations.

As I recall, the UTQG treadwear spec for the Michelin Pilot Super Sport is 280. That spec for the Continental Extreme Contact DWS, a UHP all-season tire, is 560. That's another reason why I decided to buy the Conti's. Sure, that's an apples-to-oranges comparison. Will I get 30,000 miles out of the Conti's? Time will tell.

 

Firstly i used to buy a DW also but now i went to Michelin Super Sport in the XJR sizes, so i'm wonder how it feels like, because from was expecting more comfort after Dunlop, but i didn't recognized a big difference.

 

Rostman what tire pressures are you running. I run 39psi and love the ride, but then I like great handling and a firm but smooth ride over a cushy boulevard ride.

 

One thing to note perhaps: the Dunlop, from what I've read, as pretty much as confy as the Michelin. Both of them are heaps better than the Pirelli's - perhaps why I noticed quite a difference ( Pirelli to Michelin ) and Roastman did not ( Dunlop to Pirelli )

 

Maybe it's constantly below 45°F in Moscow and the tires never get warm enough to appreciate what they are and what they can do.

 

Robert,

No maybes about winter in Moscow. At this time of year, temperatures typically range from the mid-20's to the mid-to-upper 30's, which are well below the minimum recommended temperature for UHP Summer tires.

Aren't we glad to live in Georgia! Almost 70 today, even with all the cloud cover.

Stuart

 

It could be the reason. That is why i do not like pirelis because it feels like plastic, not tyres. But with Conti Sport Contact 5 on my other car it feels ok as with Michelin Pilot Sport 2 on my another car. When i will put on Michelin Super Sport on my XJ i will tell you for sure.

 

I'm currently looking for Michelin PSS. I'm running 20mm spacers on my Kasuga Wheels 20x9 20x10. I think 255/35/20 and 285/30/20 would be ideal for a 9 and 10 inch wide wheel. What do you guys think? I am also in the process of lowering my XJL. I have lowering links available already but the shop is looking for the H and R springs they used to make for the XJL apparently. I will find out later this week.

 

Johncy In the sizes you mention Michelin does not offer PSS but do offer Pilot Sport A/S 3s. In PSS they offer our standard size of 245/40Z20 and 275/35Z20. Finally they offer 265/35Z30 and 295/30Z20 (XJR size that I run also make sure its a matched set at the size spec "BMW" (*))

 

Or MO ( Mercedes ) Mine are MO's - weirdly they don't sell these MO sizes in the US but they do in Europe. Go figure.

 

Is 265 a lot of tire poke though?

 

poke through? In US the rear larger tires are available in MO but not the 265/35Z20 fronts they are only offered as BMW (*)

 

As in the tires looking too wide that they protrude past the wheel. Is that the case with 265s?