Pirelli Cinturato P7

A

Angus McCoatup

Member
 Cumbria
Pretty soon my OEM rear tyres will be done for.

I've always preferred to have the same type of tyre on all four wheels, so I'm trying to decide whether to replace the rears only with more OEMs so that they still match the fronts (these still look good for several thousand miles), or change all four to something different / better.

When looking at reviews of alternatives, the Pirelli Cinturato P7 seemed to come out pretty well - http://www.tyrereviews.co.uk/Article/2010-European-Summer-Tyre-Test.htm

Another plus is that, according to Pirelli's website, they make them in the OEM sizes for the original Z4M 18 inch wheel -http://www.pirelli.com/tyre/gb/en/car/sheet/cinturato_p7.html

Only thing is, they're runflats, which seems like it would be good for not having to mess around with sealant and compressor in the event of a puncture. But bad if they turn the M into a tramlining ditch-finder.

Just wondering if anyone had fitted these and, if so, what they thought about them.
 
Don't know why you're after this specific tyre, and don't know if you're looking for run-flat alternatives specifically or just for a cheaper tyre. Either way, there's better/cheaper options out there.

The Pirelli website states they're available in both runflat and non-runflat models, depending on size - and mytyres has the non-runflats listed for Audi or Mercedes 95Y fitments (£145 or £135 respectively for the tested size of 245/45r17). Although the 255/40/r18 is £245 for the runflat version, with no non-runflat listed.

From the same test (there are lots of other tyres listed in this size, but they are not in the 'high-performance' test you linked to - as some of their bigger brothers are categorised as 'max-performance'):
  • Kumho KU39 - £150
  • Bridgestone RE050A non-runflat - £180
  • Continental SportContact 3 - £210
  • Dunlop SportMaxx GT - £210
  • Bridgestone RE050A runflat - £230
  • Pirelli P7 Cinturato - £245
  • Michelin PS3 - £250
  • Michelin PS2 - £270

The only test that they came top in was road noise - and they scored highly in fuel consumption and tyre wear, which to me means they're rock hard and don't have much rolling resistance - but they are marketed as a 'green' tyre, so that's what you'd expect.

Their dry performance was on par with the Uniroyal Rain Tyre and Firestone Firehawk.

Also note that that tyre test was not done on Y/Z-rated tyres.

My next set will be either Continental 5P, Michelin SuperSport or Hankook Sport Evo S1 - depending on cashflow at the time.
 
Looks too hard to be grippy.. I know runflats have conme on, but still a no for me.
pirelli_cinturato-p7.jpg
How about:
attachment.jpg
 
Many thanks for the helpful replies. The comments about the runflats have confirmed my suspicions. I was just wondering if anyone had tried them and found them to be ok, but I'm now convinced it'll be a backward step.

Thanks also for the recommendations mmm-five and Andy. The Continentals, Hankooks and Vredesteins you mention all seem good and are on my short-list.

Rightly or wrongly I'm pretty keen to stick to the OEM sizes, but it seems all the tyres that get good reviews are either not made in the right size, or currently out of stock in that size (Vredestein).

My rears should still have around 1000 miles left in them, which will give me time to make up my mind about whether to go for 235/40 fronts and 265/35 rears or wait for stocks of OEM sized Vreds to come in.

Thanks again :thumbsup:
 
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