StewC625

Just got my P-Zero Neros installed - first impressions:

1) It's 28 degrees outside. With my Potenzas, I could "break it loose" by tromping the throttle at 5 mph on DRY pavement - the car would come up into the powerband and the wheels would begin to spin. Above 45 degrees, not a problem. But the Potenzas turn into old dried-out erasers when the temp is low - the lower, the worse it gets. These, at 28 degrees, and BRAND NEW (like 5 miles on them) stick very nicely in corners at low temps.

2) They are QUIET! Man, so much less noise in the car - so noticable. With the Potenzas, you could hear the tread blocks slapping the pavement - not so with these. Terrific!

3) A little softer ride - my guess is just how the tire is constructed.

4) Overall handling: Too early to tell - in my experience it takes a tire at least 500 miles before the "mold shine" wears off them and they start to grip like they were designed to ... same reason racecars like to run on "scuffs" rather than "stickers".

Very interested in getting a little snow now so I can see how the car deals with it!

Stew

StewC625

Just got my P-Zero Neros installed - first impressions:

1) It's 28 degrees outside. With my Potenzas, I could "break it loose" by tromping the throttle at 5 mph on DRY pavement - the car would come up into the powerband and the wheels would begin to spin. Above 45 degrees, not a problem. But the Potenzas turn into old dried-out erasers when the temp is low - the lower, the worse it gets. These, at 28 degrees, and BRAND NEW (like 5 miles on them) stick very nicely in corners at low temps.

2) They are QUIET! Man, so much less noise in the car - so noticable. With the Potenzas, you could hear the tread blocks slapping the pavement - not so with these. Terrific!

3) A little softer ride - my guess is just how the tire is constructed.

4) Overall handling: Too early to tell - in my experience it takes a tire at least 500 miles before the "mold shine" wears off them and they start to grip like they were designed to ... same reason racecars like to run on "scuffs" rather than "stickers".

Very interested in getting a little snow now so I can see how the car deals with it!

------------

MORE:

Damn these babies are WIDE! You wouldn't think that 20 mm in section width (the widest point of the tire, as mounted on the recommended wheel size 8.0 or 8.5" - I went with 245/40's) would make a difference, but it DOES.

What was cool was when they were stacked in the garage after arrival - they just looked HUGE ... I was away on Friday and asked my neighbor to roll them into the garage after UPS delivered them and he called me laughing and wondered when I was going to grid the car at Indy. Just as a lark, I measured the stack - it was 49" tall. The Potenza RE040's measured just 45" tall as a stack of four!

They look terrific on the car.

Crispness: I think this is probably just new tire "shine" but they do feel slightly less crisp than the Potenzas - but honestly, for me, that's a good thing. I thought the Potenzas were unnecessarily stiff. Even if I give up a bit of "crisp" for an improvement in ride, it's a trade that's worth it ... but based on what Omicron has said, it doesn't sound like it's a lasting phenomenon.

doccable

Ok... has anyone attempted to go with tires wider than the 245/40/18's? How about 255/35/18's? The biggest potential problem I can see would be clearance issues; both height and width. I'm going to order the tires in the next day or so, so any thoughts would be appreciated!
-Doc C

StewC625

255's can't be mounted on the 8.5" stock wheels. 245 is the max width for that wheel. Can't speak to clearance issues.

Gomez

Rightio Stew...I'd like to see pics now... :D

mdmaclean

The stock 18" wheels are 8" wide.

Gomez

tpryor has put 255's on I think....do a search on his posts.

StewC625

It's a sunny day today - I'll snap photos later today ...

Raevik

Ok, I think you guys may have solved my problem. Winter is coming and I was looking for a lower-cost solution than buying a fresh set of rims and wheels (estimates were coming up close to $2000).

So, if I go with this $520 solution...I'd be very very happy

However, some questions:

1) What'd you guys do with the old tires?
2) Someone above mentioned the width being huge...does it fit the car ok? No problems?

3) How does the change away from 225/45 to 225/40 change the speedometer accuracy?

StewC625

Hi guys:

PHOTOS! And answers:

1) Old tire disposal: Well, my take-off Potenza tires have only 3800 miles on them, so they are going on the FOR SALE forum, and if that doesn't work, eBay. I'm guessing I'll get $400 for them. And, if they dont' sell, then they go into ozone-proof bags and into my crawlspace where they will wait patiently for the PZero's to wear out, and then back on they go!

2) No interference problems with the 245s at all, as borne out by Omicron's pioneering experiement to boldly go where no tire had gone before!

3) Well, for starters, I didn't go from 225/45 to 225/40, but to 245/40. With the 40 being a percentage of the section width (225 or 245), the nominal sidewall height of the old tires was 225mm x 45% or 101.25 mm. The nominal sidewall height of the new tires is 245mm x 40% or 98mm. The rolling circumference of the new tires is a little bit less than the old ones, therefore, the speedo is off by a touch. Or Go to Tire Rack.com for exact answers here, but I can't see any obvious calibration errors - my speedo was 1-2 mph off (to the high side) as compared to my portable GPS unit in my car, and just today tested it, and it seems to be solidly 2mph off at lower speeds, and 3mph at higher. Most speedos have error rates of a few percentage points so this is right in line with that.

Pictures attached - they probably don't show the illusion of much wider as much as it looks in person ... but, take a look anyway.

Stew

StewC625

And more photos.

StewC625

Lathos:

You and I were in the same boat - this is a leased car. An extra set of winter wheels and tires were going to run me well north of $1300 at the entry level and $2000 for a truly nice set.

This was $720 solution with shipping, mounting and balancing all counted. And I hope to recover $400 of that on resale of my current tires, making this a $320 investment. Not too bad.

G8rboy

They look great Stew... and you're right about the mold release compound- try to get that off before you get into much snow with some spirited driving and cornering in the dry.

Enjoy!

StewC625

Is that a prescription, Doctor? I'll be sure to heed it if it is!

G8rboy

Aye- take two hairpins at 60 and call me in the morning

StewC625

zoom-zoom!

Omicron

1. I sold mine here in the Parts for Sale forum for almost what I bought the Pirellis for. My Potenzas only had about 1500 miles on them.

2. No clearance problems at all, even with the Tein H-Tech springs I have, which drop the car 1.5" in front and 1" in the rear. And, I got the 245/40-18s.

3. My speedo was off by +1 MPH with the Potenzas, it's now off by +2 MPH with the Pirellis. Not significant, IMHO.

More details about all of your questions in this thread. Hope this helps! :D

Raevik

Does it take anyone special to mount the tires due to the TPMS? I've heard repeated stories about shops causing tire leaks due to faulty TPMS handling...

Does this only come into play with a wheel swap, or will a tire change also do it?

G8rboy

Any time the tire is dismounted/mounted, you have to deal with the TPMS sensors. I had to call around to a few places to find one that was comfortable working on them, and ended up going to a NTB shop. I also printed out the Mazda Service Flash that details how to deal with them and gave it to the tech to make sure he knew to unfasten them and drop them in the tire before breaking the seal all the way around. You don't /have/ to follow that procedure, but it's pretty easy to damage the aluminum sensors with their equipment if you don't. The good thing is they're much easier to work on that the band style sensors that some of the German mfr's use.

Raevik

How about taking the tires to the dealer to have them mounted? That way if they damage anything it should be less of a hassle (I actually like my dealer).

I can only imagine the difference in cost though...

G8rboy

That is the best bet, but yes- probably cost a lost more. My local dealer wanted over $50/ tire, plus some BS fee for working on "performance wheels" over 18". I think it was going to be $250 or so... I was a little pissed since I just bought it but hadn't picked it up yet. I would have negotiated it into the purchase, but i already had them below invoice.

Raevik

Hm.

I love these types of conversations:

Me: "I've got an RX8 and Im getting some all seasons because the weather is starting to turn. How much will you charge me for a mount and balance job?"

Rep: "Hmmmmm. Weeelllll. "

Me: "...."

Rep: "Yeeeaahh.. Hmmmmm. What size wheels did you say you had?"

Me: "18's"

Rep: "OOohhh, ouch. That's ...yeah. Hmmm. You want to do all four?"

Me: "Yes"

Rep: "Hmm...well...<taps on keyboard> Well, that'll be $140"

Me: "Ouch. Can you break that down for me? "

Rep: "Well, that's just the cost for our mount and balance job"

Me: "Right, but what drives that price up. Is it the 18" wheels?"

Rep: "Oh yeah, on any 18" wheel and especially on the RX8's it's a real pain to mount and balance them"

Me: "......don't all RX8's come with 18"s stock?"

Rep: "Yes"

Me: "...."

Me: "Ok thanks bye"

Not floored by a sense of supreme confidence here. If he thinks mounting and balancing an 18" is hard and should cost more, he'd probably freak that I was looking to change to a tire dimenion of 245/40/18...(and find some way to charge me more for it)

StewC625

It took me three tries to find a shop to do this that was:

1) Able and willing to handle the 18 wheels

2) Able and willing and knowledgeable about the TPMS sensors

3) Seemed like they had their general **** together.

I would up at Golz motors in Deerfield IL - it's a performance restoration/maintenance shop specializing in Porsches, MB, Ferrari, etc. and yes, "rotary powered performance cars" as they put it.

They did a fine job on the mount and balance although they did nick one wheel, but the scratch is so small that I ignored it. I might have done it myself anyway ... charged me $23,99 a wheel.

Go to TireRack.com and use their locator to find an installer in your area to do the work and then, as Sean said, grill them on their knowledge of how to do the work.

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Separate subject: These pups stick LIKE GLUE! I love them - far better than the OEM Potenzas and this is on dry pavement! At cold temps, yes, but DRY. At these temps, the Potenzas just slid around.

Stew

Omicron

This is my impression too. I certainly feel like I lost nothing by going from the Potenzas to the PZeros! :D

WVU RX8

Just got my Pirelli 245/40/18's installed last night, to be ready for snow here in central Ohio. I didn't realize just how noisy the stock RE040's had gotten. I can now hear the fine points of the engine and transmission again! And the turn signal clicking is back to normal!

Like Omicron, I would describe the ride as "softer" in my first few miles. Tight turns still work fine, although the rear end corners with a bit of sponginess but is easily adjusted to. Bumps in the road are softer. The Pirelli's don't tend to follow grooves in the pavement. Early on, I'm very satisfied with my choice; I'll know more after a few interstate ramps. Just can't believe how much quieter the car is. The RE040's showed no visible cupping but they had gotten quite noisy somehow.

Before driving on the new tires, my plan was to re-mount the RE-040's next spring to get more wear out of them. I'm thinking now that I'll sell them (any offers?) if the Pirelli's continue to impress. More later after the snows. Happy motoring...