Quieter, smoother, handles better - I have won the Lotto !

[iamthestig]

Well, I am amazed. I took off the standard wheels and tyres (Pirelli P6) off my car and swapped them with a set of 17" 155TSI rims (ex-Avdo who has posted his own thread and now has some tasty looking 19's) with Dunlops.

I was hoping that, given I was reducing tyre profile from 65 to 55, the ride wouldn't be too much worse than what I had. Imagine my surprise when I fitted the wheels and drove the car to find that, as well as looking and handling better, the car was noticably quieter and more comfortable (same tyre pressures !). Even my partner and 12 year old daughter immediately noticed the difference !

Clearly those Pirellis are as good as the ones being used in F1. The front P6's are worn more than I thought they should be after 33,000kms even though the Pirelli Scorpions (225/50x18") made 90,000kms before being changed (in a heavier car) in the same usage.

Still in shock really...

[tigger73]

I found that going from 18's running Goodyears to 19's with Bridgestones that even though I had gone down in profile the ride was smoother. Shows how big a difference tyres make to the road feel, comfort and noise level.

[avdo_]

Glad you're happy with the wheels and tyres.

[ido09s]

You must have gotten the F1 Pirelli's as mine are fine Mine must be from another batch lol

43,000klms and i can see them lasting to 60,000klms pretty easily.

How good is the wheel alignment on your car? hat obviously has a lot to do with how long they will last

[Transporter]

The P6 tyres aren't the quietest one, we have 2 Tiguans, one came on Hankooks and the second one with the P6 tyres and there is much more road noise despite the car is a good 18months younger and has a quitter engine (both TDI's on 16" wheels). Though, the Hankook tyres will not last much more than 30,000km.

[davc88]

will going up the 19" be more bumpy than the stock rims? correct me if i'm wrong but i thought its less smooth?

[203132]

I've gone through two sets of P6's and I have to admit I was quite satisfied with them although with a bit wear they didn't quite perform well during the rain. Had a couple of incident at a roundabout with a slight uphill where I under steered but that probably had to do with the uphill, the weight transferring to the back and the wear.

[tigger73]

will going up the 19" be more bumpy than the stock rims? correct me if i'm wrong but i thought its less smooth?

Generally yes going up a rim size will lead to feeling more of the bumps. Though weight of the rim/tyre and also how rigid the sidewall of the tyre will determine how much gets transferred.

[iamthestig]

You must have gotten the F1 Pirelli's as mine are fine Mine must be from another batch lol

43,000klms and i can see them lasting to 60,000klms pretty easily.

How good is the wheel alignment on your car? hat obviously has a lot to do with how long they will last

Alignment is fine - worn evenly across the whole tyre...

[MGV]

I still have my stock rims in the garage with the P6's on them with 20000k's wear & they almost look as good as new...

I think they are a pretty decent tyre...