XDC

rikum,

What are you looking for in a tire? Where do you live, does it rain a lot, snow...? Do you require a quiet ride, soft ride, sporty ride, firm ride, maximum fuel economy...? When I was shopping for tires I was torn between the Kumho Ecowing KH30, and the Pirelli P7 Plus for a comfy ride. The local tire shop recommended the Pirelli, so I went with that and it worked out great for my needs.

rikum

XDC,

I live in Chicago so the weather lives on the extremes. Most important would be comfortable ride and fuel efficiency. I'm a novice when it comes to tires so any advice would be appreciated.

XDC

I am certainly no expert on tires either, but I think the Continental PureContact would probably be a good choice for you. It is highly rated in winter conditions on the Tire Rack website, and I guess Chicago gets some snow. They are also a Low Rolling Resistant tire, so it might help with mpg's. Just like the Pirelli P7 Plus, they are a highly rated all-season touring tire. But, I have not seen any feedback on the Pirelli in winter conditions. I know the Conti is not on your Sam's Club list, but they can be easily ordered at your local Discount Tire, Tire Rack, or Discount Tire Direct. here is one link to checkout http://www.discounttiredirect.com/di...%2FPerformance

Are you aware that the 205/60/16 is a half inch taller than factory size? The 215/55/16 is closest to factory size, and is also available in the Conti and Pirelli.

rikum

XDC,

Thanks a lot for the help and links i wasnt aware that it was a half inch taller

08XDRIDER

I went with Continental Extreme DWS, they are outstanding in the rain, good in the dry and decent in the snow plus they have a high (good) wear rating.

two.0XD

I have the same ones Conti DWS and I have to say I am a spirited driver, and I'm about 30,XXX miles into them and I have notice about 5,XXX ago they started to slip some, I mean dont get me wrong the thread life on these things is HELLA good, but it might just be because they are good on wet surfaces that its costing them in dry. . . all in all, I think I'd go with a Michline AS3 for next time. . . HOWEVER if these were at a good price I'd buy them again.

08XDRIDER

I got 75,000 miles off of a set of Conti DWS before they failed inspection.
They were rotated 3 times.
Were they as good in the end as they were in the beginning, No.
But the D was still visible.

Taco2007

I just put on a set of Yokahamas today. Replaced the stock Dunlops. Hoping this will provide a much better, smoother ride.

XDC

Just curious how the new tire setup are working out for you.
What size, and which Yokohama model did you go with?

Taco2007

They are the Yokohama Avid Ascend, P195/60R16. So far they are much smoother and quieter than the original Dunlops. As you probably know there aren't many choices for stock size tires for this car.

XDC

There is a new choice out there in 195/60/16. Kumho recently began producing their Ecsta PA31 in the XD's OEM size.

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....PA31&tab=Specs

Seems to have decent reviews on tirerack. I have no experience with this tire. Just want to let you all know there another option in this hard to find size.


Edit: I am not sure why link shows different tire size than what I copied, but just scroll through size chart to find 195/60/16.

XDC

It has been a year and eight months, and 22,000 miles since I put the Pirelli Cinturato P7 Plus' on my XD. I have been waiting to put some miles on them, and, for some considerable rain to test them out before reporting back.

They have been wonderful grand touring tires. They continue to be very quiet on most surfaces. They continue to blow me away with dry road grip especially on long sweeping curves, and tight circling on-ramps. They run smooth and have never gone out of balance. They are wearing great, I foresee an easy 60,000 plus miles of life out of them. They continue to be very comfy as they absorb potholes, train tracks, and speed bumps nicely.

What impresses me the most is their ability resist hydroplaning. Best I have ever experienced. They do a good job gripping the wet roads during hard braking and cornering, too. Surprisingly they are easy to spin in the wet during take off, even in a straight line under mild acceleration. Not a big deal I just adjust and go real easy off the line. Just surprises me due to the amount of traction once underway.

I find it hard to fault these tires. I am very happy with them. Even though they are a grand touring tire, I find them to be better performers than the high performance all-season tires such as Kumho 4X, Yokohama YK580, and Falken Ziex tires I have tried in the past.

derekls

I have 40k miles on a set of Michelin defenders on my 09... .still like new love these tires i expect to get 100k out of them