2020 Tyre Dilemma 245/35 r19

[Greg B]

I would love to hear from others about their tyres experience. I have read most of the tyre related treads here but still cant get a clear picture of which tire I should go for.

My car:
2.0 TDI quattro (stock 190 hp) 55k miles
S-line suspension , no adjustable shock absorbers
19 inch wheels with Pirelli P zero 245/35 R19 XL MO (not AO) (at the end of their life)

My priorities:
1. Noise & comfort
I find my current setup extremely noisy . Maybe it is a condition of the tread or generally 19 inch wheel thing?
However right from the beginning when tires still had 3-4mm, I found them noisy too. It surprises me because I can hardly hear engine at any speeds but tire noise & road surface vibrations are literally protruding cabin especially at rough tarmac and motorway speeds. I also wonder why Audi specs 19 inch wheels if they ruin comfort so badly?

2. Grip in wet.
At the moment if I go a bit quicker on roundabouts in moisture conditions, car will loose front grip without a problem. I understand it is a heavy car and weight distribution is not perfect, but I would expect awd and decent tire (not sure any more if Pirelli is decent) to cope with it better.

4. Good handling.
I find my a4 handling a bit rubbery, unprecise and literally delayed, but it could be an Audi thing.

5. Tire Life
I would expect to get about 20k of tires , assuming swapping front to rear every year.

6. Price

7. Rim protection
Pirellis had a a very thick rim protector, some says best among others. Despite that 3 out of 4 rims are curbed now after 1 year of very careful parking.

My contenders:
Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymetric 5 - had F1 Asymetrics multiple times in my previous hatchback on 17inch wheels and was very happy. it was 225/45 R17, so hard to compare

Michelin Pilot Sport 4S - have heard some great and bad opinions. I always thought you cant go wrong with Michelin, but price always pushed me off. At the moment Black Circles sell them for£158 and gives £40 off the set of 4, so it is not bad. Just worried that soft tyre like this will wear off very quickly.

Hankook Ventus S1 Evo2 K117 AO ( 67dB noise rating which is shocking good) - just wondering if they are really so quiet in real life comparing to others. Price is very attracting too.

I would be very grateful for any thoughts about your tyres, especially in the context of my priority categories and in comparison to Pirelli P zero if you ever used them and swapped to other brand.
Thanks!

 

[Nham68]

I ran Goodyear F1 asymmetric 5 on my S4. Night and day better all round in this wet climate vs Pilots that it came with . Wear was also excellent .. 15K+ per set on S4 (closer to 18k). And great price.

 

[smog c6]

The Pirelli’s are great when new but become awful once worn past 4mm had em on my A4 and A6 before.

All the above you mentioned are better than the Pirelli’s.

I would have the Goodyear’s, if price isn’t a problem have the Michelin’s. Hancooks are okay however from when I did my research they don’t last too long.

I might get slated for this, but I recently tried some Debica brand tyres. I must say I’m very impressed, they are very capable and only £60 a corner. (Check the tyres tests on these they are up there with premium brands)

 

[Greg B]

@smog c6 thank you for your input.
I am glad you are comparing other tyres specifically to Pirelli. It sounds like whatever I choose, will be an improvement, big relief for me.

Hankooks - found many opinions about their long life, lasting up to 40k. They are B rated in rain which may suggest a bit harder compound and slower wearing off.... this is just me guessing it.

Debica - is an old Polish brand, owned by Goodyear since 1990s, so I think it is very likely that they use a lot of GY know how and technology.

 

[SiPie]

Hankooks fine but down to 2mm front after 10k miles on my S4...

 

[jds_sg]

When I come to change mine I shall seriously be considering Nexen Nfera SU1. Mid-range Korean tyre, but very good reviews online, B rating for wet braking same as Hankook, better fuel economy than the Hankooks, same noise rating pretty much and less than 2/3rds the price.

Tried other budget brands in the past (not on this car) and for normal driving I can't tell the difference between them and the more expensive "regular" brands to be honest.

 

[Greg B]

@jds_sg thanks for interesting alternative.
It is something I might actually consider as well, will have to check reviews and tests.
I have looked up Debica and unfortunately they dont come in 245/35r19 , Nexen does .

I found few tests of Nexen , one below is just an example:
https://alltyretests.com/nexen-nfera-su1-test-review/
and they are not doing great, especially dry braking comparing to leaders.... I think it is no go for me, as this is a real life safety factor.

 

[jds_sg]

Yes I know what you mean from that review, which is 4 years old.
I was going more on reviews like here: Nexen N Fera SU1 - Tyre Tests and Reviews @ Tyre Reviews
Maybe I'll try them sometime and if they're no good I won't have them again.

 

[Greg B]

@jds_sg I have seen it too. However this main rating is based on subjective users opinion.
If you check summary section of the same website , you will find references to actual tests and these are less optimistic.

 

[jds_sg]

Yes the 2020 Teknikens test looks pretty damning!

 

[smog c6]

I did my research and settled on Debica Presto UHP 2, had Pirelli Cinturato on before at 3mm I think.

I’ve run a few tyres on my previous A6, Pirelli’s, Michelin’s, Barums, and Continental tyres, also some cheap Accelera tyres which came with the car.

I can tell you categorically that the Debica tyres are better than the Pirelli’s in pretty much every way, wear noise grip and wet handling.

Plenty of tests out there which prove that they are a good tyre at only £60 a corner it’s insane really.

https://alltyretests.com/debica-presto-uhp-2-test-review/

If I had 19’s I’d run 255/35/19 not the standard 245

 

[psychopomp1]

OP, you might also want to consider Vredestein Ultrac Vorti's. They are a newer version of the legendary Ultrac Sessanta's. On my A6 C8, I've tried nearly every popular tyre in stock size (255/40/R20) such as Michelin PS 4S, Goodyear Assy 5, Continental Sport Contact 6 etc and the Ultra Vorti beats them all for performance (dry & wet grip), noise and comfort. The icing on the cake is that the Ultrac Vorti's are considerrably cheaper than major brands. Read the reviews on tyrerviews.co.uk !

 

[WesT-gefül]

After putting on Goodyear eagle asymmetrical 5 I don’t think I’ll put anything else on. That’s my vote. Fits your requirements.

 

[Jonfun]

Always gone PS4's but would be open to trying something new, I had some Vredestein's on an old car (98' Fiat Punto GT Turbo) and loved them, may look into these next.

 

[OCDaveS4]

When I got my S4 earlier this year I had Falken Azenis FK510s fitted. Good rim protection, quiet and good grip in wet and dry - reasonable price.
Too soon because of Covid to say what the wear characteristics are though.
Went for them as I’d had Falken tyres on my Scooby and was pleased with them.

 

[Greg B]

I can gladly confirm that I made my decision last night and purchased Goodyears Asymetric 5. Cant wait to have them fitted.
I will post my observations as soon as they are on my car.

 

[A4Ultra]

Glad too see this thread as I am in need of some 245/40 R18's v soon as well.

My priority is Wet grip and tyre wear.

I think I will go with Michelin PS4's because the wet grip is fantastic. Costco had a deal on which just expired so I will run my tyres down to the limit and hopefully it will be back then (£100 a corner!).
Although I think Michelin seems the best, they don't seem to wear well. Won't have even gotten 10k out of the fronts unfortunately. Also seen that they have an E rating for fuel consumption - never bothered by this but does it really make much difference?

Priority is grip as I am always on the motorways at speed in wet weather (michelins prove excellent). Any opinions? Willing to pay upto £140 a corner for good tyres or the best?

 

[psychopomp1]

@A4Ultra
The PS4's are indeed an excellent tyre, however..... once you're down to 4-5mm of tread, they become noisy as hell which I found to be very irritating. If you want an alternative tyre which performs just as well as the PS4's (if not better) but without the noise and offers better comfort, then I highly recommend the Vredestein Ultrac Vorti.

 

[monkeyhanger]

For anyone running 18s, Michelins don't seem to generally come in PS4S, just PS4.

Vice-versa on the 19s. When I got my 10 month/10k mile old A4 Avant 40TDI Quattro S-line, the dealers had changed the factory Conti6 for Fawkes at the front. The backs were just over the deslership's 3mm threshold so weren't changed.

Was really surprised how low they were st 10k miles - they must be soft as butter.

I was going to opt for PS4, but only PS4S available. I could get 255/35 R19 at a far more reasonable price than 245/35 R19 - VAG using less common sizes again, with the consumer paying the price (our Polo GTI came on 215/40 R18s which are 1.5 times the price of 225/40 R18s).

The Michelin 4S were almost £200 a pop at Costco, but I ended up going the Goodyear route. Costco couldn't source Asy 5, so I went for Eagle F1 Supersports instead, £274 for 2 when there was a Goodyear offer on.

They were a noticeable improvement to the ride over the Conti6 even on the back wheels.

 

[A4Ultra]

@A4Ultra
The PS4's are indeed an excellent tyre, however..... once you're down to 4-5mm of tread, they become noisy as hell which I found to be very irritating. If you want an alternative tyre which performs just as well as the PS4's (if not better) but without the noise and offers better comfort, then I highly recommend the Vredestein Ultrac Vorti.

Ah many thanks. Not worried much about noise since I am on motorways mostly anyway with some tunes ahaha

Will see if I can get Michelins on offer soon, otherwise will consider another one of these alternatives I think

 

[CornishB9]

Michelin Primacy 4 - nothing better; excellent grip in the rain, great on fuel and very quiet

 

[smog c6]

+1 Michelin Primacy 4.

Have them on the E class. They last forever!
Not sure about wet grip being superb, might be because it’s a rwd E class compared to my quattro Audi but they are very very capable.

 

[motty225]

They don't seem to rate to highly from what I can see, compared to somethong like the ps4, just seem to have slightly better wear

Michelin Primacy 4 - nothing better; excellent grip in the rain, great on fuel and very quiet

 

[smog c6]

Apples to oranges.

Depends of what you’re after.

The Primacy do last very long, our E class has had them on for over 20K and they have 6mm front and around 4 mm rear.

If I compare to any other touring tyre made for longevity the Primacy are excellent.

Of course compared to a PS4 they won’t be as grippy.

 

[jds_sg]

I don't think the Michelin Primacy is really an UHP tyre though.
I had them on my first A4 with 17" rims and they were fine, perhaps a bit noisy, but last ages.
On an S line with 19" rims, as the OP was after, I don't think they're available in the right fitment anyway.

I've just been considering the Victra Sport 5 | Maxxis Tyres UK
Don't know if anyone knows anything about these tyres or manufacturer, but they seem quite well reviewed online and a reasonable saving over the more premium brands.

 

[Greg B]

Short update on Goodyear F1 Asymetric 5, fitted over a month ago.

My impression vs previous Pirelli P- zero:

- Goodyear makes handling much lighter then Pirelli - this is weird feeling at the beginning but used to it after couple days
+ wet grip is very good, still easy to get oversteer at roundabouts, but is quite predictable and is loosing grip gradually. Pirelli was loosing grip at once (could be matter of poor tread condition at the end).
-/+ Goodyear is same way uncomfy as Pirelli
+ Goodyear is a little less noisy, but it is not a massive difference.
+ visually Goodyear 245 tyre is wider then same width P-zero, so it looks like rim is sunk in rubber. Pirelli looked much more stretched and rim exposed.
- Goodyear must have higher roll resistance, noticed increased fuel consumption on the same trips and distances.
- £580 for a set from TyreGuru
After all happy , and got used to them. Recently I am playing a little with tyre pressures, as it impacts comfort a lot.

 

[jds_sg]

A lot of A4/S4 cars came with the Hankook Ventus S1 Evo 2 K117 tyre, mine included.

Was wondering if anyone had changed to the Evo 3 K127 tyre instead, and what their impressions were?
Hankook Ventus S1 Evo 3 K127 245/35 ZR19 (93Y) XL 4PR SBL - tyres-guru.co.uk (tyres-guru.co.uk)

It has a better wet braking rating and better rolling resistance too, so possibly better economy and life, but the noise rating is worse. Whether that is really noticeable or not I don't know.