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Pirellis vs. Michelins

Started by Mergyver, 14 September 2018, 06:41 PM

Mergyver

The Michelins on my 74 450SEL appear to be 10 - 15 years old. The treads are in good shape but as you can imagine the have dry rot and produce this low frequency vibration when I drive.

I am in the process of replacing suspension bushings ball joints frame mounts etc. So it is definitely time to get new tires.

So what does the crowd recommend Pirellis or Michelins? I have Pirellis on my 89 560SL and I love them. I had Michelins on my 2005 E320 CDI and loved them.

1974 450SEL
1979 300SD
1989 560SL
2005 E320 CDI Recently deceased

mrkozzy

My car came from the factory with Continental "in the day".
Its run Michelins, most of its life.
Now I have Hankooks because of the low K's that I drive and I want to change them every 6-7 years because of the "Age" factor that affects all rubber tyres. (Cheaper to throw away).

My wifes more current model (B series) came factory fitted with Pirellis and they are still perfect and comfortable.

As to your question, I think a "coin toss' would best help solve the problem.
MrKozzy

ptashek

I have Dunlop Sport BluResponse on my W116, and they're quiet and have great grip wet and dry, but are 15" and a summer-only tire.

My W124 drives on Michelin CrossClimate's and they're great too.
1993 "Pearl Blue" W124 280TE
1988 "Arctic White" W124 200T
1979 "Icon Gold" W116 450SE

raueda1

I'm running 235/60-15 Pirelli P600's.  Excellent ride, excellent handling, relatively expensive, not easy to find.   Great look, too.  At the recent M-100 group event another 6.9 driver drove the car and declared afterwards that he was getting them too.
-Dave
Now:  1976 6.9 Euro, 2015 GL550
Before that:  1966 230S, 1964 220SE coupe, 1977 Carrera 3.0

Mergyver

Thanks guys, I am leaning towards the Pirellis because the ride in my SL is so good. I may have to pull out a coin to toss.
1974 450SEL
1979 300SD
1989 560SL
2005 E320 CDI Recently deceased

Peter

I can only agree with P600's - they have lasted extremely well and I cant fault the ride quality.

marku

I did have a set of Pirellis on a car and wore them out pretty quickly but I was doing a high mileage. The leasing company I had the car from which included the servicing wouldn't believe me and used to call them in for examination. It was because the tyres were softer and more flexible and of course my heavy driving. I stuck with the Pirellis because they came with the new car. Our current car has Goodyear Eagle which we get a really good mileage and again they were on the car when we bought it new. I have always kept to the originals as I understood that the car's suspension/driving etc was set up for the original tyres fitted and so far I have no complaints. As our 116s do not do any mileage to speak of it doesnt matter that much I suppose what is fitted but I still think that something near to the original has to be the best option. Look on the datacard to see what was fitted originally ours had Continental.
1974 450SE silver green/bamboo velour/green vinyl roof

Mergyver

1974 450SEL
1979 300SD
1989 560SL
2005 E320 CDI Recently deceased

Scotty

In my experience Michelins last longer but Pirellis give better grip. That may be because of the application and choice of car for which the tyres were bought. Both will be good choices.  It's a very personal choice so it's good you have limited the choice to only two brands. But sometimes other brands can surprise. Hankooks appear on my Land Rover and I'm very happy with them. Best of luck with the choice. Post some photos if you can.

Scotty

polymathman

Many times tires that sit for a bit will develop a flat spot. This will usually go away when the car is driven with slightly raised tire pressure on warm or hot roads. Makes kinda a low growling sound till the tire is reset.
190sl 1957 rusting away
250S 1968 long gone
280SE 1976 got hit, parts
280SE 1979 running fine
C320 4Matic 2005 for wife -Mercedes after MIT

Mergyver

Thanks guys. I will post pictures when I get the new tires.
1974 450SEL
1979 300SD
1989 560SL
2005 E320 CDI Recently deceased

Diesel 617

If you want safety go for Pirelli. Unfortunately they are hard to come by in the U.S
I had Michellin Defenders with approx 55%+ tread left and they constantly slid when it was slick out (light misting rain) I couldn't get rid of those horrible tires fast enough They were 205 70 14

I have  Hankook Optimo H724 195 75 14 right now and they are faring better than the Michelin but I noticed they slid a little the other day in the rain, I'll be getting the tread checked soon and update this post then

I think next time I am going to try is the new Hankook Kinergy ST H735 they have both 205 and 195 I am going to try the 205s again or the  Kumho Solus KR21 205 70 14 I had them years ago and was very pleased with them But I didn't keep the car long enough to see the tread go past 75%
X3 1980 300SD Blown Heads, trans -Retired
1980 450SEL Parted out/Scrap
1980 450SEL to Diesel Parted Out/Scrap
1979 280SE Euro Spec Cloth Seats Sold
1979 300CD Daily Driver - Sold


Inventory of w116 Parts
[url="https://www.ebay.com/usr/vintagepartsandstuff"]https://www.ebay.com/usr/vintagepartsandstuff[/url]

Mergyver

I have been hearing more about the Hancock tires. I will look into them. Prior to this thread I have never given them a second thought.

I am not surprised about the Michellin Defenders slipping. I  use them on a heavy truck. I think they have a very hard compound because I get close to 60,000 miles out of them. I am thinking harder compound would lead to slippage on a wet road.
1974 450SEL
1979 300SD
1989 560SL
2005 E320 CDI Recently deceased

Squiggle Dog

I have Hankooks on my 300SD because they were cheap and someone was selling them as "shaved whitewalls". I've been very impressed with the tires and I'm still running them even though one of the tires is ten years old now and I've put many miles on them on a daily driver. I'd say they are as good as one can expect from a budget tire, and then some.
Stop paying for animal cruelty and slaughter. Go vegan! [url="https://challenge22.com/"]https://challenge22.com/[/url]

1967 W110 Universal Wagon, Euro, Turbo Diesel, Tail Fins, 4 Speed Manual Column Shift, A/C
1980 W116 300SD Turbo Diesel, DB479 Walnut Brown, Sunroof, Heated Seats, 350,000+

Mergyver

Thanks Squiggle, definitely going to check them out.
1974 450SEL
1979 300SD
1989 560SL
2005 E320 CDI Recently deceased