I really appreciate the shop forum --your advice and observations. The Tiger Paw Uniroyals on my 92 300E are beginning to cup (probably because of improper tire rotation)although the tread is still pretty good. My local tire dealer is recommending Dunlop SP500's at about $76 a tire. He also suggested Dunlop D60 A2's--somewhat cheaper. The distributor happened to be in the shop and suggested Pirelli P6000, but the tech thought the Pirell's were noisier.

Any recommendations? I read alot about Michelin and Conti here, but wonder whehter either the Dunlops mentioned or the P600's be as good--I'm more interested in dry and wet braking and emergency handling. Also, do I need a higher speed rating? I think the above are H rated. Many Thanks.

My only problems with the pirellis are treadwear and noise.

Grip is great, but they wear quickly from my experience.

Noise is not as quiet as other brands.

You might want to look into the bridgestone Re731's they are supposed to be nice.

Dunlops are also good if you get the right ones, and I think either one should work fine.

I would base your decision on what you want out of the tire itself.

Mileage?
Traction?
Wet Traction?
Noise?
Ride?
price?

All of these are things to consider, so you have to pick which items are most important to you. and find the tire that works best.

Why don't you click that nice TIRERACK Banner on the top of the page, and use their tire selector to see what it comes up with.

Alon

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'92 300CE - Sold
2004 C240 - 744 - C7 Wheels - Android Radio
2002 C320 - 816 - Sport Wagon

First Thing I would recommend is change the tire size. It seems that you care about the important things as I do, and wouldn't mind sacrificing a .5dB sound increase in noise, for tire that performs well. Usually more performance, the more comfort features are left behind.

My recommendations:

Change to a 205/60/15. Its the Sportline tire size MB used on the w124s, and offer almost the same rolling circumfrence so no adverse effects with odometer/speedometer/abs etc. It allows for a wider tire to put more rubber on the ground, and we all know Tires are important, cause that is the only thing that touches the ground from your car, everything is based on the tires.

Use Firestone Firehawk SH30s in 205/60/15:

H-rated, offer great mileage (about 50-60k) Great touring tire, great wet traction, and dry traction. Great all arounder and cost $64 each from Tirerack, compared to the Michelins Energy MXV4+ at $116 which are almost twice as expensive and 95% the tire.
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/firestone/fs_sh30.jsp


The Michelin Pilot XGT H4 are cheaper then the Michelin Energy MXV4s, but I still would choose the Firestone Firehawks anyday. The extra savings alone is enough to change my mind.

I would consider the Dunlop SP Sport 5000 if you want something with a little more performance, all though the tread wear will be around the 20s due to the more performance nature of that tire.

Good Luck.

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Chirag (Charlie) Patel
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- 03 Mercedes S600 Sport TTV12
- 97 Acura NSX-T
- 99 BMW E36 M3 w/500+ HP
- 04 Lexus RX330
- 04 Dodge Dakota Quad 4x4 V8

4 Sale:
- 99 BMW M3 E36 Coup with Dinan SC, Upgraded to an RMS Stage 3 with Aftercooler, 12psi, and 500+hp @ flywheel.

Thanks,guys! I visited Tire Rack per your suggestion.It's a great resource that I had not known about or appreciated.

1. TireRack is a very good source.

2. I'd leave Dunlop out all together. Personal bias.

3. If you're considering that what we have seperated from the road is merely a few centimeters of rubber ... I think you might want to invest in safer tyres.

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... Kerry

126 tailed by a 203, 129 leading the pack.