Just ran through some Pirellis in 8000 miles, Luke- I have questions
Thread Starter
Senior Member
Joined: Nov 2001
Posts: 411
Likes: 0
From: Los Angeles
Just ran through some Pirellis in 8000 miles, Luke- I have questions
I've got a 2000 CLK430 Coupe, and this is the 2nd set of tires I've gone through in 20K miles. My first were AVS Sports, and these are Pirelli P-Zero Direczionales (sp) in front and Assimmetricos in the back.
I've got a lot of negative camber, and I was wondering if it's possible to correct that with camber plates? The wear on the inside of the tires is quite disconcerting. The inner edge is always completely bald way before the rest of the tire is used, and I've been told it's normal because of the way the car is lowered and the size of the wheels- any suggestions?
The wheels are 18x8.5" Front, 18x9.5" rear, and the car sits on H+R Sport springs. I'm using stock shocks right now, and I'm thinking about switching to Konis.
I've got a lot of negative camber, and I was wondering if it's possible to correct that with camber plates? The wear on the inside of the tires is quite disconcerting. The inner edge is always completely bald way before the rest of the tire is used, and I've been told it's normal because of the way the car is lowered and the size of the wheels- any suggestions?
The wheels are 18x8.5" Front, 18x9.5" rear, and the car sits on H+R Sport springs. I'm using stock shocks right now, and I'm thinking about switching to Konis.
Super Member
Joined: Nov 2001
Posts: 536
Likes: 4
From: Orlando, Florida
**SOLD***2003 E500
inside wear.
With your lowering springs, the suspension may not be able to adjusted to compensate for it. This is very typical of lowering springs that effect the ride height. Remember your car was engineered and deisigned for a taller spring, and so were the camber and caster adjustments. Remember your aftermarket springs were designed for racing and endurance runs. People who race and do endurance runs only use those tires for so long and then replace them. If you expected to get good tire wear (plus 10,000 miles) and have these springs you were incorrect on your expectation. Your handling went up, and your tire wear went down. Next time take a look at your car when it is parked, and you should be able to see the inside of the suspension flared out toward the outside. That is due to your aftermarket springs. Did you try any of these tires without the springs to see if you get different tire wear????? I would defintely try that with your next set of tires, and see how much cornering you really lose in the real world of driving.
Out Of Control!!
Joined: Nov 2001
Posts: 35,855
Likes: 3
From: Southern CA
Camber plates should help (if available). Also, get your tires rotated side to side (not front to back since your staggered). If your tires are directional, make sure they still face the right way when they are done.
Thread Starter
Senior Member
Joined: Nov 2001
Posts: 411
Likes: 0
From: Los Angeles
Thanks Randy, I was aware of what I was doing in order to achieve better looks and handling- just wanted to know if CC plates were available for my application.
Mach 430- the tires I have right now aren't supposed to be rotated, even side to side in the front. There's a different tire for every corner.
Mach 430- the tires I have right now aren't supposed to be rotated, even side to side in the front. There's a different tire for every corner.
Trending Topics
Out Of Control!!
Joined: Nov 2001
Posts: 35,855
Likes: 3
From: Southern CA
I have the same springs + koni shocks, and while I have negative camber, it is definitely not enough to warrant you running through tires every 8,000 miles. I would expect 12,000 at the minimum. Did you get your alignment done?
MB World Stories
The Best of Mercedes & AMG
Manual Mercedes? 6 Times Sindelfingen Let Drivers Have All The Fun
Verdad Gallardo
Mercedes SLR McLaren 722 S Is Extremely Rare Example Modified by McLaren
Verdad Gallardo
8 Classic Boxy Mercedes Designs That Have Aged Like Fine Wine
Verdad Gallardo
Flawlessly Restored Mercedes 190E Evo II Heads to Auction
Verdad Gallardo
Electric Mercedes C-Class Unveiled: 11 Things You Need to Know
Verdad Gallardo
Mercedes EQS Gets A Major Update: Everything You Need to Know
Verdad Gallardo
5 Underrated Mercedes-Benz Models That Don't Get the Love They Deserve
Verdad Gallardo
Mercedes 300D Has Pushed Well Past 1 Million Miles and It Ain't Stopping
Verdad Gallardo
10 Most Reliable Mercedes-Benz Models You Can Buy Used
Verdad Gallardo
Administrator
Joined: Nov 2001
Posts: 12,263
Likes: 901
From: THE Orange County, California
2024 C8 Z06- 2025 BMW CS- 2022 Porsche 992 GTS
According to your post you have PZero Yellow's in the rear and those are super soft. They carry one of the lowest treadwear ratings for a high performance tire at 140. I had them on my GS400 (275x30x20) and they lasted about 15k miles and my car was dropped with Eibach springs. I have the PZero Rosso's which carry a treadwear rating of 240 so they will last longer but I have not had that luxury. I have a H&R drop on my E55 and the tires only lasted about 10k miles. The tirewear though is even through the middle to the outside so my alignment is in check- it must be the torque from the E55 
Next on my list will be Bridgestone S03's.
Next on my list will be Bridgestone S03's.
Super Member
Joined: Nov 2001
Posts: 536
Likes: 4
From: Orlando, Florida
**SOLD***2003 E500
Treadwear rating
Vic55, one note on treadwear ratings. The number derived for this rating is completly arbitrary. Each manufacturer rates their own tires based upon one of their models that they consider to be average wear. That is the zero model, and anything that exceeds or not is rated based on that tire. This zero model is different for all manufacturers, and therefore the compounds and plys used for the zero model vary. So beware what a treadwear rating means within a companies mind, and findout from the manufacturer what the model of tire was used for the zero model. This was a complete eye opener for me.
Administrator
Joined: Nov 2001
Posts: 12,263
Likes: 901
From: THE Orange County, California
2024 C8 Z06- 2025 BMW CS- 2022 Porsche 992 GTS
Re: Treadwear rating
Originally posted by Randy B
Vic55, one note on treadwear ratings. The number derived for this rating is completly arbitrary. Each manufacturer rates their own tires based upon one of their models that they consider to be average wear. That is the zero model, and anything that exceeds or not is rated based on that tire. This zero model is different for all manufacturers, and therefore the compounds and plys used for the zero model vary. So beware what a treadwear rating means within a companies mind, and findout from the manufacturer what the model of tire was used for the zero model. This was a complete eye opener for me.
Vic55, one note on treadwear ratings. The number derived for this rating is completly arbitrary. Each manufacturer rates their own tires based upon one of their models that they consider to be average wear. That is the zero model, and anything that exceeds or not is rated based on that tire. This zero model is different for all manufacturers, and therefore the compounds and plys used for the zero model vary. So beware what a treadwear rating means within a companies mind, and findout from the manufacturer what the model of tire was used for the zero model. This was a complete eye opener for me.
Super Member
Joined: Nov 2001
Posts: 536
Likes: 4
From: Orlando, Florida
**SOLD***2003 E500
Poor choice of words on my part,
Where the Zero model was used in my previous post, this should have been control model. If the control model was a slick sticky high wearing unit, the number you have on all other Pirelli's reflects how much longer it should wear in regards to the control model. Ie: TWR of 240, means 240 more times than the control model used by the manufacturer. If the tire manufacturer used a hard long lasting control model tire, than your TWR shoudl be less for perhaps the same class of tire you are using. Really gimicky, that thhere is not a standard for the industry for TWR's. At least they finally started putting birth dates on the tires, thanks to the old Firestone 727's.
Thread Starter
Senior Member
Joined: Nov 2001
Posts: 411
Likes: 0
From: Los Angeles
All I know is that my AVS Sports lasted 11,000 miles. Come to think of it, though- I got new tires because of an accident, so the fronts only wound up lasting about 9K miles. Damn I go through tires fast. The S03s have a 300 treadwear rating, which is why I bought them. I wasn't aware until now that the number is arbitrary, but I'm sure they'll last longer than the AVSs and the Pirellis.
After 8K, my rears (the assimetricos) are fine. I'll burn through them and get some S03s for the back within the next month or two.
After 8K, my rears (the assimetricos) are fine. I'll burn through them and get some S03s for the back within the next month or two.
Thread Starter
Senior Member
Joined: Nov 2001
Posts: 411
Likes: 0
From: Los Angeles
Yep, I'll be doing a lot of burnouts, especially at the track. The 1/4 mi. strip at the Cali. Speedway is opening for the season next weekend, and I've got a lot of people to race 
.
.
TR Moderator & Tire God
Joined: Nov 2001
Posts: 3,545
Likes: 5
From: SouthBend, IN USA
depends on the weather
sounds like either a heavy right foot or driver error ..... just kidding
The tire grading that goes on when it comes to tread wear is very ambiguous. All manufacturers do perform the same test but are allowed to interpret the results any way they want which in some cases leads to high wear numbers that are at the best erroneous. However on the other hand tires from one manufacturer such as Pirelli do merit some consideration the P-Zero system tires do not last as long as the P-Zero Rosso tires.
Luke
The tire grading that goes on when it comes to tread wear is very ambiguous. All manufacturers do perform the same test but are allowed to interpret the results any way they want which in some cases leads to high wear numbers that are at the best erroneous. However on the other hand tires from one manufacturer such as Pirelli do merit some consideration the P-Zero system tires do not last as long as the P-Zero Rosso tires.
Luke
