Tires? Topic is solved

[abscate]

According to the date code that Scot850 pointed out (1003), the tires are 15 years old.

That might be 2010 week 3 or 8-9 years old. Replace them but you can run them sensibly until new ones come.

[ZionXIX]

Pirelli all the way. The P7s have a 700AA grip rating and have never let me down. I recently replaced a 10yr old set of P6s. They can last an absurd amount of time of cared for properly.

[850 LPT]

Pirelli all the way. The P7s have a 700AA grip rating and have never let me down. I recently replaced a 10yr old set of P6s. They can last an absurd amount of time of cared for properly.

+1
I have had many sets of Pirelli's, summer, all season and winter tires and I have never been disappointed. Now the problem is that I can't find them in 15" anymore.

To the OP:
A good upgrade is to go to 195/65/15 size which opens up more options in terms of availability plus they make the ride slightly more comfortable.

[utilityaudio]

Pirelli all the way. The P7s have a 700AA grip rating and have never let me down. I recently replaced a 10yr old set of P6s. They can last an absurd amount of time of cared for properly.

+1
I have had many sets of Pirelli's, summer, all season and winter tires and I have never been disappointed. Now the problem is that I can't find them in 15" anymore.

To the OP:
A good upgrade is to go to 195/65/15 size which opens up more options in terms of availability plus they make the ride slightly more comfortable.

I checked and found that I couldn't find pirelli in my size, I figured it was a weird size since there's several other types I've looked at that also weren't available.

Please forgive my ignorance, but would switching to 65 change anything with the speedometer? Can I do it without changing rims?

[850 LPT]

No, the difference is negligible. I have run this size on several 850's and really like them better. And I'm not the only one by the way, many people do this.
You can mount them on the same rims of course.

Dirk

[850 LPT]

By the way, the Tire Rack has Pirelli P4's and Michelin Premier A/S in that size. Both excellent tires.

[erikv11]

... Please forgive my ignorance, but would switching to 65 change anything with the speedometer? Can I do it without changing rims?

That's an important question, always look it over when considering a change in tire size. Lots of online tools to help with this one, including if you ever switch to 16 inch wheels etc. e.g.: https://tiresize.com/comparison/

Yes, it would give your car's speedometer a 3.3% error, which is considered by most to be not too bad. A generally accepted cutoff when switching tires and or wheels is ±5% but of course it is up to you. At 5% larger you also have to start considering rubbing the wheel well, etc. In this case your speedometer would under-report speed and mileage by 3.3%. When it says you're going 60 mph, you're actually going 62. When it says you've gone 300 miles, it's actually 310 (31,000 instead of 30,000, etc). Wouldn't bother me but I would make it a point to know the approximate differences up at highway speeds.

As far as wheel size, no difference you would still be still running 15 inch so they would just mount right up.

[utilityaudio]

Thank you for that link and the explanation.

[utilityaudio]

Thank you to everyone who posted, you've all very politely helped whenever I come to ask questions out of profound ignorance.

I ended up purchasing a set of Michelin Premier A/S in my original size (195/60, R15) and getting them sent to my mechanic
I have some other things to have done (winter tune up, oil change) so the convenience of getting it all done at once outweighs the slightly higher cost for mounting services.

maybe I'll start looking for another set of wheels so I can eventually run summer & winter tires, but the more immediate need is taken care of.

[scot850]

We never mind helping someone who asks. Heck these poor guys and ladies on MVS have had to put up with me for years! Glad you have found a good set of tires. Much nicer knowing you have a good set under you!

Neil.