Vantage V12 Tyres In Winter
Discussion
Hi,
I’m starting to think a little ahead in terms of tyres for the V12V in the winter and the wet. The current P Zero tyre (I assume the same as the DBS fitment) is a dry-biased tyre which helps give exceptional grip in warm and dry conditions. However, having not driven my V12V in sub -7deg C, what are – from those in the know, are the real-world effects? If the DBS does indeed have the same tyre, does it too suffer in the same way or is this just H&S butt-covering from AM for those who plant the right foot in sport mode during adverse conditions and who should really know better?
I don’t really do enough UK winter miles (all in December) to justify winter tyres in their own right but would do so if the V12V was considered just too nervous (for kind driving) not to.
Discuss.
G
I’m starting to think a little ahead in terms of tyres for the V12V in the winter and the wet. The current P Zero tyre (I assume the same as the DBS fitment) is a dry-biased tyre which helps give exceptional grip in warm and dry conditions. However, having not driven my V12V in sub -7deg C, what are – from those in the know, are the real-world effects? If the DBS does indeed have the same tyre, does it too suffer in the same way or is this just H&S butt-covering from AM for those who plant the right foot in sport mode during adverse conditions and who should really know better?
I don’t really do enough UK winter miles (all in December) to justify winter tyres in their own right but would do so if the V12V was considered just too nervous (for kind driving) not to.
Discuss.
G
If you want to drive in the rain, like a normal road car, then get a 2nd set of winter wheels/tyres ...or just a 2nd hand set of regular V8 wheels n tyres off ebay
motorway driving in the rain, on semi-slick tyres with a few mm of tread, can often mean a) drive in the slow lane in rain or b) drive like all the "regular" cars and risk aquaplaning into the armco
seriously, check out the number of Elise/Exige accidents on the forums once it gets wet and cold, semi-slick tyres that were great in summer, usually generate an accident every few days come winter to Lotus owners that get caught out with them ..as they come OE on the Exige
whats the spec say on them ? maybe theres some disclaimer that says they are crap below 0 degrees, used by the tyre manufacturer as a get out clause if people use them in winter....certainly have in US market cars that come with them
motorway driving in the rain, on semi-slick tyres with a few mm of tread, can often mean a) drive in the slow lane in rain or b) drive like all the "regular" cars and risk aquaplaning into the armco
seriously, check out the number of Elise/Exige accidents on the forums once it gets wet and cold, semi-slick tyres that were great in summer, usually generate an accident every few days come winter to Lotus owners that get caught out with them ..as they come OE on the Exige
whats the spec say on them ? maybe theres some disclaimer that says they are crap below 0 degrees, used by the tyre manufacturer as a get out clause if people use them in winter....certainly have in US market cars that come with them
bogie said:
If you want to drive in the rain, like a normal road car, then get a 2nd set of winter wheels/tyres ...or just a 2nd hand set of regular V8 wheels n tyres off ebay
motorway driving in the rain, on semi-slick tyres with a few mm of tread, can often mean a) drive in the slow lane in rain or b) drive like all the "regular" cars and risk aquaplaning into the armco
seriously, check out the number of Elise/Exige accidents on the forums once it gets wet and cold, semi-slick tyres that were great in summer, usually generate an accident every few days come winter to Lotus owners that get caught out with them ..as they come OE on the Exige
whats the spec say on them ? maybe theres some disclaimer that says they are crap below 0 degrees, used by the tyre manufacturer as a get out clause if people use them in winter....certainly have in US market cars that come with them
FWIW, the straight P Zero isn't a track tyre, it's just a regular summer tyre and actually does pretty well in the wet. Regarding your point about disclaimers, Toyo say you shouldn't use the R1R / R888 in freezing conditions as they can "suddenly fail".motorway driving in the rain, on semi-slick tyres with a few mm of tread, can often mean a) drive in the slow lane in rain or b) drive like all the "regular" cars and risk aquaplaning into the armco
seriously, check out the number of Elise/Exige accidents on the forums once it gets wet and cold, semi-slick tyres that were great in summer, usually generate an accident every few days come winter to Lotus owners that get caught out with them ..as they come OE on the Exige
whats the spec say on them ? maybe theres some disclaimer that says they are crap below 0 degrees, used by the tyre manufacturer as a get out clause if people use them in winter....certainly have in US market cars that come with them
To the OP - what tyre sizes are we talking about? Pirelli have been quite aggressive with high performance winter tyres, as have Conti. There's at least the option out there now unlike a few years ago.
This has been discussed before. Some will view it as essential to use Winter tyres but bear in mind that you will need both wheels and tyres if you go down this route. Aston normally ask you to sign a disclaimer on taking delivery of a new V12V which makes you very aware of the limitations of the standard tyres (below 7C I think is the figure). Winter tyres will wear excessively if used outside of their recommended guidelines as well. I approached AM for a final decision and their recommendation is that a normal UK winter does not require the investment in tyres and wheels. They specifically suggested that V8V tyres/wheels were not the route either.
I took delivery of mine in November so was concerned about taking an informed decision. I avoided the worst of last years winter weather and drove the land rover instead but generally continued to drive the V12V throughout the winter with standard tyres. In most wet conditions the drive was not an issue and with sensible driving it isn't ( I don't just mean slow driving). I drove 2500 miles in the V12V from mid november to mid february without a single issue. I wouldn't recommend using the sport button in wet conditions, I would be wary of torrential rain and compacted snow and I would ensure that my tyres were as close to new as possible but otherwise ok on the standard tyre for most winter use.
Ultimately it is an important issue that only you can decide upon based upon your planned usage,experience and the nature of the winters that we can expect in the UK.
As a general point I would be interested in understanding what mileage has been undertaken on both the standard tyre and the winter tyre by other V12V users and what the typical expectation of tyre life is.
I took delivery of mine in November so was concerned about taking an informed decision. I avoided the worst of last years winter weather and drove the land rover instead but generally continued to drive the V12V throughout the winter with standard tyres. In most wet conditions the drive was not an issue and with sensible driving it isn't ( I don't just mean slow driving). I drove 2500 miles in the V12V from mid november to mid february without a single issue. I wouldn't recommend using the sport button in wet conditions, I would be wary of torrential rain and compacted snow and I would ensure that my tyres were as close to new as possible but otherwise ok on the standard tyre for most winter use.
Ultimately it is an important issue that only you can decide upon based upon your planned usage,experience and the nature of the winters that we can expect in the UK.
As a general point I would be interested in understanding what mileage has been undertaken on both the standard tyre and the winter tyre by other V12V users and what the typical expectation of tyre life is.
I thought the V12V OE fitment was PZero Corsa System ? ..the most "ultra performance" Pirelli theyve ever made with "racing tyre compound" and such? ...maybe im mistaken, as the marketing makes out like they are equivalent to road legal track tyres that usually come with 5mm tread etc ? ...or are they regular PZeros ?
Im interested as to why you can just run Bridgestones on regular Vantage wheels? did they explain the reasoning behind that? (other than just to sell you some new winter wheels) .....maybe something to do with which wheels/tyres the V12V is homologated/approved for use on?
Im interested as to why you can just run Bridgestones on regular Vantage wheels? did they explain the reasoning behind that? (other than just to sell you some new winter wheels) .....maybe something to do with which wheels/tyres the V12V is homologated/approved for use on?
bogie said:
I thought the V12V OE fitment was PZero Corsa System ? ..the most "ultra performance" Pirelli theyve ever made with "racing tyre compound" and such? ...maybe im mistaken, as the marketing makes out like they are equivalent to road legal track tyres that usually come with 5mm tread etc ? ...or are they regular PZeros ?
That makes a lot more sense, thanks for clearing that up. There's about 12 different P Zero tyres now, including one called just the "P Zero", so when people aren't specific I get confused 
jon- said:
bogie said:
I thought the V12V OE fitment was PZero Corsa System ? ..the most "ultra performance" Pirelli theyve ever made with "racing tyre compound" and such? ...maybe im mistaken, as the marketing makes out like they are equivalent to road legal track tyres that usually come with 5mm tread etc ? ...or are they regular PZeros ?
That makes a lot more sense, thanks for clearing that up. There's about 12 different P Zero tyres now, including one called just the "P Zero", so when people aren't specific I get confused bogie said:
jon- said:
bogie said:
I thought the V12V OE fitment was PZero Corsa System ? ..the most "ultra performance" Pirelli theyve ever made with "racing tyre compound" and such? ...maybe im mistaken, as the marketing makes out like they are equivalent to road legal track tyres that usually come with 5mm tread etc ? ...or are they regular PZeros ?
That makes a lot more sense, thanks for clearing that up. There's about 12 different P Zero tyres now, including one called just the "P Zero", so when people aren't specific I get confused The tyre companies are utter rubbish at categories their own tyres too, often putting the same tyre in more than one category on their website
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I put the Pirelli Soto Zero winter tyres on my V12 Vantage when I took delivery back in November. You need both wheels and tyres as standrad rims do not fit over the carbon brake discs so you are looking at 4.5k alltogther.
I really liked the P Soto Zeros which gave a very good ride in wintry conditions and I did about 3000 miles on them until end March where I changed over to the Pirelli P Zero Corsas again. The Soto Zeros had no signs of wear and where cleaned and stored at HWM ready to be used again come November. With the winter we had in the UK I would recommend using the winter tyres. I was the first one to order them at HWM and being a Scandinavian there was no doubt in my mind and it made driving much more fun and considerably safer in the winter months. 4.5k is a lot of money but it is not lost as you safe the usage of the original tyres obviously and a trip into the armco is much more expensive. Drop the B&O option and go for a set of winter tyres is my recommendation - and the rims do not look that bad either.
I really liked the P Soto Zeros which gave a very good ride in wintry conditions and I did about 3000 miles on them until end March where I changed over to the Pirelli P Zero Corsas again. The Soto Zeros had no signs of wear and where cleaned and stored at HWM ready to be used again come November. With the winter we had in the UK I would recommend using the winter tyres. I was the first one to order them at HWM and being a Scandinavian there was no doubt in my mind and it made driving much more fun and considerably safer in the winter months. 4.5k is a lot of money but it is not lost as you safe the usage of the original tyres obviously and a trip into the armco is much more expensive. Drop the B&O option and go for a set of winter tyres is my recommendation - and the rims do not look that bad either.
The V12 Vantage winter wheel set now retail at £2900 which includes the wheels, tyres and pressure sensors, the only thing i would add is some anthracite centre caps which are about £35.00 for the set of four and imho look better with he winter wheels, part number for the winter wheel kit is AD23-36-10005
I must admit I was very impressed with the winter tyres and was quite surprised at the difference in the wet and cold,
I must admit I was very impressed with the winter tyres and was quite surprised at the difference in the wet and cold,
rick-derby- said:
The V12 Vantage winter wheel set now retail at £2900 which includes the wheels, tyres and pressure sensors, the only thing i would add is some anthracite centre caps which are about £35.00 for the set of four and imho look better with he winter wheels, part number for the winter wheel kit is AD23-36-10005
I must admit I was very impressed with the winter tyres and was quite surprised at the difference in the wet and cold,
Rick,I must admit I was very impressed with the winter tyres and was quite surprised at the difference in the wet and cold,
Is that your price or the retail price from an AM dealer. It is significantly lower (half the price effectively) of what I was quoted originally. I know that it varies according to how cars are driven but are you able to quote a typical life expectancy of both the standard and the winter tyre ? It seems to me that the standard car is significantly better than a GT3 for example.
Edited by WantanewV12V on Tuesday 20th July 09:31
bogie said:
ah - that explains it - the brake disc clearance..
I actually prefer the look of the V12V winter wheels, id have my tyres the other way around, and keep the original wheels with winter rubber on, for a few months per year
The look was part of the problem for me. I didn't like the extra rubber around the wheel or what appeared to be a higher ride height. I also like the V12V wheels. As the car was new in November I didn't want my initial ownership of the car spoilt by (i)not looking as (IMHO) good as the car should (ii) not riding as well as intended (iii) costing me over £5,000 and (iv) according to AM, no appreciable benefits in the UK.I actually prefer the look of the V12V winter wheels, id have my tyres the other way around, and keep the original wheels with winter rubber on, for a few months per year
However there is clearly some support for the tyres, particularly by those who have invested in them. Rick has implied that the cost has come down so.. is there any choice in the wheels now ? Can someone post a picture of the wheels/tyres on a V12V please ? Does the change of tyres affect handling in normal conditions or the ride?
Edited by WantanewV12V on Tuesday 20th July 09:32
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