Treadwear Warranty & Pirelli

[FoxS]

I've just finished doing a lot of tire research. It looks like I'm going with Bridgestone RE970AS for the Merc and Bridgestone Turanza Serenity Plus for the Merc.

But while looking, I paid special attention to treadwear warranties as I was not happy with tread life of the tires I was replacing.

Although mileage is increasing for treadwear warranties, the time period is 5 or 6 years.

However Pirelli has no time limit.

In case you have an vehicle you put less mileage on, this might be of interest to you.

Also I noticed that very few high performance tires give equal treadwear warranties if the rears are staggered. The RE970AS do and happen to be one of the best choices too.

 

[CapriRacer]

Originally Posted By: FoxS
I've just finished doing a lot of tire research. It looks like I'm going with Bridgestone RE970AS for the Merc and Bridgestone Turanza Serenity Plus for the Merc.

But while looking, I paid special attention to treadwear warranties as I was not happy with tread life of the tires I was replacing.

Although mileage is increasing for treadwear warranties, the time period is 5 or 6 years.

However Pirelli has no time limit.

In case you have an vehicle you put less mileage on, this might be of interest to you.

Also I noticed that very few high performance tires give equal treadwear warranties if the rears are staggered. The RE970AS do and happen to be one of the best choices too.


The issue with staggered fitments is that you can't rotate - something required to keep the treadwear warranty in effect. The reason rotation is required is that the wear is different on different wheel positions - especially front to rear. Many tire manufacturers have recognized this and are warning purchasers ahead of time not to expect the full warranty coverage for staggered fitments.

 

[Quattro Pete]

Originally Posted By: FoxS
Also I noticed that very few high performance tires give equal treadwear warranties if the rears are staggered. The RE970AS do and happen to be one of the best choices too.

I spoke with TireRack about treadwear warranty on my RE960AS not that long ago. They said that in order for me to get pro-rated amount back, all 4 tires would have to be down to 2/32". If you have a RWD or FWD car with a staggered setup, there is no way you can achieve that. On a RWD, your rears will get down to 2/32" while your fronts will still have a long way to go.

Also, this text from Bridgestone Warranty document says:

Quote:
In order to keep this Limited Warranty valid, we require you to have your tires regularly inspected and rotated per the recommendations outlined in the sections of this manual entitled “Tire Damage, Inspection and Service Life” and “Radial Tire Rotation” and to furnish proof of same in order to receive an adjustment.


So, if you can't rotate, they make take an issue with this, alas, it's not as clearly spelled out as in the warranties from other manufacturers.

 

[FoxS]

I think on the rears of my Merc I'll have a problem anyway since the inner part of the tire has worn way faster than the outer.

For the fronts, wear seems to be even.

For cars that can be rotated fully and won't be driven enough in 5 or 6 years, the Pirellis would seem to be an advantage though

 

[Quattro Pete]

Originally Posted By: FoxS
I think on the rears of my Merc I'll have a problem anyway since the inner part of the tire has worn way faster than the outer.

Yeah, that's another issue. Most of these treadwear warranties require that the tires be evenly worn. A typical German car calls for negative camber in the back which will result in the inner tread wearing out faster, as you noticed on your Mercedes. My 530i is the same way.

 

[SteveSRT8]

While I no longer own any German cars my Chrysler has a near copy of a Merc multi link rear suspension. It wears tires very evenly if kept in proper alignment.

The typical owner simple never notices the very inside of the rear tires because they are so wide. Combine that with a very low stance on the road and you will be unlikely to realize that you have a serious alignment issue.

A heavy car with some power simply exacerbates the issue...

 

[FoxS]

Exactly. Just shy of 4000lbs, 400 horses 400 torque

I'm going to talk to Bridgestone about their warranty and probably anyway get an alignment done once the new tires are on.

I expect the tires to wear way before their warrantied treadwear and it would be nice to collect on that.

 

[Quattro Pete]

Originally Posted By: SteveSRT8
While I no longer own any German cars my Chrysler has a near copy of a Merc multi link rear suspension. It wears tires very evenly if kept in proper alignment.

I wish that was the case for me. With 2 degrees of negative camber when adjusted correctly, the rears will not wear evenly for me. And at 3500 lbs, it's not even all that heavy, nor powerful. Still, it's not a big deal for me. I got 25K miles out of my last set of tires, and it took me 5 years to get there. At 5 years, I am usually itching to buy some new rubber anyway, alas, I could have gotten some prorated refund from Bstone maybe if not for the uneven wear.

 

[faramir9]

Originally Posted By: FoxS
I've just finished doing a lot of tire research. It looks like I'm going with Bridgestone RE970AS for the Merc and Bridgestone Turanza Serenity Plus for the Merc.

But while looking, I paid special attention to treadwear warranties as I was not happy with tread life of the tires I was replacing.

Although mileage is increasing for treadwear warranties, the time period is 5 or 6 years.

However Pirelli has no time limit.

In case you have an vehicle you put less mileage on, this might be of interest to you.

Yep, no time limit is the upside to Pirelli's treadwear warranty---but there is one downside: The tires must be rotated every 4K miles at most. I learned that the hard way, when I checked the treadwear warranty doc at TR one day, as I smiled at how well my set of P4s treated me and my Chevy.

By then I had already voided the warranty, as the first two rotations were at about 6K miles. (As suggested in the owners' manual, and SOP for me with FWD vehicles.)

Just something to keep in mind if you buy Pirelli tires. I was happy with the P4s---they were on the car when I traded it in---and would consider them again, if USA-made tires are not competitive in the price/quality/treadwear formula for whatever I drive then.

 

[Rolla07]

Seems hard to find tires made in the usa. Pirelli's i got were made in mexico...is made in mexico better or worse than made in china?