Wow big difference

[Pooreboy83]

On Sunday I finally got around to doing a tire swap. I took the stock Pirelli all seasons off and put on a set of 205/45/16 Federal 595 RS-R tires. On my way home this morning, I was able to hit .9G according to the computer. The car really felt much more planted. I just thought I would share.

[texanbrit]

It is one of the best upgrades I've done, and I've done a lot. The original equipment Pirellis are a serious disservice to the handling of the 500.

[LA2019]

Agree. The Pirelli's, when they are young and fresh, are good tires. But when they start going they go bad fast.

I just recently installed some Firestone Indy 500's and they are very nice tires for the money. I've only done a few hundred miles but so far I'm impressed.

[HalfPint]

Hmm - my OEM Pirellis are not all season.

[Pooreboy83]

I originally bought them because I wanted an additional set of rims for some winter tires. The Federal tires were only used for one track session, so I figured why not try them out. I'm going to try and make it one more , hopefully mild, winter out of them before I change fully to summers and winter's.

[mattsnapz]

Agree. The Pirelli's, when they are young and fresh, are good tires. But when they start going they go bad fast.

I just recently installed some Firestone Indy 500's and they are very nice tires for the money. I've only done a few hundred miles but so far I'm impressed.

the reflection in your pic looks like the car has an open wound & is looking undercoat onto the ground...kinda cool lol

[rustbucket]

Hmm - my OEM Pirellis are not all season.

The factory 16" wheels came with P7's, the 17" wheels with P Zero's.

[HalfPint]

The factory 16" wheels came with P7's, the 17" wheels with P Zero's.

That makes sense. I just changed off my 16" rims with all seasons for the 17/P Zeros and have been liking them a lot. We put the Firestone Indy 500's on my wife's Fiesta ST and those are really nice too. I will probably try them on the Abarth after the P Zeros are worn out.

[rustbucket]

That's the plan here, too- Indy 500's after the P Zero's wear out. Think I'll be doing well to get 20,000 miles out of the P Zeros but then again they and the Abarth tend to encourage "sporting" driving. They stick well, good in the rain and are communicative .... think I have a better sense of what's going on down there. The negatives for me- more treadlife would be nice but softer compounds and more aggressive driving has it's price. They don't like rain grooves; most of the time they let you know they are there but it's not bothersome but there's one particularly deep set on the way to the dealer where the car acts like it's possessed .... thought I was going to have to get a priest to perform an exorcism on the car. And they're awful in winter weather. About a week after I got the car last year I got caught in a freak April snowstorm and it was a bit of a handful. Last November while waiting for the wheels to show up for the new Blizzaks I got caught in another. Single digit temps, thought I had square tires until they warmed up. Snow and ice, it was a downright scary ride home ... the skidmarks left behind weren't found on the road. When they say "summer tire", they aren't kiddin'.