I need to replace complete set of tires on my 99 S70. Lately, I have been experiencing a wobble in the steering wheel at low speeds. Brought the car into dealer for oil change and had them check out the steering issue. They told me that the treads are separating and that I need to replace all four tires. The original tires were Michelin MXV4, tire size 195/60 R15 V88. Only have around 40K miles on vehicle. I live in Minnesota, so need something that has good traction on snow. I am not an aggressive driver, but want a tire that will perform well in emergency maneuvers. I just want to stick to All Season tires. Don't have space to store 4 tires in my apartment In checking with Michelin, their replacement tire for the MXV4 is the Primacy MXV4. Looks like they just came out with this one past summer. But, (pardon my English), they ain't cheap. Will run around $840 at dealer , though I was quoted around $650 at a Costco in my area.

Does anyone have a recommendation for replacement tires for my S70 that would be good for my driving conditions? I'm not married to Michelin's, but if they are the best (for my driving conditions) then I will go with them. Safety and performance in winter and/or emergency driving conditions is more important to me than cost. Your recommendations much appreciated.

 

I am using the Perilli Four Seasons tires on my 1999 s70 awd and love them.

 

Thanks for your quick reply. How well do the Perilli tires wear? I checked some reviews and some folks were complaining about poor wear. Someone said they had to replace tires after only 20K miles. How many miles have you gotten on your Perilli's?

I see you are from Pennsylvania, so you do get snow. How well do the Perilli's handle in the snow?

Another consideration for me is that I only put around 5K miles a year on my vehicle. So, ideally, I would like a tire that will hold up for longer periods since I don't actually put that many miles on them. Do you think the Pieilli's will hold up as long as other tires? In other words, will the rubber break down in a few years, in spite of the fact that I only put 10 or 15 K on them. Thanks.

 

To be honest I don't know how many miles I have put on these. I would venture to guess a good 10,000-15,000 miles. Mine are wearing fine. They handle the snow ok here, now where you are I don't know if they will handle it as well.

 

I've been running on BFGoodrich Traction T/A's for 20,000 miles now, and they're some of the best tires I've ever used, better than the Michelin's I used to have.
I find the BFGoodrich tires decent in snow and in ice, but not perfect. They have great grip in summer though.

I've heard that the Continental ContiPremierContact tires are good too, but a tad bit more expensive.

 

I like the Kuhmo line of tires.
We used to sell them at the Dealer I worked at people loved them compaired to the Michellin's that came on the car.
I out a set on my Yellow car about 5-7k ago and are wearing good so far.

 

I have Kelly Springfield Navigators on my 99 S70, great tire and handles upstate NY snow very well. I installed 195/65/15's the higher profile 65 absorbs the bumps and winter potholes a little better than the lower profile 60 series. This is a regular touring tire not a performance tire. http://www.kellytires.com/kellytires...area=Passenger

I also like the Goodyear Assurance TripleTred. I ordered a set from Tirerack.com for my SIL's Lexus and they do very well in snow also

 

I have Michelin MXV4's on my V70, Kumho's on my 97 850 and Yokohama's on my 95 T5R. I like the Michelins the best, but not enough to justify the price difference over the Kumho's. The Yokohama's do not seem to be wearing well at all. I got a fantastic deal on the Michelins at NTB when the match the price I got from some real cheap place. The Dealer is the last place you want to buy tires. Have you looke on tirerack.com? That's where I got the Kumho's and the Yokohama's. Great prices.

 

I put Goodyear Eagle GSH on my 98 S70, very good price, it cost $446.48, the dealer wanted $1100 for tires

 

I did a lot of research for my tires on my 98 S70, more specifically for california dry weather, but rain as well. I previously used Michelin Pilots and ended up rearending an SUV due to hydroplaning during a sudden downpour. I put Fuzions on my car almost 8 months ago, and love them they are VERY reasonably priced less than $50 each, and still provide the performance i desire. Especially when the rains came again. Very solid in wet weather. Here is a link from tirerack. Good luck.
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/...es&place=0

 

How important is it to stick with the speed rating of the original tires that came with the car when replacing tires? I read on Consumer Reports that they advise sticking to the same, or higher, speed rating as the original tires, and not to downgrade. My 1999 S70 came with Michelin's, 195/60/R15 V88. Can I drop down to a H speed rating? What do I gain? What do I loose? Reason I am asking is that I have narrowed my choices down to either a Michelin Primacy MXV4 or a Nokian WR G2. The Michelin is an exact match for my tire. The Primacy came out this June in the US. Since its such a new tire, there is a dearth of information on the tire, especially how it handles in the snow; especially important for Minnesota winters. Let me add, that I just want one set of tires; don't have the space to store two sets of tires. Since the Primacy is a replacement for the Michelin MXV4 Energy Plus, I looked up reviews on the Michelin MXV4 Energy Plus for snow handling and it was, shall we say, mediocre. Then I came across these Nokian tires. They are made in Finland. What attracted me to this tire, is that it is rated as an All Season tire, but has a Severe service rating for the snow and from most reviewers, is excellent in snow and wet conditions. However, it is not available in a V speed rating, the closest is 92 H. So, what I'm wondering is, if it is advisable to downgrade to an H speed rated tire. Also, does anyone have any experience with the Nokians?
Any input much appreciated!

 

H-rated tires will be fine for normal everyday driving.
If you are driving over 100 MPH for long periods of time every day then I would buy the V-rated ones.

 

Agree with Tech. H rated tires will do fine for the majority. If you are a speed demon then go with a rated tire. Otherwise your just spending money needlessly, money you could be using for other upgrades to your car.

 

Thanks for all the info -- I need to pick up new fronts as my tires (uniroyals) have started bubbling. Was thinking of going the Kumho route -- it's just problematic to find anyone who has the 195/60/15 size in stock.

 

I've been running the Michelin Pilot Exalto A/S tires on my '98 S70 (which also has Koni Sport shocks and IPD swaybars) and have been happy with them except in heavy snow, which we also get here in northern MA. You can check the tirerack customer surveys on them, which I always consult in choosing tires, because the opinions are averaged over many customers. Personally, I have found these tiresto be quiet and excellent handling tires, and have had no trouble in wet or dry situations.

For thoseheavy snow days though, I am actually currently looking at switching over to theMichelin Pilot Alpin PA2, and using them as an all season tire. They are snow rated, but still carry an H-speed rating and have been still been rated good by the customer surveys in wet/dry conditions. They are said to have a softer compound than the Exaltos, and you can also easily recognize much wider lateral grooves for biting snow. Of course I will trade off something in wet/dry performance (and perhaps quietness) for better performance on snow andice, but there isn't a tire made that is excellent in *all* respects and under *all* conditions.

 

I noticed later that you asked about Nokians - I haven't tried the new ones you're asking about, but about 10 years ago I had some Nokian dedicated winter tires (a previous generation Hakkapeliitta) on my Honda as winter-only tires. They were definitely not all-season tires, but they were definitely great snow tires, with a super aggressive tread pattern.

That's another decision you may make - whether to use one set of tires for all seasons, or two sets for winter versus other seasons. If you have a place to store the second set, there is no doubt in my mind that this is better, because you don't have a single engineering compromise being used for all situations.

These are just somebasics, but are general heuristics:
[ol][*]To perform on the dry smooth road, the best tread pattern is just a slick, just like the road racers use[*]To allow the tires to retain contact during wet conditions, you need someplace for the water to go so the tire doesn't climb up on it (and 'hydroplane'), and for this, you want principally wide longitudinal grooves (parallel to direction of travel)[*]To allow the tires to grab on snow or mud, you need wide lateral grooves, perpendicular to the direction of travel[*]The more you break the tread into smaller blocks, the less stability the blocks have at higher speeds[*]Lateral grooves will tend to make a tire noisier[*]Softer rubber compounds usually perform better at lower temperatures, but they tend to wear faster and when combined with open blocky tread, reduce high speed performance at higher temperatures[*]'Siping' is the use of fine slits within tread blocks. To be honest I don't understand *how* this actually works, but it apparently significantly improves traction on both wet and icy surfaces, while again reducing high speed performance on dry.[/ol]
Right now I live in a condo, and want to use one set of tires all year round,but still want credible (if not optimal) snow performance, so I am focusing on the Michelin Pilot Alpin PA2. Another interesting product is the Nokian WRG2, which also is snow rated together with an H-speed rating - it's an improved version of the older WR. Both the Pilot Alpin PA2 and the WRG2 are considered legitimate all-season tires with good winter performance. The Michelin Primacy MXV4 is neither rated nor marketed as a winter-capable tire.

In addition to the customer surveys at Tire Rack, you may be interested in some suggestions here:
http://www.canadiandriver.com/winter/tires/tires.htm

 

I alwaysed used Pirreli P6000on my S70 and they were always good but I never used it in deep snow but they were always good even on wet hight speed roads. Hydro planing was never and problem.

 

Well this will be my first winter with the volvo, i'm curious and a little anxious to see how she'll do in wither, it does have "winter" setting too, we'll see how it goes. I was shopping for tires and my brother recommended the Nokian Hakkapolita's (studded)...he's had studded on his toyota for quite a few years and swears by them...they are "la creme de la creme" of winter tires so they say...but they come with a bit of a price tag (about 8 bills for all 4 tires)...but they do last a long time (you can get about 5 years out of them). If you don't have these extreme winters you could do with other nokians too, but we do get a lot of snow..it's a good investment...ciao
fabs

 

You get what you pay for (usually). I would never put $50 cheapo tires on any car I own....

 

Studded tires may be legal north of the border but they're pretty much taboo in the States... can't beat them for ice traction but they are extremely noisy on dry pavement.