Are P-Zeros worth it?

Hello FChat,

I would like your opinions on an upcoming tire purchase. I need the sizes of 205/50R15 front and 225/50R15 rear, so my only choices (in the U.S.) are the Pirelli P-Zero Asimmetrico or the Kumho Ecsta AST. I figure there are a fair number of P-Zero owners past and present here, hence the ask.

The car is a Lotus Esprit Series 1 with 3-piece 15" Epsilon wheels from the 1980s. It weighs about 2200 lbs. and has very forgiving, well-balanced handling. The car/tires will mostly see driving on public roads, maybe an autocross, but never a track day.

I've read all the reviews on Tire Rack for the P-Zero, as well as the handful on Discount Tire Direct for the Kumho. In the past, with other tires, I've been able to feel the difference in stability between an H-rated and V- or Z-rated tire at normal highway speeds, and I expect that on grip and stability alone the Pirelli will run circles around the Kumho...

But I don't know that, and I'm also taking into consideration other factors, below. If anyone has specific knowledge of the Kumho, that would be great; but if not, I would like to hear people's opinions of the P-Zero as it relates to today's typical H-rated high-perfomance all-season tires (the Kumho is approx. an $80 tire):


1) How well does the P-Zero age with regard to deterioration of grip? I only drive the car a few thousand miles per year, and if the tire is going to be great for a year or two and then lose a lot of its grip due to aging of the compound, might a longer-lasting performance tire like the Kumho be better in the long run? . . . (likewise, will the Pirelli start cracking in a few years? -- garage kept, of course)

2) Getting caught in the occasional rain storm: I would expect the all-season Kumho to be better... How good or bad is the P-Zero on wet roads compared to a high performance all-season?

3) Those colder days in October or even early November -- I understand the grip of summer-only Pirelli will be significantly reduced -- that's not the issue; my concern comes from this quote from TireRack: "Pirelli's warranty does not cover tires that develop compound cracking due to use in ambient temperatures below 45° Fahrenheit (7° Celsius)." Has anyone experienced this? If I happen to take it out on a cold-ish (never snowy!) day in October, do I stand the chance of damaging the tire?

4) Construction quality/balancing -- A couple of the reviews of the Pirelli noted issues with vibration . . . but likewise I am leery about the roudness and balance-ability of a cheap tire (Kumho). Again, anyone have experience with either tire?


I'm sure it would be really fun to drive around on the stickiest, highest performance tires available for the car; On the other hand, if the difference between the P-Zero and more "average" performance tires is not that big, or if the Pirelli is going to be short-lived or troublesome in some of the above ways, it may not be worth it.

So can anybody comment on the above? Considering all of the above, are the P-Zeros worth it over an "average" high performance all-season tire?

Thanks for your input, and for reading the long post!

Tony K.