458 Pirelli P-Zero Catastrophic Tire Failure on Highway in 458 *photos*

Just throwing in my $0.02 worth here, but to me this looks like a classic run flat failure. It is very interesting what Il Co-Pilota's friend at Michelin said but a key might be "unless the tyre was almost flat". I am thinking that the tire was completely flat or nearly so. I have seen sidewall tears like this when someone tried to limp home with a flat tire. With low profile tires it is not easy to feel a flat.

This brings us to the TPMS. With low profile tires we depend on TPMS to tell us when we have a flat tire. If the TPMS was not working or not seeing this tire, there should have been a warning on the display. Was there? If it was working, was there a low pressure warning? After the failure, was there a TPMS warning on the display? Are the TPMS warnings logged so that forensic analysis can be performed?

I think that with the screw in the tire, it is going to be very hard to get Pirelli to warranty the tire or pay for the damages. Even if it is not the true cause of the failure, they will claim that it is.

 

FWIW regarding the TPMS , when sensors stop reading, there’s a very noticeable audible and visual warning on the left screen at start up every time.

OP , thank you for staying engaged in this thread, it’s intriguing to see how it plays out.

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Not sure if the dealer has anything to do with it. Car was sold with tires with a fresh DOT (within 3 years of date of manufacture) and in good visible condition, so they have done nothing wrong and can't be hold responsible for such thing.

On my 458 I had Michelin PS 4S tires and I must say, that this is absolutely the best tire available for street use, which is also perfect for track use as well.

 

Irrespective of the tyres being in date acceptance buying a second hand car even with low mileage but capable of 315 kms plus i would have looked at the tires really good. Especially to see if there were any signs of tracking.

 

Public service announcement because not sure how many do this...when driving I have my left TFT screen set to tire pressures all the time. As I see it this information is one of the few things you as a driver need to monitor so that you can intervene in a timely manner if something is going amiss. If I see a single tire pressure slowly decreasing then I may have time to pull off safely or find a gas station in time. With modern cars I doubt there is much to be gained from watching oil temp, water temp, voltage, or oil pressure during normal driving.

 

I often do the same. Also, because it indicates tire temperature, you know when the tires are warmed up enough to generate good grip.


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I don’t think so, it has never restarted on TPMS for me. But what I usually do is leave it on temp gauges until oil temp is > 150F because I drive gently and keep it under 4K rpm until then. (However, I do quickly check tire temps once before setting off to make sure a tire I didn’t see walking up to the car hadn’t gone low since last use.)

 

Not being rude, stuff happens. No way to prove the cause.

maybe for good PR, the manufacturer will throw you “a bone”.

glad no other damage.

 

I do the exact same

 

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I had a very similar experience with the P Zeros on the high way as well. Cruising at around 70mph and rear tire blew out.




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Any update? I just purchased a set for my 458 for road use. I’ve used Kumho in the past on my wife’s cars and they’ve been superb. I love the Michelin PS4S on the Ferrari but I figured I’d give these a try since I now have a second set of wheels with Cup2s for track use.

I got two years of use from last set of PS4Ss which is a lot based on mileage and driving my type. Contrary to what’s been said in places, I found them to be decent for the track as well, an all around winner.

PS I’m a bit of a nut about tire pressure and temperature monitoring and always carry a small gauge (0-60psi) and hand pump. And I’m always inspecting them because I check and change alignment frequently.

 

Good to know! I’m about to get MPS. Will look into these.


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