I have managed to wear out the OEM tires on my ML320CDI; I have basically narrowed it to 4 choices of tires; however there is a Nokian tire thats available, I'm just not comfortable with that brand; Is there anyone here that has used these tires on the ML, and has something to share with how they perform (wear, road noise etc);
The ML is used as a family car, so driving kids around, no high performance requirements for corning and stuff; I want the tire to handle at least as well as the OEM ones I had (which I liked, but they wore fast, under 50k and 1.5 years); We live in Calgary/AB (which temperatures change drastically/quickly, plus there could be 2 feet of snow one day, and melted overnight kinda weather)
Pirelli PZero Rosso 255/50/19 (UTQG 300 AAA)
Continental 4x4 Contact 255/50/19 (UTQG 360 AA)
OEM is
Michelin Latitude Tour HP XL 255/50/19 (UTQG 440 AA)
Pirelli Scorpion Zero Asymetrico 255/50/19 (UTQG 300 AAA)
I dont understand the stuff in brackets -- I was going to do some research tonight on that part of the description;
For what it's worth, I put Hankook Ventus ST RH06 tyres on my ML. Same size as you are buying, 255/50R19.
I have found them great. Wet and dry grip is excellent, low noise, and they got great reports for wear characteristics in the research I did before buying them.
In Australia, they were roughly 1/3 the price of the Continental 4x4 contacts, Pirelli's, Michelins etc.
I have the Pirelli Scorpion tires on my ML350. They feel great. I'm no tire expert but there's a noticable difference from the stock Contis. The ride feels firmer and there's no additional road noise. I've only driven them for a 2k miles so I can't attest to how long they last. UTQG stands for Uniform Tire Quality Grade and is a measure of treadwear. The higher the number the longer they last. It's provided by the manufacturer and based off its own product line so comparing between different brands isn't all that relevant. The AA refers to the Traction Grade. AAA is the best. C is the worst. You can find more info here:
I looked at the Michelins as well and heard very good things. They were about $100 more expensive, though. The thing to keep in mind with the Pirellis is that they are asymmetric tires so they can only be used on one side of the car which makes a difference if you rotate your tires a lot.
I live in Calgary as well...and just outfitted my '06 ML500 and a new '08ML550 with the Nokian WR VR Rated tires. Drove both cars all winter, with the ML550 doing skiing duty. I have about 10,000 km on each set with no signs of wear. They are more expensive, but with the unpredictable weather we get here...I would get them again in a heartbeat. They seem slightly more noisy than OEM when the Nokians are new, but after a bit they quiet down. Dry handling is fine, unless you are going really hard. I found the OEM Continentals terrible for lateral traction in snow, and the Nokian's are great, and particularly help braking distance on ice or snow. I had Lone Star put them on my new 550, and they said that they were not a Mercedes approved tire, but they sourced them and put them on my 19" AMG rims anyway without any questions.
Summary: I would get the Nokians again compared to OEM.
I have different OEM tires than that you guys seem to have had; I had the Michelin Latitude Tour HP XL 255/50/19 (UTQG 440 AA) and they were quite (except when they get to replacement age) - the snow traction was very good the two winter seasons I have used them now. Summer performance was decent, but as suspected I don't push them hard - its the kid hauler car...
I'm torn between the Nokian and the same Latitude OEM's - I checked tirerack and found great reviews on both. The other brands listed in my original post didn't get great review. I'm still not 100% sure what tire to buy, but the list is down to the Latitudes and the Nokian now; I will decide on Monday/Tuesday and order something.
BTW; Price is not really any different - they are both about $1800 CAD at the "tire shops" and the dealer wants around $1800 for the Latitudes also; I found a place a little off the beaten track that does my tires/wheels and turbo (tuner shop) that the tires are actually a good deal cheaper (aligned with tirerack).
* price is inclusive of GST, TireTAX Balancing etc (at the till price)
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