Best tyres for my F12

Not for Ferrari Only runflat was the Bridgestone "terror-rollers".

 

ive used michelins alot lately on the ferraris but im tempted to give these a shot:
https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Bridgestone&tireModel=Potenza+RE-71R
love the way they look

 

275's will work nicely for dialing back some of the understeer and push

 

Yes of course, making the fronts wider will increase grip, but I'd be afraid to change the contact patch too much as it could affect the systems.

 

275 fronts would alter the balance of a car that has been set up for 255 and which is already twitchy enough.

 

The F12 is not twitchy because of too much front end grip. If that was the case, then yes. But fact is that despite its rear end, which feels twitchy because of a busy and bouncy suspension, it still understeers and puches quite a bit. Slightly wider front tyres won't change the rear, it will just make the front push a bit less. One should also take into consideration that the F12 255 has a tread patch width that is wider than most 265 section tyres. Add to that the 315 Ferrari spec rears, that have a narrower tread patch than some 305 section tyres.

The actual tread patch width difference between the 255 of the F12 and the 275 of the 812 is only 0.3". Add to that all the people who have already put F12 TdF wheels and tyres on their cars with absolutely no issue what so ever, I'd say it's a pretty safe thing to do - especially considering that the MPS4S probably gives you better grip and thus a higher degree of safety than the MPSS. If one is truly worried about this but wants to use the MPS4S of the 812, one can simply add a set of 10mm spacers in the rear, which will put understeer and push back into the car.

Just my take on it, to each their own.

 

It wouldn't change the rear-end grip, but it would change the balance, as the front would rotate more readily and hold better, while the rear let loose. Of course it is a matter of preference, but one should be aware of the consequence of such change.

 

I have the MPSS on my F12 and the new P Zeros on my 720s.

The Pzeros are a bit louder than the MPSS. I prefer the MPSS (or newer 4) over the Pzeros, over the years have just had better luck. I would say they are going to be marginally quieter (I will say maybe 20-30%). The F12 is not a quiet car (as mentioned above) lots of squirrelness to the suspension, and movement, lots of contact points as the tires are wide.

As much as I do love the MPSS better than the Pzero - if the Pzero is new, unless you can sell them, I would not think it is worth tossing new Pzeros for MPSS(4) or any other tires. Again maybe you can sell the Pzero's and not lose on them, but hard to switch out new for new.

Also curious to how new the Pzeros are, have you given them a run in period, as they do settle down after a 1K a bit. Not as much as pro cup 2 or R888 or other Track/Road tires, but †hey break in a little.

 

I got a message back from Michelin, they say they have a MPS4s in the 315-35 size which came out in March 2019 to replace p/n R-374216.

The p/n for the new tyre is 259438, since I have just left for work again I did not have time yet to check for the availability yet around my place.

Please see below a screenshot of the tyre info, and some explanation in Dutch.

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Just to add to the above. The Michelin PS4S are available in non K compound front, and K compound rear. In the correct sizes. I contacted Michelin asking if this would be ok and here's their response.. It also seems they have run out of the MPSS by now...

I guess you would expect the standard corporate answer but still :

Regarding a tyre recommendation.

The guidelines from Ferrari is that it is OK to fit tyres without markings if your warranty already expired and if you fit all 4 of the same ones, simultaneously. Therefore we cannot recommend you to fit the Pilot Sport 4S in front and the Pilot Sport 4S K1 in rear, and unfortunately we did not have the Pilot Sport 4 S without markings for your rear axle.

As I search our database I can see that unfortunately MICHELIN does not have any match for your front and rear axle. I suggest you contact Ferrari for further advice, they need to approve whether or not you are allowed to fit the 4 S K1 together with the 4S.

 

There is no such thing as "K compound". Some K marked tyres use a different compound, most don't. The safety and quality of non-K tyres is the EXACT same. In most cases manufactures have alterations made to the tread. Mercedes and BMW are known for dabbling in built in camber, which is why I recommend that people stay away from those. The K marked tyres are model specific, not Ferrari specific. This actually means that a K marked tyre could work less well on a Ferrari it was not meant for, than a non-K marked.
Warranty? NEVER heard of Ferrari or a Ferrari dealer being as daft as what Porsche has been trying to get away with.
People run all sorts of tyres on both new and old Ferraris, and it is fine.
The old K2 255 MPSS was a "normal" MPSS with a really wide tread, everything else is normal MPSS. The rear K2 had a slightly narrow tread. The K1 315 which was the GTO tyre, was a very different tyre. It was shaved, smaller grooves, softer compound etc. But the current non K is fine. If anything, it might induce a bit more understeer. Now before ordering, you might want to consider the 265 option? Why? Because it has the same tread width of the K2 MPSS 255. The non-K spec MPS4S has a tread width of 9.0" whereas the OE was 9.6" - it was a very square tyre, a bit like a racing tyre. The MPSS K2 315 section tyre and the K1 315 MPS4S for the 812 shares the same tread width of 11.1". So in order to keep the front to rear bias and balance, I would recommend the 265 over the 255.

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wow thanks for the insights there.. I am indeed trying to find the best compromise.. if the MPSS was still available I would go for that for ease and peace of mind.. to have all by the book and based on feedback from the forum ppl were happy with these. But seems difficult to get hold of a set now.

Pirelli seems to be disliked by most and the "new" Pzero has the same issue fo not being available with K spec all round, although I think in that case you can have all non-K which might be marginally better.

I will look into your suggestion indeed. Might be best compromise. Just a quick question where do you get the information about the exact tread width if I can ask ?

 

Some I get from spec sheets, some is available online. I'm a tyre geek, and have accumulated too much of this stuff over the years - and I remember numbers well lol
Tirrack often has a lot of this info, so there's an easy reference. Unfortunately, they are sometimes wrong. If I need something specific I have a few good contacts with Michelin and Pirelli I can get info from

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Dear Sir,
I refer to your post above on the tyres for the F12 Michelin PS4S tyre sizes. I’m due to change my tyres which are PSS K2 to PS4S and would like to confirm with you if I may on the sizes you suggested which are 265 (front) and 315 (rear) as the original fronts are 255. I can order any of the sizes and hope to get your advice before placing my order.
Thank you in advance.