Tyres: Michelin Exalto Pe2

[Henry Yorke 269 3 Cars]

I needed 2 tyres for my CTI. I have read over the years that the Michelin Exalto PE2s were highly rated as a road tyre with excellent properties in the wet.

 

Historically I have had Goodyear Eagle F1s and have found these overheated easily on a track day and smeared the tread, however were great in the wet and dry. I then tried Toyo Proxis 4s and found these would withstand a trackday well, have good dry properties but were a bit dubious in the wet.

 

First impressions are that the tyre fitter said they were very easy to fit, so I assume have a soft side wall. I have noticed that they are significantly more comfortable than the Toyos and also make less road noise (noticable in a CTI). They are a nice square profile and offer good rim protection on my 6.75x15 PTS wheels. What is amazing is the 3 huge grooves in them, which probably accounts for the good wet performance. Barrelling around my local roundabout, I noticed that there was very little tyre squeal where others had chirped. Taking them out on a short blast up into the Peak District tonight has revealed good grip and confidence with little wash out under hard cornering.

 

The most noticable and surprising aspect is that the steering is much lighter now (my CTI is not PAS) so this might be due to contact patch friction being less due to the big grooves or maybe they are a light tyre and it is impacting the unsprung weight.

 

I believe that Costco sell these for £57 each fitted if you have a Costco card. Black Circles have them at £53 + Delivery. Retail price of them is around £70-£80 each

 

Anyway I thought I would share my findings and some pics as there were not a lot of threads on this tyres.

[marksorrento205 80]

Nice one for the write up H. I have been thinking of a pair of these for the back of the 182. I shall see what Costco can offer

[Anthony 1,002]

You'll get on well with them Henry - certainly in my top three tyres for a 205

 

Only downside is that they're a little more expensive compared to some other choices, and they don't stand up too well on track. For road use though, both wet and dry, they're very good in terms of grip, breakaway and the confidence they give you.

[welshpug 1,655]

I like these tyres very much.

 

They do need quite a few hundred miles before they scrub in and perform at their best, notably more so than most other tyres, so do take care!

 

 

They were developed for the Clio Sport apparently

 

Just got a pair of part worns onto some C5 wheels, 6.3 kilos for the tyre, 4.7 for the wheels

 

all up of 11, the originals were nearer 17!

Edited May 23, 2012 by welshpug

[Henry Yorke 269 3 Cars]

.... and they don't stand up too well on track.

 

Yes, I guessed as much due to the large grooves which most likely will angle like an Eagle F1 if over heated

 

They do need quite a few hundred miles before they scrub in and perform at their best, notably more so than most other tyres, so do take care!

They were developed for the Clio Sport apparently

 

So they will get even better over time one the releasing agent has worn off, excellent! I thought I had read that they were for the Clio some time ago, so similar handling characteristics as the 205

 

At some point I will put them on the back and see how they handle with lift off oversteer on my local off centre entrance/exit "test roundabout"! I know I borrowed two of M@tts Khumo Ecstas on 1.9 wheels for the rear and found these were keen to break away on that roundabout.

 

For info, I got a heavy discount through a PSC member and free fitting (having dropped the wheels off with him). My pricing was:

2x Michelin Exaltos = £105

2x Toyos Proxis4 = £80

2x Khumo KH31 = £73

 

Being a fun car that doesn't do much miles, these tyres would last me about 3 years so I thought it was worth the extra £10 a tyre for the extra grip. I didn't want track tyres for a road car.

[welshpug 1,655]

I think these will perish before you wear them out

[Baz 421]

I should be sponsored with these, i can't recommend them enough.

 

I rate F1's fairly highly but these are even better. Been using them for around 4 yrs now, they were indeed originally developed for RS Clio's, there's nothing else i'd rather use for peace of mind when travelling to Europe facing any possible weather & I recently cracked a 9min BTG lap on them.

 

Ohh and yes, like any tyre once the releasing agent wears off they'll get better!

[matt.f 16]

Had these on my 182(cup packs) and they were awesome,as said they were developed for this car.

[Mad Scientist 106]

Good write up H. As has been said, they are great tyres and were indeed on the Clios. Our 182 had 2 sets of these. They last very well, give great traction and grip in most conditions, and are surely worth the small premium.

 

Mei isnt wrong about them perishing before you wear them out though! Suffered with some cracking on the originals before they needed replacing, but the car wasn't garaged.

[S@m 156]

I'm glad this topic has come up; yesterday i ordered a set of 4 of these ready to go on some refurbed wheels. Nice to know they are worth the hype! I managed £200 for the set from a friend.

 

Sam

[McDude 33]

They don't stand up too well on track.

 

Do you think so Anthony? I thought they stood up pretty darn well, even on super abrasive airfields - and I'm a fan of the old lift-off, drift-off. I've done a lot of track miles and always been impressed with how well they fared.

 

I wouldn't put anything else on my Pug (except for winter tyres!)

[Anthony 1,002]

I guess that everything is relative, but certainly judging by the 15 minute track session I did at Castle Combe on them, they had gone "off" after 10 minutes were looking very second hand afterwards with quite a bit more wear than I would normally experience on such a short session. My driving style isn't typically particularly hard on tyres either.

 

Maybe they needed different pressures compared to other tyres I've used or perhaps there was another contributing factor - certainly other road tyres I've used have stood up to occasional track use much better than those PE2's did.

 

PE2's are fantastic road tyres though, no doubt of that - driving your car after doing the beam reminded me just how good they are, especially in stark contrast to the P6000 ditchfinders that my 205 is currently shod with

[welshpug 1,655]

they do need higher pressured than most, especially on the 306 but I haven't run them for long enough on the 205 to see if that's still the case.

[AlexRS2782 136 1 Cars]

I ran a set of these on my Escort RS Turbo and found them excellent grip wise as an all round tyre in wet & dry as well as for some fast road driving. Never put that car on track though so cant comment from that side of things, but i was certainly happy with them.

[Henry Yorke 269 3 Cars]

So what have people found is the optimum pressure to run these at?

[feb 47]

They are one of my favourite tyres as well, I agree with you and Anthony.

 

Great on both wet and dry giving a very progressive breakaway letting you explore the limits of traction safely and repeatedly; on track after 25+ minutes with ambients of ~33C they overheated but were great fun on a 90-degree bend as by turning in early while braking the back end would push you around the bend in a spectacular way!

 

One of the most fun moments I had with my previous sorrento.

 

I believe the worse steering feel is due to the softer sidewall (Toyo T1R's that also have softer sidewalls make the steering feel more vague).

 

I used to run them on 30F 29R.

Edited May 24, 2012 by feb

[S@m 156]

Finally! After a lengthy backorder my set of four have come in, Managed £191 all in for the set. Just need to finish painting my wheels and i'll report back with my thoughts on them.

 

Sam

[jord294 91]

 

Loved the pe2s on my 306, but hated them on the 205

 

Currently running 15" t1r on my 306, and going upto 16" pe2s on my new wheels

 

Imho, toyos are an excellent tyre

[chipstick 382 1 Cars]

Did 100 miles on some at Combe and they performed very well. Was my first time on track so wasn't as hard on them as I probably should have been.

 

They did scuff up a fair bit, but then they aren't a track day tyre. I ran high pressures in them, probably too high. Had them at 28/30 cold. Didn't lower them down as I was happy with how they held.

[Baz 421]

Have some fairly new T1R's on some Comp CXR's I've been running recently and although they're fairly new and will therefore in theory get a little better, they're not a patch on the PE2's it was on previously, so much so that the current weather makes me think they need to go back on when I get a chance!

[welshpug 1,655]

Part worns £53 to my door

 

[chipstick 382 1 Cars]

Have some fairly new T1R's on some Comp CXR's I've been running recently and although they're fairly new and will therefore in theory get a little better, they're not a patch on the PE2's it was on previously, so much so that the current weather makes me think they need to go back on when I get a chance!

 

I run T1R's on another of my cars and they are awful in the wet for understeer. Only paid 30 Inthink each, but will defo be spending the extra on PE2's. Only tried them as they were free but now converted.

[cRaig 273 1 Cars]

Well, I drove 7 miles on my new PE2s in the pouring rain, and didnt crash backwards into a hedge once! Much better than my Proxes4s I previously had!

[welshpug 1,655]

You'll need to take it easy for probably a couple of hundred miles at least craig, even more if its wet and not spirited, they do take more than most to wear in

[cRaig 273 1 Cars]

Dont worry, it was a fairly fraught and timid drive, was waiting for something to fall of the car lol. Plus with running the engine in it will be treated gently for a while.