fleal

Recently purchased 2012 Q7 TDI Prestige S Line with 9k miles. Drove car approximately 3k in first week and loved everything except tire noise. The car currently has Dunlops and the rears are gone while the fronts have approximately 30% of tread remaining. The noise level is very, very high.

Three questions:

1) I am told that you MUST replace all 4 tires at same time due to potential problems with differential. Is this true?

2) Several people have recommended the Conti's.
The car is my wife's toy and does not get on a track. Priorities are safety, quiet and lifespan. I welcome any recommendations.

3) Is the tire life expectancy on this vehicle going to be 12k?

Thanks in advance,

FL

bothfly

I've got a 2013 Q7 with the S-Line and the same tires with only 2K on the car and the road noise has bugged me since I bought the Q.
There are not many choices in that 21 inch tire size and I have been thinking of going to 22's. But I was also going to powder coat my wheels black so I need to decide if I'm staying with the 21;s or getting a whole new wheel and tire setup in 22's. Let me know what you find in 21's.
Tire Rack BTW seems to have a few, and I heard that if you order from them and take them to Discount Tire they will put them on for you.
Thanks

Jusforfun

1) the max allowable wear difference is .7mm Any greater difference affects the transmission. Should have rotated tyres. Correct pressures are very important on the 21"
2) You are very limited for choice on 21" and Dunlop seems to be the most popular replacement. I havent read any comparative reports by those who replaced with Conti.
There have been a lot of comments/complaints about noise on 21" compared to 20" over the years. Correct pressures make quite a difference.

3) Life expectancy is about 15 to 25k miles on 21" Correct tyre pressures and tracking are very important with the wider 295. Obviously we are not all driving on the same roads and perhaps your local situation/temp is going to be harder. 12k is not the worst Ive seen reported on the board.

Did I mention Pressure?

fleal

Thank you both for the information. I will carry a pressure gauge in my pocket protector. After much debate, input and a coin toss I decided to go with the Vredestein. I will keep everyone posted as to my results. My plan is to rotate tires every 3-5k and carry a pressure gauge in my pocket protector Thanks again, FL

Q7Splus

Newbie here. Just picked up a new Q7 with the Sline plus package. I love the look of these wheels but would like an all season tire. Has anyone tried going up one size to 295/40/21? There are a lot of options for all season tires in this size. Will the additional 3/4" diameter affect the car or will it even fit?

THanks

va-terps4

Tire Rack only shows 1 all season in this size. What other options are you looking at? Whatever you do, make sure you get tires that have the necessary load rating for the Q7. Otherwise you run a high risk of a blowout or developing side wall bubbles.

Q7Splus

VA-Terps4,

You're right. It looks like only Pirelli makes an all season in a 295/40 with the same load rating as our current tires. The other tires are summer tires. Do you know if a 295/40 21 will fit on the Q7 with out any rubbing issues or any other driveline issues?

va-terps4

According to TireRack, our factory equipment Dunlops need 720 rotations per mile. Because of the extra diameter, the 295/40/21 Pirelli's only need 664.

Regardless of whether they fit physically... your speedometer, odometer, and navigation dead reckoning (used when you are in a tunnel or urban canyons without GPS signal) would be thrown off by 8.43%.

60 mph on the speedometer would be more than 65 mph.
100 odometer miles would really be 108.43.
Navigation would be thrown into constant corrections.

Maybe there is a way to program the Q7 using VAG-COM to make up for this, but I probably wouldn't do it... and I really want to use 21" all-seasons as well.

Q7Splus

Thanks for the feedback VA!!

persuader

Hi
I have 295/40 21's om my Q7. Ride is so much more comfortable.