Pirelli's New P Zero Family Is a Huge Step Forward: Review

Motor 1

5 hours ago

Pirelli's CTO, Piero Misani, says the Italian brand's new P Zero family reflects a paradigm shift in how tires are designed. A big statement.
In the 10 years since the old, fourth-generation P Zero launched, simulation has completely changed automotive engineering. Software tools have improved drastically, allowing engineers to tinker with more possibilities with a high degree of accuracy before coming up with a satisfactory design, well before the first physical prototype is built.
Artificial intelligence has also had an impact. In the case of the new P Zero, it helped Pirelli trial over 100,000 different compounds virtually before finding the right combination.
The Covid-19 pandemic forced Pirelli engineers to embrace virtual tire development in a huge, unprecedented way. It also proved what was possible in space. 'We were only at home… only the testing department came to our headquarters," Misani said. "But we were able to fully develop new products virtually."
Misani also said Pirelli took a slightly different approach to its new tires. Rather than starting with homologated tires for specific road cars, it develops its own generic version based on marketing research and both internal and external testing. Then, it has a clearer idea of what the tire is when it goes to work with an automaker, and a better aftermarket product.
The new P Zero summer-tire family consists of four models; the base is the P Zero PZ5; the P Zero E is optimized for the weight and performance of hybrids and EVs; the P Zero R adds more track performance to the mix; the track-focused Trofeo RS sits at the top of the line.
Some of these tires have been out for a little while now as OEM fitments, but now with the full family launched, Pirelli invited media—including Motor1—to Italy to sample the PZ5, P Zero R, and P Zero Trofeo RS.
P Zero (PZ5)
Photo by: Pirelli
Our experience with the PZ5 was limited, a brief road drive from the Monza circuit to Lake Como in a Mercedes-Benz GLE450d. Thankfully, I have previous experience with the PZ5 in
the Lucid Gravity
, where it's an OEM fit for the 23-inch wheel option. Even with limited time for familiarization, the PZ5's strengths are obvious.
Ride quality, for one. This was always a strength of the previous PZ4—and a reason why, I suspect, it's a popular OEM fitment for luxury performance cars—and it's remarkably good here. The GLE450d we drove was on huge 21s, with 315-width tires out back, and Italian roads aren't the smoothest by any means. But you'd swear the car was on nothing larger than a 19-inch wheel. We also rode shotgun in a Lamborghini Urus SE on 23s, and even that was remarkably smooth on its PZ5s.
At least in the Mercedes, the steering feel was remarkable, too. Pirelli has figured out a way to build in a bit of texture, and a really nice weight buildup off center, all of which gives the driver a good sense of what the car is doing. An engineer later tells me that this sort of thing was a huge priority in the PZ5's development. You can hit all your targets around rolling resistance, treadwear, and grip, but none matter if the tire doesn't feel right.
We'll need more time and exposure to render a more complete verdict on the PZ5, but worth noting that this tire
already won a Tyre Reviews comparison test
, beating out the longtime standard-bearer, the Michelin Pilot Sport 4S. I should also note that the Lucid engineers I spoke with at the launch of the new Gravity raved about the PZ5. So, it very much seems like Pirelli is onto something here.
P Zero R
Photo by: Pirelli
The legendary Monza circuit is less than an hour from Pirelli's Milan headquarters. Where better to test the brand's track-oriented offerings? It's a particularly good track for testing tires, with two ultra-long, ultra-fast right-handers, Curva Grande and the Parabolica, and some big braking zones into the various chicanes. A recent repave also has the effect of making the track surface more abrasive.
Pirelli let us run laps in a nice mix of cars all fit with OEM-spec P Zero R tires: An Audi RS3, a BMW M5, and a Porsche 911 Carrera 4 GTS. Even in three very different cars, the P Zero R demonstrated its strengths.
Many performance tires deliver great performance up to a point, and then rapidly degrade in the face of high loads and temperatures. Monza is what Formula 1 would call a 'high-deg' track, where tires literally fall apart due to high surface temperatures, massive braking loads, and continuous high-speed cornering. The nice thing with the P Zeros past their peak, though, is that after being punished by journalist after journalist, there's a really nice plateau of grip, no precipitous drop into oblivion.
This is a tire that's approachable, forgiving beyond the limit. Braking performance was generally very good, though the RS3 braking hard from very high speeds was disconcertingly loose. That's probably not the tire's fault, though, as the RS3 is nose-heavy and actually one of the few cars with larger front tires than rear, so you can only expect so much braking from 150 mph. It's worth braking a little earlier and longer in this car.
Photo by: Pirelli
Photo by: Pirelli
In the M5, it was easy to push into understeer in the slow chicanes, but that's because it's a 700-plus horsepower, 5,000-plus-pound luxury sedan. The M5 was probably the best illustration of the problem Pirelli faces in developing modern summer performance tires. Cars are simply getting heavier and faster, asking more and more of the tire. Frankly, only really finding understeer in Monza's clumsy first chicane is remarkable.
Some of the great feel in the hands from the PZ5 was on display in the Audi and BMW, too, which was nice given that these aren't cars you typically associate with super-nuanced steering. But perhaps unsurprisingly, the P Zero R shone brightest in the 911. It's a perfect complement to this car, with its sublime balance and seemingly endless all-wheel drive traction.
Of course, the P Zero R attempts to split the difference between a road tire and a track-day tire, and we didn't get to drive it on the road. So, we can't render a complete verdict here either, especially considering that we didn't get to do any direct comparison with a competitor. But again, our initial impressions were very good.
P Zero Trofeo RS
Photo by: Pirelli
Driving a Porsche 911 GT3 RS at Monza is so much its own thing that it deserves a separate story, coming later this week. As far as the tire itself, it's deeply impressive. Compared to a Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 or Cup 2 R, I'm not sure this would be quite as quick, but it feels far more approachable. The Michelins are a little skittish past their peak, whereas the Trofeo RS, like the P Zero R, offers a nice plateau of grip beyond the peak.
The new GT3 RS is a serious car, with an aero package that gives it downforce to rival the GT3 Cup cars you might see racing here during an F1 weekend. This means almost unbelievably high cornering speeds and extraordinary braking.
Photo by: Pirelli
This tire helps make this immense car feel approachable, giving you the confidence to start leaning on the wings. And at lower speeds, where the aero is less effective, there's a ton of mechanical grip. In the medium-speed Lesmo 1 right-hander, I often turned in too late, prompting the instructor right seat to get me to get in a little closer to the apex. You could just flit the wheel, and the car dove right in, showing there was far more available grip than I initially thought.
And remarkably, the Trofeo RS feels like a part of the Pirelli family. It has a lot of the same characteristics, just dialed way, way up. Last year, I drove the Taycan Turbo GT on track with both the R and the Trofeo RS, and the difference in sheer mechanical grip is astounding.
A Paradigm Shift
Photo by: Pirelli
It's hard to draw absolutely definitive conclusions from a test like this, but it's very clear that Pirelli has taken a huge step forward with its latest generation of P Zero tires. The nature of tire development has changed so significantly, as has everything in the automotive world, and the PZ5 and its racier siblings are a reflection of this fact.
Misani is right, it's a paradigm shift.
More on Pirelli
Pirelli Has a new Street-Legal Racing Tire for the US. We Tested It
Pirelli's New Cyber Tires Can Talk to Your Car
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