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255/40 R17 Tyres

Everything we know about the 255/40 R17 tyre size: 76 owner reviews covering 997,525 miles of driving, and EU label data for the tyres you can actually buy in it.

  • 76owner reviews
  • 997,525 milescovered on them
  • 157tyres made in this size
255/40 R17 To scale, mm
Ø 636 255 102 17" 102

The quick answer

The quick answer - 255/40 R17
Season Owners' pick Owner rating Latest test winner
Summer Michelin Pilot Sport PS2 9.2 Current version: Michelin Pilot Sport S 5 88% from 4 reviews -

Owner picks are the highest weighted owner score in 255/40 R17; test winners come from the most recent independent test conducted in this size. The full evidence is below.

The best rated 255/40 R17 tyres

Rated only by drivers running this size. Each tyre needs at least 3 reviews in 255/40 R17 to be ranked; the order weights a tyre's score by how many reviews back it, so one glowing review cannot top a table.

Summer tyres

The highest rated Summer tyre in 255/40 R17 is the Michelin Pilot Sport PS2 - 88% from 4 owner reviews in this size. The current tyre in that line is now the Michelin Pilot Sport S 5.

Summer tyres ranked by owner rating in 255/40 R17
# Tyre Owner rating Reviews Distance reviewed TR Score
1 Michelin Pilot Sport PS2 Replaced by Michelin Pilot Sport S 5 88% 4 51,500 miles 9.2
2 Continental Sport Contact 2 Replaced by Continental SportContact 7 78% 3 147,500 miles 7.5
3 Federal SS595 SUPER STEEL 69% 3 40,000 miles 5.4
4 Nankang NS2 Replaced by Nankang Noble Sport NS20 60% 4 20,000 miles 5.5
5 Barum Bravuris 2 Replaced by Barum Bravuris 3 55% 3 11,000 miles 8.5
6 Bridgestone Potenza RE050A Run Flat 56% 8 119,510 miles 4.6

Want test data as well as owner opinion? Best Summer Tyres →

TR Score is the tyre's overall Tyre Reviews rating out of 10, built from independent test results and every owner review of that tyre - not just the reviews from this car. The owner rating column is this car only.

255/40 R17 EU tyre label data

EU label values are declared for each individual size, so the figures here are exact for 255/40 R17 rather than a range across a model. 70 tyres carry label data in this size. The most common load index is 98 (up to 750 kg per tyre). Speed ratings on offer: (Y) (301 km/h), Y (300 km/h), W (270 km/h), V (240 km/h). 6 tyres in this size carry the 3PMSF severe snow marking.

A Best wet grip

19 tyres in this size hold the top EU wet grip rating, class A. The highest scoring on Tyre Reviews:

B Lowest rolling resistance

The most fuel efficient choice: 6 tyres in this size reach rolling resistance class B. The highest scoring on Tyre Reviews:

69dB Quietest tyres

The quietest 255/40 R17 tyres are labelled at 69 dB external noise:

Label values come from the EU EPREL database and apply to the EU market versions of each tyre. Wet grip and rolling resistance run from class A (best) to E; noise is the measured drive-by figure. A good label is a floor, not a verdict - the tests and owner ratings above tell you far more.

How long do 255/40 R17 tyres last?

Across 10 end of life reviews in this size, a typical set of tyres was worn out after 10,000 miles. Half of all worn-out sets lasted between 9,000 miles and 15,000 miles.

Distances are self-reported by drivers whose review marked the set as worn out; figures are medians, so a single unusual report cannot move them. Driving style and the car matter more than the size itself.

What does 255/40 R17 mean?

A 255/40 R17 tyre is 255 mm wide, its sidewall is 40% of that width (102 mm) tall, and it fits a 17 inch wheel. That gives an overall diameter of roughly 636 mm.

255/40 R17 nominal dimensions
Section width255 mm
Sidewall height102 mm
Rim diameter17" (432 mm)
Overall diameter≈ 636 mm
Circumference≈ 1,997 mm
Revolutions per km≈ 501
Revolutions per mile≈ 806

Also written as

255/40R17 255/40 ZR17 255-40-17 255 40 17

Figures are calculated from the nominal size. A loaded, rolling tyre runs a few percent smaller, and true widths vary slightly between makes.

Comparing two sizes? Use the tyre size calculator →

Every tyre reviewed in 255/40 R17

The complete record, including discontinued tyres and tyres with too few reviews to rank, ordered by the amount of evidence. A further 33 tyres have a single review each; they count toward the totals but are not listed.

All tyres reviewed in 255/40 R17
Tyre Season Owner rating Reviews Distance reviewed
Bridgestone Potenza RE050A Run Flat Summer 56% 8 119,510 miles
Michelin Pilot Sport PS2 Replaced by Michelin Pilot Sport S 5 Summer 88% 4 51,500 miles
Nankang NS2 Replaced by Nankang Noble Sport NS20 Summer 60% 4 20,000 miles
Continental Sport Contact 2 Replaced by Continental SportContact 7 Summer 78% 3 147,500 miles
Federal SS595 SUPER STEEL Summer 69% 3 40,000 miles
Barum Bravuris 2 Replaced by Barum Bravuris 3 Summer 55% 3 11,000 miles
Falken FK453 Replaced by Falken Azenis FK520 Summer 99% 2 30,000 miles
GT Radial Champiro HPY Replaced by GT Radial SportActive 2 Summer 86% 2 23,000 miles
Pirelli P Zero Runflat Summer 81% 2 21,000 miles
Falken FK452 Replaced by Falken Azenis FK520 Summer 80% 2 37,000 miles
Atlas Sport Green Replaced by Atlas Sport Green 2 Summer 80% 2 19,000 miles
Falken ZE912 Replaced by Falken ZIEX ZE320 Summer 78% 2 39,000 miles
Bridgestone Potenza S02A Replaced by Bridgestone Potenza S04 Pole Position Summer 74% 2 36,000 miles
Avon ZZ3 Replaced by Avon ZZ5 Summer 67% 2 28,000 miles
Hankook Ventus S1 evo2 Replaced by Hankook Ventus Evo Summer 64% 2 18,000 miles

Reviews only cover part of the market: 157 tyres are made in 255/40 R17. Browse every 255/40 R17 tyre →

What drivers say about their 255/40 R17 tyres

The most recent owner reviews fitted in this size, in their own words.

64%
Continental Sport Contact 2 255/40 R17 Mercedes Benz C350 RWD 130,000 miles October 28, 2026

Tyres are very grippy and you can drive them at their limit.

My RWD car usually needs tires every 12000miles (20.000km)
Now on rear I have Kumho PS31 and they drive not so grippy on wet, but wear is good.
10.000 miles and still 6mm treath left.

But I rather wear some tyres and get some grip.

83%
Kumho Ecsta PS31 255/40 R17 Mercedes Benz 2,500 miles June 18, 2026
I had them installed on my Mercedes C350 RWD size 255 40 ZR17 94W on the rear axle.
DOT 1K2 UTQG 400 A A (made in Vietnam)

I`m a spirited driver and use the potential of my 272bhp often.
Drive every week on the german autobahn with +200km/h.
Grip on dry roads is very good,noise level top.
Wet roads also grip level is good
Like the performance of these tires.
Will make review after 10K miles

They replaced Bridgestone S001 245 40 R17 91W.
These lasted 20k km (approx. 12500 miles)

Staggered set with Dunlop SportMaxx TT RFT on Front.
79%
Pirelli Winter 210 Sottozero 2 255/40 R17 BMW Z4 3.0 4,000 miles January 11, 2026
I drive across Germany into Poland every winter, so required a snow rated tyre for my 2003 BMW Z4 3.0i. After fitting I went for a test drive, sub 8°c and wet. They felt like what I imagine a qualifying tyre feels like compared to my summer ContiSport Contact 7s, which noticeably lose grip in the cold.

The rain was very heavy when I left Euro tunnel in France, and became near biblically torrential in Germany. The Sottozeros felt like I was driving on warm tarmac - no exaggeration whatsoever. The rain completely overcame my windscreen wipers at points causing me to slow, the tyres gave me no reason to slow. At very high speeds there was a sense that they weren't able to clear the surface water entirely, but at 90mph felt solidly connected to the road.

On the return journey, we went via Quedlinberg where it was snowy, icy, and the roads were ungritted. I had to slow for this as the car was sliding and I was too tired to enjoy it. I doubt anything other than a spiked tyre would have been any use in those conditions.

I've done this trip twice now with the tyres, plus daily driving as I fit them as soon as the temperature drops consistently below 9°c, roughly 4,000 miles, with no observable wear yet.

I would never be without a tyre like this in winter now, even in GB where it is not mandatory. They clear surface water like nothing I've ever experienced before and don't just feel safe in extreme rain, but actually enjoyable.
66%
Michelin Pilot Sport 4 255/40 R17 BMW 330d 13,200 miles February 9, 2025
Due to the odd/rare size of the rear tyres fitted to my car (a 2010 330d), their was only a choice of 2 decent tyres, these and the even older Goodyear Asymmetric 2s.
Compared to the A2's I had before the PS4 is a revelation in the wet, the grip in the wet was absolutely staggering (above 7C, below which any summer tyre will increasingly struggle), it felt like it almost matched the A2s grip in the dry! Truly amazing grip in the wet!
Grip in the dry seemed good too, although I never pushed them cornering.

A big downside though was the rate they wore at, I nearly got caught out hitting the legal wear limit (1.6mm), I usually change tyres at 2.5mm.
Although this was partly due to my mileage shooting up that year (due to a job change), it was also down to how quickly the tyres were wearing, from new to ~1.6mm (for the NSR, OSR was ~2.7mm) in about 13.2 k miles. Whereas the last set of GY A2s lasted ~18.6k (rears again).

Their is the mitigating circumstance that I found the rear tracking was out shortly after replacing them, by how much I don't know because the garage's printer wasn't working and they didn't bother to take a photo of it either! That said, it was tracking straight and the outer and inner edges and groves had worn similarly, although the rear was tramlining somewhat (which reduced quite a bit after having it tracked).
Also it seems that the factory pressures are too high for the rears making them wear more in the middle, see their final tread depths below (for each main groove) and make your own mind up. But certainly the A2s pumped up to the same pressures and likely the rear tracking had been a bit out for years as the rear tramlining issue (mainly on the concrete bit of the south part of the M25!) had also been around for years!
NSR 3.2, 2.4, 1.6, 2.7
OSR 3.5, 2.7, 2.7, 3.5

Since then I've fitted Goodyear Asymmetric 6s (I had to downsize slightly to 245/40 17 to get them), and actually their not faring much better :(, they've covered 12.6k miles and are down to 3mm in the ctr grooves already (I can't recall what the outer's were, but theirs a smaller difference than the PS4s, which is at least partly down to the slightly lower pressure I use now, 2.5 Bar vs 2.7, not to mention the tracking being done at the beginning of their life).
86%
Yokohama Advan Fleva V701 255/40 R17 Ford XH Longreach S Ute 6,200 miles August 24, 2024
i’ve driven these tyres on the rear end of a ford falcon ute, and even with the horrible weight distribution of these falcon utes these tyres perform pretty well, have gone about 210kmh in these wheels and they still felt extremely stable when changing lanes, with grip i’ve been happy too with going on hill runs and twisty roads at an average speed of about 110kmh thru corners on the wet and i’ve pushed these tyres to over 160kmh on some other corners and the rear end still grips well with the factory lsd diff. tyre wear has been alright too (been driving it extremely hard almost daily and haven’t worn out near as much as previous tyres i’ve owned). can’t comment about tyre noise as my cars way to loud haha. oh yeah and i’ve down a few burnouts and skids in these tyres and holy f*** do these things have good wear there’s been times i’ve though ive wrecked the tyres and they still look as if no skids where commited. will buy another pair.
56%
Pirelli Powergy 255/40 R17 BMW 330d 8,000 miles March 8, 2024
After two seasons and around 10k km with moderate driving rear tyres were left with 6mm.
71%
Hankook Ventus RS4 255/40 R17 Honda S2000 20,000 miles November 11, 2022
Rs4 gives amazing grip but only in the most ideal conditions. Getting temp into these tyres is quite difficult, but once warmed up they grip very well. The grip is predictable but certainly not the best. Works very well in sunny weather. Cooler weather or rain makes it more difficult. Speaking of rain, this is not an all season kind of tyre so can't expect the best traction from this set. The sidewall is stiff and gives great response and feedback, but high road noise as an unfortunate compromise. The stiffness does compound if you run a higher spring rate or high dampening but can be OK as an all season however not recommended. Wear on the tyre is very good, long lasting with this harder compound. Don't expect comfort but this is a good track or weekend mountain carving tyre.
91%
Landsail LS588 UHP 255/40 R17 Alfa Romeo Giulietta 8,000 miles March 24, 2022
I’ve had Pirelli, Bridgestone the lot and I always come back to landsail. Great tyre. I drive an Alfa Romeo so drive hard into corners and hold the limits where I can. They are responsive and hold the road really well. They don’t sag or roll. Grip is very good in dry. Wet is good also. Not sure why they are reviewed as average.. bizarre. I think they are amazing value for money. To the point you can replace every 8000miles instead of having to try and ekk out every last mile on premium brands.

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Where this data comes from

Owner ratings are submitted through the review form on this site, naming the tyre, the size and the distance covered, and are checked by hand before publication. Test results come from independent published tyre tests indexed by size, and label values from the EU EPREL database.

About the TR Score

The Tyre Reviews Score rates each tyre out of 10 using independent test results and the full body of owner reviews, so you can check a car-specific ranking against the wider evidence.

Who does the testing

Every test published as a Tyre Reviews test is run by Jonathan Benson, who has been testing tyres independently since 2007.

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