Tyres!

I have just searched the Conti Sport Contact 7 and it looks as though I can't get rear tyres in 20" in my size, only 19's!!

Are PZero Corsas not a bit like Pilot Cup 2 tyres - not advised in the wet?

I'll have a look at Asda Tyres but I want to make sure whoever fits them doesn't wreck the wheels.

My front PS4s have managed a total of 40k between the 2 cars they've been fitted on, one of them was getting a bit tasty around the outside edge so I started the hunt for tyres. Lo and behold, a colleague with an M140i has just removed a pair of Pilot Supersports off his car, with loads of tread left. 40 quid later and half an hour on the tyre machine, I have some belting tyres again.

I know that’s aimed at John, but it’s a good point and won’t help my dithering… 

It might not be available immediately in M5 size, depends if they’re already working on a *marked tyre. 

I'd go for the Michelins. My experience of Pirellis is that they're ok in cooler weather but not as good as the Michelins and also the Pirellis have always given a more brittle ride than whatever they replaced/were replaced by. I suspect they have a rock solid sidewall.
Finally, and possibly related to my last point, they always look like they're a couple of sizes too small and have been stretched over the rims which isn't a pleasing look to my eyes.

Definitely not worth risking it for £80!

I put PS4 (non S) on the 430 and in hindsight I should've gone for the S as I've found the limits of their grip while pushing on a few times. Fine when it's the back but not so good when its the front

An Update.

The BMW dealer can't get the PS4s rears for my car because they are on back order and they can't get a delivery date.

I told them I could get them from Black Circles but they have told me that any warranty claims on BMW 4WD systems will not be covered unless the car has the BMW star rated tyres!!!!!!!!!!!!

I questioned this but was told the star rated tyres are made in batches so that they conform to tighter specifications on circumference and weight. Bullshit or not I am effectively giving up my drivetrain warranty if I don't get BMW star tyres.

They can get the Pirelli tyres but as discussed above I don't really want them.

Rock and a hard place!

Michelins, I've never got on with a lot of Pirellis in our cold/damp/slimy winters, they just loose all feel and are a little inconsistant compared to Conti's or Michelins

My Cayman has about 200 horsepower less than your M5 and it has already started moving around at the rear on its Pirellis, in the dry, and with just 4000 miles under the tyres and no track time. A little bit unnerving. The car is still trustworthy but I wasn't attempting to provoke these movements at all.

I think its easy to think summer tyres are crap below 7 degrees in UK conditions, without back to backing tyres on the same road on the same day its very hard to say how they really compare, they all feel way worse than in the conditions they were designed for. You do need to watch it in cool conditions for sure...

The new "PZ4" Pirelli P Zero (without the wide outer band lacking grooves that makes the older one so easy to spot) was reviewed by my favourite tyre testers as being the best in this segment now in the wet, beating the PS4S. If this is the tyre you can get then I would not worry, however the older P Zero (which is probably what is star marked for your car) starts well and falls away in my experience. They make my car crazily oversteery when still very legal in tread depth (and thats in the dry) and my fronts - while still working fine - have heat damage all round the outer edges causing a yellow warning at MOT time for "damage". Which is just from keen cornering........

The PS4S is the internet's favourite, to a degree than annoys me, many proper tyre testers say it lacks feel and it's an old tyre now, but BMW and Porsche are supposed to heavily tweak it so the star versions are probably excellent. The new Bridgestone Potenza Sport beat it in most group tests, and its a lot cheaper, but it comes with not a lot of tread new (just under 7mm whereas the PS4S is just over, still tight). I use this on the rear now and find it incredible. But - despite my loyalty to my employer - the new Conti Sport Contact 7 is supposed to be the best of lot now by some way

The main advantage of the PS4S seems ironically to be one few people will ever use, it lasts well on track in the dry.

Ignore the PS5 - the "PSX" and "PSXS" models are completely different, arising from different ranges. When its out, it will be interesting to see how the PS5S goes.

ALF - I'm with you on the oversteer in the dry and the wear to the shoulders just from keen cornering on the road.

Note however that the PS4S tyres on my Yaris also have wear to the shoulders just from keen cornering on the road, and I have done just over 3000 miles in the car from new.
OK, the Yaris has fantastic grip and I do sometimes corner it pretty hard, but even so - perhaps it's just par for the course for drivers like yourself and John and me (and probably several others on the forum).

I decided on PS4S for the Golf in the end. There’s still quite a bit of life left in them (4mm min) but the edges are worn and I figured I’d need to replace them at some point so might as well get more benefit from having a better tyre. Looked around at prices and spotted a Michelin promotion, £100 cash back on 4 tyres (19”+) and the local fitter I like was listed. They were a bit more expensive than Blackcircles but when I take the £100 off it works out at £140 a tyre, which feels like a bit of a bargain. Getting them fitted on Monday.

Blackcircles are offering 10% off the Sport Contact 7, which makes them £140 each as well. 

We have CrossClimate+ on the Golfs winter wheels which have done 3 winters now and I've been really impressed with them, the 2's have even better reviews.  They've still been fitted when the temperature are well above what you'd be happy running a winter tyre at and they were still really good.  I'd happily run them all year round on a non performance family car, but there's still enough of a difference to a UHP tyre to want to run both.