Pirelli P Zero Road TLR Black 700x30

The Pirelli P Zero Road TLR is one of the latest in the company's ever-growing road tyre range. It's designed as an all-rounder and is ideal if you want plenty of speed and grip without sacrificing durability. It strikes a good balance on all fronts, with plenty of grip and a decent ride quality, with the bonus that there are plenty of larger sizes on offer.

For more options, check out our guide to the best road bike tyres.

The P Zero range is Pirelli's performance line-up, and this Road TLR sits somewhere between the supple, grippy and fast-rolling Race TLR and the Race TLR 4S, a more robust option designed for year-round road riding.

Looking at the details, the Race is pretty much the same weight as the 4S (there is just 3g difference between them in a 30mm width) and they share the same threads per inch count at 120tpi each. They are both available in 28mm and 30mm sizes, but these Road TLRs also come in a 32mm and 35mm, making them ideal for the latest road and all-road machines.

According to Pirelli the P Zero Road is the only tyre that uses its TechLINER casing, which is tubeless specific and features a rubber liner for better pressure retention.

After installation I pumped these up to 85psi and left them for three or four days before I managed to get a ride on them, and when I got the bike out of the shed, they'd dropped to around 30psi in each tyre. After pumping them back up and going for a 90-minute spin to slosh the sealant around they have stayed inflated with nothing but a small weekly top-up required, so everything is good on that front.

When I first installed the tyres on the rim, they were a bit of a tight fit, requiring some assistance from a tyre lever, but then that's nothing out of the ordinary with modern tubeless tyres. You want a snug, secure fit on high pressure tyres, and that is definitely what you get here. I tried them on deep-section carbon wheels with a 23mm internal rim width, and alloy rims with a 21mm internal width.

The Road TLR uses Pirelli's Evo Compound, and it works well. It's not quite as tacky, and therefore grippy, as high-end race tyres, but it still grabs the tarmac well in the dry and gives confidence in the wet, too, with no slipping. Feedback is good – there is plenty of detail coming back through to you from the tyres, which allows you to carry speed into corners and roundabouts.

They roll well, too. Again, not as quick as the Race TLR tyres, but fast enough that they didn't feel sluggish when on the flat. Given their wider sizes you are likely to be using these on your winter bike, commuter, training bike or audax machine, and with that kind of riding the performance on offer here is spot on.

Durability is great. A lot of my rides have been in the dark, so I can't necessarily see and avoid every thorny branch, pile of grit or mud washed out of the verge by the latest storm, and a large amount of the miles have also been on wet roads too. The tyres are still in near perfect condition with just a small amount of wear shown on the rear from the 600-odd miles I've covered. There are no signs of thorns or flints making their way through the tyre, and no sealant leakages either.

Value

One big advantage that the Road TLRs have over the Race TLR and Race TLR 4S – and quite a few tyres on the market – is the price. Those other two Pirellis are nearly 80 quid a tyre – the Race TLR £78.99 and the Race TLR 4S £79.99 – whereas these are 'just' £55.99.

That puts them on a par with the WTB Exposure TCS Fast Tyre. That's available in a 30mm width, although the only other option is the 36mm that I reviewed in March.

Bontrager's R3 Hard-Case Lite TLR impressed Vecchiojo when he reviewed them back at the beginning of 2023. They cost £52.99 then, but are now £59.99, so a little pricier than the Pirellis. They are lighter, though, at 324g for a 32mm, and they roll well.

I was very impressed recently with the Teravail Telegraphs as all-rounders in a wider size. I reviewed the 30mm which was about 20g heavier than the Pirellis, and 28mm and 35mm options are soon to be released. They were a bit of a pain to fit, but that aside everything was very good for their £45 price tag.

Conclusion

Overall, the Pirelli Road TLR is a good all-rounder. It doesn't massively excel anywhere in particular but covers all of the bases you require from a road tyre, and they're well priced. If you aren't racing and don't need the lightest or grippiest, these are a good choice.

Verdict

Good all-rounders for the majority of road scenarios, without breaking the bank