Given
87%
while driving a
Rover 75
(215/55 R16 V) on
a combination of roads
for 3,500
average miles
In spite of the generally poor reviews I found on this site I decided to fit a pair of Marangoni Versos to the front (drive) wheels of my Rover 75 in November 2012, because the EU Tire Rating suggested that they would perform reasonably well in the function that matters most to me - grip, and would be good value for the money if the wear was ok.
Now, in February 2013, having done 3500 miles in the worst possible wet/snowy/slushy driving conditions in the UK winter *and* two weeks around the Swiss/French ski resorts in the Alps and Jura, with 200cm of snow all around and hard packed frozen snow on all (snow-ploughed) passes above 1000m, I can say with some confidence: these tires are GOOD. I had no problem whatsoever with them - they always gave me sufficient grip to pull through the steepest frozen sections and I never once had to resort to chains.
They had 7mm of tread when I started and have 6mm now - that means I can expect to get about 19k miles from them before they wear out. I think that's a bit better than average, so I am very happy with them.
My only minor criticism is that they are somewhat noisier than my previous tires (Falken and Pirelli) - but that's because I deliberately chose stiffer sidewalls, so I guess I got what I should have expected.
I have to say that I think the repeatedly low ratings given and negative comments made by most other reviewers of these tires tell me much more about the driving qualities of the reviewers than they tell me about the quality of Marangoni Verso tires. ;-)