Yikes! Time for new shoes!
 

Just became aware that my front tires are falling apart. Must have happened during last weekend's canyon run, because the car was in the shop only a couple of weeks ago and no sign of this. These are Michelin PSS. They lasted me about 12,000 miles just like the P Zero used to, but this never happened to the any of the 4 sets I had on the car. My alignment was off and I had it aligned about 6 months ago, so perhaps that contributed to it. Well, the good news is I get to try the new PS4S. Looking forward to that.

https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.aud...dfd1a0dde3.jpg

I just put on a set of PS4S. That photo is downright scary swiss. I'd maybe send that photo to Michelin, they do have a 30K warranty and you may be able to get a pro-rated discount on the PS4s. Glad you saw it before something bad happened. I've had the PS4S for about 200 miles, maybe a bit more and they're just starting to feel broken in. The grip is pretty astounding as is the braking. I can finally use the ceramics to their full potential without easily engaging ABS. And they're really good in the wet too. I do get a bit of that "knobby" tire sound above 80mph. It's very faint but the tires do produce noise in a different frequency than what I'm used to with my last set of tires. They're very quiet overall and have a good, compliant ride although I've read they're slightly harsher than the Super Sports. They'll supposedly last 30K miles but that's what they say about the Super Sports. I had those on a RWD car, square setup, and I think they lasted 20.

Edit: Now that I really look at it, you seem to have a good deal of tread left which indicates an alignment issue. Any chance your toe is out of spec?

This may seem like an odd question, but have you had any damage to your rims when they are mounting them? I have the stock 19" Peelers on my S5 and they seem like they are made of butter...scratch and ding very easily...especially having such a thin sidewall. Seems like you'd have a few times for them to mount, going through them at 12k each.

Yes, my left front and rear right toe was out of spec when I got it aligned in November. The car felt definitely off for a while before the alignment. Funny thing is it drives phenomenally now even with the chewed up front tires. I'm not too torn up about it as I really wanted to try the PS4S. They weren't available when I put the PSS on it. I was a tad too early. If I remember correctly they became available a few weeks later.

I'll find out on Friday if there is new damage to the wheels, but generally no. I had a slightly bent wheel that they moved to the rear last time, but I replaced that wheel in the meantime. I road force balance my tires, so any issue with the wheels will come up. Gonna chalk this one up to me not taking it sooner for an alignment. The wear is uniform on both sides. The rear once are still fine but both front tires have the inner edge chewed up, but have quite a bit of tread left all around.

Just a quick update and a shout out to the PS4S. Had them on for about 1000 miles now, so they are properly broken in and the compound and everything is working together. Wheels were all good and they road force balanced properly. Car is tracking straight and driving excellent. The PS4S are by far the best tires I've had so far. You can really feel how they reduced flex with the new belt design. Feels amazing around corners and under hard driving. Comfort is great, too. Perhaps a tad harsher than the PSS as mentioned above, but nothing to worry about. Noise is similar to the PSS and maybe even quieter. The steering has never felt this good and no deflection over bumpy roads. Very happy with the tires. I'm sure they'll feel even better once they've worn down a bit, but this is the best feeling tire while new I've had so far. Most tires flex too much with new tread. I would say the PS4S new feels and is as responsive as the PSS started to become around 6-7/32" so I'm looking forward to how they'll feel once worn down a bit.