Facelift Pirelli Tyre Defects - Response
- Thread starter AudiNutta
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@AudiNutta I have canvass showing on the inside of my passenger front tire, the other won't take too long by the looks of things. There is also a bubble which has appeared on the same tire. My tires are SO2's and have just covered 7.5k
Can you please add me too the list (pics attached)
Can you please add me too the list (pics attached)
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christianbeccy
Registered User
2018 FL RS3. 9000 miles, immaculately cared-for, never been on track and driven so carefully I sometimes question why I have an RS3!!
Fronts are an even 5mm all the way across, as confirmed by an Audi dealer, so less than 50% of their wear, yet the inside edges are shredded. Weirdly, rears are more worn, on 3-4mm, but don't appear to be in the same condition as the fronts.
I haven't managed to get through all 16 pages of this post, has anyone managed to get Audi to take responsibility for this? I've logged a complaint with them this morning, be interesting to know if anyone has tried.
Fronts are an even 5mm all the way across, as confirmed by an Audi dealer, so less than 50% of their wear, yet the inside edges are shredded. Weirdly, rears are more worn, on 3-4mm, but don't appear to be in the same condition as the fronts.
I haven't managed to get through all 16 pages of this post, has anyone managed to get Audi to take responsibility for this? I've logged a complaint with them this morning, be interesting to know if anyone has tried.
Not a chance Audi is going anywhere with this. 2 years of same thing with zero progress.
Get rid of the P Zero’s and you’ll have no further problems.
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Get rid of the P Zero’s and you’ll have no further problems.
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9000 is shocking.
Having said that, my '99 Fiat Coupe 20v Turbo would chew through fronts every 4000 miles (strangely, Pirelli P Zeros) but it was even wear across the whole surface.
When I was admiring the car on my driveway after collecting it new, I noticed a thin black film down the side of the car. I assumed that it was the tyre dressing from the dealer. Nope, it was atomised Pirelli.
Anyway, my RS3 is now at 11000 miles.
Paranoia has set in and I am checking wear weekly.
Having said that, my '99 Fiat Coupe 20v Turbo would chew through fronts every 4000 miles (strangely, Pirelli P Zeros) but it was even wear across the whole surface.
When I was admiring the car on my driveway after collecting it new, I noticed a thin black film down the side of the car. I assumed that it was the tyre dressing from the dealer. Nope, it was atomised Pirelli.
Anyway, my RS3 is now at 11000 miles.
Paranoia has set in and I am checking wear weekly.
Mine are starting to wear too,they have prob only covered around 5000 miles.i had the same problem with my old rs3 8p too.that had continentals fitted.i only noticed when i went to change the wheels and the insides had gone through to the wire.
I agree with T-1000, they won't do anything now. Most they'll do is acknowledge it for the next RS3. Best chance you have of manufacturers fixing these kind of problems is when the car just comes out.
Seems this is a on going saga with the pzeros R02 model tyre, I don't recall a single issue with the R01 tyres they made for the PFL model.
Must be the design structure of the 'stretched ' look of this tyre perhaps.
I'm sure the factory camber is the same from the 2015 model to present one.
Must be the design structure of the 'stretched ' look of this tyre perhaps.
I'm sure the factory camber is the same from the 2015 model to present one.
christianbeccy
Registered User
For those that have changed to a square set-up, have you all gone for 235/35/19? Or 245/35/19?
What have you done with the 8.5j front rims?
What have you done with the 8.5j front rims?
See the bottom of this thread. I had the same question but seemingly the 8.5j wheel is fine for either 235 or 245.
Michellin ps4s?
https://r.tapatalk.com/shareLink/to...in-ps4s?.403487/&share_type=t&link_source=app
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christianbeccy
Registered User
So the tyres fit OK, but in my mind it seems more logical to move the 8.5j rims to the back now that they're not needed for the wider front tyres. Or am I over-thinking this?
Been on this forum for a few years and been watching this Pirelli Tyres post.
Daughters FL RS3 in to Audi today for 1st Service.
No issues with the car at 12,000 miles on the clock, checked the front tyres a few days ago and the treads are still legal but when driving it just feels like it’s time to change the fronts.
Shock horror, phone call from dealer and a lovely video of the tyres, all four.
Two fronts still legal but they have found the inner cord is poking through on both tyres.
Even worse to come, both rear tyres checked and here goes:
Tyre treads are still legal on both rear tyres but near side rear has the dreaded cord showing in the middle of the tyre, not heard of this before, I am shocked.
Offside rear, there is a section in the middle of the tyre and the rubber has actually perished, and where it’s perished the cord is showing?
How has this happened? Not heard of this on this forum, or maybe missed the post.
Daughter is gutted, 4 tyres now required, plus service cost comes in at £1100+
The car is still on factory tyres so got the staggered set-up.
So what does she do?
Need 4 new tyres.
Stick with the Pirelli’s and staggered set-up?
Go with the Michelin’s, seem to be tyre of choice on the forum but noise levels seem to be an issue.
Go with the Pirelli’s but square set-up?
If so how does it work with the alloys? Can she keep the same alloys and just put the same size tyre on all 4 corners, if so what size? 235, 245?
I see posts saying swap the front alloys to the back on the square set-up, I am confused.
What other tyres are recommended for the RS3, if so which manufacturer, and what size does she buy?
I also have a FL RS3 on staggered set-up, so far no issues but I now need to get under the car and have a good look.
Both cars delivered first one May 2019 and my one July 2019.
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Daughters FL RS3 in to Audi today for 1st Service.
No issues with the car at 12,000 miles on the clock, checked the front tyres a few days ago and the treads are still legal but when driving it just feels like it’s time to change the fronts.
Shock horror, phone call from dealer and a lovely video of the tyres, all four.
Two fronts still legal but they have found the inner cord is poking through on both tyres.
Even worse to come, both rear tyres checked and here goes:
Tyre treads are still legal on both rear tyres but near side rear has the dreaded cord showing in the middle of the tyre, not heard of this before, I am shocked.
Offside rear, there is a section in the middle of the tyre and the rubber has actually perished, and where it’s perished the cord is showing?
How has this happened? Not heard of this on this forum, or maybe missed the post.
Daughter is gutted, 4 tyres now required, plus service cost comes in at £1100+
The car is still on factory tyres so got the staggered set-up.
So what does she do?
Need 4 new tyres.
Stick with the Pirelli’s and staggered set-up?
Go with the Michelin’s, seem to be tyre of choice on the forum but noise levels seem to be an issue.
Go with the Pirelli’s but square set-up?
If so how does it work with the alloys? Can she keep the same alloys and just put the same size tyre on all 4 corners, if so what size? 235, 245?
I see posts saying swap the front alloys to the back on the square set-up, I am confused.
What other tyres are recommended for the RS3, if so which manufacturer, and what size does she buy?
I also have a FL RS3 on staggered set-up, so far no issues but I now need to get under the car and have a good look.
Both cars delivered first one May 2019 and my one July 2019.
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christianbeccy
Registered User
As an update to my case. I've just had my new tyres fitted. Looking closely at the Pirelli's, it's fairly clear that the car has somehow been driving on the sidewall. It looks as though the sidewall itself has pushed away from the tread section of the tyre.
My 255/30/19 fronts had an even 5mm across the whole width of the tyre, so around 50% worn, but the worn inner shoulder is so thin I feel I could push my finger through it if I tried hard enough. Honestly, it's that thin and quite terrifying to think that many RS3's are probably running around blissfully unaware of this problem, just as I was. Thinking about it, the sidewall obviously aren't as thick as the treaded section, so the 4mm or so of wear has also worn through the inner corner which is technically sidewall. This suggests to me that this isn't a camber issue, but a tyre design issue.
This photo shows the old Pirelli 255/30/19 on the right and the new Michelin 235/35/19 on the left.
...and a bit closer...
I have gone for 235/35/19 91Y XL Michelin Pilot Sport 4s. I only took it for a short drive last night, but the car just feels more planted. It might be placebo at the minute, but early signs are very good. I kept the 8.5j rims on the front. Aesthetically, the fronts have a slightly stretched look (minimal and can be seen in the above picture), whereas the rears have very square looking sidewalls.
I paid £600 for the set.
Not sure if you're all aware, but Michelin are running a promotion called 'On the road again', until the end of August, you can get £100 cashback making them £125 each fitted at the price I paid. See here...
https://marketing.michelin.co.uk/promo-summer-2020-uk/
My 255/30/19 fronts had an even 5mm across the whole width of the tyre, so around 50% worn, but the worn inner shoulder is so thin I feel I could push my finger through it if I tried hard enough. Honestly, it's that thin and quite terrifying to think that many RS3's are probably running around blissfully unaware of this problem, just as I was. Thinking about it, the sidewall obviously aren't as thick as the treaded section, so the 4mm or so of wear has also worn through the inner corner which is technically sidewall. This suggests to me that this isn't a camber issue, but a tyre design issue.
This photo shows the old Pirelli 255/30/19 on the right and the new Michelin 235/35/19 on the left.
...and a bit closer...
I have gone for 235/35/19 91Y XL Michelin Pilot Sport 4s. I only took it for a short drive last night, but the car just feels more planted. It might be placebo at the minute, but early signs are very good. I kept the 8.5j rims on the front. Aesthetically, the fronts have a slightly stretched look (minimal and can be seen in the above picture), whereas the rears have very square looking sidewalls.
I paid £600 for the set.
Not sure if you're all aware, but Michelin are running a promotion called 'On the road again', until the end of August, you can get £100 cashback making them £125 each fitted at the price I paid. See here...
https://marketing.michelin.co.uk/promo-summer-2020-uk/
I am in the same boat, need 4 new tyres.
Did you go for the square set-up Fronts 255/30/19 and Rears 235/30/19?
Or did you go square set-up and what size all round.
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christianbeccy
Registered User
christianbeccy
Registered User
To give a little more detail on this, the concept of keeping the wider wheels on the front now that they weren't needed for the wider tyres felt a bit counter-intuitive to me, but overall I'm glad I did because the fitment looks right aesthetically.
The rear tyres look a little 'chunkier' due to them being a bit squarer, whilst the fronts look a little 'skimpier' due to the wider rims.
This is not an extreme difference, but just right to give a good visual balance.
If I had the ultimate choice, I think I would have preferred to have 8.5j all round, but the way I have them is a good compromise without having to spend a fortune on another pair of wheels for a small aesthetic 'gain'.
I’ve just this minute got back from the garage after having my two fronts changed to some MPS4S’ at 235/35/19. So I’m now with the square set up, I was going to change all 4 but the rears (P Zeros) are wearing evenly and still have plenty of life left on them.
The car has only done 12k from new and one of the tyres I’ve just changed had cord showing on the inner edge! The other one was on the limit of showing some cord too. Absolutely ridiculous. I would upload some pictures on here but I don’t know how to!?
The car has only done 12k from new and one of the tyres I’ve just changed had cord showing on the inner edge! The other one was on the limit of showing some cord too. Absolutely ridiculous. I would upload some pictures on here but I don’t know how to!?
Thanks for the great insight of tyres to alloys.
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My previous TTRS had 17k miles on and I sold it with them still on. No uneven wear. And I think they are the same front tyre as the RS3? If so, then I can’t see how it’s a Pirelli issue.
Is yours PFL? I thought it was just FL that suffered with this? Certainly my PFL did 18k miles on its original tyres!
My previous TTRS had 17k miles on and I sold it with them still on. No uneven wear. And I think they are the same front tyre as the RS3? If so, then I can’t see how it’s a Pirelli issue.
huzidada
Registered User
Seeing this thread made me laugh.
I have NEVER been a fan of Pirreli tyres and would have told you to change this out a long time ago.
Just because it's the OEM tyre and Pirreli have been "outstanding" in their service to you, doesn't mean the tire is not s***. It just is
To keep wanting to use the tyre because of its "visual appeal" and then talk about safety is the most idiotic thing I've ever heard.
A change to a different tire would have been easier than the headaches OP went through.
Obviously fell and enjoyed being led on by Pirreli. Sigh. Young lads
PS4 grip and traction a million times better than P Zero
I have NEVER been a fan of Pirreli tyres and would have told you to change this out a long time ago.
Just because it's the OEM tyre and Pirreli have been "outstanding" in their service to you, doesn't mean the tire is not s***. It just is
To keep wanting to use the tyre because of its "visual appeal" and then talk about safety is the most idiotic thing I've ever heard.
A change to a different tire would have been easier than the headaches OP went through.
Obviously fell and enjoyed being led on by Pirreli. Sigh. Young lads
PS4 grip and traction a million times better than P Zero
First comments I’ve read that are sensible.
Widely agreed the Pirelli aren’t the best tyre for the RS3.
You can’t seriously expect that Audi are going to take ownership of this problem now, especially with reports harking back to 2018 and a new 8Y model in the offing.
The Pirelli seem to suffer the same characteristic, which to me suggests the bevelled side wall as “fantastic” as it looks isn’t the best idea with the RS3’s geometry set up.
I don’t recall reading of any Michelin / Goodyear adopters having any of these issues.
For the sake of £500-600 swap em out and then enjoy the car.
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Am I correct in thinking the TTRS has the same Pirelli tyre and size though? I’ve had no issues so agree it must be the geometry set up.
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christianbeccy
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The overall opinion of PZero's is awful. a simple Google search reveals this. There are threads from over the years on Pistonheads and various other forums. Mine had cracked extensively within the first 5000 miles, then the additional inner shoulder wear was already well advanced by 9000 miles, though I hadn't been aware of it until a couple of weeks ago.
I haven't read this thread entirely, but I think the issue is worsened on the RS3's with the staggered setup, but I can't really see anything in the geometry numbers that would cause this. I've been into performance cars since the late 90's and the only time I've ever seen this sort of tyre wear was on the old 1963 Beetle I had years ago (before my performance car phase), but that was lowered almost 10" and was running the rear wheels at a camber of almost 45° as an unavoidable result (slight exaggeration, but you get the idea). A slight negative camber will not do this amount of damage in such a short time, particularly not with such stable wear across the majority of the tyre, mine measure 5mm all across the treaded sections.
Mine really look as though the tread and the sidewall have effectively pushed in opposite directions, stretching and spreading the rubber in between. It's lethal and should have resulted in a global recall, but instead Audi are still fitting the same **** to this day.
I haven't read this thread entirely, but I think the issue is worsened on the RS3's with the staggered setup, but I can't really see anything in the geometry numbers that would cause this. I've been into performance cars since the late 90's and the only time I've ever seen this sort of tyre wear was on the old 1963 Beetle I had years ago (before my performance car phase), but that was lowered almost 10" and was running the rear wheels at a camber of almost 45° as an unavoidable result (slight exaggeration, but you get the idea). A slight negative camber will not do this amount of damage in such a short time, particularly not with such stable wear across the majority of the tyre, mine measure 5mm all across the treaded sections.
Mine really look as though the tread and the sidewall have effectively pushed in opposite directions, stretching and spreading the rubber in between. It's lethal and should have resulted in a global recall, but instead Audi are still fitting the same **** to this day.
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Particular geometry used in the rs3 plus sidewall design of the Pzero adding up to garbage I'd hazard
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The p zeros while perhaps not the greatest tyre out there don’t seem to suffer such severe inside wear on other cars.
Perhaps the RS3 and its set up just isn’t good for those particular tyres. And vice versa.
As you say, just use a different tyre once they’re shot.
So I’ve just had a proper rip in the RS3 tonight since going with the square set up now with 235/35/19’s all round. I have the MPS4s’ on the front but still have the Pirelli’s on the rear (until they’re due to be changed, as still have quite a bit of meat left on them). But i can confirm I’m still getting the traction control flicker now and again! What do yo guys reckon, or is it just self explanatory with the Pirelli’s still being on the rear. I swear it wasn’t this bad when I had them all round though, it’s almost as if the Michelin’s are exacerbating how bad a tyre the Pirelli’s are, I don’t know?
Cheers.
Cheers.
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Have you stored the new tyre pressures in the Infotainment system?
The standard system on the RS3 uses the abs sensors to measure wheel rotation speed and watches for variance over what it expects and then flags up rather than actual pressure sensors.
If you haven't it may be interpreting the difference in rolling radius as wheel slip
Monitor those frequently as they go from that state to chords showing very quickly.
christianbeccy
Registered User
I wouldn't even consider using 2 different tyre brands on my RS3. I would even be nervous replacing just 2 tyres like-for-like unless the tread depths were similar.
I'd say don't judge the Michelins until you have a full set. Mine feel awesome.
Agree 110%.
Same compound / tread pattern all round.
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I’ll sort it soon enough, it’s just a killer when your rears are in good nick and have like 4-5mm left on them each and are in good condition overall.
