I've done about 10000 miles and 2 track days on my stock PS4s and I find myself slipping and sliding constantly in these cold temperatures. There's plenty of thread left on the tyres, and I've read elsewhere that people are getting 30k miles from theirs, but I just don't see myself getting that. It seems noticeably more slippy than last winter. Is anyone else experiencing this?
GR86 Stock tyre lifetime
- Thread starter Potatoman
- Start date
leosayer
Totally Hooked
Where I live in NE London/Essex border there has been a sustained period where salt has remained on the road for weeks combined with cold temperatures and a lot of condensation on the road.
Not great conditions for traction.
We've got done rain forecast for this weekend which I expect will wash the salt off.
Not great conditions for traction.
We've got done rain forecast for this weekend which I expect will wash the salt off.
leosayer
Totally Hooked
I've never really noticed any meaningful loss of grip on summer tyres in purely cold conditions but the moment things turn icy or snowy then it's game over and winters / all seasons really prove their worth.
Will300
Totally Hooked
From past experience of the 2 sets I've previously run, I usually get about 10,000 miles out of them, but they'd also do about 10 trackdays in that mileage.
It worth mentioning that the compound changes slightly as they wear (gets harder / firmer), which won't help with grip levels. Althought I never had any issues with them losing grip as such.
It worth mentioning that the compound changes slightly as they wear (gets harder / firmer), which won't help with grip levels. Althought I never had any issues with them losing grip as such.
I never really felt all that confident on the stock tyres. I switched to Goodyear F1AS6 at the end of last year even though they probably still had about 4mm. They are still a summer tyre, but even in these conditions they still feel better than the stock ones.
leosayer
Totally Hooked
The PS4 is a conundrum.
They are by far the best tyres I've had on my 993. Quiet, grippy in almost all conditions and comfortable.
Yet on the 86 they seem the opposite.
They are by far the best tyres I've had on my 993. Quiet, grippy in almost all conditions and comfortable.
Yet on the 86 they seem the opposite.
Gibbo78
Obsessed member
There are so many factors when it comes to tyres. Coming from Southern England and now living in Scotland my awareness and knowledge of tyres has increased dramatically, why you ask, because the conditions / temperatures in Scotland can vary dramatically in the space of a single journey and we are talking under 50 miles. If anyone thinks any HP summer tyre is going to perform the same at 5 Deg compared to 20, or a tyre is going to perform the same at 7mm vs 2mm, then my recommendation is to go and look up tyrereviewer grab a large coffee and educate yourself! And a majority of the driving population need to do this, differences in braking distances in various conditions and temperature in particular!
There are so many elements in how tyres perform, for majority of road users in the UK a good AS tyre is all they need and all cars should be supplied with them from new IMO, and case in point with GR’s being fitted with them and performing well, I know as I was following one fitted on a GR meet.
If the tyre industry made a HPAS tyre that would be nirvana for Scotland and England for those that didn’t wish to track their cars.
This evening I went less than 50 miles from Scottish Boarders to Burntisland, temp fluctuated between 4-6C and roads went from dry to damp. Car is on the PS4’s (2.3k miles and no track time) and car felt good and progress was the same, but I was driving to the conditions, coming off roundabouts I was not putting the pedal down like I would when it is 15C or even 10C. In Fife, on the outskirts of Inverkeithing there is a roundabout that has negative camber and I know it can be interesting at this time of year, sure enough the back came away and traction light came on, car was not in low gear nor high in the revs. Did I think that I need to change the tyres tomorrow, no.
I do agree that you can have the same tyre on two different cars and they behave and sound different, as my other car has PS4’s on (and I prefer them on it compared to the GR), again lots of variables at play. Therefore don’t think that a car you had previous on say a particular conti set that made the car handle to your liking would make the GR feel the same.
Will I get PS4’s again, no as things have moved on and less tyre noise is what I am looking for from the next set. Yes you can go onto tyrereviewer and see what the top 3 tyres are this season and yes if you had the same car as the golf GTI they used chances are the number 1 tyre may be spot on, however may not perform the same on the GR. This is why seeing what people on this great forum are changing to and they thoughts should be put into the mix in equal measure. It’s a gamble as sadly you can try tyres before you buy on your GR.
Just my 10p worth and I am sure Sonic can agree on the roundabout in Fife
There are so many elements in how tyres perform, for majority of road users in the UK a good AS tyre is all they need and all cars should be supplied with them from new IMO, and case in point with GR’s being fitted with them and performing well, I know as I was following one fitted on a GR meet.
If the tyre industry made a HPAS tyre that would be nirvana for Scotland and England for those that didn’t wish to track their cars.
This evening I went less than 50 miles from Scottish Boarders to Burntisland, temp fluctuated between 4-6C and roads went from dry to damp. Car is on the PS4’s (2.3k miles and no track time) and car felt good and progress was the same, but I was driving to the conditions, coming off roundabouts I was not putting the pedal down like I would when it is 15C or even 10C. In Fife, on the outskirts of Inverkeithing there is a roundabout that has negative camber and I know it can be interesting at this time of year, sure enough the back came away and traction light came on, car was not in low gear nor high in the revs. Did I think that I need to change the tyres tomorrow, no.
I do agree that you can have the same tyre on two different cars and they behave and sound different, as my other car has PS4’s on (and I prefer them on it compared to the GR), again lots of variables at play. Therefore don’t think that a car you had previous on say a particular conti set that made the car handle to your liking would make the GR feel the same.
Will I get PS4’s again, no as things have moved on and less tyre noise is what I am looking for from the next set. Yes you can go onto tyrereviewer and see what the top 3 tyres are this season and yes if you had the same car as the golf GTI they used chances are the number 1 tyre may be spot on, however may not perform the same on the GR. This is why seeing what people on this great forum are changing to and they thoughts should be put into the mix in equal measure. It’s a gamble as sadly you can try tyres before you buy on your GR.
Just my 10p worth and I am sure Sonic can agree on the roundabout in Fife
What you said, I just couldn't muster the typing power at that time!There are so many factors when it comes to tyres. Coming from Southern England and now living in Scotland my awareness and knowledge of tyres has increased dramatically, why you ask, because the conditions / temperatures in Scotland can vary dramatically in the space of a single journey and we are talking under 50 miles. If anyone thinks any HP summer tyre is going to perform the same at 5 Deg compared to 20, or a tyre is going to perform the same at 7mm vs 2mm, then my recommendation is to go and look up tyrereviewer grab a large coffee and educate yourself! And a majority of the driving population need to do this, differences in braking distances in various conditions and temperature in particular!
There are so many elements in how tyres perform, for majority of road users in the UK a good AS tyre is all they need and all cars should be supplied with them from new IMO, and case in point with GR’s being fitted with them and performing well, I know as I was following one fitted on a GR meet.
If the tyre industry made a HPAS tyre that would be nirvana for Scotland and England for those that didn’t wish to track their cars.
This evening I went less than 50 miles from Scottish Boarders to Burntisland, temp fluctuated between 4-6C and roads went from dry to damp. Car is on the PS4’s (2.3k miles and no track time) and car felt good and progress was the same, but I was driving to the conditions, coming off roundabouts I was not putting the pedal down like I would when it is 15C or even 10C. In Fife, on the outskirts of Inverkeithing there is a roundabout that has negative camber and I know it can be interesting at this time of year, sure enough the back came away and traction light came on, car was not in low gear nor high in the revs. Did I think that I need to change the tyres tomorrow, no.
I do agree that you can have the same tyre on two different cars and they behave and sound different, as my other car has PS4’s on (and I prefer them on it compared to the GR), again lots of variables at play. Therefore don’t think that a car you had previous on say a particular conti set that made the car handle to your liking would make the GR feel the same.
Will I get PS4’s again, no as things have moved on and less tyre noise is what I am looking for from the next set. Yes you can go onto tyrereviewer and see what the top 3 tyres are this season and yes if you had the same car as the golf GTI they used chances are the number 1 tyre may be spot on, however may not perform the same on the GR. This is why seeing what people on this great forum are changing to and they thoughts should be put into the mix in equal measure. It’s a gamble as sadly you can try tyres before you buy on your GR.
Just my 10p worth and I am sure Sonic can agree on the roundabout in Fife
As for the longevity part. I'm at 12k with about 4.5mm of tread left. I reckon I'll get 15-16k out of them before they'll need replacing. I think that's pretty good.
Not sure who is getting 30k out of PS4s. Michelin Primacys on the non euro base spec cars will last that long, they did on my GT86 but they were made of wood. Anything else I didn't see much more than 15k.
Not sure who is getting 30k out of PS4s. Michelin Primacys on the non euro base spec cars will last that long, they did on my GT86 but they were made of wood. Anything else I didn't see much more than 15k.
KobayashiMaru86
Totally Hooked
I got 10-12k on the back of my first set but I'd rotated them to get them off to go wider
Delahorney
Totally Hooked
My first set were at 2.5mm across the rears at the second service/14k(ish) miles. Swapped all 4 to Conti Sport Contact 7s in a 225 width now.
GRistopher
Totally Hooked
- Oct 23, 2023
- 691
- 1,089
The PS4s are known for having class leading wear for a UHP tyre. It's impressive for a tyre in this class, but It's my suspicion that a compromise was made here with regard to road noise. This is certainly my experience when comparing it to other tyres across a few vehicles.
roads are slippery at this time of year, and UHP tyres don't like cold slippery surfaces unless you can get them up to temperature.
All the crap that has been spread on the road turns into a greasy film as it mixes with drizzle / spray / condensation.
the tyres are also operating out of their temperature window, unless you can find a road where you can start to lean on them and get the temps up.
As the tyres wear it becomes harder to get them up to temperature as there's less movement in the tread blocks generating heat.
You get a crash course in all this stuff if you do a winter track day with a tyre like the MPS4. cold damp track, leave the pits with no grip and its like trying to drive on teflon. As the tyres warm up the grip comes to you and corners where you may have been very tentative on the throttle become easy flat from the apex. Give it a few more laps and the tyres overheat because they aren't track tyres. You get to experience too cold, just right and too hot in the space of 10 or 15 mins
roads are slippery at this time of year, and UHP tyres don't like cold slippery surfaces unless you can get them up to temperature.
All the crap that has been spread on the road turns into a greasy film as it mixes with drizzle / spray / condensation.
the tyres are also operating out of their temperature window, unless you can find a road where you can start to lean on them and get the temps up.
As the tyres wear it becomes harder to get them up to temperature as there's less movement in the tread blocks generating heat.
You get a crash course in all this stuff if you do a winter track day with a tyre like the MPS4. cold damp track, leave the pits with no grip and its like trying to drive on teflon. As the tyres warm up the grip comes to you and corners where you may have been very tentative on the throttle become easy flat from the apex. Give it a few more laps and the tyres overheat because they aren't track tyres. You get to experience too cold, just right and too hot in the space of 10 or 15 mins
Just checking...did you definitely have the PS4 on the Porsche ...or the PS4S?
That's one further confusion I've seen crop up before. The PS4S has been revered as probably the best sporting UHP summer tyre you can get for several years, and rightly so. But it seems distinctly different from the PS4...guessing the latter is a more run-of-the-mill offering despite still being a premium tyre. Not a bad tyre, but definitely not on the level of the PS4S.
So when people start comparing them across different cars, I feel like I have to double check that the same tyre is being referred to. Especially when people talk in the plural, "I'm running a set of PS4s on my car..."...wait, do you mean a set of "pee ess fours" or a set of "pee see four ess"?
chopper602
Totally Hooked
Gibbo78
Obsessed member
Spot on sir, the S at the end denotes a very different tyre and takes the PS4 from a high performance tyre up to ultra high performance tyre.Just checking...did you definitely have the PS4 on the Porsche ...or the PS4S?
That's one further confusion I've seen crop up before. The PS4S has been revered as probably the best sporting UHP summer tyre you can get for several years, and rightly so. But it seems distinctly different from the PS4...guessing the latter is a more run-of-the-mill offering despite still being a premium tyre. Not a bad tyre, but definitely not on the level of the PS4S.
So when people start comparing them across different cars, I feel like I have to double check that the same tyre is being referred to. Especially when people talk in the plural, "I'm running a set of PS4s on my car..."...wait, do you mean a set of "pee ess fours" or a set of "pee see four ess"?
Also agree that good wear performance is at the deficit of road noise usually.
ravydavygravy
Dedicated member
Get some all season tyres.
Probably the best value £500 i've spent on a car.
All those months of tippy-toeing around in the past are a thing of the past.
Probably the best value £500 i've spent on a car.
All those months of tippy-toeing around in the past are a thing of the past.
Gibbo78
Obsessed member
In the past I’ve had sets of winters and AS on a second set of alloys and agree it is very nice to have, the AS have really come on and can even give some winters a run for their money in the ice and snow (within reason of conditions of course). Winters should also be replaced at 4mm. Far Scotland and Nordic countries it would be winters everyday of the week with the average amount of snow they can expect and where temps stay low (<5) to sub freezing.
The best thing about AS is when the temps go from -3 to + 10 in a day, winters start going off from +7 and by 10 things get interesting whereas AS can cope with this. For most of the U.K. AS are a strong option. If you want both Summer and AS / Winters you need to either get tyres put on and off your alloys twice a year or have further costs of alloys & TPMS.
No right or wrong here, just personal preference and of course budget considerations.
The best thing about AS is when the temps go from -3 to + 10 in a day, winters start going off from +7 and by 10 things get interesting whereas AS can cope with this. For most of the U.K. AS are a strong option. If you want both Summer and AS / Winters you need to either get tyres put on and off your alloys twice a year or have further costs of alloys & TPMS.
No right or wrong here, just personal preference and of course budget considerations.
