how is it small jobs just seem to escalate.....
Today i wanted to get the tyres changed over.... now most normal folk would have rocked up TyreFitters-R-Us and just had them swapped over with nare a care in the world as to the condition of the surface the weights were going to be stuck too.....
So with my OCD in full force and sadly no Fallout remover i went old school....
This is the before.... normal crud from this time of year plus embedded brake dust to contend with....

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The fronts being far more contaminated than the rears.....

the process involved lots of hot soapy water, a hair dryer to remove the old weights and adhesive and then to clay bar and hit with G3 to remove all the crud etc

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it took bloody ages... about 6 hours in total.....

Then it was a case of load up the other half's A3 Sportback, it was a damn squeeze fitting 4 19" wheels and tyres and then the replacement tyres..... There were a couple of John Cleese Branch moments as it took careful placement so i could shut the doors....
A quick trip over to my local Kwik-Fit

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and all finally done....

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because i can't help myself the brake calipers have been stripped down for repainting.... it's a damn disease i tell you..... and hopefully tomorrow the new spring retaining clips arrive for the brake lines as i had to destroy 4 getting the old flexi's off.

I like your new tyres

Whether car or bike I always have Pirelli.... I got a good deal on the correct spec AO Audi rated PZero’s so it was rude not to get them. The A8 came with Vredestein’s winter tyres which were outside of my 5 years old rule so they had to go, they were actually pretty decent in the recent bad snow and grip surprisingly well in the wet.... but we’re too old for me

Did your local Kwikfit agree to fit customer supplied tyres? I know a lot of places won't do it anymore or charge silly money for it

It didn’t come up when I enquired if they could assist ... I told them the tyres were brand new and I took the wheels in loose.
I suppose in the current climate, less people driving, less worn out tyres so less cars having them replaced means any business is business and cash coming in???

How would you compare the current PZero to the old PZero Rosso? I haven't bought Pirellis since the Rosso.

Not driven on these yet, but hitting the time machine I had Rossi’s on my RS6 back in the day and then PZero Nero GT’s on my S5..... I’d say they were comparable.... good grip but wear quickly, especially if you don’t rotate ... but tyres are subjective as everyone drives different..... I like how they feel on my stuff

Funny how we get loyal, I've been around all sorts of tyre brands but I'm very much a "Michelin Man" at present!
(And that's after losing about 5 stone a few years ago :D )
Though, to be fair, the S8 is still on its winter SottoZeros, they've lasted many years.

Absolutely.... we all like what we like but I respect someone else’s choice they’ve made, even if it’s the polar opposite of my “like”....
I do find it funny when reading that someone has replaced X with Y and that Y is far far far superior.... I just think to myself well yes, obviously as X was at the end of its life and was worn out haha
But then they go and bash someone who’s chosen X as they didn’t have the same opinion as them, the internet is a weird place at times

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it's not a restoration....

it's not a restoration....

it's not a restoration....

i keep muttering those same words over and over till it sinks in, but i can't help it....

blasted and zinc primered, again with Bilt Hamber's zinc primer....
The calipers are to the same state but rain stopped all play today....

small steps forward and all that...!!!