Finally installed Goodyear RS-A tires...

[S197GT]

For those who haven't seen my ramblings about this before I purchased a set of Goodyear RS-A tires (OE size) from Discount Tire Direct (no tax/shipping) when they had a $100 off four tires sale early last year in anticipation of putting them on around Nov/Dec... however, the OE Bridgestones must be built like tanks because they would not wear out. At 54,400 miles I got tired of waiting for the Bridgestones to wear further. I measured them this morning at 6/32 in the front and 7/32 in the rear. Discount Tire salesman measured them as 6/32 in three and 5/32 on one of the fronts.

I have had mostly great experiences with Discount Tire and a couple of bad ones. Today was great! I had an online printout for install costs. I told him I decided to keep my old tires to throw them on Craigslist; so mount/balance would only be $64 for all four. He saw I opted out of the "TPMS rebuild kit" and when I inquired about it he didn't think I needed it... WHAT?! That was refreshing! (I actually think they install the parts regardless; one of the bad experiences was arguing with a salesman about the necessity or not of it and when I refused to pay for it he told me they were gonna do it anyway for free!) I got $25 off the road hazard warranty so I was out the door at $118.

I got to say I am very happy with the tires. These are the "H" speed rated tires and they are much cheaper than the "V" rated tires. I know a lot of people don't like these tires and I am not claiming they are the best tire out there. I also know the wear rating is very low; 260 IIRC. I'll be happy to get 30k miles out of them. But at around $400 for all four tires I think they were a deal. One can't fairly compare worn tires to brand new tires that aren't even "broken in" yet but I can report that impact harshness is noticeably down. Grip in normal driving and even the slightly spirited driving I did today seemed to be the same. I also took it to an empty lot with some snow and, of course, snow grip was vastly improved with the fresh tread. These are not the quietest tires but on the way home on asphalt interstate the standard Mazda wind noise was louder than the tires.

Basically, I can recommend these tires without hesitation; they are a good lower cost option and other than treadwear I don't feel I gave up anything over the OE tires. It should also be noted that this is a NEW tread design from the original RS-A tires. I have Googled it and can't find anything out about the new tread design...

 

[Scott91370]

I had RS-As on a vehicle and you're right, you won't get a lot,of miles out of them. But they are a decent tire.

Our CX9 has 45k moles on it and the Bridgestone tires are holding up quite well. I honestly think they will get 70k.

 

[table5511]

Be careful with those. As a physical damage adjuster for about a decade now, I have seen a lot of claims come through from hydroplaning, damage resulting from blowouts, and flat out tread separation involving RS-A tires. Of course, a lot of people drive them for 50k plus miles, which they should'nt be driven that long for. Just make sure you inspect them regularly at 5+ years and 30k+ miles for dry rot/cracking and tread separation which they are prone for, that is if you decide to drive them for many miles. Sorry to sound like debbie downer, but my alarm bells go off any time I see "RS-A" based on what I have seen in person. But I hope they work out for ya.

 

[S197GT]

But please be very careful with those. As an insurance professional (9+ years) I have handled numerous insurance claims involving loss of control, hydroplaning and blowouts involving this tire across a spectrum of vehicles.

as a city police officer for 13 years i have taken hundreds of accident reports. interviewed countless drivers, passengers, and witnesses. and in about 99% of the accidents i investigate driver error is the primary factor. following too closely, improper speed for conditions, generally too high of speed, over-correction, improper brake timing, etc... i hear driver's blame their "brakes" a lot. they "just went out". right...

but really? to blame a tire? i suppose it makes good financial sense for an insurance company to find fault with equipment... but i don't see it much in the real world. in fact i can say i've listed tires as primary or contributing circumstance: zero times.

Eagle RS-A tires are not exactly an extreme high mileage tire, but they are designed for 50k or more miles with a very hard tread compound.

what... are... you... talking about?!

not RS-A tires.

these tires have a 260 wear rating. 260! that is extremely low for an all-season tire. good year doesn't even have a tread life warranty on these tires! if there is one thing you will NEVER hear an owner of these tires compliment them on... it is their tread life. on my CVPI i get 20k miles on a set. cite any source that says they are designed for 50k miles. goodyear.com has nothing like that on its website.

as a police officer for 13 years i have been rolling around on goodyear rs-a tires for about 98% of the time. i have driven these tires at 110+ mph on the interstate. i have driven them from stop light to stop light pedal to the metal and then brakes to the floor. On closed courses for emergency vehicle operations courses. in the wet, dry, and snow. in the grass and mud. i have seen police cars with smoke coming from the brakes like they are on fire.

these tires perform feats that all the other tires mentioned on this cx-9 forum NEVER see.

when everyone else was staying in side warm and dry a couple of winters ago i was driving on my rs-a tires with the help of a few bags of salt in the trunk and an LSD and no stability or traction control (and RWD) through 12" of snow. me and about 100 other officers or more in our city. a few got stuck but most of us got where we needed to go.

i'd estimate that i have put about 250,000 miles on them as a city police officer. at 20k miles a set... that's a lot of tires.

having said that. no. they aren't the best tire out there. but there is no one best tire out there. every tire is a compromise as is every vehicle.

they are good tires, though. (probably why for many years tirerack.com used them as their baseline tire to compare other all season tires to.)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ZAl_H_zamI