Stock Potenzas are horrible...

[bigdaddy]

So the other day, I began to actually realize why my car is so damn loud and uncomfortable. I think it's the stock potenzas? Right? I mean this car drives terribly with these tires. Any of you whom have changed your tires from stock, is there a big differnence? I'm planning on changing these tires soon, just because I feel that these tires ruin the car. They are so loud, rough, and they have no grip left.

Just wanted to see what everyone had to say about this. And sorry for any spelling errors, the iPhone auto correct isn't exactly helpful

 

[Silver Ecstasy]

Ruin the car? There's a lot of i've heard from people that say ruins this car, but tires was the first i've heard.

FWIW, these tires have performed flawlessly in rain and shine. I'm very impressed with Bridgestones in general. And FWIW, high grip tires have not, nor will they ever be, quiet. Try driving on Nitto 555 Xtreme DR's. THOSE are loud.

Anyhow, the only way you're going to find a better tire is possibly going to an All-Season with a slightly softer compound. Possibly a Pirelli PZero or a Yokohama tire.

 

[SRTie4k]

How many miles are on them? Most Extreme Performance tires, once worn down some, will start getting very hard and loud. I've heard the same thing about these many times.

If you'd rather have a more comfortable, noise-free ride for the entirety of a tires life, you're better off with a UHP tire over an EP tire, something like a Toyo Proxes T1R, Kumho Ecsta SPT or a Yokohama S-Drive.

 

[Silver Ecstasy]

Bridgestone RE050A's are not EP's. They are UHP. He'll need HP's or HPAS. Acronym PARTY!!!

 

[bigdaddy]

I'm at about 25,000 miles. Just had them rotated, and the
rears, which used to be fronts, are toast. The front have some life left, and I'll be getting new wheels soon, so I'm replaing them then. I thought about going michelin pilot a/s. Or maybe continental extreme contact.

 

[Silver Ecstasy]

I'd say that's pretty damn good on stockers... I know some who got 15k before they were shot..

 

[8.5MS3]

mine didnt last 10k......

 

[SRTie4k]

Bridgestone RE050A's are not EP's. They are UHP. He'll need HP's or HPAS. Acronym PARTY!!!

You're right, they aren't EP's, but they're not UHP's either. They're MP tires. It's a ZY rated tire, and according to their website, they have a tire life rating of 180 (which is horrendous).

Regardless of how they're rated, try another UHP with a softer compound like the ones I mentioned above. Those all have ~320 tire rating and will last 25k-30k miles with grip almost comparable to the Potenzas, but a lot less noise.

 

[MSMS3]

I just went with A/S tires at 27,000 miles on the RE-050A Potenzas. I did this because (1) the Bridgestones were just about bald and (2) I could not drive them safely in cold weather.

But, and I say this as LOUDLY as I can, if you are looking for a true maximum performace summer only tire and do not need to drive in temps that get below about 40 degrees, then it is going to be very, very difficult to find better tires than the RE-050A's. They are properly classified as MAXIMUM high performance tires.They come standard equipment on some of the fastest and most expensive and highest performing cars in the world. Mazda did it right in selecting them. Mine have performed absolutely fantastic up until about 25,000 miles, which also happened to coincide with the little bit of frigid weather we get here.

Frankly, about the only true summer tire that is not a true race/track tire that might perform better than the RE-050A's for non-freezing weather is the new Bridgestone RE-11's, and I'm not sure they are yet available in our size.

We don't have enough cold weather here to justify having a second set of winter tires/wheels, so I switched to an A/S stepping down slightly in absolute at the limit handling and traction in exchange for being able to drive in cold weather. Otherwise, I'd have put another set of RE_050A Pole Position tires back on the car. I loved them. Great grip, which also means short(er) life.

 

[8.5MS3]

^^^agreed^^^

245/40/18 direzza starspecs for summer on rx8s
215/45/18 bridgestone blizzak lm-60s for winter on OEM wheels

OP since you are in cali, i would get an all season leaning towards summer performance, not sure which brands of those are best tho

 

[Silver Ecstasy]

I guess it all depends on how you drive too. We don't get a lot of snow as of late, but I still enjoy running winters, so when things do get tough, I have nothing to worry about. So I will continue to run winters/summers. I like the asymetrical design, and the fact they grip very well and do awesome in rain. I will certainly be buying a 2nd set if I can afford it.

 

[MSMS3]

OP since you are in cali, i would get an all season leaning towards summer performance, not sure which brands of those are best tho

That would probably be the Pirelli P Zero Nero A/S or the Conti DWS. If OP is looking for an ultra high performance A/S, he might want to consider the Pirelli P Zero Nero A/S. That's what I got after reading their reviews and comparisons at Tire Rack. They beat out all the other tires in the comparo. The new Conti's were better than everything in the wet, however, but not quite as good overall, so I went with the Pirelli's.

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/testDisplay.jsp?ttid=119 (Overall rating)

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/chartDisplay.jsp?ttid=119 (Rating by performance category)

 

[funksilver07]

The stock Potenza performed well for me, It's definitely classified correctly. I'm using the Dunlop Dirrezza sport Z1 star specs and they IMO, out perform the Potenza. That's not saying the Potenza isn't a very good tire. I have about 20k on the Dunlops and after this winter will be replacing them with another set of the same, 225/45 on my stock rims...at $168/tire (Tirerack) for an extreme performance summer tire it's hard to beat at that price.

 

[LovinMyMS3]

I'm on my second set and if I can find another for a good price I'll probably stick with them. My question is, where you complaining about them at 10k? If not, why would you start complaining when they're basically shot?

 

[boosted1]

The stock Potenza's are bad. I changed to Pirelli P Zero Nero A/S in the OEM size.

 

[coololddude]

The Potenza's are rated to go Very fast, not to last Very long!!

 

[funksilver07]

You guys that are burning up your stock potenza's at 10k miles aren't paying attention to tire rotation or pressure. I got well over 20k on my stockers (with occasional autox days as well.) Regular rotation goes a long way to life of a performance tire, especially with a front wheel drive car that has lots of torque...(drinks)

 

[ohioan]

You're right, they aren't EP's, but they're not UHP's either. They're MP tires. It's a ZY rated tire, and according to their website, they have a tire life rating of 180 (which is horrendous).

Regardless of how they're rated, try another UHP with a softer compound like the ones I mentioned above. Those all have ~320 tire rating and will last 25k-30k miles with grip almost comparable to the Potenzas, but a lot less noise.

Where did you find the chart or whatever that shows the tire life?
My dumb ass has been looking for that on summer tires because they NEVER say what the milage of the tire is. Must be missing it

 

[boosted1]

You guys that are burning up your stock potenza's at 10k miles aren't paying attention to tire rotation or pressure. I got well over 20k on my stockers (with occasional autox days as well.) Regular rotation goes a long way to life of a performance tire, especially with a front wheel drive car that has lots of torque...(drinks)

Mine were not worn, but replaced, due to past experience with them on my previous ride.

 

[8.5MS3]

And mine were replaced becausei had 2 seasons of autox on them along with a fewtrack days. The outer tread had become superheated since I don't care about wear when at the track. I think in total they lasted me 60 autocrosses and 10k on the street. That's damn impressive they weren't completely done, maybe 5k left, but that would be pushing it