Fresh Meat For C4S: Bridgestone RE-11 First Impressions
#17
Wasn't too much of a concern for me, Ken. Having had the RE-11 for a little while now I think it's a much better tire than the two N-rated tires I've had on my car (the P-Zero and the PS2) before I switched to the Bridgestone. If I were ever likely to be able to get my car up to Autobahn speeds (and maintain those kind of speeds for a sustained period) I might think about sticking with an N-rated tire, but that's never going to happen here in CA and I find the RE-11 to be a phenomenal tire for the kind of driving I actually do. The N-spec tires are generally Y rated (up to 186mph) with the RE-11 W rated (up to 168mph).
Last edited by swajames; 12-02-2009 at 06:20 PM.
#18
1-we all switch to R-comp tires for the track...none N rated...Hosier R6,Toyo R888 and RA1's are the most popular. None of these tires fail at the track or driving to and from the track.
2-A lot of guys in the north switch to snow tires, again not N rated and they do great on the road during the winter months.
3-as long as the tire is built for a sports car and the load rating is correct I do not see a problem with useing it on your Porsche.
4- finally I ask what tire are people going to use years down the road when The N1/N2 Porsche rated tires have changed and are no longer available?
#19
Tires have been heat cycled on the street multiple times and "pushed" on some twisties (HWY 84, Woodside to San Gregorio). About 350 miles or so since new. I commute 2 - 3 x week in my car.
Obs.
Obs.
- These tires ride significantly better than RE05As and PS2s - less road noise and cushier ride. Very noticeable.
- The feel compared to the 05As is quite different. The 11s don't have the pebble to pebble to expansion joint feedback as the 05As, which I missed at first. However, the ride is quite improved, so I have adjusted.
- The traction is excellent - caveat - street obs only.
- I run 33F/39R psi. I typically gain 4 psi when warm.
- I am still getting used to these tires, but I have noticed that they have dulled my lust for the spendy PS2s...........
Very cool! Having grown up in San Mateo (before I moved to San Clemente) I spent a lot of time on the roads with both my 308 GTSI and '94 Speedster. The Ferrari not so fast but handled Hwy 1 like it was hooked on a cable and I had the speedster thru 185 before I ran out of comfortable road on 280 between Woodside Road and 94 (not agreat Porsche driver I ate all 5 lanes). Unfortunately I got caught one night attempting to beat that and my Formule 1 career ended.
Thanks for the memories.
Ponyboy
#20
Tires have been heat cycled on the street multiple times and "pushed" on some twisties (HWY 84, Woodside to San Gregorio). About 350 miles or so since new. I commute 2 - 3 x week in my car.
Obs.
Obs.
- These tires ride significantly better than RE05As and PS2s - less road noise and cushier ride. Very noticeable.
- The feel compared to the 05As is quite different. The 11s don't have the pebble to pebble to expansion joint feedback as the 05As, which I missed at first. However, the ride is quite improved, so I have adjusted.
- The traction is excellent - caveat - street obs only.
- I run 33F/39R psi. I typically gain 4 psi when warm.
- I am still getting used to these tires, but I have noticed that they have dulled my lust for the spendy PS2s...........
Very cool! Having grown up in San Mateo (before I moved to San Clemente) I spent a lot of time on these roads with both my 308 GTSI and '94 Speedster. The Ferrari, not so fast but handled Hwy 1 like it was hooked on a cable and I had the speedster thru 185 before I ran out of comfortable road on 280 between Woodside Road and Hwy 94 (not being a great Porsche driver I ate up all 5 lanes). Unfortunately I got caught one night attempting to beat my previous pass and my "Formule 1" career ended right there.
Thanks for the memories.
Ponyboy
#21
Based on the good reports here, I'm very tempted to go with these tires when I buy new ones in the next month or so. On the Tire Rack website, there is one recent owner review that found the tire shoulders were badly worn after 2000 street miles and 20 short track sessions. Has anyone else here experienced abnormal shoulder wear on their RE-11's?
#22
Based on the good reports here, I'm very tempted to go with these tires when I buy new ones in the next month or so. On the Tire Rack website, there is one recent owner review that found the tire shoulders were badly worn after 2000 street miles and 20 short track sessions. Has anyone else here experienced abnormal shoulder wear on their RE-11's?
#23
Based on the good reports here, I'm very tempted to go with these tires when I buy new ones in the next month or so. On the Tire Rack website, there is one recent owner review that found the tire shoulders were badly worn after 2000 street miles and 20 short track sessions. Has anyone else here experienced abnormal shoulder wear on their RE-11's?
#24
I had 6k miles + 3 events on my rear tires (pirelli pzero rosso) and they were trash at the end of it...
#25
Based on the good reports here, I'm very tempted to go with these tires when I buy new ones in the next month or so. On the Tire Rack website, there is one recent owner review that found the tire shoulders were badly worn after 2000 street miles and 20 short track sessions. Has anyone else here experienced abnormal shoulder wear on their RE-11's?
#26
Apparently I mis-characterized the situation in my earlier post today. I apologize for the confusion. Here is the excerpted recent quote from the customer's review on Tire Rack's website for these tires:
"Fun while they lasted. Which, sad to say, was ONLY 2 MONTHS. After about a dozen 20 minute track sessions and 2000 miles of easy highway driving the shoulders are completely gone and this $1100 set of tires need to be replaced. The OEM Michelin PS2s weren't noticeably less responsive and lasted 14000 miles. Going back to Michelins."
They were installed on a 2008 Boxster RS60 Spyder.
"Fun while they lasted. Which, sad to say, was ONLY 2 MONTHS. After about a dozen 20 minute track sessions and 2000 miles of easy highway driving the shoulders are completely gone and this $1100 set of tires need to be replaced. The OEM Michelin PS2s weren't noticeably less responsive and lasted 14000 miles. Going back to Michelins."
They were installed on a 2008 Boxster RS60 Spyder.
Last edited by keninirvine; 12-07-2009 at 10:53 PM.
#27
The Re-11 has an interesting tread profile. It appears that it should do very well in good dry pavement. I wonder how they behave on the wet as it only has 2 longitudinal grooves and fewer sideways grooves.
It's interesting to note that TireRack lists these tires for the 997.1 but not for the 997.2 !?! They do not list the PS2s as OEM either !?!
One observation on tire weight:
RE-11 27lb F 32lb R
RE050A 24lb F 31lb R
PS2 22lb F 29lb R
It's interesting to note that TireRack lists these tires for the 997.1 but not for the 997.2 !?! They do not list the PS2s as OEM either !?!
One observation on tire weight:
RE-11 27lb F 32lb R
RE050A 24lb F 31lb R
PS2 22lb F 29lb R
#29
RE-11 Update
Have about 5,000 street miles on tires thus far and one or two AX, I forgot.
Wear has been excellent and I expect an easy 10,000 out of this set.
I have forgotten about PS2s altogether.
Another note: running 39 in front and 39 in rear. Undetectable understeer with this inflation and TC Design Fab alignment !
Car is neutral and secure.
Wear has been excellent and I expect an easy 10,000 out of this set.
I have forgotten about PS2s altogether.
Another note: running 39 in front and 39 in rear. Undetectable understeer with this inflation and TC Design Fab alignment !
Car is neutral and secure.
#30
Im also interested in these, however according to the Bridgestone website http://www.bridgestone-potenza.com/re11/ there are only front sizes for 19" rims. can someone please confirm if rears (295/30/19 ro 305/30/19) are available?
edit...
Apologies, my mistake - tirerack have 285/35/19 or 305/30/19 listed (but the Bridgestone site does not)
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/Sizes....=Potenza+RE-11
edit...
Apologies, my mistake - tirerack have 285/35/19 or 305/30/19 listed (but the Bridgestone site does not)
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/Sizes....=Potenza+RE-11
Last edited by cl997; 02-05-2010 at 03:26 PM.