club.liberty.asn.au

Seeings there's not a whole lot out there that's credible (read: someone actually having had to shell out their own cash) in regards to the new Bridgestone Potenza Adrenalin RE003, I thought I'd make a run-down of what I've found so far after having them on my car in the 225/45R18 size on stock rims.



Bridgestone claim that overall it should offer better performance than the RE002 in both dry and wet conditions, and generally improve stability and braking. While I've not used the RE002 on this car, I can definitely say that it's a vast improvement over the moderately worn (~15000km) RE050As that were previously on it.

Some things I've noticed so far from daily driving (which is the primary use for the car):

• My entry speed into corners is able to be much higher. Where previously for normal suburban driving the car would start to feel a bit unstable above about 35-40, I'm finding now I don't even really need to brake and the car still feels like it could take the corners much faster than the prevailing speed limit.
  
• The road noise is almost nil, compared to the almost deafening roar that came from the RE050As. On some surfaces the old tyres quietened down to an acceptable level, but the new tyres seem to be very quiet on any surface I've come across so far.
  
• The grip and bite that the tyres have off the mark seems to be as good as any other non-specialist sports tyre that I've used. In Intelligent mode on the SI-drive, seat-of-pants it seems about as quick off the mark as it used to in S# mode. In S# mode with stability on (I generally keep it on for my license's sake), it feels like there's about another 20-25kW usable than there was previously, and 0-60 is over in about 2/3 of the time.
  
• In the wet (… that we seem to have a lot of in Brisbane…), there seems to be no appreciable loss of stability or grip. Previously the car more or less refused to go past spool on the turbo unless I was in S# or in manual, now in Intelligent and Sport it feels more or less no different to what it does in the dry.
  
• The ride comfort is so immensely improved. I drove from Brisbane to Rockhampton recently and by the time I got to Gympie I couldn't walk the ride was so harsh, but with these the car seems to damp the terrible roads around here well and hold the road surface much more reliably. I've got a broken back, so this is definitely a big win. Unless I'm really down its throat, the car feels like the luxury car it always should have.
  
• The steering seems to be much more direct. I peril to use the phrase 'on rails', but for the most part it definitely feels warranted here. There's a little bit of tramlining on really uneven surfaces, but that seems more of a characteristic of the car than the tyre itself.
  
• They don't look particularly indiscreet on the car. One of my primary concerns was that the car still look 'sleeper' unless you were really looking, and although the sidewall is a bit sportier with the aggressively embossed type, they don't look out of place.
  
• Braking is phenomenal. I actually hurt my face from braking in the wet this morning because it pulled up much more quickly than I was expecting. The old tyres weren't necessarily bad, but I definitely wouldn't call them good or in any way remarkable.

The differences were immediately noticeable and definitely welcomed. I've not taken them for a trip into the mountains yet to really beat on them, but for a spirited daily driven tyre I genuinely cannot complain. I get out of my car with a smile on my face because it actually feels like I'm driving something crafted, not something thrown together.

The price was a bit of a pain as an unexpected expense thanks to a piece of mild steel through the sidewall on the old rear driver's tyre, but in the scheme of things, what I paid ($265/tyre fitted and balanced) is really nothing to complain about for the improvements that its made. By comparison, it feels like I was driving around a car with half as much potential, and the joy that it has given me from my daily drive to and from work is well worth the investment.

I obviously can't give a direct comparison to the other REx series tyres, or competitors like the Michelin Pilot Sport 3 (my first choice after driving a MY15 WRX STI with them) or the Pirelli P Zero, but compared to the few different tyres I have driven on 4GEN/5GEN Liberties (RE050/As, Continental ContiSportContact 3, Falken Azenis FK453, amongst others), I'd say these are comfortably amongst the best thus far. I can't as yet say that they're the best streetable tyre I've ever driven, but I'll be damned if they're not up there.

Bridgestone promised a lot, and so far I've yet to be able to call them on any of it. They do exactly what they say on the tin.

Thanks for the great review Eduardo. I like reading decent and well written articles on products such as this.

What size tyre did you upgrade from before getting these?

Thanks for the review mate, I was planning to get a set of RE003 soon as I really liked my RE002 I had previously

I think Bob Jane are doing a buy 4 pay 3 deal next month on all Bridgestones. Seriously considering getting some then.

shav wrote:Thanks for the great review Eduardo. I like reading decent and well written articles on products such as this.

What size tyre did you upgrade from before getting these?

I was running the 225/45R18s on it beforehand too, part of why I went for them this time. They did try to talk me into the 235/40R18s, but I figured keeping it at stock sizing was going to be preferable even though it cost more.

ferret89 wrote:Thanks for the review mate, I was planning to get a set of RE003 soon as I really liked my RE002 I had previously

From what I've seen/heard, the good points of the RE002s have been carried over. I'd be interested to hear your thoughts on comparison if you do go that path.

shav wrote:I think Bob Jane are doing a buy 4 pay 3 deal next month on all Bridgestones. Seriously considering getting some then.

That deal expired yesterday, although they do do them quite often from what I can tell.

Some more observations:

• In really wet conditions when the car is loaded down with a full car of passengers, they seem to be less forgiving to your performance than the RE050s. I found the engine labours more to get going at road speed than it did previously.
  
• Aquaplane control is vastly improved. Where you'd normally expect to be jerked one direction or the other when hitting a plane, they seem to continue on more or less as you were heading and give very good feedback through the steering.
  
• Pedal feel through the brakes is much more informative in the wet, as is feedback through the driveline.
  
• The outer tread seems to be not quite as happy in sharp/abrupt turning in the wet as I would've hoped based on the general performance, but it's by no means bad. At worst it sort of shimmies sidewards but definitely isn't uncontrollable.
  
• Standing water doesn't seem to be an issue at road speeds, it's more or less like it isn't there when you hit it.
  
• Fuel economy seems to be marginally improved, even if my foot has been significantly heavier since getting them.

I'm interested to see how they wear. The compound seems to be slightly softer, so the longevity might not be what the average user would want from them. That said, if I can get ~30000 out of them I'll be happy, even though that means I'd be replacing them every 9ish months at my current milage.

Oh right. Well I know BJ's are trying to get me to stick with a 225/40/18 to try and keep as close to the speedo calibration as much as possible. But I wouldnt mind trying a 45 profile to give me a little extra cushioning on undulations at the sacrifice of looks. What do you reckon?

What was the price difference between 225/40 and 235/40?

Curious because the standard tyres on the 08 tbsti are 225/40/18 and I'm thinking it might be better to go 235/40

shav wrote:Oh right. Well I know BJ's are trying to get me to stick with a 225/40/18 to try and keep as close to the speedo calibration as much as possible. But I wouldnt mind trying a 45 profile to give me a little extra cushioning on undulations at the sacrifice of looks. What do you reckon?

The tbsti's were originally going to come with a 45 profile, but at full lock full compression apparently it could scrub sometimes? I wouldn't be worried running a 45 profile.

HardwareBoB wrote:

shav wrote:Oh right. Well I know BJ's are trying to get me to stick with a 225/40/18 to try and keep as close to the speedo calibration as much as possible. But I wouldnt mind trying a 45 profile to give me a little extra cushioning on undulations at the sacrifice of looks. What do you reckon?

The tbsti's were originally going to come with a 45 profile, but at full lock full compression apparently it could scrub sometimes? I wouldn't be worried running a 45 profile.

As in don't do it Matt?

shav wrote:Oh right. Well I know BJ's are trying to get me to stick with a 225/40/18 to try and keep as close to the speedo calibration as much as possible. But I wouldnt mind trying a 45 profile to give me a little extra cushioning on undulations at the sacrifice of looks. What do you reckon?

Based on the feel of these, I don't think you'd really have too harsh a ride in a 40 profile to be honest.

ferret89 wrote:What was the price difference between 225/40 and 235/40?

Curious because the standard tyres on the 08 tbsti are 225/40/18 and I'm thinking it might be better to go 235/40

Can't remember the exact dollar figure off the top of my head, but it was like 50 a corner from memory between the 225/45 and the 235/40. Alls I know is that the 225 in any profile seem to be more expensive in these parts.

shav wrote:

As in don't do it Matt?

No, do if you want - it was apparently only in the most extreme conditions, and owns err on the side of caution. That said, I bought my rims off a guy in a wrx and they have 35 profiles and I don't find it too bad, though I will be going 225/40/18 next.

Cheers guys

I run 225/45/18 and it makes the speedo more accurate.
only 2-3km/h out @ 100km/h now. Compared over 5 out with the stock 215/45

WIDELOAD wrote:I run 225/45/18 and it makes the speedo more accurate.
only 2-3km/h out @ 100km/h now. Compared over 5 out with the stock 215/45

Interesting. Thanks for the heads up

Thanks Eduardo great review mate!

Having a coffee in the Golden Arches while having a set of RE003 fitted to the new 17x8 rims. Went for 225/45/17 size wise so a little wider/taller than the stock 215/45/17, although the rim is 1" wider too. Was getting prices on a bunch of different tyres with the Mich Pilot 3's @ 215 ea, Continentals had a good 4 for 3 deal that would have been $575 fitted but none in stock (can't wait for stock when there's new rims sitting in the boot!!) and BJ had a deal on RE003 @ $175 a corner so thought I would give them a whirl, sounded like a decent price.

With the old Falkens I feel EVERY bump, dip and rut in the road so I am interested to see how much of that is tyre related and how much could be LCA front bushes, struts, etc. Have been happy with the grip of the Falkend though. Anyway, will drive for a few days on the new rubber and update my two bobs worth on the new tyres for those looking at getting some