Bridgestone RE-11 review vs. my previous tires tried
 

Hello guys... so finally got new tires and decided to go with the RE-11... A little background...

stock, my 2008 F came with the PS2... traction control would always kick in from a stop so and around turns...

tried the Pilot Super Sports since they got rave reviews... with these tires and the amount of time spent with the F, i found a time where i was comfortable with throttle control and i would always roll with TCS and VDIM off and sport mode from this point forward... no grip off the line as the tail would slide out which was odd to me... around a turn i could get the rear out into a fishtail easily... side note, great in the wet...

next tried the 245/285 S-04... around curves i could feel when i input a steer into a curve, there would be slight delay in response to where it felt like the body would roll and finally get grip... leafing from a stop, rear would not slide out but no traction as the tires would spin... great in wet also... these tires would not make a sound as the tires would lose grip into a fishtail, would make your normal screeching noise when it was close to the end of the life of the tire...

with all the above tires, i have gotten at least 30k from each... each of the above tires did a good job of grip around curves... i do 70% highway/ 30% city so pretty sure that's how i got the most out of the tires lasting for that long compared to other stories on the board with tires lasting either 10k or less...

i have a normal daily commute and there are turns and curves that i am used to pushing the F into a fishtail to control...

now the RE-11.... night and day... i went with 245/255 combo to get close to a square set up... around the same curve i always take, i input a steer around the curve and instant response in grip (no feeling of the body roll and then finally grip)... around turns with the other tires i had, fishtailing was easy... it was fun controlling that rear end but way different in the re-11... hardly any fishtailing, more like easily controlled drifts (tires are grippy but squeal through a turn so a little more noticeable to the public when having fun)... and from a stand still, instant traction to where you can feel that torque pull your stomach rather than the tire spinning... all the other tires above i could never get that torque pull as the tires would slip and not grip... this was the deciding factor of why i love these tires...

All in all i would definitely recommend these tires no doubt... i would rate them highly better than the PSS that every1 raves about... price is an issue though but to me it is well worth it when i can finally feel the actual pull of the V-8 rather than the tires spinning...

sorry for the long post... YMMV...

Nice review, I'm almost ready for a new set of tires, the pss are back ordered in the size I want so I started looking into the re-11, then I came across the new re71r which are supposed to be better than the re-11. The Temp is dropping here up north and the winter set up will get put on soon, so I have till spring to decide,hope bridgestone expand the sizing selection on the re-71r.

Ugh! Damn you!...😩...lol. Are they that good? I'm getting ready for a new set and wanted to do 255/35 F and 275/35 R on PSS. I never fully tried the PSS. But what you described is what I'm expecting! No tire spinning, I want to stomp the pedal to the ground from a dead stop with no fishtail, and complete confidence in my traction dept! This is hard now...are you driving with all the stability systems off with this set? I know you mentioned with the others you did. If so, does it still perform like you described? Thanks for the review

I also have run these for the past two years. reminder these tires are a lot heavier than the PSS or any other tire in that category. I run 275 on the rear with everything disabled. these tires do need some heat put into them to stick from a stand still if your FBO! I love these tires and am ordering new rears soon.

Were you thinking of putting those 255s on stock front rims? I was thinking of doing a square 255 set up to both neutralize the car as well as rotate half way through the life of rhe tire to extend its use but haven't seen many people running 255s on stock front rims?

The Michelin PSS is for sure a great street tire but I have never believed it was worthy of it's cult-like following. I have always recommended something in the EHP street category for the guys looking for the ultimate in grip and just as important, feel.

I should mention that I'm a huge tire nerd and since all of the time attack classes I compete in limit me to a 140+ or 200+ UTQG treadwear rating, I have tried almost every single EHP street tire since the category really took off in 2009. I have run a couple sets of RE-11 it is one of the best all around tires in the category- it isn't the fastest on a dry track but for casual HPDE events and aggressive street use it's perfect. As you described, it offers a lot of feel and feedback, more than most other tires and definitely higher levels of grip than a PSS when both are warm. It is also the longest lasting tire in the category and will actually last longer and hold up better than anything in the max performance or UHP summer categories with much higher UTQG ratings (those ratings are almost meaningless BTW, but I know many get hung up on them). As an added bonus for the street cars with stock (or close to it) alignments the RE-11 has an asymmetrical casing that essentially simulates more aggressive negative camber figures and won't chew up the outer shoulders as bad.

The new RE-71R an insane tire but really it was built just a cheater tire for street class time attack events and I don't know if I would ever use it for street only, daily driving purposes. It is really sticky but the wear rates can be a little ridiculous for a "street" tire, no joke the RE-11 is likely to last at least twice as long.

If it were my money in the stock sizes sizes I would stick with the RE-11 and if you're doing some track events and/or just want a little more grip then the Yokohama AD08R is a phenomenal EHP street tire as well. It's a little more expensive than the RE-11 but offers more outright grip, feel and feedback is pretty similar but the AD08R can tolerate larger slip angles and is therefore a little more progressive and easy to control at and above the limit. That last bit doesn't matter a whole heck of a lot for street use but it is a noticeable difference when pushing on track.

-Matt M.

Is it even fair for compare Max Performance tires to Extreme Performance tires?

True. Extreme Performance tires are supposed to grip better in the dry, but not in the wet. Max Performance is a good balance of dry and wet grip, but you sacrifice some handling in the dry.

Yes and no. It really is an apples to oranges comparison objectively but for a street car used aggressively I think it's completely reasonable to cross shop the two categories. Also the RE-11 specifically is the closest tire in the EHP category to a true max performance summer tire- the tread pattern looks really aggressive but the compound leans much closer to a true street tire than the cheater tires from the newest generation of EHP street tires (Bridgestone RE-71R, BFG Rival S and Kumho V720) Those tires aren't far away from being hard compound R-comps with deeper tread and a 200UTQG tread wear rating stamped on the side.

-Matt M.

Yes, that's the plan. I have a fully stock MY 2011. There's another member who actually did this to his F. As you mentioned, not many people running 255's in the front. He went with PSS and raved about the insane grip and results with this setup. Rubbing wasn't an issue whatsoever and I think he was dropped on coil overs. Stock height should be no problem.

That's actually untrue if you can believe it. Almost every EHP summer tires offer more outright wet grip than almost every Max performance summer tire. What the EHP tires sacrifice on compared to MPS tires is hydroplaning resistance in deep standing water as well as their manners on the street- stiffer casings usually translate to harsher ride and the larger tread blocks tend to produce more tread noise.

-Matt M.

Thanks for the review buddy. I tried the 245/285 combo on my stocks too and it was a joke. Slop, slop, and more slop. Didnt even drive the car 3 miles. Made a u turn and told the shop to get that crap off the car and put on the oem sizes. I am eyeing a set of the RE11s if I stick with my stock wheels. I like the PSS but they suck for wear. I cant get a set to last more than 7-8k miles for the rear and that was down to the indicator. That means that 5k of good grip and then its done. When I called Tirerack they said " PSS is a street tire for the track....The RE11 is a track tire for the street". I believe them.

I'm running 255s on the front, but I have a 2012 with the wider wheels. I love the way they perform so far, and I think they look great. :thumbup:

-Mike

correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought only the rear rims got wider past MY2009? I own a MY2008 and would like to run 255s square.

MY2012 is .5" wider front and rear.