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Bridgestone Potenza S-04 Pole Position track review

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PeteInCT said:
OK Boys ed-u-ma-cate me. My LS comes with PZero Corsa's (r-comp). What does the non-LS come stock with and are they r-comps ?

Signed,
un-ed-u-ma-cated ;D

The LS tires are a 60 tread wear so they are considered R comps. The regular Boss has P-Zero's and are 220 tread wear so they are not R comps. I believe the cut off is 100.
 
ShaneM said:
Tflong24 said:
One thing to keep in mind is the type of car tire rack used to test these tires. A BMW 328 while well balanced will not stress the rears like more high powered cars. I drove a 328 around eagles canyon all day and I can tell you it's not the best car to test all out performance tires. I'm not pushing any tire here, it's such a big market. I guess go with what feels best to you.

IDK about those tires, wanted to use the RE-11 but they didn't come in stock sizes. the car is so neutral on the track i didn't want to do a anything that could possibly upset that. the bridgestone engineer i talked to didn't suggest changing to a 265/35-19 to fit the re-11 they make saying it could change the balance of the car. i didn't want anything that wasn't the same exact sizes the car came with. that ruled out the pilot sports along with that review i mentioned before. Next time you go out to ECR, yell i didn't know you were around there. I'm going back Feb 25th (i think that's the Saturday event date), the next actual HDPE at ECR. i want to get back with an instructor and be sure im not picking up any bad habits.

I went to ECR for a BMW track day event. That was when I was a BMW guy. I was so close to getting an M3, but decided on the Boss because I love the simplicity. I live in NW Louisiana and hope to bring the Boss to ECR next spring.
 
5 DOT 0 said:
Shane I appreciate your feedback but to come out and say the Bridgestone's are:

“Long and short of it is that these tires are so much better than the factory Pirelli's that it's hard to believe. “

And

“What I realized was that it wasn't that the S-04 tires offered no feedback, but that the limits were so much higher than the factory rubber”

seems a bit overstated and frankly is hard to believe. The stock Pirelli's P Zero's are excellent tires. A much better comparison would be with new Pirelli's and new Bridgestone's tires back to back.

lol, well we will just have to agree to disagree on the quality of the stock tires. i thought they were decent, but on my home track that is tight, technical, and yet has some faster straights they just left a lot on the table by comparison in the corners. the only comparison i can make is to all the tracking i have done at ECR going back to when the factory tires were new. i had the car on that track when it had barely 1000 miles on it (at 12k now).

Granted my skills are better now than then. but that said, the best i ever mustered with those factory tires and similar driving was 2:08 and that time was in November in similar conditions, again that was unofficial. i couldn't get a signal that day for GPS, was overcast and a guy in front of me turned a high 2:08 and a GT3 behind me turned a low 2:09 which should have put me right at 2:08-ish.

something else i forgot to mention, i actually lifted a tire on one higher speed corners Saturday, which is the first time ive ever done that. very strange that the driver front was off the ground, i couldn't feel it. someone watching came up and told me after the fact. apparently its not uncommon for that to happen in some cars but i can't say that ive seen that on a mustang before, anyone else seen that? im not up on suspension enough to know what causes it and if its something good/bad/indifferent. i asked somewhere else and was told its got to do with suspension set up and grip in the corner. what do you guys think of that? is it something i need to address in some way moving forward?
 
Tflong24 said:
ShaneM said:
Tflong24 said:
One thing to keep in mind is the type of car tire rack used to test these tires. A BMW 328 while well balanced will not stress the rears like more high powered cars. I drove a 328 around eagles canyon all day and I can tell you it's not the best car to test all out performance tires. I'm not pushing any tire here, it's such a big market. I guess go with what feels best to you.

IDK about those tires, wanted to use the RE-11 but they didn't come in stock sizes. the car is so neutral on the track i didn't want to do a anything that could possibly upset that. the bridgestone engineer i talked to didn't suggest changing to a 265/35-19 to fit the re-11 they make saying it could change the balance of the car. i didn't want anything that wasn't the same exact sizes the car came with. that ruled out the pilot sports along with that review i mentioned before. Next time you go out to ECR, yell i didn't know you were around there. I'm going back Feb 25th (i think that's the Saturday event date), the next actual HDPE at ECR. i want to get back with an instructor and be sure im not picking up any bad habits.

I went to ECR for a BMW track day event. That was when I was a BMW guy. I was so close to getting an M3, but decided on the Boss because I love the simplicity. I live in NW Louisiana and hope to bring the Boss to ECR next spring.

While you're here, come try MSR Cresson. The 2 tracks aren't too far from each other.
 
ShaneM said:
lol, well we will just have to agree to disagree on the quality of the stock tires.
Fair enough.

I read another post of yours about your brakes. Are you still running the stock pads? Do you have the brake cooling ducts and DOT 4 fluid installed?
 
Tflong24 said:
Why does everyone on this forum seem to ignore the Michelin Pilot super sport, which has been proven to be one of the best all around track tires. As well as the PS2! Every true performance track car runs michelins. Plus the super sports have twice the rated mileage. Is it because they cost$$ you get what you pay for. I have never seen the super sport beat in a tire comparison.
I would be curious on the longevity of the PS Cups. I'd like to try them as an alternative to the other r-comps I run, but only if they'd last longer since they cost quite a bit more than Nittos, Toyos or R6s that I normally run. I'd also want to know how they perform comparatively. I'd run the 295/30/18 and 265/35/18 on my 18 x 10.5 and 18 x 9.5 wheels.

The PS2s I ran at Boss Track Attack had considerably less grip than the R1s we ran the following day in the FR500S, and the R1 has similar grip to the other tires I mention above. I'm sure the PS2s hold up better than the r-comps, but you're sacrificing grip (and time). That's certainly one reason MMP is using them for TA (longevity)
 
Haven't tracked the Boss yet, and it has bee in the 40s since I got it so hard to judge the tires based on my unofficial test loop in the mountains, but the Bridgestone RE050 Pole Positions I put on my Evo when the stockers wore out were horrible. They ruined the car. When the stock tires wear out, I am definitely going to something from another brand. Though I have been kind of spoiled with R888s on the track car, even if they get greasy after a couple laps.


Will 18" rims clear the brakes? 19s are harder to find track tires, and I like to ride the berm so a little more sidewall would be nice. With they made RA1s in our sizes as they are great all around tires.
 
CaliMR said:
Haven't tracked the Boss yet, and it has bee in the 40s since I got it so hard to judge the tires based on my unofficial test loop in the mountains, but the Bridgestone RE050 Pole Positions I put on my Evo when the stockers wore out were horrible. They ruined the car. When the stock tires wear out, I am definitely going to something from another brand. Though I have been kind of spoiled with R888s on the track car, even if they get greasy after a couple laps.
I really like the R888s on the GT500. They actually held up better than the Nittos or R6s. Last year with the Boss, the price on the R888s was out of sight comparatively so I never tried them. I think one of the race classes allowed them due to the inavailability of the RA1s so that pushed the price way up. I'll be giving the R888s a shot on the Boss at some point this summer.
 
If they worked on the GT500, I will probably try them too. The E30 spec class switched from RA1s to 888s right when I built my car, so went with the 888s. It has since switched back, but the 888s refuse to die so trying to wear them out. They work pretty well on Miatas but on the E30 at 2800 lbs they get greasy too fast. That is why I am a little leery of using them on a 3600 lb car.


Is there a list on here of alternate size tires for the stock rims that people confirmed will not rub?
 
CaliMR said:
If they worked on the GT500, I will probably try them too. The E30 spec class switched from RA1s to 888s right when I built my car, so went with the 888s. It has since switched back, but the 888s refuse to die so trying to wear them out. They work pretty well on Miatas but on the E30 at 2800 lbs they get greasy too fast. That is why I am a little leery of using them on a 3600 lb car.


Is there a list on here of alternate size tires for the stock rims that people confirmed will not rub?
I was running a 275/35/18 and 305/35/18 on those same rims I mentioned above. I actually like the feel of the square edge on them and it's been said the RA1(rounded) is "easier" to drive but the R888 is faster. It could be you get less rollover on a heavy car like the Mustang with the square edge of the R888. I just checked prices and they're down $100 a tire and look really good. Unfortunately the 275s show out of stock right now and the 305s limited availability. Since it's about 3 degrees here today, I won't be ordering them anytime soon. Maybe I could ship them to Scott for safekeeping until spring? ;D
 
On the E30 the RA1s are better in every way. People were running the RA1s front and 888s rear during the overlap of the two rule sets, because the greasy rears helped with understeer, but that is more of a set up issue due to the spec rules.

My friend tests tire/suspension setup for OEMs and he said the Mustangs, even the Boss, need heavier rear sway and suggested a specific one. After he worked on the Mustang, he bought a V6 and races it. I'll see if I can dig up the name of the one he uses which is adjustable, said it made a huge difference but Ford wouldn't go thicker than they did due to the cars being primarily street cars. He also said the front is fine stock. He suggested the opposite when I had an Evo, to get the front bigger and leave the back, so I don't think he is just one of those RSB all the cars guys.
 
That was definitely true with Mustangs before the Boss. They put a much bigger rear sway bar on the Boss and I think you'll be pleasantly surprised at how neutral it handles on track. I ran my first track day on a square setup and it felt like it was going to spin at almost every apex. I swapped on a staggered set of R888s I had in the truck and it settled right down. Some guys that are running square in the Boss are going to a smaller softer rear bar and/or stiffer front.
 
CaliMR said:
On the E30 the RA1s are better in every way.

I'll agree with you there except my experience was on a 3300# Mustang. I had run RA1's for several years in the American Iron series until Toyo made us change to the R888. The R888's seemed to get greasy much quicker than the RA1's and didn't have as many heat cycles in them either. The RA1's seemed to get better as they wore down even though I started with shaved tires.

They definetely had a stiffer sidewall and my car was set up pretty stiff so that may have had something to do with them not working as well on my car.
 
5 DOT 0 said:
ShaneM said:
lol, well we will just have to agree to disagree on the quality of the stock tires.
Fair enough.

I read another post of yours about your brakes. Are you still running the stock pads? Do you have the brake cooling ducts and DOT 4 fluid installed?

i moved to hawk hps+ pads front and rear, i wanted something that i didn't have to swap between street and race. it turns out that the compromise may be not good for either use. they squeal like crazy on the street and some have said they may be overheating on the track leading to me fade issues. i also have the ls cooling ducts and some wilwood dot 4 550 fluid. i think the brakes need bled pretty bad so that might have contributed. ECR is very hard on brakes so the fluid may not have high enough a boiling point either.
 
Hawk makes an HPS pad and an HP+ but I've never heard of an HPS+. Neither are track pads by the way, and the HPS will certainly lead to fade on a track that is demanding on brakes, and the HP+ will fade if you're pushing the car. If you've gotten fade and haven't bled the brakes, you're asking for trouble. When the brakes fade it means you've overheated them. If you've boiled the fluid, you've got air in the lines, and air in the lines will lead to a loss of brakes at an inopportune time.
 
cloud9 said:
That was definitely true with Mustangs before the Boss. They put a much bigger rear sway bar on the Boss and I think you'll be pleasantly surprised at how neutral it handles on track. I ran my first track day on a square setup and it felt like it was going to spin at almost every apex. I swapped on a staggered set of R888s I had in the truck and it settled right down. Some guys that are running square in the Boss are going to a smaller softer rear bar and/or stiffer front.


What do you mean by square? Same size tires all around?
 
CaliMR said:
cloud9 said:
That was definitely true with Mustangs before the Boss. They put a much bigger rear sway bar on the Boss and I think you'll be pleasantly surprised at how neutral it handles on track. I ran my first track day on a square setup and it felt like it was going to spin at almost every apex. I swapped on a staggered set of R888s I had in the truck and it settled right down. Some guys that are running square in the Boss are going to a smaller softer rear bar and/or stiffer front.


What do you mean by square? Same size tires all around?
Correct.
 
cloud9 said:
Hawk makes an HPS pad and an HP+ but I've never heard of an HPS+. Neither are track pads by the way, and the HPS will certainly lead to fade on a track that is demanding on brakes, and the HP+ will fade if you're pushing the car. If you've gotten fade and haven't bled the brakes, you're asking for trouble. When the brakes fade it means you've overheated them. If you've boiled the fluid, you've got air in the lines, and air in the lines will lead to a loss of brakes at an inopportune time.

i meant HP+ :)
 

Mad Hatter

Gotta go Faster
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Santiago, Chile
Hi Just my 2 cents worth on the SO4's. I would rank them very close to the Pirellis but they hold up much better to track abuse. My OEM tires started chunking badly after three track sessions. I was showing fabric at the end of the day!! The SO4's have been much better with 4 track days and no chunks missing. Tirerack has very good prices on them compared to the others brands so I bought a front set of 275/35-19 for now, still lots of life left in the 285/35-19 rears. I do like them, but will be looking for some thing faster in the future.

Oh by the way.... in the rain they are much better then the Pirellis

2012 Boss 302 #2088
 

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