The Official Polo Tyre Thread

[MJ Mundo]

+1 for RSR's. Put them on the front few weeks ago to test out before I start running them on a track pulsar SSS and beyond impressed.

Smashed Putty Rd run and only lost grip when the corner was extra bumpy and I was losing contact/skidding which I can't blame on the tyre. Interested to see how they handle commuting 80km a day but there's so much grip there when needed.

Don't think I'm running as much power as you guys (only S1 + intake) but just grips all the way through 1st. Unlike the old Falkens that were on there and spun in to third.

Also the cheapest premium tyre available for the stock rims. $130ea.

[rgvlee]

The rsrs are a good tyre
For me the I don't notice any extra noise from them, but I am running a 3 inch tbe so the car was loud to begin with
If anything they are quieter than worn re003s
Dry grip is great, even after 4 months of daily use.
Wet grip depends.
In drizzle/light rain they are fine.
In heavy rain **** me they are sketchy. But there has to be a lot of water on the road to get to that point.
I'd buy them again especially if you're doing track time. I'm off the track for a while so will probably get a set of re003s again for longevity.

[Blue9N3]

Which do you find better for steering feel? the RE003’s or RSR’s? I found the Kumho KU39’s better for feel than the RE003’s which really surprised me.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[rgvlee]

RSR in the dry, easily

[sambb]

went from Toyo R1R 195/55/15 on Gti to same size Re003. I'd had the RE003's before on the stock rims 205/45/16. Back to back against the R1R's on the street/open road I'd say they are far better in the wet/damp with better feel and a more progressive breakaway, they are quieter, less harsh/rigid over high frequency bumps. In the dry while you can definitely feel the softer sidewall, the RE003's aren't quite as good as the R1R's but surprisingly close.

[rgvlee]

The RE003 are a great road tyre
On the track, less so, that's where I noticed how much better the RSRs are (not R1R but they are in the same segment so to speak)

[sambb]

Yep these are just for my road tyres. I've used the RE003's (16's) in a really wet hillclimb once and they hung on like nothing else in the wet. As it became damp I could hear them squealing as though it was dry. I'd bought the R1R's to use on the road and be my comp wets but never got to use them as wets on the track. So that's what the RE003 are for. I'd never expect them to hang in there in the dry on track, no way. The R1R's were a bit strange. They had very good lateral grip, you could corner very hard on them if you were flowing the car but they didnt like doing that with much throttle application at the same time. They seemed to break traction quite early in a straight line, but having said that I was running 3 degrees neg camber which was only loading up the inside edge. The R1R's were only 125 a tyre when I got them and I wouldn't pay over that considering that RSR's are the same money. My Re003's were 140 a tyre with 100 bucks cash back this time.
For me the king tyre for street that is very quick in a sprint and good in the wet (I've heard RSR's are suspect in this department) were the AD08R's. You pay for them but they were an awesome tyre - just too $$$$ery. Second was Dunlop Sport Maxx R/T (Sti original equipment I think).

[rgvlee]

RSRs when new are ok in the wet. Heavy downpours less so if there is a lot of standing water
Everyone said they were terrible in the wet but honestly I had good grip initially. I am a fan of the wet weather HP increase and it wouldn't spin up easily and braking was solid.
Towards end of life with a bit of wear on them they are diabolical, aquaplane central. I could get it spinning up in 4th.
I've had R1Rs years ago (in a pinch, needed some fronts quickly) and don't rate them. They lasted about 8k and the grip fell away pretty quickly. These RSRs I've got about 15k out of them and a track day. The RE003s I'll get 20k out of them and a track day.

[simon k]

The RE003s I'll get 20k out of them and a track day.

I'm just about to replace my RE003s - I've done 23k and I think 3 track days. Good for a road tyre, they're past the wear marks on all 4 and still gripping well even in the wet but I didn't rate them on the track. I'm going to a standard Bridgestone road tyre this time, I have track tyres, no need for anything special day to day

[MaximusSmurf]

I can't seem to search this thread for sizes. But is anyone running a 225/50/16 on the oem GTI wheels? I just bought a car and want some good tread on it, needs tyres for RWC so I'm doing it now. And I love me some Hankook RS4's and seems to be the only size suitable.

Really doesn't seem to be a huge amount over stock width, especially compared to some of the guys running wider wheels or lower offset.

Side note, how well to Polo's take a guard roll or pumping if need be?

[sambb]

A 225 on a 6.5in rim is going to be pretty dam baggy. I now guys have gone to 205/50/16 but at the width you are talking you'd be way bigger than that and I doubt you'd fit in the guards.
The front guard is a mixture of plastic and steel. The are single skin at the front so you could roll there. Not sure at the back.

[flat6]

Finally need some new tires for the Polo, currently running the RE003's, have had the 002's and 001's in the past and all have been great, only complaint is they are not very comfortable with the reinforced sidewall but handle well in the dry, in the wet they are a little sketchy yet i've had these on the car since 2017 so they are definitely getting on. Still have a bit of tread on them but fairly hard now.

After doing some reading on the 205/50/16's it looks like the way to go on the stock rims!

Has anyone tried the Pilot Sport 4 on the POG? I have the PS4S on the R and they are just superb in almost all aspects. Really miss getting power to the ground as the Polo just spins in 1st and 2nd with your foot down

Bob Jane are doing the $50 cashback on the Pilot Sport 4 @ $205 per corner $770~ all up which is about the same as the RE003's

[FckBullerScott]

Well folks here's my tyre review. I appreciate that this might be useless for those out there who have spent the last 10 years turning their rigs into track beasts, but it might be insight for someone who simply wants a decent touring tyre.


Car: '09 Pog GTI
Wheels: 16x7.5 F / 16x7 R
Tyres: Yokohama BluEarth AE GT51 all round - 205/45 R16 Front, 195/45 R16 Rear


I'll preface this by saying I've come from Bridgestone RE00X's in the past, BF Goodrich sport things, some Michelins that were on my Clio before changing to Bridgestone RE002's (those Michelins were amazing - they were the ones that were made for the Clio, not your standard PS3 etc), and on my old diesel Polo I used to run Fed 595RSR Front/Bridgestone RE001 Rear in a square setup, which worked well.


Just my personal take, but I was never rreaaallly chuffed with the Bridgys. I only ever got them because they were on that 4-for-3 sale. My current Polo came with 17in wheels (looked pretty decent for a subtle OEM+ approach), and no offense to the previous owner who had really, really passed a fantastic, low-km car onto me, some horrible horrible Hankook Ventus things that I just had to get off the car as soon as I could - 2020 snow season was approaching (heh, or so we thought), and on a couple of pre-season test runs up the hill, those Hankooks were downright dangerous - they just wanted to plow into the ditch, on greasy corners.


Enter my researching a decent touring tyre - I searched high and low (reviews) for a tyre that had favourable winter-use reviews, and landed on these Yokos, 195/45 R16 all around. The under-sizing was to enable easier chain fitment in the snow - a moot point now, given that a few months later, I found a shockingly-good deal on a 2015 Impreza from a guy in the Ovens, that my old man and I went halves in (for him to drive when he's back from work in Indonesia, which goes up the hill on days which you just KNOW are gonna need chains. On dryer days, the Polo is simply more fun to drive up there).


Honestly, I am quite happy with them. More specifically:


--- WINTER USE ---
- VERY impressed. First real "action" that these guys saw was when I had to head up the hill and do some admin stuff for the various passes I needed for the season. It so happened that it started snowing as I was driving up the hill. Cut to 90min of various admin work later (I was sorting 2x cars + errors with various Epic accounts, with Resort Management). I leave the building to find the roads, parking lot, EVERYTHING caked in a couple of fresh inches of snow.
- Yes I had chains in the car, but wanted to see if the tyres would perform the way I had intended my daily tyres to, when I was researching. They had plenty of cold-traction to get me out of the snow-covered parking lot / down the (mostly) snow-covered road to park entry, and a few swerve tests in new snow yielded massive confidence in them - they actually turn nicely with your steering wheel movements. Yes there is some delay due to the fact that the car is sliding around on snow, but damn - best tyre I've ever driven on-snow, in a 2wd car.
- Coming down the hill that day, roads were wet and cold, but it was a good chance to see what these can do in cold wet corners. The confidence levels progressively just kept going up and up with every new corner. You really CAN go for a decently spirited drive with these, in the wet, and not worry.
- Repeating myself here - 2021 season saw a number of days where roads were bare on the way up, and after a day on the hill, there's new snow on the roads in the afternoon. With some gentle-momentum snow driving, these tyres enabled me to get down the hill every single time, without needing to fit chains. No I wouldn't take them to Perisher on a 50cm day, but when it DOES snow a bit, there's no need to stress.
- Aquaplaning during torrential rain (e.g. times when I've driven into Wodonga, and it's pissing down on the way back home) is not unnerving - yes the car might pull slightly, but you don't get yanked off to the side like other tyres I've driven. Nice and safe.


--- SUMMER USE ---
- Firstly, when I first picked up the car, I felt it drove like a boat. I was surprised to learn that it had H&R springs and Whiteline sways front and rear. I missed the feeling of direct turn-in and a somewhat dance-able rear end, that I had in my Clio. Hence my returning to 205/45 R16 in the front, leaving it at 195/45 R16 in the rear.
- I know this setup might have people laughing/scratching their heads, but I quite like how this staggered setup works FOR ME. It does feel more front-end grippy and direct, and grip wise, the car feels a bit better balanced in some of the tighter stuff.
- I know it's a touring tyre and wouldn't ordinarily get a mention in here, but it's a decent "driver's" tyre, too - Google reckons it takes 43min to get up the hill (from my house). On warm Spring days with dry roads and non-kook traffic (i.e. respectful people who know to turn out), I was clocking myself at 25-28min on average, so these tyres will work with you in the corners, if you want them to.
---- ^^ on the above, I'm not driving like a reckless ****head - I have no intention of binning a (relatively) low-km, great example of a robust little car that I intend to learn about, and keep for a long time. 80km/h zones most of the way, and I drive at levels where I know I can get up the hill and back, safely. My point? I'm making up time in the corners, thanks to these Yokos.


--- FINAL THOUGHTS, FINALLY ---
- I was impressed with these enough, that I got a set for the Impreza. Then I bought into the "Orange Oil" fanboism, and got Yokos AGAIN for the Impreza - this time Geolandars and a lift kit.
- Once these are done, I'm considering going to the Advan Fleva V701 - 215/45 R16 Front and stock size rear - with coilovers and bushes (and stage 2 - I'm slowly gathering parts) that will inevitably come, I'm thinking this might be a light-hearted, fun little setup - I don't feel I'd do e.g. AD08R's justice, given the somewhat variable conditions of where I live.
- Re: tyre wear - they've broken in nicely, but I feel I can't really comment on longevity - I've put less than 7,500km's/year on the car, despite living in the country.


TLR - Yokohama BluEarth GT AE51 is a great all-round touring tyre, that performs admirably on lightly-snowed roads, cold wet corners, yet will still allow you to have light-hearted fun on dry twisty roads, when you want.


Thanks for reading!

[Sprinterboy]

Stumbled across this the other day. For those interested

In Search of the Fastest Tire and Wheel Combination 2022 | Tire Rack - YouTube

Tire Test Results : In Search of the Fastest Tire and Wheel Width Combination

[JimBob99]

Thanks for the post. Interesting...