Firestone Firehawk Indy 500

[miguel.in.az]

Been running a set now on my stock wheels for about 1500 miles now. THEY ARE SO MUCH QUIETER compared to the stock bridgestones. I really have not pushed them for a prolonged period yet. But the few short little runs in the twisties I've done they are about 90% on par with stocks. You gotta get them warm first or it's slippery but once they heat up they do fine.

 

[TURBO BLACK]

sorry no pictures and i really don't know how to apply pictures on here.

 

[A7xogg]

sorry no pictures and i really don't know how to apply pictures on here.

Upload to imgur, copy forum link, post

 

[TURBO BLACK]

ok,thank you i'll see what i can do!

 

[Business6]

When I bought the FiST it had Velozzatech ZVX4V or something like that. $50 a tire in stock size and, despite being LOUD AS HELL they actually did an alright job. Stock size Blizzaks were thrown on for winter and that's the extent of my experience with tires on the FiST for reference. After running these for a hundred miles or so there are a few impressions:

• Steering weight has returned and it feels sooooo good to have that mated with response and turn-in.
• Not nearly as loud as I expected. Pretty much on par with the Blizzaks in the same size
• Not terribly impressed by the braking performance in dry conditions...
• ...but in the wet? WOW. Supreme confidence. High 40's and raining like crazy (for a desert) and it feels as strong as any tire I've ever had in the rain.
• Solid road feel without being too harsh. Again, very similar to the Blizzaks in regards to NVH but solid & stable under boost if you're keeping the wheels straight.

Very, very happy with the tires. I'm essentially stock and won't be going all that much higher than this anyway in regards to power levels so this level of grip does me just right. Now it's a matter of how they wear and how performance/NVH degrades through the life of the tire. I'm still planning to drop down to 15s or 16s by next summer but these tires don't have a usable 15" option for us so that might sway my decision there. Still need to get an alignment as my toe in/out on the fronts is just out of spec.

For those of you who don't have to use winter tires I can't tell you what a joy it is to return to characteristics that made me buy the car in the first place.

 

[Speedboosted]

Been running a set now on my stock wheels for about 1500 miles now. THEY ARE SO MUCH QUIETER compared to the stock bridgestones. I really have not pushed them for a prolonged period yet. But the few short little runs in the twisties I've done they are about 90% on par with stocks. You gotta get them warm first or it's slippery but once they heat up they do fine.

Would you say they are as slippery as the Bridgestones when not warm? Glad to hear that they are quieter as well.

 

[AzNightmare]

How do the Indy 500 compare to the bfgoodrich sport Comp2?

 

[miguel.in.az]

Would you say they are as slippery as the Bridgestones when not warm? Glad to hear that they are quieter as well.

I would say they're a little more loose than the Bridgestones when they're cold but it's manageable. They seem to heat up at about the same rate so you won't be doing the tire warming shuffle constantly to keep them warm.

 

[VuDoo]

How do the Indy 500 compare to the bfgoodrich sport Comp2?

I just came off of the BFG Comp 2 to the Indy about a month ago. They are slightly taller, quieter, and it feels like the sidewall is a little softer when taking a corner. It is hard to tell if it is the softer side wall or they are not as sticky as the BFGs, but taking a corner at higher speed I don't feel like I have the same confidence in the Indy's. The BFGs are good tires and I debated on getting another set, but I wanted to try something different. I don't regret getting the Indy's and prefer them over the BFG for my commute and the roads I frequent makes for a pleasant drive and worth the sacrifice in the reduction of handling.

 

[AzNightmare]

I just came off of the BFG Comp 2 to the Indy about a month ago. They are slightly taller, quieter, and it feels like the sidewall is a little softer when taking a corner. It is hard to tell if it is the softer side wall or they are not as sticky as the BFGs, but taking a corner at higher speed I don't feel like I have the same confidence in the Indy's. The BFGs are good tires and I debated on getting another set, but I wanted to try something different. I don't regret getting the Indy's and prefer them over the BFG for my commute and the roads I frequent makes for a pleasant drive and worth the sacrifice in the reduction of handling.

Thanks for that review. Hmm.. Looks like I'll have to find another option then. I am looking for something even more grippy than the BFG. I've never noticed any noise issues coming from my tires. Maybe cause I like to listen to music or my cobb exhaust (one of the quieter ones in the market though)

I find it kind of ironic in the tire thread, everyone wants quiet tires, but in the exhaust thread, everyone seem to want loud exhaust and pops and bangs. Haha it's like a whole different world.

 

[AzNightmare]

If I wanted something better than BFG comp 2 and if noise wasn't an issue, what do you think I should look into? Or is extreme performance tires the next thing up? Trying to find something better so the tires don't spin so much, but without going too crazy with track wheels

 

[felopr]

If I wanted something better than BFG comp 2 and if noise wasn't an issue, what do you think I should look into? Or is extreme performance tires the next thing up? Trying to find something better so the tires don't spin so much, but without going too crazy with track wheels

Since BFG comp 2 are ultra high performance like the indy 500, the next best thing is going to be max performance tire
The cream of the crop of max performance tires are the Michelin pilot sports 4
After that, are the extreme performance tires, like for example, stones re71r, bfg rivals, star spec, etc etc

 

[VuDoo]

Thanks for that review. Hmm.. Looks like I'll have to find another option then. I am looking for something even more grippy than the BFG. I've never noticed any noise issues coming from my tires. Maybe cause I like to listen to music or my cobb exhaust (one of the quieter ones in the market though)

I find it kind of ironic in the tire thread, everyone wants quiet tires, but in the exhaust thread, everyone seem to want loud exhaust and pops and bangs. Haha it's like a whole different world.

It really depends on the road, but the BFGs nearing the end of their life seem to get much louder. In any case, this happens to most tires. I have a fairly loud exhaust and I listen to music all the time, but there are instances when the exhaust, music, and road noise is just a little too much. It is nice now to just turn off the music and just be able to hear the engine and exhaust tone.

 

[M-Sport fan]

Since BFG comp 2 are ultra high performance like the indy 500, the next best thing is going to be max performance tire
The cream of the crop of max performance tires are the Michelin pilot sports 4
After that, are the extreme performance tires, like for example, stones re71r, bfg rivals, star spec, etc etc

The problem is that Michelin refuses to make the PS 4S in ANY size we can realistically use without rubbing (IF they did, they would be on my summer wheels, despite their prohibitive co$t).

The Federal RS-RRs I have on my summer setup in 215/40-17 on 17x8 1.2s, scream like banshees on the highway, but their stick to cost ratio is unbeatable!
I still may try the Star Specs, or Yoko AD08s or A052s (IF they ever release a size I can use in the 52s) next.

I might even consider the 100 tread wear Toyos as well.

 

[AzNightmare]

I'm on 205/45/16. I don't think some of those tires come in my size. I was looking into the RE-71R. I'm not sure what other options I have for wheels within that tier that would fit 16"

 

[neeqness]

I'm on 205/45/16. I don't think some of those tires come in my size. I was looking into the RE-71R. I'm not sure what other options I have for wheels within that tier that would fit 16"

True, there aren't many options for the Re-71R but they do have your size. If you are at stock height, you could probably also fit a 205/50 16. Anything else might rub though.

Sent from my LG-H918 using Tapatalk

 

[AzNightmare]

True, there aren't many options for the Re-71R but they do have your size. If you are at stock height, you could probably also fit a 205/50 16. Anything else might rub though.

Sent from my LG-H918 using Tapatalk

Lol, I meant there isn't a lot of performance tires in the same tier as the re-71r for the 16" size. Unless there is and I haven't noticed.

 

[speed_easy]

I ran these in a 205/50r16 size last weekend at Grattan Raceway in Belding MI. It was a hot day, probably 90F ambient and sunny.

Tire pressure was checked following each session and adjusted accordingly. The 39 front / 36 rear cold pressure usually used on the street, jumped up to 49 / 43 hot after the first 20 min session. It took a few incremental adjustments before settling on 38.5 psi front / 36.5 rear run for the rest of the day.

My impression? The tires were hands down the greatest bottleneck on the car, by far! The loss of grip was disappointing. The tires gave up on literally every turn. And although straight line braking grip felt fine (I ran hawk DTC-60 pads up front and DTC-30 rear), the experience as a whole was offset in a negative direction. I was expecting a lot more grip going in based on how they performed out on the street. I'm convinced that a proper set of track tires would have done the trick.

Once back on the street though, they felt fine, and made me appreciate the cushy sidewall, wallet friendly price point, go-kart like feel, and balanced dry/wet weather grip. Overall, I'm going to say that this is a great tire for most people to use out on the street, but don't be like me and expect it be your end all be all summer solution. The 340 tread wear rating shows this. Having said all of this, 10/10 will buy again.

Now to find a dedicated track tire... hmm

 

[CSM]

I ran these in a 205/50r16 size last weekend at Grattan Raceway in Belding MI. It was a hot day, probably 90F ambient and sunny.

Tire pressure was checked following each session and adjusted accordingly. The 39 front / 36 rear cold pressure usually used on the street, jumped up to 49 / 43 hot after the first 20 min session. It took a few incremental adjustments before settling on 38.5 psi front / 36.5 rear run for the rest of the day.

My impression? The tires were hands down the greatest bottleneck on the car, by far! The loss of grip was disappointing. The tires gave up on literally every turn. And although straight line braking grip felt fine (I ran hawk DTC-60 pads up front and DTC-30 rear), the experience as a whole was offset in a negative direction. I was expecting a lot more grip going in based on how they performed out on the street. I'm convinced that a proper set of track tires would have done the trick.

Once back on the street though, they felt fine, and made me appreciate the cushy sidewall, wallet friendly price point, go-kart like feel, and balanced dry/wet weather grip. Overall, I'm going to say that this is a great tire for most people to use out on the street, but don't be like me and expect it be your end all be all summer solution. The 340 tread wear rating shows this. Having said all of this, 10/10 will buy again.

Now to find a dedicated track tire... hmm

Great review! And it really helps to have realistic expectations from this tire...it is NOT a track tire but is really great on the street (and maybe some light AutoX).

I'm very happy with mine and will probably pick up a set of 16x7 OZ soon with ZIII as my "fast" setup

 

[speed_easy]

Great review! And it really helps to have realistic expectations from this tire...it is NOT a track tire but is really great on the street (and maybe some light AutoX).

I'm very happy with mine and will probably pick up a set of 16x7 OZ soon with ZIII as my "fast" setup

Thanks, this was my first track day, and in hindsight, I wasn't sure what to expect. My takeaway though is that the stock RE050A are pretty dang good. There was a bone stock FiST that I ran behind for a few laps. Although our lines were different (MeisterR here) the only thing separating our lap times were brake pads. Ha. As you can probably tell already... I'm not a very skilled driver.

16x7 OZs and the ZIIIs sound awesome!