Link for this tire on Tirerack:
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....Eagle+F1+GS-D3

For those of you considering a new set of tires soon I would like to give my input on the Goodyear Eagle F1s after 1000 miles. I bought these tires based on Tirerack reviews and C&D's tire comparo:
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/...ay.jsp?ttid=69

Tire size: 245/40/18
Alignment settings:
- camber 0 front, -1.25 rear
- toe 0 front, 0 rear
- stock caster

Testing conditions: ~55-75 degree dry days, one rainy day

Suspension Mods: RB springs and sways, Tokico D-spec shocks at 2 turns out from full hard

First of all, I think these tires are good looking. The wider rubber over 225 makes the stance look more beefy and planted to the ground. It fills out the wheel well and completes the car's look nicely. The view of the tires looks especially nice from the front quarter with the wheels turned all the way in one direction.

The car tracks very well (probably much due to my conservative alignment) and gives the feeling that the rubber is gripping the ground more tenaciously and securely. The grip has definitely been picking up substantially after the 1000 mile break-in, and it's now considerably more than the stock Dunlop SP 8090s. It doesn't snap when you push them to the limits, it loses grip gradually and has a little bit of squealing to let you know that it's going. Good characteristics for me. I've driven these tires once in the rain, and while I didn't get a good feel for the limits, it did feel very stable on turns that I took moderately fast.

But now for the bad news. While the grip is up, the steering response of these tires are a good step down from the Dunlops. It may be due in part to new tires and also wider rubber which has more material to flex with, but it still doesn't forgive the fact of how mushy these tires are. Increasing the tire pressures to 38 helps, but not by much. If you do a smooth turn-in without jerky movements then you don't notice the squish as much and the tires feel great. But if you make a sudden movement, like a quick lane change, you can literally feel the sidewalls flex in the steering wheel as it makes its slow response to change the car's direction. Combined with the comfortable ride these tires provide, it really muddles the road's feedback to the driver and takes away some of the driver-car connection. With the previous Dunlops and my Tokico D-specs at 2 turns out, the car felt razor-sharp, feeling all the ruts and pebbles on the road. With the GSD3s, it feels like I just turned the D-specs back to like 5-6 turns out, it's so soft!! I also noticed increased squat and dive on acceleration and braking.

Sadly, while these tires are grippy, quiet, and comfortable, also great for the price I got them at ($145 per tire), I wouldn't recommend them to the performance-minded community. The lackluster response really detracts from the precise character of the 8, turning it into what feels like a touring car. I kind of wish I got the Bridgestone Potenza S-03s (which are on a crazy sale at Tirerack right now, at $134 per tire). I'm just holding on to the hope that my tires will break in further and get more responsive. I don't care how loud or uncomfortable it gets!

 

Good feedback lshu. After much debate, and I do mean a ton of debate, I've decided to go with 225/45-18 tires instead of 245/40-18s for my 8 inch wide wheels. Tires do get less squirmy as they get worn down, so there is hope yet. However, if you can feel the sidewalls flexing, then it might be a function of the wider width that has less support. Good luck.

 

S-03s have incredibly stiff sidewalls... definitely less mushy than the goodyears, from what I've heard.

But S-03s are incredibly heavy too, and tramline on surface imperfections like nobody's business.

I plan on trying the Michelin PS2s next time.

 

I was seriously considering the Goodyear Eagle F1 GS D3 245-40-18 but ended up ordering the RE050A pole position 225-45-18. I figured that a wider tire would have slower steering response on the 8 inch rims but I also read that the RE050As have a stiffer sidewall than the Eagles.
The tires are in my garage and go on tomorrow morning so I'll have to report back on how they feel...

 

Tires are on! The break-in begins...

 

Hi Ishu,
thanks for the great review.
I currently has the dunlop sport maxx, would like to try out the goodyear.
where did you order yours at such a great price?
thanks,
got 8

 

First of all the tires are wider so you can't compare to what you have.

Second, you don't track the the car so how can you really give a good opinion?

Third, a stffer sidewall means you can push it more, but then again you don't take it to the limits.

Nice write up for street use, just remember you are comparing two differnt widths.........

 

Eargle F1 GS-D3 all ta way!

 

Tirerack was having a special at the time I purchased them around February. They are $197 right now, I believe.

 

having driven for roughly 17000 miles on GSD3s im gonna have to disagree with a lot of what you said and hope that your tires break in better. I found the sidewalls to be pretty stiff and i think you are losing something by mounting 245s on an 8 inch rim, i have my 245s on an 8.5 inch rim and found the characteristics to be better in every respect.

 

If you’re mounting a 245 tire on an 8'' rim you should expect less steering response, but GRIP is FAR FAR more important than steering response but that’s my humble opinion. I look at everything as "what would make me faster around a track" 245s would undoubtedly be the answer. As such, I don't see how you can't "recommend these to the performance minded community", unless you have a very different definition of performance than I do.

Before anyone generalizes GSD3's have very strong sidewalls!
The guy that said he wanted to buy PS2's those have a much weaker sidewall than the GSD3, and are overpriced.

my 245/40/18 GSD3s on 8.5'' wheels can run 29 psi up front and 30psi in the rear for autocross without rolling over in any corner.

The last nice feature about the GSD3 is it will last 30-35k, if you don't care about mileage get a set of RT-615s/AD07s/RE01Rs all which will get 20,000 max.

If you want a compromise get a set of Hankook Z212s which will last 25,000k outperform the GSD3 and cost way less. (They released 18'' sizes about a month ago)

 

Of course Road & Track did a test of several tires on a Miata. It was hardly scientific, but the RE-01Rs generated the same grip as the thinner OE Preceda.

 

Magazine racing is a crude gauge at best, different car, different sized tire.

People in the know, know that for all out performance Rt-615s and Ad07s/Re01rs are they best "performing" tires for the Rx-8.

About that test i was extremely suprized that the Kumho V710 did so well in the wet!

 

You guys bring up some good points that I failed to address. My feelings during the time I was posting were mostly that the tires took away some of the fun of tossing the car around, but this was solely based on the stock 8" rims. I made these tires sound worse than they actually are, they are great tires for sure. I guess I was just spoiled by the responsiveness of the stock tires so I wanted my new handling characteristics to be better than the old ones in every way. Looking back at my post I shouldn't have used the words "performance-minded community" but instead "those who value the responsiveness and tossability in the 8"

 

Hence my claim that it was "hardly scientific." However, you gotta admit that going into the test, if you had to bet money on one of the non R compound tires generating the highest grip, your money would be on the RE-01R. If that test proves anything, it's that Miatas are very sensitive to unsprung weight, which is hardly front page news. I find the Neros outperforming the RE-01Rs in most categories almost as surprising as the V710's rain performance.

 

I've never read anyone complain about PS2 sidewalls. In fact, the only complaints I've ever heard or read about the PS2s are strictly economic -- price and lifespan.

Everyone I've heard who has run them has said they are by far the best tire they'd ever used. That's why I'm going to give them a shot after three sets of S03s on my bimmer, and the stock RE040s on my 8.

 

Just my personal experience with them perhaps pictures will speak for me:

1) bubbles that developed after a few potholes, granted they are potholes, but the same unavoidable potholes I drive over with the GSD3s, they developed on not 1 but 2 wheels on the inside edge.

2) rollover experienced at an auto-x at up to 36psi cold front, sure you could go higher but that begins to be counter productive in sweeper style turns. (note i couldn't find it but there was a picture of my where it looked like the rim was almost scraping the ground these are still good examples though)

If i wanted to I could afford to buy sets of PS2 upon PS2 but fact of the matter is that just because something is the most expensive doesn't mean its the best, basicilly there are better tires for the $.
Life span is great they woulda lasted 30k if they didn't bubble.

 

Wow. I'm sorry you had a bad experience with them. It's the first bad one I've seen.

Thanks for sharing... the more information the better.

 

I'm loving the RE050A pole position tires so far. I got to try them in the rain today.
They have amazing turn in response wet or dry and excellent grip.
Still a bit early to thrash them too hard (under a couple of hundred miles) but so far I'm happy with them.
Now track times are not my goal. I'm looking for a responsive and enjoyable driving experience and that's what these tires deliver.