At one point, I found myself driving through part of an unplowed parking lot, which had about 6″ of fresh powder. My STi cut through the snow with ease, without a hint of trouble. Looking back, I realize this was primarily due to my choice of an excellent snow tire; the Bridgestone Blizzak LM-25. I purchased a set of these tires from Tire Rack about 2 years ago for my STi and picked them up in a 225/45/17 size. Currently, I’m running them on the stock 17×8 BBS wheels.

This setup has proved to work very well over the last 2 years. Last winter, I went on several ski trips which involved lots of snow driving. Again, the Bridgestone Blizzak LM-25′s proved strong, and got me through the snow without issue.

I did plenty of research prior to purchasing my Bridgestone Blizzak LM-25′s. One helpful resource for me was reading user reviews from consumers who had already bought these tires, such as the one you’re reading now. The Tire Rack website is a great resource to find reviews such as these, which are written entirely by the consumers themselves. You can find a link to the Bridgestone Blizzak LM-25 review’s page here. (Scroll down a bit once the page loads)

One of the primary reasons that I went with the Bridgestone Blizzak LM-25′s is that they feature better dry road handling than most other “snow tires”. Tire Rack refers to this as increased “European high-speed winter driving performance.” In addition, it’s pretty common for snow tires to be associated with the stereotype of being “soft”, and not allowing for spirited driving. Owners of STi’s typically drive their cars as they’re meant to be driven. Therefore, having a tire that’s capable during the winter months is necessary. Being able to pass RWD pickup trucks in the snow also makes for a good laugh.

I’ve always trusted Bridgestone in the past, which is why I decided to try out the LM-25′s. One of my more recent purchases from them was a set of Potenza RE-01R‘s.

Overall, I feel that I made a good choice. I’ve had the Bridgestone Blizzak LM-25′s for about 2 years now, and have driven them through 2 New England winters. Even with some mixed in spirited driving, they still show very little wear. With that said, I think it’s safe to say that these will last me more than a few years, especially since I run them seasonally.

So what are you waiting for? Head over to Tire Rack and pick up a set of Bridgestone Blizzak LM-25‘s today!

Let me start by saying that these tires aren’t for the feint at heart. When buying these, you don’t think about if you need them or not. They’re designed for people who know they need them. (racing, competition, etc) At the beginning of the 2008 autocross season, I decided to convert my 2007 STi into a BSP prepped car. A common setup in BSP is wide wheels, paired up with race compound tires, also known as “r-comps” for short. The SCCA rulebook states that cars in the Street Prepared class are allowed to run DOT-legal race tires. Therefore, they can technically be driven on the street. (and yes, it’s fun!)

The two big race tire names in autocross are Kumho and Hoosier. Kumho offers the V710, while Hoosier offers the A5. Both brands and models can be found on all types of different cars throughout the grid areas. The general run-down for comparison is as follows:

Kumho – Longer life, more durable, less costly
Hoosier – Higher overall grip, more costly, lower tire life

When it came time for me to choose which brand to go with, I weighed out the pro’s and con’s of each, and thought about things for about a week. I’d been told by many to go with the  Kumho’s, as they’re known to be friendlier for first-time race tire owners. (lower cost, more life, etc) Therefore, I ended up ordering a set of Kumho V710‘s from TireRack, and they shortly arrived a few days later. (Did I mention that TireRack has some of the fastest shipping that I’ve ever seen?)

After receiving the tires, I quickly had them mounted up onto my race wheels; a set of 17×10 +35mm 5Zigen FN01R-C’s. This setup would soon produce incredible amounts of grip.

My first event arrived a few week later, and what do you know? Rain!. I figured what the heck, I’d been waiting for weeks to try them out, so I put them on anyways. That day went quite interesting. Let’s just say brand new race tires on a wet course isn’t the slickest idea. (No pun intended!)

I had another event 1 week after my 1st, and thankfully it was dry this time. It was also very hot that day, which is beneficial for race tires, as it allows you to keep their temperatures up. Tires of this nature operate much more effectively when warm; and it’s certainly very noticeable when they cool off. The event that day went very well, and I managed to pull off 2nd place in my class. (BSP)

One thing that you notice straight away is the noise. Race tires are silent. There’s no more crazy screeching noises coming from the tires. They just grip, and that’s it.

Not only do they create a ton of grip, but they also induce the driver with an enormous amount of confidence. I found myself rapidly dropping my times each run, consistently throughout the day. Things only got better as the day went on, and I grew more accustomed to my new setup. I’ve read that people say race tires are worth about 2 seconds on the autocross course. I’m going to partially agree, in the sense that they definitely lower times, but I think it’s more in the range of 4 seconds.

Overall, the Kumho Ecsta V710 is an excellent autocross tire. I have still yet to try out the Hoosier A5′s, but from where I am today, I can’t find myself wanting anymore. I personally feel that the Kumho V710 offers all that I’m looking for, and I can’t see them getting any better than they already are.

Interesting in picking up a set? Check out the Kumho Ecsta V710 at TireRack today!

Although Bridgestone has done it again, and this time their back with their new Potenza RE-01R. This tire has been placed into the extreme performance category, and it certainly holds true to the name. I purchased 4 of these tires from TireRack just over a year ago, and couldn’t be happier.

My initial intent of my purchase was to obtain a nice set of street tires to use for autocross. At the time I was competing with my car in the SCCA BSP class, although I was running street tires. (BSP allows R-compound race tires) I somehow figured that I was best off with street tires, and the ease of being able to drive to events on them certainly appealed to me. Therefore, I went ahead and purchased a set of 245/40/17′s.

They arrived a few days later, and I immediately had them mounted up onto a new set of Hyper Black Rota G-Forces. (17×8 +48mm) The tires ran great, and I drove them on the street for about a week to break them in. (these were street tires that I had planned on using only to/from/at events) My initial impression was that they were significantly quieter than the stock STi Potenza RE070. (225/45/17) With the RE070′s, it sounds almost as if the tires are howling down the road, but with RE-01R’s on, the car sounded completely silent.

Grip also seems improved, but not something I would consider significant compared to the RE070. Rain performance is also very good, without much sliding, if any at all. Overall, the RE-01R introduced much more comfort, with the added benefit of additional grip.

Since then, I’ve taken my RE070′s off my stock wheels, and have put snow tires on them. I’ve been daily driving during the summer on my RE-01R/Rota combo now for about a year, and I absolutely love the setup. I’ve also introduced R-compound race tires to my lineup for autocrossing, and I’ve been using the RE-01R’s as my rain tires. (race tires in standing water = no good)

Currently RE-01R’s are a “special” and are on sale at The Tire Rack. Interested in picking up a set? Click the link below to grab them now, before the price goes back up!

Bridgestone Potenza RE-01R Tire