Bridgestone RE-71R: Everyday tyres for the track

Tyres. Is it really a big deal? They're after all just rubber-made objects that link your vehicle to the road. Some say they're merely a critical contact area to the road that's no bigger than the palm of your hand. Some say they're simply overrated, a tool for tyre companies to make more money out of.

Well, they're all not wrong.

Wait, really?

Truth be told, I do reckon that's the purpose of tyres - to save lives, and for tyre companies to make money. To be fair, that's pretty much most of the things we know in life.

Take the Apple iPhone for an example - Apple makes phones that aren't just convenient and 'cool' for its consumers, but it also makes phones because it's just damn good business.

Same goes for tyres.

Case in point - Bridgestone Potenza RE-71R. Just the name of it sounds cool, eh? That's because it is. Not only is the model good for everyday driving, these set of tyres are, indeed, perfect for track days.

We had the tyres installed at South East Tyre Co. down at 10 Kaki Bukit Road 1, which took no longer than 30 minutes. Then guess what we did? Yup, en route to Sepang International Circuit just to see if the tyres are exactly what Bridgestone said they would be.

Work hard, play hard

It didn't take long to realise just how sticky thse tyres really are. Down at the track, where warm ups are necessary before you throw the car around with reckless abandon, the RE-71R somehow manages to get acquainted with the tarmac faster than we would expect.

Compared to the Bridgestone Potenza S001 that was fitted on our car previously, the RE7-1R warms up 'nicely' and 'evenly', which makes it much quicker to 'slam' the car around the track. Yes, a word like 'slam' is used because this is the place where we can bring our own cars and test their limits.

Hard braking followed by relentless acceleration, lap after lap, proved that the Bridgestone tyres are not only able to withstand the heat and thrashing, but also capable of sticking hard to the tarmac regardless of the high speeds that we did.

Still, like all materials under hard hammering, the rubbers are naturally worn out. But bear in mind that it doesn't mean they are unsuitable for road use.

Despite our ambiguity of the tyres' capabilities, they managed to get right back to Customs - no, right to our doorsteps to be precise - safely and comfortably. Tyre noise did sound like it increased, but that could also be due to the time on the track, and that's really just nitpicking.

You decorated my life

Through the years, we've tried so many different sets of tyres, but nothing comes close to the Bridgestone Potenza RE-71R. It's hard to find a set of rubber that's good for everyday driving yet so suitably sound on the track.

Yes, there are many sets of tyres from various brands out there, and you may have had differing experiences with the different tyres over the years, but professionally and personally, nothing comes quite close to this.

So tyres. Is it really a big deal? You bet...