After the RE003 enjoyed over a decade on sale in Australia as one of the go-to tyres for enthusiast car owners, Bridgestone has finally rolled out its long-awaited replacement. With the RE004 deemed unsuitable for our market, the Potenza Adrenalin RE005 Enliten serves not only as its replacement, but as a considerable leap forward for the brand’s mainstream performance tyre.
After Retro Rides attended the official launch earlier this year, which you can read Cam Jurd’s first impressions from here, Bridgestone Australia was kind enough to offer a set for us to do some longer-term testing with. Naturally, an extremely grateful yes was the instant answer.
The guinea pig for these new treads is a 2003 Volkswagen Golf GTI Mk4, and there are two main reasons for using this car. First and foremost, it’s because the turbocharged Golf GTI generations are one of the target models for this tyre. The Toyota 86, Mazda MX-5, Subaru WRX, Ford Mustang, and HSV Commodores are also on that target customer list.
The other reason is because it’s my car – and since it was so often left sitting while I was busy driving new press cars or the classics we’ve filmed for RR Auctions, it had a set of decade-old treads still on it which might’ve had tread left but were not as fresh as they once were.
Fitted to the stock BBS Montreal alloys that came factory fitted to this GTI, the standard 205/55 R16 sizing is what we’re running with here. Other cars you’ll see this sizing on include everything from older BMW 3 Series models to commuter cars like the Mazda 3, and even the front Fuchs alloys on a Porsche 930 Turbo. Fortunately, this means it’s the only Y-rated 16-inch RE005 size, with a 94Y load and speed rating.
The GTI itself hails from a controversial generation. Regarded by some as the worst GTI, I’ll agree with critics that they’re too soft and floppy in stock form. That’s why mine has been upgraded with some Aussie-made King Springs, providing a 30mm drop, along with KYB shock absorbers and Powerflex polyurethane sway bar bushes. Good thing, then, that they’re one of the easiest Golf gens to modify.
Its 1.8-litre turbocharged four-pot with five valves per cylinder has been left totally stock though. It’s economical, reliable, and just enough to have some fun with, if no rocket ship. As an Adelaide Hills corner carver though, there are plenty of cars I’ve had less fun in than this – and that’s precisely where the RE005s come in.
The tyres were fitted by the lovely team at Bridgestone Select Adelaide. Although the alignment on the car was pretty good, I did pay to have a wheel alignment done to ensure the RE005s are given the best base possible for this extended test.
Almost immediately after having them fitted, they faced their first big test. After a dry morning, the heavens opened up with a truly torrential downpour, and I had already committed to taking the fun way back home.
This was no matter at all. Thanks to an advanced rain drainage groove towards the inside of the tread pattern, it simply cut through puddles without a hint of aquaplaning. I was even aiming for puddles trying to catch it out, but any signs of a slip-up never came.
In fairness, I already had some idea what to expect. The day before they were fitted to the Golf, Bridgestone had me come along to The Bend Motorsport Park for a similar drive program to the launch Cam attended. Whether cutting laps on track in the Toyota 86 or going full attack mode on a wet weather skid pan course in a BMW M240i, they took everything you could throw at them.
So far, I’ve racked up a few hundred kilometres on the RE005s on my car, and have nothing but good things to say. Although I wasn’t running RE003s previously on the GTI, I was using the competitor Michelin Pilot Sport 3.
Having sampled the newer Pilot Sport 5 on various vehicles, including in a back-to-back slalom test at The Bend, the RE005 left me most impressed in terms of two key things. First was how just how hard you can corner on them. Thanks to its advanced ‘shoulder’ construction, you can lean hard on it without losing grip due to deformation.
Secondly, the improvement in fuel economy is also incredibly impressive. This is something longer-term testing will reveal the actual truth of, but anecdotal evidence suggests around a 0.4L/100km improvement on the ever-consistent Golf which might not sound like much, but over time can certainly add up.
This comes down to the fact it uses a low rolling resistance compound – that’s signified by the “Enliten” bit of its lengthy full name – which is normally seen in economy tyres. The fact Bridgestone has managed to combine this with a tread pattern and tyre construction that never feels out of place whether on a track day, spirited drive, or daily commute is testament to just how well engineered it is.
Once I’ve put a few thousand kilometres on these new treads, I’ll check back in again with more detailed findings of what they’re like to live with. As first impressions go, though, it couldn’t get much better than this for the RE005.
