The stock Continental ContactSport 2s already showing signs of tiredness and all have went past minimum indicator. At 32k kms mileage, funny enough to report, I felt the dry grip is still tenaciously good for all around performance tyres almost like when it was new only the wet traction or specifically aquaplaning resistance were not. Still during balik kampong trip, the car happily cruising at 90-120km/h without much drama during the rain.
Goodyear F1 Asymmetric definitely out of the list not because I don’t want it but because 205/45/16 size is not available, same goes to Revspec RS. Azenis ST115 isn’t available anymore and Ziex 912 isn’t really true successor to it. And original Contis are too pricey to justify. After months of mind juggling, it all came down either Federal 595 RSR or Michelin Pilot Preceda 2 and at the end I opted for RSR simply because the Pocong needs tyres than can mask its handling impurity.
Woke up awkwardly early this morning, had the car brimmed with Techron 97 fuel, pickup up a friend (the negotiator hahaha) and off we go to a tyre shop, non other than Jooi Seng, Klang. I was told I’m in luck because they’ve last 4 pieces available. RM390 per piece of RSR, RM10 for stainless steel valve each, RM24 for alignment and RM45 for dented rim repair which amounting to RM1669 excluding GST and 2.5% credit card merchant fee. Once Malaysian style negotiation ended, the towkay agreed to tone down the price RM1540 after trade the old ones RM100 (I was hoping of RM200!) and some other ‘have-to-discounts’ and no merchant fee!
Installation was no brainer and they even took the liberty of washing the rims completely inside out before fitting it in. Seems like this time around their customer relation is have taken another step better than what already good in recent years.
But my so called luck ran out of pocket when the foreman a.k.a alignment sifu told me both sides of front lower control arms’ bushes have cracked! *Sigh* Whiteline kit is inevitable then! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WJaZ4yLCTeg
It started raining minutes after getting the keys. In the wet, capability of this RSR is still a notch down compared to Contis and Vredestein Sportrac. That’s not really a bad thing because personally I rated these two as the best in the wet, better than F1 GSD3 and ST115 which are also ultra performance tyres mind you. For semi slick, it’s darn good indeed. Where the R888 will struggle at 60 kmh, this RSR can still cruise 110-140 kmh without much drama on the wet.
And when the road surface became 80% dry, on the way back home, I started teasing the RSR through a sequence of left-right-left corners from Glenmarie towards Jalan Kemajuan Subang and from there to Federal Highway entrance. For street legal, it’s the best I’ve experience yet! Lateral grip is just phenomenally brilliant and never once felt overcooked. And if you’ve been reading for a while, you’ll know Pocong doesn’t have clean, direct, and positive steering feel but with the RSR I’m amazed it managed to mask this problem nicely. At this point, some may ask if it’s better than AD07. This though I couldn’t answer specifically because I haven’t used one but I do note that AD07 is more skittish in the wet than the RSR.
Road noise is quite well controlled just like Contis but not as serene as the ST115 but I’m sure it’ll get noisier like lorry after sometime. Given that its sidewall is pretty stiff, I’ll be toning down the pressure to 33 front and 32 rear (cold) and begin to learn more about this Taiwanese made tyres and at the same time bedding it properly before having a shiok sendiri sunday drive via Ulu Yam road this coming Sunday to visit my sister-in-law and her two notoriously hyperactive cats.
Goodyear F1 Asymmetric definitely out of the list not because I don’t want it but because 205/45/16 size is not available, same goes to Revspec RS. Azenis ST115 isn’t available anymore and Ziex 912 isn’t really true successor to it. And original Contis are too pricey to justify. After months of mind juggling, it all came down either Federal 595 RSR or Michelin Pilot Preceda 2 and at the end I opted for RSR simply because the Pocong needs tyres than can mask its handling impurity.
Woke up awkwardly early this morning, had the car brimmed with Techron 97 fuel, pickup up a friend (the negotiator hahaha) and off we go to a tyre shop, non other than Jooi Seng, Klang. I was told I’m in luck because they’ve last 4 pieces available. RM390 per piece of RSR, RM10 for stainless steel valve each, RM24 for alignment and RM45 for dented rim repair which amounting to RM1669 excluding GST and 2.5% credit card merchant fee. Once Malaysian style negotiation ended, the towkay agreed to tone down the price RM1540 after trade the old ones RM100 (I was hoping of RM200!) and some other ‘have-to-discounts’ and no merchant fee!
Installation was no brainer and they even took the liberty of washing the rims completely inside out before fitting it in. Seems like this time around their customer relation is have taken another step better than what already good in recent years.
But my so called luck ran out of pocket when the foreman a.k.a alignment sifu told me both sides of front lower control arms’ bushes have cracked! *Sigh* Whiteline kit is inevitable then! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WJaZ4yLCTeg
It started raining minutes after getting the keys. In the wet, capability of this RSR is still a notch down compared to Contis and Vredestein Sportrac. That’s not really a bad thing because personally I rated these two as the best in the wet, better than F1 GSD3 and ST115 which are also ultra performance tyres mind you. For semi slick, it’s darn good indeed. Where the R888 will struggle at 60 kmh, this RSR can still cruise 110-140 kmh without much drama on the wet.
And when the road surface became 80% dry, on the way back home, I started teasing the RSR through a sequence of left-right-left corners from Glenmarie towards Jalan Kemajuan Subang and from there to Federal Highway entrance. For street legal, it’s the best I’ve experience yet! Lateral grip is just phenomenally brilliant and never once felt overcooked. And if you’ve been reading for a while, you’ll know Pocong doesn’t have clean, direct, and positive steering feel but with the RSR I’m amazed it managed to mask this problem nicely. At this point, some may ask if it’s better than AD07. This though I couldn’t answer specifically because I haven’t used one but I do note that AD07 is more skittish in the wet than the RSR.
Road noise is quite well controlled just like Contis but not as serene as the ST115 but I’m sure it’ll get noisier like lorry after sometime. Given that its sidewall is pretty stiff, I’ll be toning down the pressure to 33 front and 32 rear (cold) and begin to learn more about this Taiwanese made tyres and at the same time bedding it properly before having a shiok sendiri sunday drive via Ulu Yam road this coming Sunday to visit my sister-in-law and her two notoriously hyperactive cats.
Freshly made in week 28 2009
Pretty thick!
Pretty thick!
Out goes Conti to make way for RSR
Installation done ... waiting for alignment
Great tyres, u'll love it on both dry n wet. Track proven~~~ Pretty lasting too, had mine for almost 7 months now.
ReplyDeleteYeah heard many positive review as well. One thing to note about this tyre is that once it losses grip, it does that not as progressive as I'd like. How long do you think yours will last? 30k mileage possible?
ReplyDeleteFew friends said that the 595 RSR performance is better Eagle RS Sport. but it wears faster (daily driven with 3-4 times on track). I might need to try this or the Ecsta XS in near future...or shall I just go for AD08 (mesti mahal giler!) ?
ReplyDeleteMeor,
ReplyDeleteI think AD08 prices shouldn't be far off than RSR and predecessor AD07 unless of course it's made in Japang
Not sure how long (mileage) mine lasted, never kept track. Probably 25k mileage + 6-7 track days. I use it for daily drive and frequent open track, the 140 thread wear doesn't really justify tyre wear. And FYI i am running 225/40 18". Don't ask me how it lasted but it did. Only things i pay attention to is, the tire pressure and swap front back and cross it whenever is necessary.
ReplyDeleteRSR is way better than RS Sport imho, tried RS Sport on track, after 3 laps, it overheat and slowly looses traction. FOr RSR i tried max at 7 laps and rest cause my brake itself is overheating.
Yet to try ecsta XS, maybe next set~~~ :-)