Who is running Goodyear Eagle F1 GS-D3s? Do they look like a factory stock tire in 245/50/16? I'd like for them to look as close to the Gatorbacks as possible without actually being 20 year old tires.

I'm running original Goodyear Gatorback ZR50s with about 14k miles on them... since I drive the car this isn't a good thing, so I was looking at replacement tires. The Gatorbacks are in phenomenal shape and have no performance issues, but the safety concern is making me want to upgrade, especially with the summer sun on the horizon...

Here's a link to them on tirerack.com:
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....o&autoModClar=

They are 780 a set, which isn't cheap

 

I was running them for a few years, 10k or so, however I had a blow out at road America so I switched to potenza as I got a great deal on them. 275 per tire for the Goodyears is more than I wanted to spend

 

Ps I was running these on my Vette not my camaro

 

I've been running them since 2007. Absolutely love them. They have an aggressive but very different look to them. Great in the dry. Phenominal in the rain.

I was in the same boat as you are now. Had 19 year old Gatorbacks on the car that worked well enough in the sun. But absolutely terrible in the rain. The GS-D3's are a much smoother ride compared to the old Gatorbacks as well. Though I suspect any new tire would be a softer smoother ride in comparison.

Unfortunately the GS-D3's are on a national back order. Discount Tire couldn't find any of them last month and didn't know when or if they would be in again. Kind of annoying since the Goodyear plant is right here in Houston.

I had a nail in one of them last month. The flat wore out the sidewall of the tire. So I went to get another GS-D3 and ran into the problem of not being able to get them. So now I have three GS-D3 tires and one Michelin Pilot Sport A/S.

But if I could get another set of GS-D3 tires, I'd jump at it.

 

Reid, the tires look great on your car.

Really disappointing on the delay... I checked and sure enough, no availability until April, which is too far away. I drive my car a bit and as the Florida sun gets more intense, my faith in the old rubber will start to dwindle.

That being said, there are some other options available (and all cheaper):
BFGoodrich g-Force Sport - 119 per
Firestone Firehawk Wide Oval Indy 500 - 113 per
Fuzion ZR1 - 109 per (never heard of Fuzion)
General Exclaim UHP - 103 per
Yokohama AVS ES100 - 129 per

I think the message here is get 18" wheels now...

 

Here are some Firehawk Wide Oval tires (size 295 rear) sitting next to my GS-D3 (size 245) tires. I can't tell you how they work in the rain though. They were for a different car that is summertime only and has never been in the rain.



The red neck (aka no tools needed) way of comparing how alternate wheels and tires would look on a car.

 

I love my eagles but I need a new pair and they seem to be on eternal back order. I have my drag radials on the back waiting for a replacement pair of Eagles. The drag radials don't hook up as well as my Eagles.

 

I'm afraid that is true. I started thinking about it. How many vehicles today have 245/50/16 tire sizes? None that I can think of. Just about everything performance wise is 225 on 17" (BMW etc) or else 295 on 18 or 19" (Corvette).

3rd gens are right in that range that is getting to be too rare to have lots of selection. Back in 2007 when I was looking to buy tires, I looked into getting some 255 tire sizes rather than the 245. But that was just about impossible. At the time I think there was only one brand that made those and the series was a bit off, ratio wise.

I had it narrowed down to either the GS-D3 or the Michelin Pilot Sport A/S. Both had their benefits. The Goodyears look awesome and handle rain really well. The Pilot Sport A/S were a bit more money, but had a longer treadlife. Still very good in the rain though probably not quite as good as the Goodyear. The Goodyear was a summer tire that worked well in wet. The Michelin was an all season tire that worked well as a summer time.

I live in south Texas where snow is rare. But flooding is common. So I definitely wanted something that handled the wet.

 

As time goes on, our tire sizes will pick up in popularity again mainly as Corvette guys start to restore the C4s. The early 80s cars shared our tire sizes.

My dad's 91 had 16x8s with 255/50/16 and it gave a nice look to the rubber.

I eventually want 18s, but I'm waiting and saving because a nice set of 18" wheels and rubber will be $$$ (I don't want to do Corvette rims).

I think I may try the Firestones for now and see how they work... they still look decent and the price is lower than the Good Years.

 

i have the firestones on my 92, they are a good tire for the money, but not in the same league as the gsd3's were.

 

I have the ds g3 all around. 255/40/18 fronts and 275/30/18 rears. I love the tires. But getting hard to get or you have to wait until april. I have C5 wheels.

 

i would like to see them in 305,315,335 sizes for a 18" wheel. sucks they stop at 295's. I would like to use them on my 86 once my bfg's are gone, and on my 92 once i get to that point.

 

Wow.. a man after my own heart..! Have you checked out Michelin's Pilot Sport PS-2's

My favorite tires are the GS-C's, they were pretty awesome. These PS-2's are about as close as we are going to get and they're not really all that expensive. I just saw some at Wal Mart for $199

Stone

 

AFAIK there were winds blowing that the GS-D3 was being discontinued, or is discontinued.

 

Here is a nice look-a-like for a good price at the tire rack. I know several people who have them and love them. Sumitomo 275/40/10 121.00 and 245/45/17 87.00

 

i heard something like that. also something about possible being resigned?

 

And Sumitomo tires runs small. I bet their 275s are more like 255s & the 245s more like 225s.

 

Firestone Firehawk Wide Oval Indy 500s go on this Wednesday. Went with 245/50/16s. I was going to get the regular Firehawk Wide Ovals, but the Indy 500s were cheaper. The only differences are tread pattern and the Indy 500s are a higher speed/performance rating.

I'll let everybody knows how the install goes Wednesday and I'll see if I can get some pics up.

 

Firestones are on... night and day driving difference. A lot of the rattles and squeaks are gone now that I have tires that can actually absorb some road bumps. Even still, the tires are stiffer and more responsive than the Good Year ZR50s. The ride is also quieter and the traction is better in all gears. Obviously this is unfair as the Good Years are 20 years old!

The only complaint I have is the looks; the Firestone Wide Oval Indy 500s look decent and have a nice tread, but they aren't as good looking as the OEM Good Year ZR50 Gatorbacks. The sidewall is the biggest difference; the Good Years have clean sidewalls while the Firestones have a lot of stuff molded in. The tread pattern is subjective, but I prefer the cleaner look of the Good Years as well. I really wish somebody would make a close replica of these tires...

Here's the old ones off the car, sitting in the garage. They have 14,088 miles on them.









Hopefully I'll get some pics of the new tires up.

 

Discontinued? Really? That sucks! Right when I need tires for my car. What's this about April?