Goodyear attracts sports cars

Goodyear attracts sports cars

There are two types of racetracks: the flat, artificially created tracks, such as in Abu Dhabi, and natural racing tracks that adapt to the terrain and therefore shine with hanging curves, blind corners and inclines. To showcase the ultra high performance rubber of the new Eagle F1 series, Goodyear chose Ascari Raceway near Ronda, Spain. A dream route in the middle of the Spanish hinterland, built by an industrialist from the Netherlands who built a playground for car enthusiasts for himself and his millionaire friends. Around 300 sunny days a year ensure predominantly dry conditions. And the course brings tears of joy to the eyes of sporty drivers: it goes up and down, steep curves, blind corners, long straights, winding handling sections, hard braking points. Heart, what more do you want? Maybe a few more dream cars: Porsche 911 GT3 RS, Ferrari 488 GTB, Renault Alpine, VW Golf R. Let's just write it: Goodyear made a big splash when introducing its new super sports tires and didn't make a mess.

FOCUS PERFORMANCE Before setting off on the dewy, still slightly damp track in the morning hours, Goodyear's marketing gurus explain: "With the new Eagle F1 series, we are once again focusing more on performance, sportiness, performance and moving away somewhat from the topic of safety." Of course, it is immediately followed up that the new sports rubbers are no more unsafe than their predecessors - rather the opposite. But now we're working with emotion again, with sporty, fast, fast-paced action. Under the motto “Go Goodyear” the focus is on traveling by car and exploring. A new commercial in Hollywood format was also produced for this purpose (see QR link).

WOLFGANG STUMMER, CEO GOODYEAR DUNLOP AUSTRIA"With the Eagle F1 Super Sport series, Goodyear is following the automotive trend towards ever larger and more powerful vehicles and is thus meeting the OE's demand for sporty high-end tires. In this way, we are providing the best individual solution for each vehicle in the growing sports and luxury car segment."

FULL THROTTLE HEAVEN The crux of tire presentations with great, high-horsepower cars are the guides who sit next to you. Sure, we journalists aren't supposed to cold-form luxury sports cars, but often they can only be driven with the handbrake clearly on. It is important to avoid tire squealing. And then – without any experience at the limit – we should write something about the tire. Difficult. Goodyear was accommodating and apparently told the guides: “Let the pack drive, but intervene if they act stupid.” No sooner said than done. Electronics remain on, but there are hardly any other restrictions. Taken a seat in the Porsche 911 GT3 RS, dry handling on a winding part of the course. Mounted: Goodyear Eagle F1 Supersport R, a tire developed together with Porsche for original equipment. Good Lord, how wonderful this dream sports car drives. The Porsche steers extremely precisely and the driver gets so much feedback that you quickly become overconfident. Step on the gas – sure, the electronics help – but the traction is brutal. The Porsche shoots out of the corners, despite the cool track temperatures, so that after just two laps you feel intoxicated. Great, great, great. This is how tire presentation works.

ACTION INSTEAD OF CHAT After a few hot laps in the Porsche, we move on quickly; the Ferraris are already waiting on the faster part of the track. This time mounted on the rims: Goodyear Eagle F1 Supersport - without R - a tire that is intended for everyday use as well as track days. 670 hp, rear-wheel drive, from zero to 100 km/h in three seconds. The guide is a friendly Frenchman, deeply relaxed. A round of inspection, then a fire can be given. But hello, the Italian goes like a fire brigade. But the difference to the Supersport R rubber is immediately noticeable: the limit area is reached earlier, but is then very wide. The turn-in is a little less sharp, the traction is impressive again. During a quick turn to the left (approx. 170 km/h), the Ferrari suddenly jerks and wants to swerve spontaneously, but nothing happens, the athlete catches himself in a flash and the full-throttle orgy continues. Very big cinema. For a tire that you can even drive in wind and weather (in summer), the performance is amazing. The car anyway.

COMMENT PHILIPP BEDNAR"Super sporty tires, super sporty cars and guides that let you gas up. That's how a tire should be presented. Safety is great, but with a UHP tire I expect it to brake properly, whether wet or dry. Goodyear is back in the UHP segment and has delivered a broad, strong product portfolio."

WIDE PORTFOLIO In order to be able to try out the entire range of products in the new series, the Renault Alpine and the Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymmetric 5 will be raced around the corners on a wet-dry course. A good choice to completely round off the image of the super athletes. The Asymmetric 5 is a classic UHP tire for strong and luxurious models - without claiming to be trackday rubber. In this respect, the very angular wet-dry course is perfect for the tire. The perfectly balanced Renault Alpine immediately gives you the feeling that you don't need a Ferrari or Porsche to experience great driving fun. And the tire impresses with its great balance, as the limit area is even larger than in the Supersport and gives hardly any less feedback to the driver.