Bridgestone Potenza RE930i high-pitched whine - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

DuckMuck · #1 04-10-2003, 02:07 AM

I recently installed a set of Bridgestone Potenza RE930i's on a Honda Accord EX-R V6...I noticed that the tires make an audible high-pitched whine at speeds around 60kph, and the volume increases with speed...the problem seems to be worse in rain...for those with the RE930's/RE930i's, do you guys notice this too? Could the problem be with balance or alignment? Tire pressure is correct...I double checked (32/29 for front/back)...car holds steady in a straight line with hands off the wheel...does not wander...I am a little puzzled...I purchased them at Costco in Richmond, BC for a good price...they seem to be very good tires...I feel they perform much better than the OE Michelin MXV4 Plus...but the whine is annoying me...any help would be appreciated...thank you...

Luke@tirerack · #2 04-10-2003, 08:09 AM

ride quality and noise issues are why the RE930 has been discontinued ... Costco however, may be privately labeling a different tire with that name which they commonly do .... can you post a picture of the tread design ....

DuckMuck · #3 04-10-2003, 11:31 AM

Luke,

Thank you for the prompt reply...I just snapped a photo of the tread...any thoughts? Are these simply the RE930's relabelled as RE930i's?

DieselHead · #4 04-10-2003, 04:37 PM

I bought those same times at Costco and I don't remember there being any abnormal noise. They were a pretty good tire, but wore out a little quickly.

Alex

Luke@tirerack · #5 04-10-2003, 05:53 PM

exact same tread design as the original RE930 ...... ...... you notive how there is no groove going circumferentially around the tire seperating the to halves of the tire ... there is no isolation between the 2 tread areas which is a common noise creator since there are several different areas of the tread elements contacting the road surface at the same time

DuckMuck · #6 04-10-2003, 06:40 PM

DieselHead,

Which particular car of yours did you mount the RE930i's on?

Luke,

Thank you for the explanation...I might go back and see what other tires they offer and a possible replacement...it is a shame, I really like the performance of these tires compared to the MXV4 Plus...

DieselHead · #7 04-10-2003, 07:03 PM

I had them installed on my 1983 300D. The tire size was 195/70-16. Good luck. Sorry about the bad experience.

Alex

blackmercedes · #8 04-14-2003, 12:47 AM

I'm running the RE930i on the C230 right now, and like them. They're not as quiet or as good in the rain as the RE950, but my Dad bought them for another car and I got them for free. Free tires are the BEST tires!

That said, I don't have the whine you describe. My tires are 205/60-15, and I don't know where they were bought. I wouldn't buy them again, but in the meantime I can live with them.

DuckMuck · #9 04-30-2003, 10:52 AM

Just as an update, I put a few more kilometers on these tires, and the noise seems to be gone...these tires are great...they were cheap, comes with a great warranty, and they perform well now that the noise issue is gone...

petaling · #10 05-06-2003, 09:40 AM

DuckMuck Hi
I am in SARs-free(almost now)Toronto.
How is your Potenza holding now.
I am considering a set for my 300E.It's on sale for a few more days at 102 CAD vs Michelin mxv4+ at 145 CAD at Costco after rebate.
Price is big consideration for this older car.
If I am in the US,would likely go with the Continenetal CH95 at 59 US$ at Tirerack.

DuckMuck · #11 05-06-2003, 02:45 PM

Hello!

I have travelled around 2700km on these RE930i's and I find them to be great! After driving around with them for a while, I just want to clarify that the high-pitched noise is ONLY present when the road is wet...when it is dry, there is no noise that I can detect...I sorta made the mistake of sayin' the tires were noisy in all conditions...which you can't really blame me for, 'cause Vancouver rains a lot :p so the roads are almost always wet...but lately, we've been havin' a lot of sunshine, and nice dry roads, and the tires are very quiet...I find these tires much better than the Michelin MXV4 Plus that they replaced (which were OE on the Accord)...they feel much sportier, dampen out the road irregularities much better (which is a big plus for the Accord), and I feel high-speed stability is improved...I took the car up to 140km on a stretch of highway...and the car feels much more steady...I just feel more confident at the wheel...they complement the Accord much better...

In terms of your 300E...there are some issues you might to consider above mine...first, it obviously snows a lot more in Toronto than Vancouver...Vancouver saw only one day of snow fall this year...and the snow never stuck to the road...so I am not too worried about its snow performance...since it is all-season, I am sure it should at least be able to handle that...however, if you got some heavy snow on residential roads you gotta tackle every morning goin' to work during heavy winters, you might look into how well they perform in the snow...second, the Accord is around 3200lb...I'm not sure how much the 300E weighs...I am guessin' around 3400lb? I heard Michelin's sidewalls are a little more heavy duty and better suited to M-B's big-body cars...I am guessin' the CH95's should be fine too...since M-B used them as OE on the W124's during the last few years of its run...

Actually, I've had experience with all of the three tires that you are considering...my tires go through pretty heavy use since I do mostly stop'n go city driving...the CH95's were OE on my '95 E420...they only lasted me around 24,000km before I had to swap them with around 10%/15% tread front/rear...there was a gash in my sidewall, so I replaced them a little early...they were decent tires...but as everybody knows, the original size was too narrow and the tires just weren't aggressive enough to handle the E420's power...the tires were OK...not great...they might fair better on the 300E though...the Michelin MXV4 Plus on my Accord lasted for around 71,000km before I replaced, with around 0%/10% tread left front/rear...I thought these were probably somewhere between the CH95's and the RE930i's...

Anyhow, I got the 205/60HR15 RE930i's from Costco for around $108 a piece before taxes...I thought they were a great deal with the balancing, mounting, new valve stems/caps, 30-day test drive, and pro-rated warranty...a nice set of tires...good luck...