Bridgestone Potenza S-04 Pole Position looks discontinued: no new owner reviews or road tests in five years and no current EU tyre label.

Head-to-head Updated

Bridgestone Potenza RE 71RS vs Bridgestone Potenza S-04 Pole Position — Compared

Relative Score (0–100): the weighted average of the categories below, each 60% road tests and 40% owner reviews (comfort 40/60). Based on 2 + 0 road tests and 452 + 3 owner reviews. How we score

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Bridgestone Potenza RE 71RS
± 6

Tests 78 · 2 tests Owners 69 · 452 reviews

Best test result: #1 of 7 in 2025 Tire Rack Extreme Performance Track Tyre Test (wet handling (tester's mark))

“Drove my GR86 coast to coast on pre-thrashed 200tw tires in 3.5 days AMA 2024 GR86 Premium performance package mt Bridgestone Potenza RE-71rs tires Car had 24,000ish miles and now has 27,000ish”

Category by category

Relative Score per category, 0–100. Open “Why this score” for the tests and owner ratings behind it.

  1. 82

    Dry

    No comparison
    –
    Why this score
    SourcePotenza RE 71RSPotenza S-04 Pole Position
    Professional tests (TWG score) · 2 / – tests76–
    Reviews found online92–

    Potenza RE 71RS: 60% × 76 + 40% × 92.1 = 82

  2. 78

    Wet

    No comparison
    –
    Why this score
    SourcePotenza RE 71RSPotenza S-04 Pole Position
    Professional tests (TWG score) · 2 / – tests85–
    Reviews found online67–

    Potenza RE 71RS: 60% × 85 + 40% × 66.8 = 78

  3. 60

    Comfort

    No comparison
    –
    Why this score
    SourcePotenza RE 71RSPotenza S-04 Pole Position
    Professional tests (TWG score) · 1 / – tests71–
    Reviews found online52–

    Potenza RE 71RS: 40% × 71.1 + 60% × 52.1 = 60

  4. 65

    Noise

    No comparison
    –
    Why this score
    SourcePotenza RE 71RSPotenza S-04 Pole Position
    Professional tests (TWG score) · 1 / – tests67–
    Reviews found online63–

    Potenza RE 71RS: 60% × 66.6 + 40% × 63.4 = 65

  5. 57

    Treadwear

    No comparison
    –
    Why this score
    SourcePotenza RE 71RSPotenza S-04 Pole Position
    Professional tests (TWG score)≈ 61 (est.)–
    Reviews found online52–

    Potenza RE 71RS: 60% × 61 (est.) + 40% × 51.5 = 57

    No road tests of treadwear for Potenza RE 71RS. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.35).

  6. 86

    Handling (owners)

    No comparison
    –
    Why this score
    SourcePotenza RE 71RSPotenza S-04 Pole Position
    Reviews found online86–
Scores at a glance
Bridgestone Potenza RE 71RS vs Bridgestone Potenza S-04 Pole Position: scores by category (0–100)
CategoryBridgestone Potenza RE 71RSBridgestone Potenza S-04 Pole Position
Relative Score 74 –
Dry 82 –
Wet 78 –
Comfort 60 –
Noise 65 –
Treadwear 57 –
Handling (owners) 86 –

Higher is better. The Relative Score follows your weights below; category scores do not change.

Weight the categories that matter to you

Wet grip starts at “Important”. Treadwear starts at “Neutral” here: road tests measured it for at most one of the two tires, so it rests on owner reviews. Move the sliders and the scores update instantly.

Important
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Important
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Less important
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Less important
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Neutral
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Less important
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Recomputed
Headline score
± 6

Potenza RE 71RS

Potenza S-04 Pole Position

Only categories both tires have data for count toward the headline score.

The professional test results behind the scores

Per discipline: the average % of the best tire over every test both tires were in, and how many of those tests each one won. “Different tests” rows compare results from separate tests.

DisciplineCategoryPotenza RE 71RSPotenza S-04 Pole PositionΔHead-to-head
Also published by the testers (not in the score)
Overall Ranking Overall #1/7 2025 Tire Rack Extreme Performance Track Tyre Test #2/4 2011 Tirerack Max Performance Summer Tyre Test – Different tests

Pros, cons & observations

Themes extracted from owner reviews found online — not the opinion of TireWheelGuide.

Tire A Potenza RE 71RS

Pros

  • Outstanding dry grip and rapid warm-up characteristics.
  • Highly predictable and communicative at the limit, allowing for easy recovery.
  • Improved on-road refinement, noise levels, and comfort compared to its predecessor.

Cons

  • Rapid tread wear, especially when used aggressively on track or heavy vehicles.
  • Tendency to become 'greasy' or lose peak grip during extended track sessions.
  • Stiff sidewalls can make mounting the tires onto rims difficult.
All owner themes in the Potenza RE 71RS review

Tire B Potenza S-04 Pole Position

Pros

  • Excellent dry handling and cornering stability
  • Competent performance in wet conditions
  • Unexpectedly high levels of ride comfort for a performance-oriented tire

Cons

  • Rapid tread wear rate
  • Audible road noise or humming on certain surfaces
  • Wet-weather performance is good but outperformed by some direct competitors
All owner themes in the Potenza S-04 Pole Position review

What real owners are saying

From Reddit, forums and review threads. Not part of our score

Tire A

Bridgestone Potenza RE 71RS

Positive

Community sentiment toward the Bridgestone Potenza RE-71RS is overwhelmingly positive, with drivers praising its high grip levels, responsive turn-in, and improved refinement over the older RE-71R. Discussions frequently center around track and autocross setups, optimal hot tire pressures, clearance pricing, and its streetability regarding road noise and gravel pickup. Minor caveats noted include fast wear characteristic of 200tw competition tires and rotation limits stemming from an asymmetrical tread design.

Top themes
#track and autocross performance#tire pressure tuning#road noise and refinement#clearance pricing and availability#fitment and sizing#tread wear and longevity#comparison to previous RE-71R

Based on 33 community posts

Tire B

Bridgestone Potenza S-04 Pole Position

We haven't collected enough community discussion about this tire yet.

Specs side by side

Attribute A · Bridgestone Potenza RE 71RS B · Bridgestone Potenza S-04 Pole Position
CategorySummerSummer tire
Vehicle typePassenger Car / CrossoverPassenger Car / Crossover
Sizes available10—
Rim diameters15″ – 19″—
Tread depth7/32″—
UTQG200 A A—
SidewallBlackwall—
Max pressure51 psi—

Which one should you actually buy?

Bridgestone Potenza RE 71RS

Bridgestone Potenza S-04 Pole Position

Only Bridgestone Potenza RE 71RS has enough test and review data for a Relative Score, so there is no head-to-head winner yet.

Tire A · Bridgestone Potenza RE 71RS
Tire B · Bridgestone Potenza S-04 Pole Position

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How do we compare tires?

Every category score blends two independent signals. 60% comes from professional tire tests (braking distances, lap times, noise measurements), each result compared with every other tire in the same test and newer tests counting more. 40% comes from owner reviews found online, adjusted for how generously each site rates. Both use one scale: the average tested tire gets 70, the best 100. When a tire has only one of the two, the missing half is estimated from the other and the score stays closer to average; with no road test and fewer than five owner reviews it gets no score yet.

Handling is the exception: road tests measure it inside the dry and wet scores, so its own row comes from owner ratings only and starts as less important.

Community buzz from Reddit and forums is shown for context only — it never changes the score. Full methodology