Bridgestone Driveguards Run Flats

Here in Central FL, there is an Interstate (I-4) going thru a multi year widening project - and with that, never ending construction with the occasional road hazard debris on the road. So as I travel this road on a regular basis, I was due and today it happened - ran over a hard object that blew the tire (thankful that my Neauspeed RSe10 rim held up)...no spare on the R so had to wait for hours for AAA tow.

Decided to go with the Bridgestone Driveguards all around as I wanted run flats. The ride home felt fine and no different than the Bridgestone Potenza's that were on the car from the factory. Anyone else running these? If so, how have they been for you?

Forgive me, but I don't believe they actually do ride the same.
Having driven lots of BMWs with Run Flats and driven some of
them swapped to normal tires, I'm convinced the difference is
no less than huge. Compare new to new, not low-tread, worn,
aged and hardened tires to brand new ones.

You would be better off looking ahead and avoiding the debris as a punctured runflat is still going to need repairing or replacing. Not sure what sort of debris you mean but surely you can see it easily?

The ride will be much choppier with them fitted and potentially spoil the cars comfort.

breaking badly said:

Forgive me, but I don't believe they actually do ride the same.
Having driven lots of BMWs with Run Flats and driven some of
them swapped to normal tires, I'm convinced the difference is
no less than huge. Compare new to new, not low-tread, worn,
aged and hardened tires to brand new ones.

Click to expand...

Yes, I have had run flats on my 2003 Corvette and did swap them out as I did notice a difference. These new Bridgestones (came out in 2014) somehow lessen that hard as a rock feel I had experienced in the past. (By the way, the tires on the car only had 13,000 miles on them - far from worn out w/low tread).

Finglonga said:

You would be better off looking ahead and avoiding the debris as a punctured runflat is still going to need repairing or replacing. Not sure what sort of debris you mean but surely you can see it easily?

The ride will be much choppier with them fitted and potentially spoil the cars comfort.

Click to expand...

Hard to see past an 18 wheeler - I was behind a truck in the middle lane of a crowded highway, I had a second of actually seeing it before I was on top of it with cars on either side of me - no where to swerve in a heavy construction area where the lane widths are tight and everyone is close. I have been driving over 40 years and this is the first time I have done this, so yeah thanks for the advice.

These tires are guaranteed to be able to drive 50 miles at 50 mph on a tire completely flat so you can safely get to a shop for repair if you do experience a flat on the road.


In regards to ride comfort/feel - As I said previously, the ride home didn't feel much different but I guess time will tell. It definitely didn't feel like my Corvette did when it had Goodyear run flats. As these Driveguards just came out in '14, maybe they were able to improve their handling and ride feel from other older brands. This is why I wanted to know if any other members are on these Bridgestone Driveguards.

For daily driving most will like the Drive Guards.
They have worked to improve them. The Ecopia line will be a quite tire for those wanting this. FYI they are designed to run flat but might not be usable after you get to the tire dealer. Unless only driven a short distance flat they might likely need replacing.
For emergency use as in your situation.

You dont think it makes more sense to just buy a donut?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

GolfWang said:

You dont think it makes more sense to just buy a donut?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Click to expand...

For you or me, yes.
My Wife? No.
She would likely not get 1 bolt off.
She only has a 4 mile drive but if flat occurred she would not be on side of road.
On an interstate commute through a big city one would not be on side of road changinga tire while cars pass at 80mph.

Situational choice.

cal45 said:

These tires are guaranteed to be able to drive 50 miles at 50 mph on a tire completely flat so you can safely get to a shop for repair if you do experience a flat on the road.

Click to expand...

No repair after a few miles at 50mph due to them overheating. Designed to get you to the place to get them replaced without changing a wheel. They can tell as the rubber on the runflats turns a blue hue when they overheat and makes it a replacement only unless you limp to the nearest garage to keep them cool.

breaking badly said:

Forgive me, but I don't believe they actually do ride the same.
Having driven lots of BMWs with Run Flats and driven some of
them swapped to normal tires, I'm convinced the difference is
no less than huge. Compare new to new, not low-tread, worn,
aged and hardened tires to brand new ones.

Click to expand...

^ this.

It's like going from cinderblocks to marshmallows.

Plus the the runflats are expensive to replace and they normally don't have the same levels of grip.

I yanked the run flats off of my e90 335i and ran regular tires with some slime and s amall compressor. No ragrets.

One point to mention is that folks are posting about older brands of run flats - not their actual experience with the Bridgestone Driveguards, which are newer to the market. I agree (as I have posted) that the GY run flats on my Vette were rocks - now after having the R out today, I will say that there is a felt difference (stiffer/harder) from the Potenza's I replaced but the ride is a lot better than GY run flats that were on my Vette. Still looking for someone that has these to see if they have the same assessment.

GolfWang said:

You dont think it makes more sense to just buy a donut?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Click to expand...

No - Maybe for you, not for me.

I lost my left leg above the knee in a Motorcycle accident over 30 years ago. I'm not going to roll along the ground with a prosthetic leg to change a flat on a busy highway.