Spotlight
Goodyear Eagle F1 All Season
In recent years, the term 'all-season' has lost most of its negative associations. Most tire manufacturers realize consumers don't like having to sacrifice dry performance on the off-chance of rain. Seeing the bigger picture, they've begun to design tires that perform all year round, making 'all-season' a feature rather than a type of tire. Goodyear has taken this one step further and designed the Eagle F1 All Season for drivers who want all-weather performance and safety.
Goodyear was the first tire manufacturer to integrate carbon fiber technology into its product line. The company has recently released the Eagle tire featuring ResponsEdge technology with two reinforced sidewalls, manufactured from carbon micro-fibers. There are many reasons for using carbon fiber technology in a tire, the most important being strength and light weight. When compared to a steel-reinforced sidewall, carbon fiber has a greater tensile strength that increases the directional stiffness of the sidewall, resulting in increased stability and maneuverability.
The Goodyear Eagle F1 All Season tire is a dual-compound type with an asymmetrical tread design that features:
Dual-zone tread pattern: a design that allows for optimal traction and performance in all types of weather conditions.
Ultra-performance zone: continuous center rib with grip-enhanced compound as well as aggressive outer shoulder tread blocks.
All-season zone: located on each side of the continuous center rib featuring Aquachutes, circumferential, and lateral grooves designed to channel water away from the tire footprint, thereby maximizing traction in the wet as well as snow.
TredLock microgroove technology: consisting of a series of cups and domes, located between the tread grooves, designed to open and close or even lock together based on changing road conditions. During normal driving conditions, they vary between open and closed positions. During cornering, they lock together to provide a rigid base for increased stability.
These are just some features. The 100-percent Kevlar InsuLayer cap helps absorb road noise and reduce vibrations caused by uneven road surfaces. The tire is manufactured using the latest silica tread compound, ensuring the tire retains its just-mounted look. To help keep wheel damage to a minimum, a built-in rim protector is included.
Available in sizes 16- to 20-inch with an aspect ratio of 55 to 30 series, Eagle F1 tires have a 420 treadwear grade, traction rating of AA, temperature rating of A, and certified with a Y speed rating good for up to 186 mph. And Goodyear is so confident you'll enjoy the response and handling of the Eagle F1 All Season tire that it's offering a 30-day no-obligation trial.
-Anthony Gelinas
HKS Hipermax RS coilovers are now available for select BMW applications. HKS has developed this new suspension through hours of street, autocross and road-race testing. We have yet to try them, but the construction quality looks top-notch. All aluminum parts are anodized and the dampers utilize a single tube design with oil and pressurized gas chambers. The oversized pistons all but eliminate flex in the unit, while aluminum mono-ball pillow blocks limit deflection in the mount for more positive turn-in and less camber loss. Ride height is adjustable, and the shortened cylinder body helps maintain travel at lower ride height. Damping rates are 30-way adjustable, and accessible without removing the units from the car. From $1,850 -Michael Febbo
HKS
310.491.3300
www.hksusa.com
Give your Porsche a new look. Clip the top and replace it with this VIS Racing Sports hard top formed from certified real carbon fiber. Available for 1999 to 2004 Porsche 996 models. $4,493
VIS Racing Sports
626.839.9833
www.visracing.com
New from PIAA, this bulb-and-socket assembly replaces the stock unit to give your BMW's headlamp rings a clean, white, 6500 Kelvin brilliance. It upgrades the LED ring color from an incandescent yellow to a brilliant HID, matching the factory HID headlamps. Available in twin packs for E87 1 Series, E39 and E60 5 Series, E63 6 Series E65 7 Series, E53 X5 and E90 3 Series. From $188.85
PIAA
www.piaa.com
+ Wheel of the Month
Up your game with Motegi Racing's SP7. It features a squared-off seven-spoke design engineered to maximize the visual depth of the polished stainless lip, with holes trailing from each spoke into the hub area for a unique look. Sizes include 7x17, 8x18, 8.5x19, 9.5x19 for BMW and Audi applications, and you can take your pick from silver or flat black finishes.
Motegi Racing
866.466.8344
www.motegiracing.com
Stoner's 30-minute shine kit features four high-volume aerosol cans of Stoner product: Speed Bead one-step quick wax, Trim Shine for vinyl-and plastic-coated trim, More Shine for a glossy, long-lasting tire coating, and Invisible Glass for ultra-clean windows and windshields. As the name states, all four products together only take 30 minutes for application, the result being a well-detailed vehicle with protection against harmful UV rays and road chemicals. $24.45 from the website
Stoner
800.227.5538
www.moreshine.com
Kicker's Comp subwoofer is engineered with serious muscle, including double stitching on the surround, coil-cooling perimeter venting, and a flex-killing ISD (Inverted Structural Dome). The Comp is versatile too, able to perform in free-air applications as well as in vented or sealed boxes. From $100
Kicker
800.256.5425
www.kicker.com