Fuzion tires

[Brikhead]

OK, I just did something that I swore to myself I'd never do.....purchase an all new, untested (by the consumer base) tire. Yup....I'm the guinea pig.

Anyway, the tire is the new Fuzion HRi. My decision to but them was strictly price driven since they are the lowest price that the Tire Rack sells in 205/55R16. They won't be going on my Wife's VW Golf until next week, but they do appear to be well made.
I honestly don't know too much about Fuzion other than that they are a branch of Bridgestone/Firestone. A visit to thier website yields no technical info whatsoever, which I find kind of frustrating. Are there any Fuzion tire owners out there who can calm my fears and reassure me of my purchase?

 

[novadude]

I have been eyeing those tires since I first saw them a few weeks ago. I am planning to try them in the summer, unless you come back and tell me they are crap!

 

[JeepZJ4.0]

quote:

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Originally posted by Brikhead:
OK, I just did something that I swore to myself I'd never do.....purchase an all new, untested (by the consumer base) tire. Yup....I'm the guinea pig.

Anyway, the tire is the new Fuzion HRi. My decision to but them was strictly price driven since they are the lowest price that the Tire Rack sells in 205/55R16. They won't be going on my Wife's VW Golf until next week, but they do appear to be well made.
I honestly don't know too much about Fuzion other than that they are a branch of Bridgestone/Firestone. A visit to thier website yields no technical info whatsoever, which I find kind of frustrating. Are there any Fuzion tire owners out there who can calm my fears and reassure me of my purchase?

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I've heard good things about the ZRi, other than treadwear but since this is an H rated tire, it should last longer. Don't worry, I think the Bridgestone company makes great tires, no matter which brand you purchase.

 

[SyntheticShield]

I have a friend that drives a 2003 Ford Focus SVT and competes in autocrosses and he is using the ZRi's and has had nothing but good things to say about them.

 

[Audi Junkie]

They appear similar to my Bridgestone Potenza G-009s in many respects. To me, that's a good sign. The only drawback to the G-009s is snow braking and the handling is very good...recovery especially so. TR had them in 16s for like $45! Sweet! I usually run a bald set of all seasons (I have 3 sets + snows) on hot-hot summer pavment but I am reluctant to buy new tires for my good BBS wheels because I would normally use new tires in winter and that would KILL the finish on my BBS. The Fuzion might allow me to actually spend for new tires on my new wheels!

 

[98AV6]

Check tirerack.
They tested a 225/45R/17 ZRi.

would the test results compare with a 16in HRi?

 

[Brikhead]

The Fuzion HRi's finally went on the Golf on Saturday and I took the Fam on a 500mi roadtrip to test `em out. Not a bad tire, considering the price! They are very smooth, even at "normal" highway speeds

. Wet grip was very impressive. If I have only 1 gripe, its the noise levels. Cruising on blacktop is no problem. However, on concrete, between 20 & 40mph....these treads just howl.

 

[tenderloin]

My son has had the HRi's on his 2002 Ford Focus ZTS for about 1000 miles. Size 205-50-16.

So far they are very quiet (no noise issues like previous poster). They handle well, with dry and wet traction very good. Very smooth ride for this catagory.

They are Made in Japan by Bridgestone, come in many "high performance" tire sizes, have a nice treadlife warranty unlike many tires in this catagory and are priced like a Korean tire.

Give them a look

 

[mikep]

quote:

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Originally posted by tenderloin:
My son has had the HRi's on his 2002 Ford Focus ZTS for about 1000 miles. Size 205-50-16.

So far they are very quiet (no noise issues like previous poster). They handle well, with dry and wet traction very good. Very smooth ride for this catagory.

They are Made in Japan by Bridgestone, come in many "high performance" tire sizes, have a nice treadlife warranty unlike many tires in this catagory and are priced like a Korean tire.

Give them a look

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The new Fuzion ZRi, at least from outside appearance and the brief pamphlet description, look to be a re-incarnation of the Firestone SZ50 which was discontinued as a Firestone offering. I've got the SZ50 for my Mazda6 and am extremely happy with the performance of the tire in both wet and dry conditions. If the Fuzion ZRi is indeed an updated SZ50 marketed under the new Firestone/Bridgestone family line, I'll put them on my short list when it comes time for new rubber.

 

[ccs2k1]

I have about 2k miles on a set of ZRis. So far so so. I like the steering responsiveness and cornering stability. They have excellent dry grip (no real experience on wet pavement or puddles), but they are very noisy under 30-40 mph, especially coming to a stop (a "wurl" drone). The ZRis also have a faily high rolling resistence (in neutral, the car doesn't roll down the hill from my neighborhood like it did before I had them put on and I have lost some gas mileage 1-2 mpg). Worst of all IMO, the agressive tread makes the steering pull in the direction of every road imperfection which is pretty dangerous on bad two lane roads. I've had the car pull a couple of times toward oncoming traffic, which was rather disconcerning.

Would I buy them again? probably not; let's see what the tread wear is.

 

[Brikhead]

Just a brief update.....about 4000mi on our HRi's now. Still no major complaints other than minor noise issues at low speeds. My Wife drives the car most of the time and the noise doesn't seem to bother her. Grip & handling are outstanding and the ride is comfortable. Since putting these on our Golf, two other people that I work with have purchased Fuzion HRi's for thier own vehicles. So far, thier evaluations of the tire concur with mine. I think Fuzion has a winner here.

 

[VaderSS]

I thought about guinea pigging the Fuzions, but did that for my last 2 sets. Had good results with the Kumho 712, but did not like the "flavor" of the Hankook K104. Struggled for a while, and went back to the 712. Very happy once more.

Now if I can just drive the car again...