Last updated on April 5th, 2024 at 11:10 pm
The Bridgestone Duravis R500 HD is a 2000s tire and is still around in 2024. The customer satisfaction and reviews keep pushing Bridgestone to continue manufacturing these tires, even after a decade.
This is an all-season highway touring tire made for SUVs, Pickup, and Recreational vehicles. The point of this tire is to deliver rugged drive on highways with heavy weights and stay in good shape for a longer period.
This tire’s comfort and quietness on highways make it unique from other heavy-weight tires. Commercial drivers are mostly on the roads, and comfort matters for these drivers.
Let’s talk in detail about how this tire performs and its durable build.
Table of Contents
Performance of Bridgestone Duravis R500 HD
Drive in Dry
You could expect these points from this tire when driving on dry summer roads.
- Due to tire design and tread compounds, the tire grips and corners property on dry road conditions, even with heavy weights.
- Speed in dry and hot conditions is also better than it is in wet and snowy conditions.
- Brakes, response, and traction are all first class, sometimes better than new tires in this category.
- The tire is designed specifically for dry and warm weather, so there are no worries about overheating the tire at higher paces.
- Comfort is on another level, especially on dry highway roads, with quieter and smoother rides.
Overall, in dry conditions, this tire is exceptional, with performance, when only driving in hot weather and conditions, this tire’s durability also shines.
Drive in Wet
The Bridgestone Duravis R500 HD is not as good in wet conditions as it is in dry conditions. You will get a mix of performance.
- The tire will grip okay if the roads are mildly wet without carrying heavy weights. If there is a weight on a vehicle, or the rain is blazing, this tire will be a nightmare to drive.
- The traction, brakes, and response all fail when the roads are wetter than usual. Driving at a slower pace might get you safer to your destination.
- Comfort and noise are still good in wet conditions, you can expect a smooth ride in rainy seasons as well.
- Closed shoulders resist water from passing, which hydroplane tire on standing water, resulting in poor response and hazardous ride.
Overall, wet roads, are not the best terrain for this tire, however, with proper care, you can achieve okay rides in wet and rainy conditions.
Drive in snow
Don’t get confused by the all-season mark on this tire, when it comes to dry and wet conditions, it can get you through, however, when it comes to snow, you may prefer to walk rather than drive it.
- Unlike wet conditions where the tire is at least comfortable, when it comes to snow, the tire is not even comfortable, rather it is discomforting and unreliable to drive.
- Poor grip, traction, and brakes are some of the scary sectors that drivers face when dealing with snow, even with new tires.
- The absence of biting edges, 3D sipes, and other advanced features that new tires come with, make it a poorer choice to risk on snowy terrains.
- Weight or no weight, the response will be daunting, even at a slower pace.
- Tread will be wiped after driving for 5K to 10K miles on snowy roads.
Based on drivers’ experiences and reviews, we recommend not taking the risk of driving these tires during the winter season and going with exclusive winter-season tires for safe and reliable rides.
Built of Bridgestone Duravis R500 HD
Center ribs and tread design
Most all-season tires have 3 ribs on the tread area for better results in different all-weather conditions; however, this tire has two ribs, so it performs moderately in wet and snow conditions.
The tread pattern is similar to that of rugged off-road tires, with separate blocks with a deep tread depth of 15/32. It’s impossible to find this tread pattern on new tires, which is why certain drivers still prefer this tire.
Cut ribs and open blocks reject stones and other debris from sticking on the tread, which results in a comfortable and quiet ride on highways.
Sidewalls characteristics
Dual sidewalls are designed to tackle difficult situations while carrying weights, with the help of sidewalls, the tire resists damage and lasts longer.
High casing and TBR compound make it equivalent to heavy-duty commercial tire stability.
Shoulder blocks
Bridgestone Duravis R500 HD features closed shoulder slots, which have both positive and negative effects.
- The closed shoulders are helpful for corners and gripping on turns. The solid blocks also help in improving tire life.
- Weights require a solid base, which is also provided by these rugged closed shoulder blocks, which is why this tire can carry very high weights without disturbing the ride.
- Open shoulders are required for proper wet and snow grip; without them, the channeling of water is disturbed, which is why this tire lacks in both of these conditions.
Sipes and Grooves
The tire features 3D low-dense volume sipes, which help improve grip and traction in all-season conditions.
The grip on wet and snow is weak as it features a very low number of sipes. However, for the same reason, the performance in dry conditions improves.
Similarly, grooves with open shoulders are perfect for wet conditions; though this tire features 3 deep groove slots, the closed shoulder stops it from performing in wet and slippery conditions.
Supporting conditions
Off-road vs city roads
This tire falls under the same category as Michelin Defender LTX M/S, one of the top tires of this time because of its performance on off-road and highways. However, this Bridgestone Duravis R500 HD is far below when it comes to off-road performance.
So, when it comes to highways and city roads, the tire may be perfect for your vehicles based on your preferences, but it is not so good for debris, gravel, and other unstable routes.
You will get an uncomfortable ride, early wear-off, and loose grip and traction when you drive off-road. On the other hand, if you drive on city streets, you will get a comfortable ride on heavy weights and reliable performance and traction.
Highway vs. city roads
City roads are somewhat different from smooth asphalt highways, and sometimes, you may get different performance in both of these terrains.
The city has concrete and grassy roads; you can also expect bumps and potholes there. So, on city roads, the tire is less comfortable and less smooth.
However, when it comes to highway high-speed rides, the tire delivers a more comfortable and quieter ride, even when carrying weights. The recommended conditions for this tire are also on highways; you can not expect similar performance on city streets as on highways.
Wet vs. Snow
As mentioned above, both situations are hard to tackle with this tire. However, when deciding whether to drive in wet or snow conditions, you should always go in wet conditions.
In wet conditions compared to snow, you will get better response and brakes; also, the treadwear won’t get damaged as it would on snow.
Still, it would be difficult to carry high weights or drive faster than normal speeds in wet conditions. While on snow, driving slowly at low weights is troublesome. That is why avoid driving this tire on snow terrains.
Specs of Bridgestone Duravis R500 HD
Treadwear
The best thing about this tire is its treadwear durability. If you drive mostly on highways, you can expect higher than 100K miles on one set of tires.
Although maintenance and conditions of the road matter, still if you stick to the normal conditions, and do not hit snow or go off-road often, you will get the most value out of these tires.
It’s all based on customer reviews and experience on the road, considering it has no treadwear warranty. If the tire fails early, you may not get reimbursements for this tire.
So, if you want to exceed or utilize the full potential of the tire, sick to the dry highways, which is why it is called a highway touring tire.
Compatibility
This tire is compatible with Pickups, RVs, Light trucks, and SUVs. You may not find the correct sizes for your wheel as it is an older tire.
If you are looking for towing weights and driving on dry highways, you might not get anything better than this due to its pricing and reliability on highways.
Unlike other highway tires, which are great at only lifting weights, this tire is good with that and also provides comfortable and quiet rides on highways.
Weights
The tire is rated 115-123 and can carry 2679 to 3417, depending on the size. It’s good enough for towing most of the stuff on highways. Most highway touring tires come in a similar weight range, which is a standard in this category.
However, only a few tires in this category deliver a quiet and comfortable ride with heavy weight, and this Bridgestone Duravis R500 HD is among them. This is why it is so popular among heavy-weight highway drivers.
The Bridgestone Duravis R500 HD is an old tire launched back in 2010, and in 2024, it is still in demand. The reason is that this tire treadwear is reliable, comfortable, and quiet, and it has heavy weight-lifting capabilities. Overall, the tire performs well in dry conditions. However, it struggles in wet and wintery conditions, so make sure to drive cautiously in these conditions.
