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After about a decade of being a top tire choice for modest-budget performance-driving, the Firestone Firehawk Indy 500 is finally getting a big update. The Firehawk Indy 500 V2 that dropped today promises to address the downsides of the outgoing tire without adding too much to the cost.
The Firehawk 500 has been a favorite for so long simply because it hits a sweet spot between price and performance. You get an aggressive tread pattern and a stiff sidewall yield great good-weather traction for not-too-much coin. The main weak points most people complain about are wet traction and tread life, which Firestone claims have been improved on with this new-for-2026 V2.
The Firehawk Indy 500 V2 has a new tread pattern (though it looks similar to the old one) and compound. Here are the key takeaways from the official sales pitch:
- There’s a “new connecting block tread design designed for cornering stability, an A-shape groove to help deliver reliable handling, and a new top compound to help enhance grip and responsiveness.” The wide inside rib supposedly contributes to a sense of “connection between the driver and the road.”
- A “Multi-Round Tread Block and refined tread pattern” is supposed to help the tires last longer.
- And perhaps most critically, a new rain pulse groove and “optimized contact patch designed for uniform pressure distribution and circumferential grooves that help evacuate water from the tread pattern” should improve wet-weather performance.
As far as pricing goes, it looks like the V2s command a relatively minimal premium. For example, MSRP is $286.99 per tire for 255/40R19 (OE size for a new Mustang GT) while the older model lists for $273.99 in the same size. But the smaller sizes in various diameters start under $200 per tire.
Firestone says these new V2 Firehawks are available immediately, but it looks like they’re still trickling out to distributors—TireRack has them, but not in all sizes yet. The tire should be available in 65 sizes, with fitments for 16- to 20-inch wheels, in the near-to-immediate future. The brand called out OE-size compatibility for the Chevy Camaro, Dodge Charger and Challenger, Ford Mustang, Mazda Miata, and Nissan 350Z and 370Z.
15-inch sizes, which you could get with the old Firehawk 500s, are not on the menu yet. They could join the mix later, but 15s are getting tough to find, so I wouldn’t get your hopes up if you’re still running wheels this small. It does not look like the original 500s are coming off the market yet.
Here’s the full list of sizes you can find at TireRack as of this writing:
- 16″ Wheels
- 17″ Wheels
- 18″ Wheels
- 19″ Wheels
- 20″ Wheels
As many enthusiasts know, the original Firestone Firehawk Indy 500 is a rebranded Bridgestone Potenza RE003 (sold in non-US markets). The Firehawks got and maintained popularity as people realized they created a more budget-friendly route to Bridgestone’s stiff sidewalls, asymmetric tread, and good silica compound. Similarly, I’m guessing that these new V2s are based on the newer Potenza RE004/RE005’s architecture, although Firestone isn’t explicitly advertising this.
These Firestone Firehawk Indy 500 V2 tires should definitely be on your radar if you’re looking for a well-priced option for warm-weather performance driving.
January is kind of a weird time to launch a summer performance tire—these won’t work well at all below 40°F and in fact shouldn’t even be stored below that temperature. But I bet this spring will be a great time to grab clearance deals on the older Indy 500 model as Firestone tries to hype the new ones. Or, if you’re eager to experience the improvements Firestone has made, consider checking out these new V2s.
Want to talk tires? Hit me up at andrew.collins@thedrive.com.