What is the best SPORT-tour tire for the VFR

Discussion in 'Mechanics Garage' started by reg71, Mar 17, 2009.

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Best SPORT-tour tire in your opinion

  1. Pirelli Diablo

    3 vote(s)
    5.5%
  2. Bridgestone Battlaxe

    7 vote(s)
    12.7%
  3. Michelin Pilot Road

    6 vote(s)
    10.9%
  4. Continental Road Attack

    12 vote(s)
    21.8%
  5. Dunlop Roadsmart

    4 vote(s)
    7.3%
  6. Metzeler M3

    4 vote(s)
    7.3%
  7. Pirelli Corsa III

    0 vote(s)
    0.0%
  8. Michelin 2CT

    11 vote(s)
    20.0%
  9. Pirelli Strada

    7 vote(s)
    12.7%
  10. Shinko (any)

    1 vote(s)
    1.8%
  1. reg71

    reg71 Poser Staff Member

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    I am only allowed 10 so I'm going to try to list the most common ones in no particular order. If you reply, please include a concise message estimating your mileage, price, handling, looks, or anything you think is pertinent about the tires. This is intended to help people shopping for tires. I'm still working on this... I was making a poll but I ran into too many tires. I want to make it where you select what is in your opinion the best but first I have to narrow it down to 10. So, give me 10 Sport touring tires, then 10 sport TOURing tires . we'll have to leave off the sport tires on this one. once we have a pretty fair idea of the most popular, we'll list the poll and let everyone vote on both polls...

    I like the conti road attack
     
    Last edited: Mar 17, 2009
  2. emon07

    emon07 New Member

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    My choice for best Sport Tour tire is the Dunlop RoadSmart tire. I have tried other tires that were good, but the Dunlop RoadSmart is my favorite. The Dunlop tires has a somewhat flat profile which gives the bike a stable feel and a kinda soft ride without feeling loose. Front tire feedback is excellent, no problems on groved roads the bike stays steady and stable. I ride year round in NYC and the Dunlop tires warm up quickly by comparison to other tires. Also, tire grip is excellent and stable when riding/stopping in wet weather and also on cold roads in temps below 30 degrees. The Dunlop tires are not the most flickable so you do have to push a little into a turn to lean the bike (can drag a knee if you want to), and the tires grips and tracks through a turn with ease. I have run the tires up to a little over 140mph and the bike was stable as hell. I have run the tires through 1 1/2 winter seasons in NYC and I am very happy with the tire. Don't want to BS about the mileage, but I have put approx 4k miles on the tires and I should be good for the upcoming season and some. You can get the Dunlop RoadSmart tires online for a decent price at MOTORCYCLE PRO SHOP- Compare Motorcycle Exhaust, Motorcycle Tire, and Motorcycle Accessories with free shipping (current set price for VFR - $262.00) - hope this helps.
     
  3. vfr2k2

    vfr2k2 New Member

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    Tires

    emon07...spot on!

    While I don't have much to add other than I ride mostly rural roads with some "freeway" rides and very little city driving I agree with your comments 100%.

    Great tire!!
     
  4. RWB25

    RWB25 New Member

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    Thanks for starting this thread Reg. I still have the original OEM/crap tires on my 07 and will be looking to replace them very soon. So since I have no real value to contribute, I'll stop typing, step aside and wait for others to chime in to help me decide on which tires to consider when compiling my short list.

    :ranger:

    .
     
  5. Joey_Dude

    Joey_Dude Member

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    Continental Road Attack

    I've had sets of Continental Road Attacks for almost a year and half. Here are some pros/cons:

    Pros:
    • Excellent grip, I've dragged the footpegs with no slipping.
    • Relatively long lasting, 5K-7K on rear
    • Modestly priced compared to other sport-touring tires. Through ridedirect.com they fetch approx $200 per set
    • The tread pattern looks pretty cool, I actually get comments about them because it looks like some exotic wild brand of tires.

    Cons:
    • Slight headshake at low speeds because of the way the treads are grooved. Unless you're in the habit of riding hands-free I don't think it's a big issue.
    • Grip in the cold (30s and below) isn't fantastic but it's a moot point because I don't haul when it's that cold out
    • The handling is a little sluggish compared to sport tires. This is due to the rounded profile.

    Overall, I like those tires and I would not hesitate to recommend those tires to anyone wanting to do sport-touring. The only thing that's keeping those tires from getting into sport category is its handling.

    You can have fun in the twisties but it's going to wear you out because you gotta push with more effort. Plus you gotta almost plan out your turns ahead due to the delayed response of the tires.

    However, if I was going on a cross-country trip and want to have some fun riding at the various destinations I would slap those Road Attacks on.
     
  6. R.W.

    R.W. New Member

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    For a pure Sport-touring tires I would recommend the Continental Road Attacks, On the three or four sets I had I averaged 4,500 miles on the rear and 9,000 on the front and definitely used every bit of the tread, not bad mileage since I'm 6' and 225lbs and always carried a heavy tail pack loaded down with camera eq. and misc. stuff, The thing I hate to see is when people waste their money and buy a sticky set of $350.00 dollar tires when a good set of $220.00 sport-touring tires will do for their riding characteristics...
     
  7. Action

    Action New Member

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    I really like the Pilot Road 2’s. Dual compound front and rear with a slightly sharper profile that gives a little quicker turn in. Great grip in the cold and they stick well in the twisties. They do well in the rain but since I live in the desert I’ve only ridden with them in the rain a few times. I’m 250 lbs with gear and I always have crap in my tail bag. Every other rear tire I’ve tried was shot right about 5k miles. So far I’ve put 5K on the PR2’s and still have decent tread left. I’m guessing I should get about 7K out of the rear and 9K out of the front.

    Action
     
    Last edited: Mar 17, 2009
  8. emon07

    emon07 New Member

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    Thanks VFR2K2 - happy to add to the group. Good info from RW and others - I gotta agree with RW about people who pay through the nose for sticky tires for a Sport Touring bike. The common trait with Sport Touring tires is that they have a flatter profile and require a little more work to lay into a turn, and should be good for high mileage. Of course a good suspension and setup always helps too. Maybe the next thread we should do is suspension setup - weight specific, type of riding and VFR track day suspension setup.
     
  9. RVFR

    RVFR Member

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    OMG a tire thread, How cool..:cool::reg:

    Front
    [​IMG]

    Rear
    [​IMG]

    #1 for Sport touring, Pirelli Diablo Corsa 3s. Hands down the winner, you need to have tried em before you say anything, if you have, then your input has merit.

    #2 for sport Touring No surprise here, Pirelli Diablos, again one needs to have tried em to really understand what I am talking about.

    Close second is the Bridgestone Battle axe series, great tire that gets no respect. It is what I ran on for years prior, had no complaints until the Pirellis showed up, that and BS discontinued the BS56r so what was I to do.

    I have tried on in the past years a many a tire, but in the last 3+ years I have found no reason to change since I have found these Corsas to be so user friendly. They give great feed back and confidence. almost, maybe to much if your riding ability isn't able to take advantage.

    Both the 3s and standards I'm seeing 10-11k on the fronts and 7-9k on the rear, and I too like RW use the whole tire. Both stick like glue both in dry and wet, they also balance out really well, besides IMO they have a cool tread pattern.

    One other note here, due in part to the front tire having a Z pattern this tire does not give the VFR the dreaded head shake, even when worn.
     
  10. jaimev34

    jaimev34 New Member

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    So far my vote goes to the Michelin Pilot Road 2. Perfect mix of sport and touring. The dual compound ensures a long tire life and the necessary grip up in the mountains. As I have stated in another thread, my front tire has over 12K miles on it (I changed the front when I bought it with 21.5K and the bike now has 33.5K) and I'll probably ride it up to SLO3 and back. I ride the mountains pretty agressively on the weekends, so I can vouche for its grip. I love this tire. Right now I have a Dunlop Roadsmart as my rear tire. It has about 2.5 K miles on it and it's showing some wear on the center. I don't know if it will last me another 2.5K. I think the Pilot Road 2 rear may last a bit longer than the Roadsmart. I will try that one again once this one goes.

    Pros:
    -Long life
    -Grip
    -Widely available

    Cons:
    -Price!!!! (That's it)
     
  11. olddudesrule

    olddudesrule New Member

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    Michelin Road Pilot!

    Great grip, dual compound, wear seems much better than my former OEM's, and the price (through Cycle Gear) was great ($230 front and rear).
     
  12. deepdish

    deepdish Banned

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    chen shing
     
  13. Y2Kviffer

    Y2Kviffer Insider

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    +1 Michelin Pilot Road... have 7k on the rear and still has lots of life left.
     
  14. havcar

    havcar New Member

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    I would make the argument that the metzler M3 belongs in this catergory. While this tire is in the sportie sport/touring group, it does a lot in terms of mileage, handling, wet weather, and stickiness. Thier multi-compound recipe just seems to suit most of our VFR needs. Plus they look phenominal.

    I've got 3500 miles on the rear, and will probablly need to replace at 6 or 7000 miles. It handles perfectly, so I guess I'm cool with a 7000 mile lifespan.
     
  15. nvoges

    nvoges New Member

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    Michelin Pilot Road 2CT's are by far the best tire I've ever used. The only problem with them is price.
     
  16. jay956

    jay956 New Member

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    i got a set of Pirelli Diablo Stradas on mine. seem good to me, im still kinda a beginner so i dont hit the twisties hard or anything. got about 2000 miles on em and almost no signs of wear.
     
  17. mello dude

    mello dude Administrator

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    I would like to see someway that we could set up a chart and just fill in the blanks. Entries would be front/rear mileage, compliance, stickyness in turns, braking, wet handling and throw in riding style as easy/medium/hard riding etc.
    Just some method to take a ton of data and be able to look at it in a glance. The poll tool on this site is too general. Any ideas?

    MD
     
  18. RVFR

    RVFR Member

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    ^ Add in a price point too, as I'm thinking a lot of folks try and get the best bang for the buck. LOL was why I switched and took the chance, good thing I did other wise I'd probably be riding on 2Cs :rolleyes:
     
  19. havcar

    havcar New Member

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    For a pair of Metzler M3's 180/55/17, we're looking at $400, expensive I know, but worth it.
     
  20. bitterpil

    bitterpil New Member

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    +1
    There is a chart something like this on VFRD
     
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