Just my personal view of the tyres I've had so far on the GTR. The majority of my riding is on the motorway.
Pirelli Angel ST
Score 8/10
Pro: Sticky tyre. Holds the road well and drops in nicely
Con: Rear wore after 5000 miles
Michelin PR 2
Score 8/10
Pro: Solid stable tyre with quick turn in. Excellent wear. Rear had 10000 miles, but decided to change as was squaring off. Would have got another few thousand out of it
Con: Can be a bit squirmish at speed when the road is cold. In summer they are fine
Continental Road Attack 2
Score 5/10
Pro: Low speed turn in and handling is brilliant. Easy to scrape the pegs with these tyres.
Con: At speed, these tyres don't grip too well. I think its down to the side walls, so until there's a specific version for the GTR I'm staying away. I will try these again if Continental produce a specific version as I believe they have the potential to be the best tyre for the GTR
Bridestone BT021
Score 3/10
Pro: They come for free on the bike
Con: Watch the handling deteriorate after a few thousand miles. Terrible turn in
As I'm the slowest rider in the world I can pick from any of the above. ;D
Norman - Please can you explain what you mean by "turn in"?
Thanks
Turn in - when taking a bend how much effort through counter steering is required to tip the bike in? And once leant into the bend how stable is the grip and line?
The bridgestones were terrible at turn in once worn.
I now have the Michelin PR2's fitted - and Norman you are right - it does feel like a new bike. Gone is the tendency for the bike to "fall into the corners" (especially slow corners like roundabouts)
On all corners now, the bike now stays beautifully on line and keeps the same lean angle all the way round the corner.
Great tyres - and thank you for your recommendation!!
I haven't had a chance to try them in the wet. It doesn't get wet too often in the south of Spain!!
Quote from: Sahagun on November 04, 2010, 10:07:58 AM
I now have the Michelin PR2's fitted - and Norman you are right - it does feel like a new bike. Gone is the tendency for the bike to "fall into the corners" (especially slow corners like roundabouts)
On all corners now, the bike now stays beautifully on line and keeps the same lean angle all the way round the corner.
Great tyres - and thank you for your recommendation!!
I haven't had a chance to try them in the wet. It doesn't get wet too often in the south of Spain!!
I think you will find they are a very capable tyre in the wet also.
They'll be fine in the wet. On a very cold day, the tyres don't warm up fully which is their only drawback. You won't have that problem in Spain
Michelin PR 2's everytime .........
I've just ordered a pair of Metzler Z8's
Here's hoping they are good for the winter and better than the Angel STs. I'll write a review once I've put on a few thousand miles
Just fitted the Avon Storm ultra 2 to my recently aquired GTR. I didn't ride it before the new tyres as they were fooked!
I've used lots of Avons previously on the Hayabusa, I liked them so hopefully they will be as good for the GTR.
The Strom Ultra 2 gets good reviews as well. It is on my short list, but as soon as I find a tyre that grips well and lets me throw the bike around that it.
Guys,
Anyone found any better option than the Michelin PR2? I have 6,500 on my OEM Bridgestones, and whilst I'd agree that the turn in does suffer when they wear, I must say I find them pretty good tyres. They seem to last well with me too, I reckon at least another 1,000 left in mine and they are both wearing evenly.
As you can probably gather from the mileage, I don't ride the GTR like a sportsbike :D
So, my priorities would be mileage, dry grip, then wet grip. Anything better than PR2s? Anyone tried the BT-023?
Martin.
Martin... as previously stated I always go with the PR 2's as they are everything you have listed ... Like you I don't ride like a sports bike and I got nearly 10000 miles out of my last rear .. mostly commuting I admit along motorways and dual carriageways at a steady speed so perhaps the mileage is thus extended, however they are good rubber ! Get some !
If you don't open the throttle that much then the PR2s are the one to go for. Not tested the BT023
Got to admit I used the Avons on both FJRs they never let me down at slow or high speeds & last better than any others I've used. The GTR came with new set of Bridgestones. allready had back end kick out on me twice at R abouts. So cant wait to wear them & fit the Avons...what are they now Azores...or changed name again.
Rode a Blackbird with Azzaros (Sp?) for work in torrential conditions - must say they were superb.
Using ST Angels which are superb on the GTR
Hi
I have recently had fitted a set of Pilot Road 3's
I have done 500 miles on the PR3's where the road conditions have varied from dry, damp to wet.
The handling, grip and performance is very good :) Handling is always difficult to describe but the PR3's do seem to turn in quicker than the BT021's and giving the bike a bit more of a sportier feel to its handling which is nice ;) It is always difficult to make comparison with tyres on other bikes but they do seem to have improved the PR3's by giving them a more sportier feel then the PR2's - I had two sets of PR2's on the CBF1000.
An interesting observations
The tyre pressure seems to vary more than with the BT021. The tyre pressure started at 42 psi and the air temperature varied between 4-6 deg C. Under normal riding conditions the tyre pressure was showing 44 psi but it would drop by 1-2 psi when I had to slow down and take it easy through towns and villages etc or when the tyres weren't been worked as hard although it didn't change the level of grip or the handling.
It will be interesting to see what happens in warmer weather :-\
Steve
Steve.. as you can see from previous entries about tyres the PR2' s get a good write up. I would imagine in the warmer weather you will simply get a firmer, better feeling of grip and confidence ... I shall go back to PR2's or try the 3's when my tyres are up for changing.
tyres have allways been well talk about. but am finding it confusing! because both the gtr1400 and the zzr1400 come standard with bridgestones, zzr1400 bt14 and the gtr140 bt21. now both theses tyres get some bad press form the owners of theses 2 excellent bikes! but have got no complaints from the bt14 tyres on my zzr1400, have just put the 3 rd rear on and am half way through my 2nd front on the zzr1400. the rear seems to last around 3,000 miles and the front 6,000 miles, dont see any other tyre lasting any longer with the b.h.p my zzr1400 throws out at the rear wheel, unless you want to ride around like a sunday rover driver! I went to the french alps last year on the zzr1400 and had the bt1400 on the rear, me and my mate on his hayabusa give the mountain roads some stick, and the bt14 tyre was exceptional, the grip was spot on as normal, yet zzr1400 riders seem to change there tyres as soon as they can. am I missing out on some thing here! as far as the gtr1400 is concearned, well I am not in a position to comment just yet. with me only getting the bike late september and the weather being shit, have not had time to really test the tyres, have noticed the gtr1400 bt21 tyres also get some stick, but I have a feeling they will be as good as the bt14 tyre, suppose its also reasonable to asume, kawasaki boffins would only fit tyres that would compliment the gtr1400 and ensure there the best allrounder for the bike! now am not saying all you guys are wrong, I very may need to eat my words when have had chance to test the tyres fully! but remmember the bt14 tyre was also voted as a bad tyre, yet I find it to be excellent choice for the zzr1400. as far as am concerned kawasaki made the right choice fitting the zzr1400 with the bt14. surely its fair to asume kawasaki have done the same with the gtr1400 and picked the best allrounder, best for the job.
it's a funny world isn't it ? Kawasaki spend shed loads of money on R and D and clearly in their view the BT's are the best tyres to supply and compliment their bikes and yet most of us can't wait to get rid of them ! i think it's in the mind when it comes to individuals perception... we all want a different tyre for the different riding we do ... 2Kwacks gives it large in the mountains but I need a longer lasting tyre for commuting so i think that whatever tyre you have on the bike it's still going to get you from A to B, round the bends and through the rain .. it's just a matter of choice !
qoute from lordrusty- "2Kwacks gives it large in the mountains"
yea! but the zzr1400 was the better ride ;D
Quote from: Lord Rusty on February 27, 2011, 10:48:29 AM
Steve.. as you can see from previous entries about tyres the PR2' s get a good write up. I would imagine in the warmer weather you will simply get a firmer, better feeling of grip and confidence ... I shall go back to PR2's or try the 3's when my tyres are up for changing.
I think the PR3's are an improvement on the PR2's, and after having been out on the GTR the last couple of days in a wide variety of weather conditions including torrential rain and hail then I have total confidence in the tyres.
It will be interesting to see what mileage I can get out of them - anything above 8,000 miles would be nice but I don't expect to get the 11-12,000 miles I managed with PR2's (twice) on the CBF1000.
Steve
I'll be putting Z8's on my bike shortly. The Conti Road Attack 2s are almost gone. A few thousand more and that's it. I may try the PR3's after
I would be interested in how you get on with the Z8's. They were on my short list and I think it was a toss of a coin/previous experience of PR2's that made me select the PR3's
Steve
Got mine booked in Saturday for 4k service and having a set of Avon Storm Ultra 2 fitted at the same time, replacing the oem BT021 that i found ok on the bike. I'll update as they become scrubbed in.
Get scrubbing pembsgtr ... we want to hear what you think !
I had exactly similar problems with my bike "dropping" into the corners when I had 021's on. Scary.
I followed the tyre advice here on the Forum and fitted Michelin Road Pilot 2's. They are fantastic and really inspire so much confidence while cornering. It is like a totally different bike. I now take the same corners faster, and still legally, and just hang on and enjoy the ride !!
Please note though I live in the south of Spain - so my tyres are usually warm and dry.