Tyres compared

[SimJen]

Interestingly, reading the latest superbike magazine they did a tyre test of sporty tyres (not race/road tyres) but everyday type with the odd trackday.
Michelin Pilot Powers topped the charts.
The new Metzeler M3 finished 4th......
I was considering the M3 before I bought the Powers but the interesting point and something I've never seen before in a tyre test is testing the cold braking distances ie. tyre not up to track temps, as in everyday motorway/commuting

The M3 was one of the worst.
From 70mph to 0mph it took 30.9metres to stop :scooter:

The Pilot Power and most of the others did it in 25m........
That extra 6 metres could be the bit that kills you especially as the last few metres is where the majority of your speed is dropped.

[cowpoos]

doesn't mean it couldn't....it just a test that relates to the feed back and confidence the tester had in the tyre...

[SimJen]

Yeah true, but two guys were testing em. Was okay in some areas but not others. Two of the brands were both shit when cold, you make your choices though. I've had enough of slippy semi-race stuff, especially on a lot of the roads I ride on and the cold wet weather doesn't make it any easier.

[cowpoos]

I have that mag....I couldn't believe how they rated the bt014's so highly....they are honestly a shit tyre!!!

[SimJen]

Yep, everyone seems to complain about BT014's
I was surprised to see the diablos so high too, but perhaps its just because we tend to see tyres other than the top race rubber as lowend or something?

[pritch]

Last time I looked at the Hornet's Nest site the members were rating BT014s and Diablos as the best tyres for the Hornet. Some tyres suit some bikes more than others. If you don't ride the same make and model as the testers used the information may not be exactly transferable?

[Cajun]

personally i liked the bt014's,
they were oem on my 600.

but con cue pilots are awsome tires, been riding on them for over 2 years now i think.

[sAsLEX]

I have that mag....I couldn't believe how they rated the bt014's so highly....they are honestly a shit tyre!!!

I have one on the rear and it aint too bad!

[Hellraiser]

yeah i like the 014's too

[ducatijim]

I have put down over 30000km on Mich Pilot powers on my Dook, they proved exceptional in all conditions, gave excellent feedback and gripped well when others were struggling in the same conditions.The Metz z6 is supposed to be as good/better, at this stage I find them to run out of 'feel' at high lean angles, and not so reliable in the wet and cold. Admittedly, my dook only had 85hp.

[The Pastor]

I just bought some bt45's they seem to have good grip!

[Jantar]

The M3 was one of the worst.
From 70mph to 0mph it took 30.9metres to stop :scooter:

The Pilot Power and most of the others did it in 25m........
That extra 6 metres could be the bit that kills you especially as the last few metres is where the majority of your speed is dropped.

wow. Those figures are impressive. You did say it was from 70 MPH, not KPH.

To stop in 30 m is 1.5 G, in only 25 m is 1.8 G. That is absolutely amazing. The best results I've ever seen previously was 0.98 G from an R6 with Diablos.

[NinjaBoy]

Interesting. I've just completed completed 12,000km on the M3's and had new Pilot Powers put on the 636 on Saturday. Once this wet weather eases up a bit to let me scrub in the tyres I might be able to make some comparisons.

[Toast]

I just bought some bt45's they seem to have good grip!

They've not got tonnes of grip, but real mean feel, I loved them on my CBR250...not sure how they'd be on a bigger bike.

[2_SL0]

doesn't mean it couldn't....it just a test that relates to the feed back and confidence the tester had in the tyre...

followed by


I have that mag....I couldn't believe how they rated the bt014's so highly....they are honestly a shit tyre!!!.


hmmm, I see a pattern.

[Toast]

The issue in question here is 3 issues old from present btw, the latest issue is September. Get the e-sub, then you don't have to put up with getting old info just 'cos we live at the end of the earth and paper is heavy.

[Monkeyboy]

I have that mag....I couldn't believe how they rated the bt014's so highly....they are honestly a shit tyre!!!

Why are they shit? I have one on my 954 and it seems OK. I managed to lean as far as the edges without any probs, am I missing something?

[myvice]

Running the M3's on the Daytona (swapped them from the Corsa Pro's) and I have no complaints so far...
Ran Pilot Powers on my Bandit and found them better than the Pilot Sports I had befor with the same sort of Ks.
BUT, Father-in-law ran the Pilot Sports on his Buell 1200 and found them slippery in the wet...
The Dunlop Qualifiers from the States are sposed to be very good, but the Japanese ones less so.
Don’t like the Bridgestone’s after problems with them on a CBR I had years ago, very different tyre now but I still won’t buy them.
The drawback with Pirelli’s is the extra $150-$200 you will be paying.

Best thing to do is talk to the people who sell them and tell them how, where and what you ride...
It’s their job to fit the tyres to you as well as your bike.
Always had good advice from Cycletreads and Mt Eden Motorbikes, but you have to be honest with them, if you tell every one you only commute at 30kph to work but really ride like Rossi with a dose of the runs then you might find your new Ching Chins don’t corner as well as you hoped!

[Dafe]

Saw a tyre shootout from Britain that placed the Pilot Powers a close second behind the brand new Dunlop Qualifiers.

I enquired about buying the Dunlops a few months back and had TSS motorcycles enquire into the availability. Turned out Dunlop NZ, were expecting the tyres to be available into the country about now.

Apparantly these Dunlops are the shiz.

http://www.amadirectlink.com/news/2005/Qualifier.asp

Personally I don't like the BT014's but I love the PP's.

[Lord Derosso]

I just bought some bt45's they seem to have good grip!


Good on you mate. So you got yourself all sorted after all ?
WOF OK ? Glad to hear you are on safe terms again.
Cheers and keep up the study.... I am back to it again soon.

[vifferman]

The bottom line is how YOU find the tyres, and how much confidence they give you in their ability to stick in the sorts of conditions/circumstances you ride in. The trouble with some of these "ultimate" tests is that the testers are often ex-racers or racer wannabes, who may not ride the sorts of conditions you and I ride in.
The best idea is to frequent a forum for the sorts of bikes you ride, get a feel for who's on it and how they ride (not how they say they ride), what tyres they recommend, then use that as a starting basis.
Mind you, having done that myself, I'm still confused. But I'm interested in trying the Pilot Powers.

[SimJen]

wow. Those figures are impressive. You did say it was from 70 MPH, not KPH.

To stop in 30 m is 1.5 G, in only 25 m is 1.8 G. That is absolutely amazing. The best results I've ever seen previously was 0.98 G from an R6 with Diablos.

Yep it was 70mph they listed but looking at other bike mags it looks like they have it wrong. Most superbikes/600s stop from that speed in around 50m!
So they made a typo, probably 25 metres should be 45m and 30 metres should be 50m??
Perhaps Toast has the next issue and can enlighten us if they issued a correction??
Some of the tyres I've used:
Sportec M1's I rated really high with good feel, turnin and edge grip but never lasted very long.
Michelin Pilot Race awesome, but downright dangerous when cold. Massive amounts of grip but took a little while to warmup. Crap mileage obviously.
Michelin Pilot Power, great tires with fast warmup, excellent cold/wet grip and still got enough sporting potential for most riders, including trackdays.
Its entirely a personal thing though.
Superbike in its defense used a fast racer type guy and a normal quickish guy so had at least two very different views.

[Devil]

Interesting results. I'm up to 11500km's on the M3's now, and I think they'll make it to 13,000km before my warrant is due and they'll probably be at the minimum depth by then.

I'm quite a conservative rider, with a daily commute and they've held their shape really well.

[Quasievil]

I would actually doubt most Kbrs would ride any of the tyres to the level to which they were tested in this or any test, if they tested the tyres to 95% of their abilities I would hazard a guess that any road rider would go to about 50% tops.
None of the tyres are shit, they all perform, sure they have variations in their performance but I doubt that the average KBr could honestly pick up the differences.
On the Track, yes maybe, On the road I doubt it immensly.

For me, I ride Pirrelli on the road, always have , they work well, good mileage.......why change
On the track I ride GPR70 Dunlops, they work well, good grip, and last well

On new bikes had BT014 had Powers had Avons.......all good tyres no problems, prefer the pirrelli's , brand loyalty would be the main reason for that.

[cowpoos]

followed by




hmmm, I see a pattern.


errrrr whats ya point?

[cowpoos]

personally i liked the bt014's,
they were oem on my 600.

but con cue pilots are awsome tires, been riding on them for over 2 years now i think.
why didn't ya keep them if you like them???

[cowpoos]

yeah i like the 014's too


Why are they shit? I have one on my 954 and it seems OK. I managed to lean as far as the edges without any probs, am I missing something?

I may suggest you guys are at a level where tyre grip isn't a limiting factor......for you to be able to notice the lack of grip offered....that alot of quick people notice when riding a bike shod with bt-014's

[McJim]

I just bought some bt45's they seem to have good grip!
Since you're riding on decent rubber now does this mean that you are no longer the man you claimed to be in your other thread?:blip:

[2_SL0]

errrrr whats ya point?


I think you missed it buddy. :yawn:

[Toast]

So they made a typo, probably 25 metres should be 45m and 30 metres should be 50m??
Perhaps Toast has the next issue and can enlighten us if they issued a correction??

Checked the August issue, but there's no correction in their 'Bullshit Detector' bit. I haven't read the September issue, so not sure if they realised it by then, or got a letter on it or something. I went back to the Tyre Test though, and they seem to have typed the stopping distances of 25m or so in to the body of the text many times...

I'm guessing then that they stopped from a slower speed? I think even awesome sports car would struggle to match that stopping distance, so I doubt a bike could do it on its 20c piece front contact patch.

[cowpoos]

Checked the August issue, but there's no correction in their 'Bullshit Detector' bit. I haven't read the September issue, so not sure if they realised it by then, or got a letter on it or something. I went back to the Tyre Test though, and they seem to have typed the stopping distances of 25m or so in to the body of the text many times...

I'm guessing then that they stopped from a slower speed? I think even awesome sports car would struggle to match that stopping distance, so I doubt a bike could do it on its 20c piece front contact patch.
errrrr.how do you get to see the issuses earliy???? and btw....contact area increases as you brake...flattens the profile of the tyre...but your right....I think those figures a dubious!!

[Fishy]

couldn't believe how they rated the bt014's so highly....they are honestly a shit tyre!!!

Totally agree bro!!. I have ridden 3 bikes with them on recently and had all three bikes sliding in the wet and dry.

[Cajun]

not here any more

[Cajun]

Change of mine doing it in jpg

[Cajun]

Change of mine doing it in jpg
second half

[Toast]

errrrr.how do you get to see the issuses earliy???? and btw....contact area increases as you brake...flattens the profile of the tyre...but your right....I think those figures a dubious!!

Like I said above, the e-subscription. They let out the 'September' issue in July in the UK...I guess it's an attempt to make us in NZ and Kazhakstan feel like we're getting up to date news when it arrives via Stork 2 months after it's printed in Europe.

Vist their website and you can sign up to e-sub. It might take you a while to download on dial-up, but it's still worth it (works out at about $4 per issue I think).