Unwanted burnouts with new tire - anyone else? Advice??

[spyder01]

So I just put on my first General Altimax RT43 after having 2 Kendas. I was hoping to be able to get a machine balance but even with the bearings removed the wheel just wont fit on any of the machines at the 3 shops I went to, so I did it myself with the axle on jackstands. Next, I tried to fashion a guard from tin to keep rocks from getting to the airbag. Seemed like it would work but there just wasnt enuf clearance. Ok off to the hardware store to get a 3" fernco cap to cover the bottom of the bag. That worked good and wasnt too difficult. Ok pull the bike out of garage, check the belt alignment, then hit the gas a little and the thing spins the tire like 20ft. This thing has never been able to spin the tire before. Take it for a roadtest and it can slide sideways with ease around turns. Well I'm hoping because the tire is new and it was 53 degrees here in Delaware that this slipperiness will stop. Has anyone else seen this with the Altimax? Oh the good news is the speedo error is fixed.

[jiffy]

Check your air pressure. I have a Kumho tire and I dropped the pressure to 18 psi.

[RICZ]

You needed to "scuff" the tire. Ever see race cars do a zig-zag as they enter the track? They are scuffing the new and smooth rubber for traction. A friend who has a MC repair shop, will not allow customers to ride out until he has taken their bike and scuffed the tires in.
Many think the slippage is due to the non-existent "mold release." It's because the mold is smooth for ease of ejecting the tire, so consequently, the tire's surface is smooth. Always ride/drive gently the first several miles, at least.

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

You needed to "scuff" the tire. Ever see race cars do a zig-zag as they enter the track? They are scuffing the new and smooth rubber for traction. A friend who has a MC repair shop, will not allow customers to ride out until he has taken their bike and scuffed the tires in.
Many think the slippage is due to the non-existent "mold release." It's because the mold is smooth for ease of ejecting the tire, so consequently, the tire's surface is smooth. Always ride/drive gently the first several miles, at least.

I'm pretty sure those race tires have been as " scuffed " to perfection before they ever see an actual race ../... That zig-zagging you see is to heat them up .... although today most race teams use tire heating blankets .... JMHO .... Mike .... with " jiffy ", I also recommend 18 psi for the rear tire ..... Is your engine " stock " or has the ECU been modified .....

[spyder01]

Running 20 psi on completely stock RT, it's the tire for sure but probably just cause its new.

[RICZ]

Blueknight....I'm guilty of being an old fart who used to race sport cars back in the 60s, so my point of reference is rather dated. Regardless, one should never zip about on new rubber.

[Peter Aawen]

While there's no specific 'mold release agent' on the tire, there's often stuff applied by re-sellers to make the tire look shiny & sexy & attractive to potential buyers; or there could be a slop or 3 of a detergent based lubricant or similar product used by the tech to aid in mounting the tire & seating the bead (which if you're really lucky, then gets 'wiped off' - but it's more likely just 'spread around' the tire a bunch with a bit of rag already wet with detergent or other slippery goop to make it look presentable when the tire/vehicle is returned to you! ) altho regardless of all that, if the road surface you're riding on is fairly smooth (like concrete or smooth hot-mix) it still might take as much 30-50 miles or so of 'normal' driving to 'scuff up' the surface of the tread enough to allow it to 'properly' engage with the road surface & provide 'good traction'.... But given the ambient temps you report & the likelihood that road surface temps may have been even lower, the MOST CRITICAL thing to getting adequate traction quickly under those circumstances will be running appropriate tire pressures!

Even if you run 18 psi in any auto tire at 'normal' ambient temps or 28 psi in an OE spec Kenda, it'll probably take 2-3 minutes of riding before the tire even starts to warm up at all, let alone reach its optimal operating temperature; so with temps below 60°F/15°C or thereabouts & the possibility that you were running any higher tire pressure than 18 psi in an auto tire with stiffer sidewalls & a harder compound than the OE spec Kendas, it's probably not surprising that you had poor traction immediately on take off!! You ALWAYS need to be a little careful in the first few minutes of riding on ANY tire, including the Kendas &/or an ultra sticky hi-performance tire; more so in cold weather &/or on cold &/or smooth surfaces; and no matter how much you swerve the thing around, the tire will probably take some minutes to BEGIN to increase to its working temp! If your tire pressure hasn't yet started to increase from its cold start pressure, then your tire & its tread compound hasn't yet begun to warm up & so isn't going to be providing a heap of traction!

Still, if you are running an OE spec Kenda on the rear at its recommended pressure or an auto tire on the rear of your Spyder at no more than 18 psi, then even on a cold road surface it should only take a few minutes of careful riding before the tire starts to generate some heat & thereby start generating some traction; but it in cold weather on smooth & very cold road surfaces, it might take as much as 30-40 mins to warm the tire up enough to get close to either tire's optimal traction for those conditions! So just be a little gentle on the throttle & ride carefully for the first few minutes of any ride; longer if the weather &/or road surface is cold; and even longer if you are running a stiff sidewall/hard compound auto tire on the rear of your Spyder/Ryker at a pressure anything much more than 18 psi! And all this applies ESPECIALLY SO when the tire is shiny & new! Just Sayin'

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

Blueknight....I'm guilty of being an old fart who used to race sport cars back in the 60s, so my point of reference is rather dated. Regardless, one should never zip about on new rubber.

.... you arn't GUILTY of anything .... and my comment was not any type of re-buke .... I had just happened to see the F-1 race from " Quatar " ?? the new street track they have just started to use .... That's where I saw the tire " heaters " .... the race was a Night race under the lights ( a first I think ) the middle east is commonly thought of as HOT , however it can also get quite Cold at night ..... again JMHO .... Mike ..... Also with what Peter said .....M

[blacklightning]

My guess would be that it is a combination of the new tire and cold temperatures. Most new tires are a little sensitive to spinning when new. It is noticed more with motorcycle tires and more dangerous because of the way they are being ridden. But car tires have the same issue. Your 20 pounds should not be causing too much when spin in itself.

[Bensonoid]

I've had 2 Kenda's, 2 Yoko's, and have now run the Altimax for 8k miles. There must be something on your tire making it do that. Mine worked fine right from the start

[Bensonoid]

Is your suspension aired up properly from doing the tire change and fernco install?

[RICZ]

I've had 2 Kenda's, 2 Yoko's, and have now run the Altimax for 8k miles. There must be something on your tire making it do that. Mine worked fine right from the start

I know I'm veering from the subject a bit, but I still have a Kenda on the rear. Did you have a Yoko on the rear and what did you think of it, compared to the Kenda rear? My tire guy can get Yokos, but not Generals.
I'd like to hear from all who also had a Yokohama on the rear replacing the OEM Kenda.

[RayBJ]

Since I switched from the Q-5 rear to the Altmax Rt43, the rear became much 'looser' and breaks free much easier than the Q5 did. At first I thought it was because it was new but several thousand miles into the RT43, it still breaks loose pretty easy. I do have a mild tune and a PC set to City but they were in play for the last 8k miles of the Q-5 as well so I think the RT43 is simply less sticky (harder).

[Bensonoid]

I liked the yoko S drives that I had but they stopped making them so I went with the Altimax. I'm sure the Altimax isn't as grippy as the yoko's were but I'm a pretty conservative rider so it's working just fine. I used to get about 12k out of the yoko's, at 8k on the Altimax there is hardly any wear. I only got 4k out of my first Kenda.

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

I liked the yoko S drives that I had but they stopped making them so I went with the Altimax. I'm sure the Altimax isn't as grippy as the yoko's were but I'm a pretty conservative rider so it's working just fine. I used to get about 12k out of the yoko's, at 8k on the Altimax there is hardly any wear. I only got 4k out of my first Kenda.

I will always tell the truth, even if it contradicts what I have said in the past ..... The latest Altimax RT 43 ( not the "V" rated one ) has a slightly less rating than the NEW Yoko " AVID ASCEND LX " model .... however the largest rear Avid tire size is 205/60-15 .... the largest RT43 tire is a 225/60-15, which is an inch wider. .... So if width is considered the RT43 may have more dry traction ...... JMHO .... Mike

[troop]

Since I switched from the Q-5 rear to the Altmax Rt43, the rear became much 'looser' and breaks free much easier than the Q5 did. At first I thought it was because it was new but several thousand miles into the RT43, it still breaks loose pretty easy. I do have a mild tune and a PC set to City but they were in play for the last 8k miles of the Q-5 as well so I think the RT43 is simply less sticky (harder).

Makes sense as the Vredestein's are "snow flake" rated tires, and have quite a bit less tread wear ratings (400 versus 600). This would suggest that the V Q-5 has softer compounds, as most snow tires do..

[RICZ]

All this tire talk got me off my dime and get one of my winter projects in motion; putting a car tire on the rear. I have Federals on the front that made a HUGE improvement in handling and I have been assured a car tire on the rear will offer up a noticeable change for the better as well.
After soaking in a lot of tire discussion here and checking with Spyder friends, I pulled the trigger on a 215/60-15 Yokohama Avid Touring S. Got it a my local Discount Tire store for the measly price of $78. That came as a nice surprise.
My husky 11 year old great grandson will do the grunt work, with my supervision.

[K80Shooter]

All this tire talk got me off my dime and get one of my winter projects in motion; putting a car tire on the rear. I have Federals on the front that made a HUGE improvement in handling and I have been assured a car tire on the rear will offer up a noticeable change for the better as well.
After soaking in a lot of tire discussion here and checking with Spyder friends, I pulled the trigger on a 215/60-15 Yokohama Avid Touring S. Got it a my local Discount Tire store for the measly price of $78. That came as a nice surprise.
My husky 11 year old great grandson will do the grunt work, with my supervision.

Thats good compared to TireRack.com 107 and change.

[RICZ]

Thats good compared to TireRack.com 107 and change.

I saw that in my searching and could not believe Discount Tire's price when I came across it and in stock at my store too. When I called, they kept asking, only one??

[Plarimer]

I have found that if I hit the throttle just right, full on, that it overrides the nanny system and I can burn for about 30 yards. Other times it doesn’t work. So I assume that it has to do with luck more than anything

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

I have found that if I hit the throttle just right, full on, that it overrides the nanny system and I can burn for about 30 yards. Other times it doesn’t work. So I assume that it has to do with luck more than anything

Well it's not really " luck " imho ..... The surface the tire is on makes a hugh difference, and the EXACT manner in which the Throttle is applied. .... The Nanny is a bit forgiving IF you are going Straight, if you slide sideways even a small amount She will object .....jmho .... Mike

[Wahrsuul]

I had the same issue with a new set of the Vredestein Quatrac 5 - took about 50 miles or so before the rear tire would settle in. The fronts didn't seem bad. I'm not sure about "mold release agents", or shiny tire stuff, but most of tires I've ever bought new have that blue-ish preservative coating on them.