Car Tire verses Bike Tire

[BajaRon]

I keep saying this and maybe I should quit. But it really isn't a matter of Bike tire vs Car tire. It's Car Tire Lite vs Car tire. There are differences. But a motorcycle or 'Bike' tire is nowhere near anything that is being discussed.

Yes, the OEM tire was designed for the Spyder. But the real meaning of this is that BRP was able to get away with a car tire having only 2 plies in the tread area instead of the usual 4 plies. This because the Spyder is much lighter than a car. You do have rubber compound and tread design to consider as these are also important. If you do go to a standard construction car tire be sure to get one with good wet and dry traction characteristics, and one that sheds water well (some do, some don't).

 

[JacqueTanis]

I keep saying this and maybe I should quit. But it really isn't a matter of Bike tire vs Car tire. It's Car Tire Lite vs Car tire. There are differences. But a motorcycle or 'Bike' tire is nowhere near anything that is being discussed.

Yes, the OEM tire was designed for the Spyder. But the real meaning of this is that BRP was able to get away with a car tire having only 2 plies in the tread area instead of the usual 4 plies. This because the Spyder is much lighter than a car. You do have rubber compound and tread design to consider as these are also important. If you do go to a standard construction car tire be sure to get one with good wet and dry traction characteristics, and one that sheds water well (some do, some don't).

Well I switched. John put on my Kumho ecsta ast tire last month. We'll see how I like it, so far so good.

 

[Bob Denman]

If you do go to a standard construction car tire be sure to get one with good wet and dry traction characteristics, and one that sheds water well (some do, some don't).

Do you think that the spyders are more likely to hydroplane, due to their lighter footprint? :dontknow:

 

[mtdoragary]

Do you think that the spyders are more likely to hydroplane, due to their lighter footprint? :dontknow:

See my post above. At least when a Spyder hydroplanes, it stays upright. Motorcycles don't.

 

[BajaRon]

Do you think that the spyders are more likely to hydroplane, due to their lighter footprint? :dontknow:

Yes, even with the OEM tire the Spyder, with its very wide rear tire and light weight, has a tendency to hydroplane. With a good tread pattern and rubber compound (as with the OEM tire) this potential is greatly reduced. Because of this there is a risk in replacing the OEM tire with a tire of the same dimensions but much different driving characteristics which can definitely increase the potential to hydroplane.

A directional tire is almost always much better at shedding water than the typical non-directional tire. Most tires are non-directional (meaning they work the same regardless of rotational direction).

I think the real confusion in this entire "MC vs Car" tire discussion is that the OEM Kendas have been 'Approved' for use on the Spyder which is designated a 'Motorcycle' so that the DMV can pigeon hole it for registration purposes and DOT can pigeon hole it for regulatory purposes. However, the fact of the matter is that the Spyder IS NOT a motorcycle, nor are the tires used on the Spyder 'Motorcycle' tires in any sense of the work other than DOT approval regulations.

This means that BRP has gone to the time, trouble and expense to get the OEM Kenda tires 'Approved' for Spyder Only applications. Since it is the only tire that has gone through this process, it is the only tire that can legally be installed on the Spyder.

It isn't that there is anything necessarily WRONG with putting a 'Car' tire on the Spyder. Obviously, this is not the case. It's just that no one has gone through the necessary governmental hoops to market their tires for the Spyder or to avoid the possibility of law suit exposure.