BE AWARE -175 front tires

[Bob Denman]

I was just wondering if it was worth a consideration... :dontknow:


...and 39 mpg isn't exactly awful...

 

[Peter Aawen]

.......

22# is most likely why you have no rubbing issues. I did not have one at 18# until I started pushing it in the curves. Now at 20# it seems to have fixed that although the washers maybe adding to that as well. I may have to increase my pressure once it gets in the 90+ temps again.
......

I can appreciate your reasoning here, but I don't think the pressure is all that's involved. I say this because I run Kumho Solus 175/60R15's on the front of my 2013 RT Ltd (with the 13+ revised fenders) at 16 psi almost all the time, and I have NO rubbing issues - not since I swapped out the hex head screws for less intrusive cup head screws anyway!! The screw heads were by far the most intrusive into the wheel well too!! I do increase my pressures a tad (2psi) if I'm doing a lot of loaded hot & mainly straight hwy ryding on a long trip tho. As for cornering & tire flexing, I really doubt that anyone I ryde with would ever suggest I don't push my RT fairly hard most of the time, & especially in the twisty stuff!! I do far more 2 wheel ryding on my Spyder than anyone else around here (yes, it has a BajaRon bar & spring adjusters, but when you push an RT hard thru the corners, ryding on the Nanny's limits all the time, then the inside tire does lift a little every now & then!) and pretty much all the local 2 wheel Sports bike boy racers now just give up as soon as they see me looming up behind them & just get out of my way rather than thinking they can out-ride me thru the corners (& we've got a lot of them here too!!)

The point of all that is, given that I do push it a bit thru the corners & that I run what should be the same width tires with a taller profile and at a lower pressure too - which means it should have more tire flex, then if low pressure was the problem & higher pressure the solution, I should have more rubbing issues, but I don't have any?!? :dontknow:

So I think there may be something else contributing here..... possibly the brackets are shaped a little differently, or maybe we've got different spacers or shaped fenders here in Aus (I don't think so, mine look pretty much like the sections of yours you posted - only mine are completely un-molested??) I can't see how you'd mount them any differently to let them get any closer to the tires either, so it can't be that? I'd guess that either your tires are a different width to my Kumho KH17 175/60R15's; possibly the KH16's are not as 'stiff sidewalled' as the KH17's; or the metal bits of your fender brackets are bent slightly differently to mine - but my tires fit on other Spyders here in Aus & they all seem to have the same profile fender brackets - maybe individual Spyder's have a vaguely or slightly different bracket shape, or your fender inserts were bowed into the wheel well somehow??

Ps: I agree that the car tires are a VAST improvement over the OE Kenda crap in ALL respects!! :thumbup:

 

[PW2013STL]

Hi Peter,

None of my screw heads were touched, only the inner fender. Once I went to 20# it stopped the rubbing so pressure must have something to do with it, but I will be watching it as I'm not about to give up the better handling. Like you I like to push it to the limit.

Les

 

[Peter Aawen]

I just spent some time looking at my fenders & inserts, & there's no way that any part of the fender insert is closer than the screw heads are/would be, at least not with them as they are - but I wonder if your brackets that the fender insert bolts onto may have been flexed in a touch, making the fender insert bow a little into the wheel well?? Add that to a touch of tire flex & I can see what has happened to you occurring, but apart from that I just can't see how your tires touched?!? :dontknow:

 

[DriftersWay]

May I ask where you bought them and how much..
Thanks for the post

 

[SPYD3R]

175's

i'm on my 3rd set of 175's, and have had ZERO issues with them....
2 sets of KUMHO's on my RS...
and now the 3rd set on the F3... all of which fit perfectly...
I have the HANKOOK on the F3, and they stick so well, that when riding the twistees in the Blue Ridge Mountains, my NANNY flashes from time 2 time... nothing serious, but i'll see that little green light blinking at me while navigating those sharp turns... the KENDA's would slide a bit, or at least it felt that way, while the HANKOOK feel like their are on 'rails'.... which causes the nanny to burp now and then...

DAN P
SPYD3R

 

[Peter Aawen]

But what sort of pressures do you run up front Dan??

Altho regardless, it's your experience & that of those others who I already know run high teens & low 20's in their 175's up front vs PW2013STL's experience with rubbing issues that makes me wonder if there's not something a little more obscure causing his problem?? :dontknow:

Oh well, probably never really know with certainty, but it'd sure be interesting to find out if we could?!?

 

[SPYD3R]

PSI

But what sort of pressures do you run up front Dan??

Altho regardless, it's your experience & that of those others who I already know run high teens & low 20's in their 175's up front vs PW2013STL's experience with rubbing issues that makes me wonder if there's not something a little more obscure causing his problem?? :dontknow:

Oh well, probably never really know with certainty, but it'd sure be interesting to find out if we could?!?

PSI is set at BRP recommendations @ all 3 corners... keep in mind, I run the KUMHO AST out back, and now the HANKOOK forward....
SPYD3R

 

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

OEM - PSI

PSI is set at BRP recommendations @ all 3 corners... keep in mind, I run the KUMHO AST out back, and now the HANKOOK forward....
SPYD3R

Dan if you are using 28 psi in that Kumho imho ( and probably Peter's ) it's about 8 psi to much !!!! .... Mike :thumbup:

 

[Peter Aawen]

But pumped up that high it's probably almost as easy to light it up as one of the Kenda's!! :shocked:

 

[SPYD3R]

PSI

Dan if you are using 28 psi in that Kumho imho ( and probably Peter's ) it's about 8 psi to much !!!! .... Mike :thumbup:

Mike;
the BRP recommendation is between 25 & 28 psi... (i think).... i'm running 25 psi when '1 up'... i NEVER ride 2 up, but while riding X-country or multi-day rides, while carrying additional weight, i knock it up a couple psi... in almost 100,000 miles on the KUMHO's, i always get even wear across the tire...
Dan

 

[PW2013STL]

May I ask where you bought them and how much..
Thanks for the post

I purchased mine from Tire Rack for around $78 each and then took the wheels to Costco where they dismounted the old tires and installed the new ones for $15 each.

 

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

BRP'S PSI RECOMMENDATION

Mike;
the BRP recommendation is between 25 & 28 psi... (i think).... i'm running 25 psi when '1 up'... i NEVER ride 2 up, but while riding X-country or multi-day rides, while carrying additional weight, i knock it up a couple psi... in almost 100,000 miles on the KUMHO's, i always get even wear across the tire...
Dan

Dan they are recommending that PSI for a ..... KENDA ..... not a quality multi-ply car tire !!!!!! ...... you appear to read and understand what Peter writes about tire pressures ..... 28psi in a KUMHO is over-inflating it .......and very much reducing it's wet road traction ........ Mike :thumbup: