How is the car tire vs bike tire working out?

[pierrelogic]

Kumho Ecsta AST on the back running 45 PSI. 10K and counting. Only odd thing is in the heavy rain the rooster tail goes back n forth. Imagine a firefighter hosing down a burning building. Back n forth...rinse, repeat. Due to tread pattern I imagine.

Better traction in snow and ice than OEM's too.

 

[katnapper]

Kumho Ecsta AST on the back running 45 PSI. 10K and counting. Only odd thing is in the heavy rain the rooster tail goes back n forth. Imagine a firefighter hosing down a burning building. Back n forth...rinse, repeat. Due to tread pattern I imagine.

Better traction in snow and ice than OEM's too.

never noticed mine... I'll have to watch - but wait.. you take off rear fender?
:doorag:

 

[pierrelogic]

never noticed mine... I'll have to watch - but wait.. you take off rear fender?
:doorag:

Negative on the fender. I would have never known myself without someone riding behind me during a storm. It soaked them. :roflblack:

 

[tomdux]

Car Tires and Pressures

I replaced the rear tire last summer at 11,000 miles with a Nitto tire & run 35 psi. I had an independent shop-Pro Cycle in Vermont-do the mounting & balancing. I recently put the Bridgestone Potenza's on the front with 23 psi at 17,000 miles. I brought the wheels in to Tire Warehouse in Rutland, VT for mounting & balancing. I am extremely happy with both tires. Front tires are much smoother than the original tires which had been swapped side to side & rebalanced due to uneven wear at about 10,000 miles. I checked toe-in with a tape measure and it is 1/16", about 3 times allowable of 0.0mm+-0.5mm. I am getting an alignment done with the new steering recall next week.

 

[spyder3rdr]

I have the Falken Ziex 512's on front and a Nexen N2000 on the rear ... much better performance than stock

 

[Bob Denman]

I'm looking at the Falken ZE-912 for the rear...
I found a place that sells them for $84 delivered to your door... Any opinions??? :dontknow:

 

[ARtraveler]

I too, would like to try a different tire--but the dealers here will not install them on :spyder2: for "safety" reasons.

I confess, I am not a mechanic--so a tire change by me--is out of the question.

opcorn:

 

[Bob Denman]

Maybe I'd best call and see if they'll have a problem installing a "Non-Kenda"... :shocked:

 

[iSpy]

Kinda Like Kenda Fronts

Replaced worn rear tire with Kumho at about 14,000 miles, happy with it. 18,000 miles scuffed a front rim (cosmetic, balance & tire OK - but ugly).  Found pair new front rims cheap.  Ordered new pair Kenda for front $135 pair with shipping.  Have not seen car tire for front with as high speed rating equal Kenda.  Original Kenda fronts have worn wear well, no where near wear indicators, most miles have been 2up and weight better part 500lbs.  Just wanted new tires for new wheels and to have mounted spares.

Good luck whatever you get.

Ray

 

[pushrod243]

:dontknow: I'm still riding with the original fronts at 33,000 miles. :2thumbs:

Me too I replaced mine at just over 35K the rear went 22.750 but it was pretty well done by then.....

 

[mxz600]

I too, would like to try a different tire--but the dealers here will not install them on :spyder2: for "safety" reasons.

I confess, I am not a mechanic--so a tire change by me--is out of the question.

opcorn:

I don't think my dealer would have installed a different tire either.

I never got to the point of finding out because when I checked to see what they would charge to replace the back tire, they said it would be 2 hrs labor ($180.00) to remove and install the back wheel plus the charge from Belle tire ($20.00) to mount the tire on the rim (my dealer doesn't have a tire changer). 200 bucks and I still don't have a new tire.

So I go buy a Kumho at Discount tire for $85.00 and take it to the local Honda dealer and they did the work for $65.00. Complete job $150.00.

When I took the Spyder in for the 12,000 mi service there was a note on the repair slip stating that the stock Kenda tires are the only tires approved for Spyders. They are designed to work with the anti-lock brakes and the VSS system.

 

[WackyDan]

When I took the Spyder in for the 12,000 mi service there was a note on the repair slip stating that the stock Kenda tires are the only tires approved for Spyders. They are designed to work with the anti-lock brakes and the VSS system.

If by "designed" they mean the tire is round, and made of rubber.... then I guess that is correct.

 

[Bob Denman]

I found a dealer (I'm not ratting him out!) who's willing to slip a Falken under the rear of the Spyder. He's just putting "reqr tire change" on the bill without any mentuion of the brand... I have heard of some dealers refusing to put anything but a stock "chickenskin" on the hoops... :gaah:

 

[NancysToy]

When I took the Spyder in for the 12,000 mi service there was a note on the repair slip stating that the stock Kenda tires are the only tires approved for Spyders. They are designed to work with the anti-lock brakes and the VSS system.

I am not surprised that a dealer would note the different tire when doing the normal service. It is a CYA thing. It also shows that they are giving the Spyder a thorough going over during the service. That's a good thing. I remember when my dealer noted a slightly scratch wheel. I was happy that they looked things over that closely.

I get a kick out of what they say about the Kendas being designed to work with the VSS, and particularly the ABS. Think about it. The purpose of the system is to keep the vehicle under control when the traction, steering forces, or braking is not balanced. Having a different tire, that has more or less grip than the original, can throw the balance of the reaction to these physical forces off...but the VSS is designed to compensate for exactly that effect! Other than the possibility of it kicking in more frequently, or not having to kick in as soon as it did before, there should be no changes. Yes, other tires were not tested, and provide an unknown, but wet roads, gravel, and other road conditions provide unknowns, too. The VSS is supposed to deal with those things. It seems to me that there is no sound reason why it should not be able to cope with slightly different tires, too. Other than mismatched tire diameters, there should be no problem, IMO.

 

[ThreeWheels]

Absolutely. Makes perfect sense, just think about buying tires for your car.
Cars have ABS and many have traction control.
When you buy tires for your car, they look up the tire manufacturers to see which tires fit, they don't check the car manufacturer to see which tires are approved.
The difference is, thereare precious few, if any, tire stores for motorcyles. Right now, most of us rely on our Spyder dealers to service the tires.

 

[mxz600]

Having a different tire, that has more or less grip than the original, can throw the balance of the reaction to these physical forces off...but the VSS is designed to compensate for exactly that effect! Other than the possibility of it kicking in more frequently, or not having to kick in as soon as it did before, there should be no changes.

I kind of got a chuckle when I read that note on the repair slip.

But you are correct Scotty. The VSS does kick in more with the Komho than it did with the Kenda.

 

[EBNewsome]

Those of you that are running car tires (especially the front) are you running them at the recommended psi, or a little less?

 

[Grandpot]

I use the same pressure. Due to the Kenda's not being round and required a lot of weight to balance, the bike ran like crap. Now I have Pirelli, and it rides like a completely different bike.

 

[Deanna777]

Those of you that are running car tires (especially the front) are you running them at the recommended psi, or a little less?[/QUO I am running Continetal's Contiprocontact's on the front, @ 19 PSI.


​Deanna

 

[DGoebel]

Fantastic!

I put Federal Federal Formoza AZ01 - 165/55R15 on the front, rear is a BFGoodrich Advantage T/A 215/60R15 (Has over 15,000 miles now and looks almost new)
I just finished a 4,800 mile 10 day trip with both front and rear set to 19lbs. We drove from MN thru Canada to Angle Inlet, MN then down to Fort Meyers FL, back up through the Cherohala Skyway, Tail of the Dragon, and Devils Triangle on up to Cincinnati, then Dayton, Indianapolis, then back home. The CAR Tires were fantastic from paved to dirt to hot to wet surfaces and conditions.