Kenda tires - I truly don't understand the hateful responses to Kenda tires. I have over 22,000 km on mine and they're only 50% worn.

[TheMariner]

I found that running 30psi in the fronts cured a lot of the understear at lower pressure (24psi).

Wow... really ? I have just a tiny but of understeer that can usually be eliminated by adding a little throttle in corners, but I might try that just to see what difference it makes for me.

 

[Peter Aawen]

Wow... really ? I have just a tiny but of understeer that can usually be eliminated by adding a little throttle in corners, but I might try that just to see what difference it makes for me.

DON'T!!

Over-inflating any tire is dangerous, not only to you, but also to those road users around you!! And if it's a Kenda &/or any of their derivatives or clones, over-inflating a lightly constructed tire with poor quality control and a known history of significant issues with their construction and integrity, it's just asking for trouble!!

If it's a Kenda &/or any of their derivatives or clones, then run their recommended pressure +/- no more than 2 psi if conditions warrant it; cos they NEED that recommended pressure to work and not fail catastrophically. However, 'real' car tires (especially the better quality brands), which are quite capable of carrying a vehicle up to 3 times a Spyder's weight & loading at 28 psi, can arguably, as evidenced by the millions of safely and successfully travelled miles Spyder Owners have done on them at 18 psi, out-perform the OEM Kendas, their derivatives, and their clones in all respects.

 

[TheMariner]

Having thought this through some more I've decided against trying it. I use quality car tyres all around on my Spyder so while they'll be 30psi capable, I understand tyres with lighter construction could become dangerous.

Also, the tiniest bit of understeer I have isn't worth sacrificing traction and ride quality for.

 

[Mr. Bruce]

DON'T!!

Over-inflating any tire is dangerous, not only to you, but also to those road users around you!! And if it's a Kenda &/or any of their derivatives or clones, over-inflating a lightly constructed tire with poor quality control and a known history of significant issues with their construction and integrity, it's just asking for trouble!!

If it's a Kenda &/or any of their derivatives or clones, then run their recommended pressure +/- no more than 2 psi if conditions warrant it; cos they NEED that recommended pressure to work and not fail catastrophically. However, 'real' car tires (especially the better quality brands), which are quite capable of carrying a vehicle up to 3 times a Spyder's weight & loading at 28 psi, can arguably, as evidenced by the millions of safely and successfully travelled miles Spyder Owners have done on them at 18 psi, out-perform the OEM Kendas, their derivatives, and their clones in all respects.

Well, they're car tires, so... sidewall says max 40 psi, and since air pressure is a function of weight, I run 34 psi front and rear.
Your mileage may vary...

 

[troop]

This past week, I just swapped out my front PPA wheels/Kenda Kanines and put on my OEM wheels with my three year old Achilles Ekonomist 165/55R15 car tires. WHAT a POSITIVE difference! Even these (then) $55 tires ride and handle sooo much better than the Kanines. I seriously need to find a car tire that won't rub on my front fenders!! I'm leaning on trying a pair of Vredestein 175/55R15's. With my riding season riding down, this likely won't happen until a winter project. I just wish Achilles/Federal would bring back their 165/55R15 tires stateside I see these .. https://www.prioritytire.com/by-bra...l3vAQFW5mBeGEHJE3MpSdvaBJ2BxXY_BoCyBkQAvD_BwE but I won't put a summer/V rated tire on my Spyder in WI. I ride quite often until temps get in the mid 30*s.

 

[Peter Aawen]

Well, they're car tires, so... sidewall says max 40 psi, and since air pressure is a function of weight, I run 34 psi front and rear.
Your mileage may vary...

Yeah, and those car tires with a Maximum Pressure of 40 psi on the sidewalls generally also show that they only need that pressure to carry their Maximum Load; usually they are capable of carrying maybe THREE TIMES the weight of your Spyder, or maybe more, EACH, at 40 psi!! Only most cars don't actually weigh so much to need their tires to run at their Maximum Pressure all the time, so since, as you say, the necessary air pressure is related to the weight they are carrying, the Manufacturer's recommended pressure for that tire on that car is likely to be somewhat less, maybe even into the high 20's/low 30's, because the whole car weighs in at something less than 4 times the Maximum Load on the tires (4 times cos it's got 4 wheels!) The recommended pressures for the front and the rear may even vary a bit, because of the different weights those tires will be carrying.

And our Spyders total loaded weight with rider, pillion, and all the gear aboard comes in at maybe a Third the weight of your car, so why are you still using a pressure that is suitable/required for something that weighs maybe Three times as much?! Running car tires on your Spyder at or near the same pressures those tires need when carrying a car that weighs a helluva lot more means that your Spyder tires will be Grossly OVER-inflated for the load, and it's likely that you'll pay the penalty one way or another, hopefully, without taking out anyone else in the process!

Do a Search on Tires and spend some time reading, there's a lot of knowledge and experience that's been shared here, even some 'Rules of Thumb' and 'rough calculations' on how to arrive at a better and far more suitable pressure for your car tires on a Spyder, there's even some detail on more complex calculations too (all of which basically support/agree on the 18 psi that's frequently recommended/mentioned/discussed here as being suitable for most readily available car tires that fit/suit Spyders!) instead of just sticking with the same sort of pressures needed for that tire to carry a car weighing maybe Three times as much! Or, since it's your Spyder, you can continue to run over-inflated tires for the weight/load your car tires are carrying, and suffer the greater wear, harsher ride, less traction, and other issues that doing so can bring - I only hope you don't suffer some/any of the more drastic consequences that running over-inflated tires can bring!

Good Luck!

 

[troop]

Well, they're car tires, so... sidewall says max 40 psi, and since air pressure is a function of weight, I run 34 psi front and rear.
Your mileage may vary...

Just for reference, the Kenda Kanine front tires I have installed on my accessory PPA wheels have a load index of 55, which translates into a max load rating of 481#. My comparable Achilles Economist car tires (165/55R15) have a load index of 75, and a max load rating of 853#. The current car front tire favorite is likely the Vredestein 165/60R15. It has a load index of 77, and a max load rating of 908#. That is pushing almost 2X the max load rating of a Kenda Kanine. For rear tire reference, a Kenda Kanine 225/50R15 has a load index of 84, and a max load rating of 1100#. A current rear car tire favorite, a General Altimax RT45 in size 215/60R15 has a load index of 94, with a max load rating of 1477#. I have to believe that ride is way overly stiff and quite twitchy in steering response with 34# in a car front tire??

 

[Asphalt Animal]

The front Kendas on mine were so far out of round they would shake your glasses right off of your head.

 

[baxter]

Sounds like discussing the OEM tires is like talking about Politics.

 

[Peter Aawen]

Sounds like discussing the OEM tires is like talking about Politics.

Maybe a little bit, but discussing politics here on this Forum is definitely NOT allowed!

 

[RayBJ]

This forum has a broad spectrum of riders with different requirements for their gear and equipment.
Many have no issues with the Kendas and see no reason to upgrade.
Good for those who don't need to expend more money to improve their ride.
But many of us have exceeded the abilities of the Kenda line and discovered the cure with car tires.
It's pointless to try to convince anyone else that they need to upgrade when they don't sense the issue.

SO WHY ARE FOLKS TRYING TO FIX WHAT AIN'T BROKE FOR OTHERS?

 

[Snoking1127]

This forum has a broad spectrum of riders with different requirements for their gear and equipment.
Many have no issues with the Kendas and see no reason to upgrade.
Good for those who don't need to expend more money to improve their ride.
But many of us have exceeded the abilities of the Kenda line and discovered the cure with car tires.
It's pointless to try to convince anyone else that they need to upgrade when they don't sense the issue.

SO WHY ARE FOLKS TRYING TO FIX WHAT AIN'T BROKE FOR OTHERS?

I started in the fall on 2020 with a 2018 RTL Chrome:
1. Federal Formoza AZ1 front tires and General out back handling improved.
2. BajaRon sway bar handling improved more.
3. Vredestein Quartac tires handling improved even more.

Even at 81 I still like twisty roads.

 

[Peter Aawen]

...
It's pointless to try to convince anyone else that they need to upgrade when they don't sense the issue.

SO WHY ARE FOLKS TRYING TO FIX WHAT AIN'T BROKE FOR OTHERS?

I don't think that people here are really trying to do that, but I do believe they are truly trying to help when someone posts up asking how to fix their steering issues; the annoying vibrations they get all the time; their inability to corner comfortably/safely at speed; their lack of traction; their issues with hydroplaning; their rapid or uneven tire wear; or any of the many other things MANY of us have experienced and ultimately only ever resolved somewhat, or maybe even completely cured, just by getting rid of the Kendas. After all, it's pretty hard to respond helpfully for any/all of those without talking about their tires, isn't it??

Just Sayin'

 

[Jackhartjr]

I comment on kenda threads in order to explain what a crappy tire BRP insists on putting on these bikes!
And to hopefully get them on car tires!

 

[JayBros]

There are two ways to spell junk: j u n k and K e n d a!

 

[crna59]

There are two ways to spell junk: j u n k and K e n d a!

I like my junk... thanks for the warning!

 

[jcthorne]

I distain Kenda tires because as a shop owner, we have seen first hand the AWFUL quality control and poor service history the Kenda tires have provided.

 

[BajaRon]

To each his own...