Kumho tire story

[jcthorne]

I have about 4500 miles on my Yokohama rear tire, same size as above, 2014 RT.

Would not trade it for any other brand. Excellent traction wet, excellent traction dry, no road noise.

Almost all interstate driving, 70+ mph. Used balance beads for the first time in my life, they are better than advertised.

When the fronts wear out, I will use Yokohama for them.

DubuqueSpyderRyder

Can you be more specific which Yoko you purchased? Very interested. I have a long history with Yokohama tires and this looks good to me.

 

[Orange Spyder Man]

I've noticed from other postings that you seem to have a hang up on number of plies in a tire. Here is an explanation of what a ply rating means. As far as number of plies it is most likely that almost every automotive application tire on the market is built with only one ply. On a Kenda as on a Kuhmo, the tire is built with one ply and since there is no letter present showing the construction capacity they both have a 4-ply rating.
Ply Rating


This letter indicates the load carrying capacity of the tire in terms of its construction. A "C" indicates the tire has a 6-ply load carrying capacity. The tire is not actually built with 6 plies, but contains one or two plies of equivalent strength. A "D" is an 8-ply rating, and an "E" is a 10-ply rating. If there is no letter, the tire has a standard 4-ply rating.

you betcha i have a hang up on a 2 ply tire... EVERY MOTORCYCLE I HAVE EVER RIDDEN ( quite a few & quite a few miles on each) HAS HAD A 4 PLY ON IT.. i won't sit my hind side on a 2 ply tire on a 1000 lb vehicle at 60+mph on concrete.. i value my life more than that.. the Kenda tire that that has been installed on 2014 Spyders don't last 10,000 miles .. from pretty good explanations why these tires wear out quickly is because they flex or grow at speeds ... 2 ply tires are ok on lawn mowers & wheelbarrows...
ride what you like.. i took off the 2 ply "SUBSTANDARD" Kenda off my 2014 RT.. and left it at the tire dealer that mounted it.. I told them that tire in my opinion is junk.. he agreed.. .. i for sure won't trust my life on a Kenda..

OSM

 

[BikerDoc]

wise choice to install a Kumho... not a sub-standard 2 ply Kenda..

osm

I have 75000 miles on three Kumhos, and not because they wore out but because I traded bike - on each the
tires were still great at trade in

 

[2Paw]

I put the Kumho on the rear of my 2012 RTS almost a year ago (not sure what that equals in miles, I think around 6K) and have not had any traction issues or any other kind of issues with it. The tread still looks pretty new.

 

[Pennyrick]

you betcha i have a hang up on a 2 ply tire... EVERY MOTORCYCLE I HAVE EVER RIDDEN ( quite a few & quite a few miles on each) HAS HAD A 4 PLY ON IT.. i won't sit my hind side on a 2 ply tire on a 1000 lb vehicle at 60+mph on concrete.. i value my life more than that.. the Kenda tire that that has been installed on 2014 Spyders don't last 10,000 miles .. from pretty good explanations why these tires wear out quickly is because they flex or grow at speeds ... 2 ply tires are ok on lawn mowers & wheelbarrows...
ride what you like.. i took off the 2 ply "SUBSTANDARD" Kenda off my 2014 RT.. and left it at the tire dealer that mounted it.. I told them that tire in my opinion is junk.. he agreed.. .. i for sure won't trust my life on a Kenda..

OSM

Okay. I don't understand the response. It may have made sense for tires made 25 or 30 year's ago.

But it seems to me you are trusting your life on a one ply tire that has a four ply rating right now.

Where do you get your information that the Kenda has two plies and how do you figure that equals "substandard"?

 

[DubuqueSpyderRyder]

Here's the Yokohama rear tire style and size I used on the rear of my 2014 RT

Can you be more specific which Yoko you purchased? Very interested. I have a long history with Yokohama tires and this looks good to me.

Yokohama 'S-Drive' 205/55 R15

The tread pattern is great. Take a look at one on the web, I think you will be impressed.

 

[PW2013STL]

I put the Kumho on the rear of my 2012 RTS almost a year ago (not sure what that equals in miles, I think around 6K) and have not had any traction issues or any other kind of issues with it. The tread still looks pretty new.

:agree: I have 10,000 on mine and have driven in some heavy downpours without any traction issues. The only time I have had any tire slipage is on wet wide painted road serface markings (cross walks), but I had that issue with all my motorcycles so I was expecting that.

BTW I am an agressive driver so I would know if it had any handling issues.

 

[srsjerry187]

ebay is the best buy it from there next time and nothing will happen

 

[metman]

Discount Tire and other Chains

IMHO, forget about the big chain stores and buy local and keep the money local.

Just find a local independent tire dealer that handles the brand you want, but know exactly what tire you want. No need to tell them what it's for, and chances are they won't ask.

I live in a town of about 16,000 and have bought three different passenger car tires off two different dealers. No questions asked except which credit card I wanted to use.

They may have cost me a few bucks more than eBay, but if you can afford a $25K+ Spyder, what's another $20 or so and keep it local?

Mike in KY

 

[Bob Denman]

This is why:

The bead of a car tire doesn't fit into the bead hump of the motorcycle rim and a hard hit on the sidewall of the car tire can break the bead and cause the tire to go flat rapidly. If it's on the rear tire of a Spyder at highway speed you would lose control. If the person installing or selling the tire knew the problem they would be held liable.

Mike

:shocked: Mike, While I don't doubt you; have you confirmed this with a cross-section of tire, and a wheel? :dontknow:

 

[Dan McNally]

This is why:

The bead of a car tire doesn't fit into the bead hump of the motorcycle rim and a hard hit on the sidewall of the car tire can break the bead and cause the tire to go flat rapidly. If it's on the rear tire of a Spyder at highway speed you would lose control. If the person installing or selling the tire knew the problem they would be held liable.

Mike

I brought this up last year and still wonder . . . which profile wheel is CanAm using on the Spyder . . . there is a reason motorcycle wheels are different, but no CanAm Spyder rides on the sides of the tire, like a motorcycle . . . they function more like a car . . . sure would be nice to have access to a rim without a tire on it to see the profile.

 

[JayBros]

So, if BRP has gone back to the pre-2014 RT compound tire (2012 RT model tire as I read the parts manuals), Part #

705501464,​

for the 12s and '15s, how did/does that tire perform other than poorly in the price category? Thank you.

 

[Orange Spyder Man]

Okay. I don't understand the response. It may have made sense for tires made 25 or 30 year's ago.

But it seems to me you are trusting your life on a one ply tire that has a four ply rating right now.

Where do you get your information that the Kenda has two plies and how do you figure that equals "substandard"?

I don't trust my life on a 2 ply tire ... much less on a 1 ply tire.. I buy quality tires on all my vehicles... as far as the info on the ply of a Kenda... READ ON THE SIDE WALL OF THE TIRE !!

do you dispute the inept wear of the new compound used on the Kenda tires ? most won't even last for 10,000 miles... and for $180 price tag... one can purchase tires that cost half that price and wear much longer.. but as I stated earlier... if you feel comfortable on a substandard tire... GO FOR IT !

osm

 

[Pennyrick]

I don't trust my life on a 2 ply tire ... much less on a 1 ply tire.. I buy quality tires on all my vehicles... as far as the info on the ply of a Kenda... READ ON THE SIDE WALL OF THE TIRE !

osm

Okay, Orange Spyder Man I owe you an apology. I did not realize it was marked on the tire. Here is a photo of the sidewall of the Kenda tire.View attachment 100646

It clearly says 3 plies on the tread, (one polyester and two steel) and one polyester ply on the sidewall.
According to the standards of tire manufacturers that indicates a 6 ply rating on the tread and a 4 ply rating on the sidewall.

But I understand your concern about the sidewall regardless of how it is rated.

 

[2Paw]

Don't know how true but

I was told that the Kenda tires on the canAm were classed as motorcycle tires more because of the compound rather than the profile.
I am not, nor do I pretend to be, a tire expert.

 

[MikeinGA]

:yikes::yikes::yikes:.....Just throwin this out , when I was at SPYDERFEST 2014 I drag raced my 2011 RSS that had a 205/60 -15 General Altimax CAR tire on the rear. I also only had 18 lbs PSI in it. I'm not saying the above shouldn't be considered, however I am now wondering HOW I managed to keep air in the tire for approx. 40 serious burnouts .........PS I did get a First Place trophy in my class :roflblack::roflblack::roflblack:............:thumbup:....Mike

OK! I'LL DELETE IT JUST FOR U MIKE.

 

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

WELLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!!!

Okay. I don't understand the response. It may have made sense for tires made 25 or 30 year's ago.

But it seems to me you are trusting your life on a one ply tire that has a four ply rating right now.

Where do you get your information that the Kenda has two plies and how do you figure that equals "substandard"?

:dontknow:​......The ONLY rear tires that I've seen wear out in the middle on a consistent basis ( since 2008 ) are the KENDA's .......I have never seen or heard of any CAR tire put on the rear of a Spyder that wore out in the middle first .......Sooooooooooooo that's how I would figure KENDA tires to be sub-standard.................JMHO.....Mike :thumbup:

 

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

HUH ??????

OK! I'LL DELETE IT JUST FOR U MIKE.

..............................................Mike , I didn't post that to offend you or anyone else ( see my New Year's Resolution Post ) ........Annnd I don't doubt or dis-agree with what you posted...........However sometimes what looks GOOD or BAD on paper doesn't always pan out in real life ......................................Mike :thumbup:

 

[BRPcare]

has any1 ever contacted BRP to ask why....?
HEY, BRP, WHY ARE YOU ADVISING 'DISCOUNT TIRE' TO NOT SELL US THE KUMHO'S..?
there... i did it... let's see if we get an answer from them...

Hi everyone,

No - BRP doesn't advise or order independent retailers on what they can or can't sell. It's entirely possible that for liability or other reasons, a retailer might decide against the sale of a tire that was not designed / tested on the vehicle it will be installed on, but that is up to the retailer themselves.

That being said, we always recommend installing OEM tires on all Can-Am Spyder Roadsters as this has an impact on the dynamic behavior of the unit (notably, the Vehicle Stability System).

 

[Dgjason]

Hi everyone,

No - BRP doesn't advise or order independent retailers on what they can or can't sell. It's entirely possible that for liability or other reasons, a retailer might decide against the sale of a tire that was not designed / tested on the vehicle it will be installed on, but that is up to the retailer themselves.

That being said, we always recommend installing OEM tires on all Can-Am Spyder Roadsters as this has an impact on the dynamic behavior of the unit (notably, the Vehicle Stability System).

You gotta love a site that the manufacturer is paying attention to. Thanks BRP. :clap:

Dennis