What tyres for road use

[ballmick1]

I an currently running michelin road 5's and was wondering what is the best tires for mileage and grip. The road 5's are really good for grip but only got 6000 miles out of both. Has anyone got the road 6's or know of any better tyre. I have a 2020 ze

 

[bimota]

alot of guys have had issues with the road 6 pulling, strange but true road 5 are brilliant, but conti trail attack 3 give the same grip warm up quicker but alot more mileage than the road 5 so i would try them

rob

 

[ballmick1]

Cheers Rob, I'll have a look

 

[Bmwdumptruck]

Another fan of the Trail Attacks here. My experience is two rears to one front, which only adds to their value. My second front was nearing 12k at which point I needed a new pair for a trip. I fitted a pair of old spec Tourances that I’d had in the loft a few years and needed to get used, and although they’re great, they‘re noisy and the fronts almost worn out at 6k. I’ve another pair of the TA3s waiting to go on for this season, plus a second rear for when needed.
Going from the OE Bridgestones to the TAs was quite a shock, huge difference, much lighter steering especially. By the time the TA3 front was removed at 12k it looked pretty aweful. Very 50p shaped, yet it rode just fine, and still gripped in all weathers.
Unfortunately I can’t say exactly how long they last, as I’ve needed to replace both rears before being worn out for trips that required a new tyre. Both did roughly 6k having a thousand or so left, in fact the second rear is in the loft as it still has enough that it could be put back on if needed.

 

[Cycledude]

My opinion Dunlop TrailMax Missions are by far the best all around tires for the Super Tenere but they ain’t cheap.

 

[bimota]

My opinion Dunlop TrailMax Missions are by far the best all around tires for the Super Tenere but they ain’t cheap.

think the OP is only looking for a road tyre tho

rob

 

[Cycledude]

think the OP is only looking for a road tyre tho

rob

TrailMax Mission works great on or off road and will outlast any of the other tires listed in this thread.

 

[Thrasherg]

I fitted Road 6's to my tenere a few weeks ago, but have only ridden a couple of hundred miles so far (too cold & wet), I loved the 5's and thought the 6's would be even better. So far its been terrible weather and too cold to really try the new tyres but mine do not vibrate or pull to any side, so am happy so far, no idea how they will last, but they certainly are not worse than the 5 and when the better weather comes, I hope to find they are better than the 5's!! I raised my tenere about an inch (new dog bone) as it would deck out too easily in the bends, can still deck the foot pegs and highway pegs easily with the 5's so expecting the same thing with the 6's, but don't want to raise the bike any higher..

 

[fac191]

As your in the UK bare in mind our roads are not really comparable with some other countries. Lots of bends, crappy surfaces, bad weather ECT. Mileage really depends on where and how you ride. I never expect to get more than 5,000 on a set when i hit the wear marks. Also there seems to be a trend of them wearing out together now, not the old 2 front 1 rear of the old days. The fronts tend to have a high silica content for more grip now. For over here all round use the TA3 is hard to beat. I dont like road tyres on the S10 as i like exploring down little lanes, farm roads ect. Road tires are great but get a bit of mud on the road and there not as good.

 

[thughes317]

Conti TA 3's here. FYI.....I believe you'll find that "grip" and "mileage" are going to be diametrically opposed goals.

 

[Strummer]

Continental Trail Atrack
First set about 12'000 km or 7'500 miles
Second set currently looking like I will exceed those km/miles....
In my opinion they perform almost the same from new to the very end.
They perform very well in wet condition and twisty roads.
Obviously just my own experience.

 

[Bmwdumptruck]

My opinion Dunlop TrailMax Missions are by far the best all around tires for the Super Tenere but they ain’t cheap.

My mate tried a set of these on his Tiger900 for a trip through France into Spain in Nov22. Took them off as soon as he got home. Really not suited to pure road use. Last Nov we repeated the trip, he was on Michelin Roads this time.
Dunlop offer an almosr bewildering range of options for adventure bikes these days. From the old Trailmax’s, Meridians, and Mutants to the Missions. There’s also trailmax Mixtours and Raids too.

 

[Mad_Matt]

My mate tried a set of these on his Tiger900 for a trip through France into Spain in Nov22. Took them off as soon as he got home. Really not suited to pure road use. Last Nov we repeated the trip, he was on Michelin Roads this time.

Yeah definitely not the tire I would recommend for 100% road use.

 

[Sierra1]

Everybody that's been using the TrailMax Missions talk about how much mileage they get out the tire(s). The only way to get high mileage, for the most part, is to use a harder compound. Harder compounds don't lend well to high pavement traction.

 

[Matt51F1]

Everybody that's been using the TrailMax Missions talk about how much mileage they get out the tire(s). The only way to get high mileage, for the most part, is to use a harder compound. Harder compounds don't lend well to high pavement traction.

One thing that contributes to wear is having the pressures low. Lot pressure = heat in the tyre and more wear.
Pure road, I’ll run 40 front and 43 rear if carrying.
Yamaha suggests 33 or 34 for front but when doing highway miles, it doesn’t hurt.

 

[sheikyerbooty]

OEM Bridgestones or Original Tourance? Both will manage a bit of gravel, good on pavement and give decent milage. We're spoilt for choice nowadays.

 

[Longdog Cymru]

I an currently running michelin road 5's and was wondering what is the best tires for mileage and grip. The road 5's are really good for grip but only got 6000 miles out of both. Has anyone got the road 6's or know of any better tyre. I have a 2020 ze

I am a big Michelin fan, but I fitted Continental Trail Attack 3s 18 months ago and they are brilliant! Good grip in all weathers, warm up quickly, good wear and the compliment the steering and handling on the S10

I found the stock Bridgestones A41 tyres to be good, but, in spite of the media and reports, I am not a Dunlop fan at all. Conti TA3 all the way!

 

[Bmwdumptruck]

Everybody that's been using the TrailMax Missions talk about how much mileage they get out the tire(s). The only way to get high mileage, for the most part, is to use a harder compound. Harder compounds don't lend well to high pavement traction.

There seems to be a huge difference between the types of roads and riding in the US and Canada compared to us in the UK. We rarely get anything in the way of offroad gravel or loose surface roads. We have to go looking for whats known as Green Lanes over here, so not something that generally happens. The worst we get are small narrow country lanes, but these are still tarmaced although often with a grassy central section and usually full of potholes. Guys that go looking for green lanes will often have two sets of wheels with more offroad biased tyres ready to swap for the days when they are needed.
We also don’t have the huge distances to travel town to town, so we have a lot of variations in speeds as we travel through towns and villages at 20\30 mph before a few miles of open road at 50\60 to the next town or village. Most of us tend to steer clear of Motoways and Dual carriageways whenever possible too. This not only effects how we wear a set of tyres but also effects the longevity of the bike itself. We will rarely see our machines cover the distances in their lifetimes that you guys get, we simply wear them out quicker because our situation effectively causes this to happen.
It’s unlikely the Missions will ever sell in large enough quantities over here to bring the prices down which makes them an expensive choice. In fact I’d say that’s generally true for all Dunlops. Although my experience of the Roadsmarts suggest they’re every bit as good as other brands they just don’t sell as well as Michelins, Pirellis and Bridgestones. This also isn’t helped by Metzeler still selling the original Tourance at bargain prices.
So when we get threads like this, where the answer will be very different between US and UK members,maybe we should specify where we are asking from?

 

[Matt51F1]

There seems to be a huge difference between the types of roads and riding in the US and Canada compared to us in the UK. We rarely get anything in the way of offroad gravel or loose surface roads. We have to go looking for whats known as Green Lanes over here, so not something that generally happens. The worst we get are small narrow country lanes, but these are still tarmaced although often with a grassy central section and usually full of potholes. Guys that go looking for green lanes will often have two sets of wheels with more offroad biased tyres ready to swap for the days when they are needed.
We also don’t have the huge distances to travel town to town, so we have a lot of variations in speeds as we travel through towns and villages at 20\30 mph before a few miles of open road at 50\60 to the next town or village. Most of us tend to steer clear of Motoways and Dual carriageways whenever possible too. This not only effects how we wear a set of tyres but also effects the longevity of the bike itself. We will rarely see our machines cover the distances in their lifetimes that you guys get, we simply wear them out quicker because our situation effectively causes this to happen.
It’s unlikely the Missions will ever sell in large enough quantities over here to bring the prices down which makes them an expensive choice. In fact I’d say that’s generally true for all Dunlops. Although my experience of the Roadsmarts suggest they’re every bit as good as other brands they just don’t sell as well as Michelins, Pirellis and Bridgestones. This also isn’t helped by Metzeler still selling the original Tourance at bargain prices.
So when we get threads like this, where the answer will be very different between US and UK members,maybe we should specify where we are asking from?

That’s why I love riding around the UK… so very different from here in Australia and lots of different little roads between towns so that you can avoid the motorways.
I get great mileage out of Michelin but, towards end of life, they will puncture easily as there isn’t much carcass in the sidewalls and tread. I’m becoming a big fan of Dunlop road tyres lately and I’ve just put new pirellis on my S10 (even though their carcass is made by Metzler and has been for years).
Not a fan of continental as they’re expensive and wear out quickly on the cheap tarmac used here.

 

[Checkswrecks]

Thread moved because -
Oh look!!!
We have an entire sub-forum just about this question!

mgmt