2011 tire guide

This is a overview of a handful of the top tires for sports touring in 2011. A web address for each tire is listed after the description. Cant wait to try out a set, but which ones? rhetorical question.
Avon Storm 2 Ultra Radial Rear Tire Sport Touring Radial
Grip, mileage and wet weather performance
Tri-compound Extrusion Technology - medium compound center tread with soft compound shoulders and a base that improves the bond between the tire compounds and tire carcass
Advance Variable Belt Density rear tire construction uses a densely wrapped belt in the center of the tire for stability, wear and mileage belt is less dense on the shoulders for a large compliant, contact patch
Lifetime Profile Engineering for consistent handling and stability for the life of the tire
Super Rich Silica compound for fast warm-up and superior grip
Enhanced Aqua Flow tread pattern for optimal water dispersal
Inverted Front Grooves resist uneven wear and improves braking stability
View attachment 33440
Avon Motorcycle Tyres North America


Bridgestone Battlax BT-023 Sport Touring Rear Tire Full spec sport touring radial offering consistent performance between touring and sport riding
New tread pattern and rubber compound deliver long mileage, high level of wet performance, comfortable ride and good grip
3LC dual compound technology for rear tire provides good stability and wear life in center and strong grip and bump absorption in shoulder of tire
Silica plus RC polymer assists silica effect and controls rubber properties enhances wet wear life. Bridgestone Americas, Inc.
View attachment 33435

Continental Road Attack 2Revolutionary new technology that offers a level of grip, safety, mileage and dynamics never known before in the sport-touring radial market
Traction Skin: the revolutionary new micro-roughness of the tread optimizes the mechanical adhesion and offers the safest, fastest break-in period in the market
Continuous Compound Technology (shared from the ContiRace Attack product line): a single compound is used that through a temperature controlled curing process delivers the benefits of a multi-compound tire without the abrupt transition between the different compounds that other multi-compound tires are known for
Center Tread Area, wear resistant = mileage
Shoulder Tread Area = increased grip from center to shoulder
Continuous transition from Center to Shoulder = smooth and predictable performance. www.conti-moto.com
View attachment 33436

Dunlop Roadsmart, an advanced sport-touring radial tire that elevates the class standard with remarkable wet-weather performance, exceptional mileage and sportbike handling. Features The best wet-weather performance of any Dunlop road tire, with long-lasting mileage to match
MT-Multi-Tread compound rear tire incorporates a long-wearing compound in the center of the tire tread and a lateral-grip compound on each shoulder to maximize cornering performance and provide class-leading grip and feel
Micro-sized carbon particles improve dry grip under acceleration, and wet grip is improved with a special silica additive.
Cosecant-curve tread design with deep and long grooves to evacuate the maximum amount of water in both straight-line and cornering conditions. www.dunlopmotorcycle.com
View attachment 33437

Metzeler Roadtec Z6 Sport Touring Rear Tire General Replacement Tire
CMT Contour Modeling Technology combines different profiles to optimize handling at all lean angles
Patented 0 steel belt technology provides stiffer carcass for perfect balance of performance for one and two-up riding, minimized stand-up behavior under mid-corner braking situations
Up to 20% dry grip improvement over the ME Z4 thanks to FCM Finite Carbon Matrix, a new carbon black compound structure
Unmatched tread life thanks to the combination of carcass, compound and tread design to provide you with a totally balanced performance during the entire life of the tire. METZELER - home
View attachment 33438

Michelin Pilot Road 3 Tire With revolutionary X Sipe Technology to maximize wet traction, Two-Compound technology for high tread life and grip as well as a high performance, environmentally sound rubber compound, the Michelin Pilot Road 3 Tire is set to rewrite the book on how tires perform. Michelins newest technology delivers all-weather performance without compromising tread life or handling
Patented innovation resulting from years of research and development for traction on all weather conditions
2CT incorporated into all tire sizes
100% non-aromatic-oil rubber compounds. Michelin Motorcycle Tires
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It's time for tires. Thanks

Great work but the Metzeler Z6's had been superseded by the Z8 Interact :thumbup: And the brilliant Z6 will slowly get harder & harder to get


Everything about the new Roadtec Z8 Interact™ has been designed to put the rider in control. It responds like an extension of the rider's instincts, creating an invigorating blend of precise riding feel and effortless handling.
Roadtec Z8 Interact™ is capable of making the ride easier in all conditions, no matter what bike: it allows the rider to enjoy the distance, safely.

•New generation of profile matched with new patented tread design provides easy handling and reduced push steering for maximum confidence in all maneuvers
•New modern look: π design allows optimisation of the elastic properties of the structure to obtain the best contact between tyre and road in any condition
•3 zone tension (Interact™ Technology) gives mileage on straight and grip in lean
•New high silica compound with nano - particles increases performance and safety in all weather conditions

Looking forward to wearing out my PR2's and trying out a set of PR3's. Michelin has done well by me for both 4, and 2 wheeled vehicles! :thumbup:

i had avon storms and they were nice, but pr2 are better.
there's really no such thing as a bad tire nowadays.

Humperdinkel said:

Great work but the Metzeler Z6's had been superseded by the Z8 Interact :thumbup: And the brilliant Z6 will slowly get harder & harder to get


Everything about the new Roadtec Z8 Interact™ has been designed to put the rider in control. It responds like an extension of the rider's instincts, creating an invigorating blend of precise riding feel and effortless handling.
Roadtec Z8 Interact™ is capable of making the ride easier in all conditions, no matter what bike: it allows the rider to enjoy the distance, safely.

•New generation of profile matched with new patented tread design provides easy handling and reduced push steering for maximum confidence in all maneuvers
•New modern look: π design allows optimisation of the elastic properties of the structure to obtain the best contact between tyre and road in any condition
•3 zone tension (Interact™ Technology) gives mileage on straight and grip in lean
•New high silica compound with nano - particles increases performance and safety in all weather conditions

Click to expand...

Thanks Humperdinkel. This shows one of the things I love about this forum. Lots of people with lots of knowledge. Thanks for the update for these tires. I put this together so people could narrow their search for a new set of tires, seeing that we all seem to need or want them, based on product description instead of bias reviews. Even though the pr2 deserves a bias review from what I have heard.

I think I am leaning towards the Bridgstone BT016's! Like someone said they all are pretty good! Where is the best deal for the tire you want? They are on sale all over the place. Nothing like having fresh scrubbed in rubber.

Dont forget the new Pirelli Diablo Rosso 2's
DIABLO ROSSO II , Motorcycle Tyres - PIRELLI

And of course the Bridgestone BT-016...
Experience the new Battlax BT-016 Hypersport tyre from Bridgestone

Both these tyres are more on the sport side of sport touring, but on a bike with reasonably modest power output, compared to the litre bikes, less weight, and most probably, slightly less aggresive riding situations, both these tyres are tourable on an FZ6.

With the right tyre pressure for differenrt situations, i reckon you could get 8000-10000km's out of a rear one of these, and maybe more on the front...and that would include a bit of pure sports riding...

:thumbup:

I'm sticking with the Bridgestone 023's. They're performing beyond expectation! Although the Conti's look nice too.

Goop said:

I'm sticking with the Bridgestone 023's. They're performing beyond expectation! Although the Conti's look nice too.

Click to expand...

The Bridgestone BT023's seem to proving to be another very good tyre...sorta creeping up on the ageing Michelin PR2's in terms of reputation...

:thumbup:

good thread , i think im leaning towards the piolt3

Just wanted to say I couldn't find any PR3's in stock, so I ordered a set of PR2's, and I am very impressed. This is my 4th set of tires of the FZ6 - Bridgestones originally, Z6's, then Z6 Interract (not Z8), and now these. Differences I have noticed in the first hundred miles:

- Lean Lean Lean! Not just because I came off of old, worn tires... I know the difference. These tires seem to be happier with the bike over at about 25 degrees than straight-up. The tip-in is much easier now, and the bike just stays put down there. Some of that is obviously the rounded new profile vs old flat Z6's with 10,500 miles on them, but after 2 sets in a row I know what the Z6's felt like. This is slightly better.

- Traction over tar snakes on the road to work is completely different. Normally I squiggle across them in a turn, and can totally feel them under the tires, but they were just ... gone this morning. I could barely feel anything and the line held perfectly through the curve.

- They don't tend to stand up during a moderately quick turn when you roll on the gas. It just lays there at exactly the same angle and goes faster. It was disconcerting the first few times, but I'm getting used to it.


Big question is longevity, I guess. I got 14,500 out of the Z6's and loved them. Got 10,500 out of the Z6 Interracts and was luke warm on them... they never performed as well as the older model. If I get 10k out of these I'm going to be just fine I think.

I do prefer the bridgestone tyres, currently pilot2 and it just ain't same. So 4th set will be bridgestone again.