Continental Road Attack vs RA2

[payneib]

Continental Road Attack vs RA2 vs RA2 EVO

My front tyre is up for renewal at the 18k service, next week. I've been loving the Conti Road Attacks that came on the bike: fantastic in the dry, good in the wet. But the new rear that was put on in November has squared off pretty quick. Another few thousand miles of tread depth left, but leaning into a turn is an issue after about 6K miles. So I'm upgrading to the Road Attack 2, which is basically a dual compound version of the original. I was hoping for the new 2 EVO model, but there was no sign of it on the order computer in the garage, so I assume it's not made it to England yet.

I'm just wondering if anyone has experience of the 2, or even better, both, to compare.

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[payneib]

I'm just gonna make some notes here, turn this into a long term test thread for the RA2 EVO as the garage managed to get me one in the end and they're a new this year tyre.

Conti Road Attack 2 EVO fitted front at 17500 miles.

First impressions:
Very good quality. They're sticky straight from the mould, with a buffed finish and a new moulding technique that doesn't use release agent. REALLY deep tread.

First rides:
I've covered about 240 miles on it so far, and it's as good as it looks. The first morning I could feel it warming up within a few hundred yards, while the old RA rear was only just comfortable a mile later.

They're not dual compound, but a single compound heat treated during curing to give the dual density grip of dual compound without the contrast between the two rubbers. I have to say, it rolls in amazingly. No transition at all, and that's fighting against the big square back tyre I'm finishing off.

I've not spent much time in the wet yet, just some drizzle and post rain draining roads, but the ultra deep tread and general sticky nature keeps it planted even on rough flooded Yorkshire roads.

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[iviyth0s]

So you only replaced your front tire??

Cost of the that?

 

[payneib]

So you only replaced your front tire??

Cost of the that?

Yeah, for now. I had the chain and sprockets done as well as the 18k service at the same time, so in the interest of paying the mortgage this month I decided to save the rear for next payday, and just finish off the last 2mm of tread depth down the middle on the old tyre. I'll post a review of the rear here when I get it done.

I'm at work at the minute, so will check my invoice when I get home tomorrow for the actual price, but off the top of my head the front was about £130 fitted.

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[payneib]

And that's the rear on at 19075 miles. The front has been fantastic in a range of weathers so far. I took a couple of pictures of the new rear to show the chamfered tread and texture out the box.

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[payneib]

Right, that's the rear done for at 27,600 miles (on my clock), and it's in a bit of a state.

I'll start with the review, and then explain the poor state I've let them get into.

EXCELLENT tyre. Total, reliable, solid grip right out of the box, all the way through to this morning. Brilliant in the wet, no worry from white lines or the edge banding on road repairs. It squared off quickly, but ultimately lasted well, doing ~8000 miles (will check earlier threads and change that later).

The bad news: the tread pattern doesn't cross the centre line. The only problem being it's hard to spot the wear. The tread on this is still UK legal, despite the bead showing in places, it even passed an MOT last month. So this has snook up on me a bit, despite weekly measuring.

 

[2007Z6ALL-LED]

So was it saying you were riding 19K+ miles on the rear with this tire?? that's very brave of you. How could you still ride with that no thread tire? Wow

On my rear or front, as long as the thread-penny measure almost gone (means there's been threads around), I started replacing my tires . I have only one life but can buy many bike if I still live another day to ride!

So I don't think the tire you have could have safely ridden up to 19k+ , impossible!

 

[payneib]

And that's the rear on at 19075 miles.

Right, that's the rear done for at 27,600 miles.......
.. but ultimately lasted well, doing ~8000 miles .

If you actually bothered to read what I'd written, you'd see the tyre was changed at 8000 miles. I use more than one set of tyres a year. And yes, it still had grip when I took it in.

 

[payneib]

That's the front changed with 30500 on my clock, which puts the tyre at 13000 miles. I changed it slightly earlier than I would have liked due to uneven wear taking parts of the tread near to the legal limit. If we'd finished all the winter frost and spring rains I'd have left it on forn another thousand miles, maybe more. I'm really impressed by the tyre. Super grippy from day one until taken off, just like the rear. Hears a pic of the uneven wear, you can see how the tip of the "V" is much more gone than the rest:

I think I'll keep this log going as a "real world" data set. I think that would be handy to have for most tyres really. To summarise :
Conti Road Attack: were the first tyres that the bike had when I bought it. They were fine for easy riding, even in the wet, great as it was my first big bike. But I quickly out grew them in my riding style and wouldn't trust them with the way I ride now. Front: lasted about 8000-9000. Rear: lasted 4000-5000

Conti Road Attack 2: I've currently got one of these on the rear as the shop couldn't get an EVO in time. It's no more grippy than the original RA, and I certainly wouldn't trust it on the front now my riding has got more "spirited". Not great in the wet. It does seem slightly more durable than the original model, but doubt it'll last as long as the EVO.

Conti Road Attack 2 EVO: Excellent tyre. Grippy from the shop, until the bead is showing. Just keep pushing it, it won't let go, not even in the wet. Slightly uneven wear on the front (probably as a result of the extra confidence they give). Front lasted 13000 miles, the rear lasted 8000 miles.

 

[payneib]

Rear changed with 33750 on the clock, putting the tyre at 6150 miles. That hasn't lasted very well at all, but reasonable riding performance from the tyre over all. I'm back to the much better "EVO" model now, until the front is finished off, when I'll be changing over to pilot road 4s. I've heard 14000 miles is easily doable on the rear with those.

 

[payneib]

Re: Continental Road Attack vs RA2 vs RA2 EVO

Rear changed again at 39700 (on the clock), putting the tyre at ~6000 miles. I've changed it early, I reckon it had another ~1000 safe miles in it, and would have easily lasted the rest of this month commuting, but due to work schedules and an impending family funeral (meaning a 600 mile round trip) I couldn't guarantee it would get changed without going right through. So it got done.

The RA2 EVO is a great tyre. Fresh from the box until the bead comes through, riding in the wet is like riding in the dry. But the centres wear out too fast, despite the manufacturer claims of tempered curing giving it dual compound like longevity.

So I've switched to Pilot Road 4s (the front will get swapped nearer Christmas, no need to throw away the old rubber yet) as I've heard some serious numbers for tyre milage on them.

 

[payneib]

Re: Continental Road Attack vs RA2 vs RA2 EVO

Front changed at 43000 on the clock, putting the tyre at 13000 again. Exactly the same as the one before, both in mileage and why it was changed: worn shoulders.

So I think that concludes my conti experiment. The EVO is by far the better tyre of the Road Attack family, and the best lasting. Rears survive 6000-8000, fronts 13000 on the money for both. Excellent grip all round.

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