Two years ago, when they introduced the Road5, they said the GT version would be out a year later, not released until 1/19. Well, I checked and they are not listed anywhere. Are they going to even release it or will I have toss another set of pr4gt on my bike before this summer?

I rode my PR4s til there was nothing left and had to get a new set. Honestly, I  decided to try something else 'cause the wait pissed me off and I found that there was a tire that had higher, more well rounded ratings whilst hunting online. MAYBE when they finally release them and I need another tire I'll go back but honestly, the new tire is impressing me very muchly.

another tire I'll go back but honestly, the new tire is impressing me very muchly.

Well, as you probably know, ANY new tire will usually be much better than any really-old tire, regardless of brand/model.  As tires age, the rubber gets harder, the tread goes away, and there is always detriment (often a lot) of the profile.  The real judgement has to come later- how it performed and handled over its life.

That is the biggest difference, by far, that I found with Angel GT's and Michelin PR2's and PR3's- the rate and amount of deterioration in function as the tire(s) wear. While I believe the original Pirelli Angel's were the best new tires I ever put on my C-14, they were handling really poorly (very stiff turn- in, a little squirrely in deep corners) with far more than 1/2 of the tire's life left. The PR's on the other hand started out very, very good and really retained most of their performance and neutral characteristics all the way to the end of the tire's tread life. And as I get a lot of life out of my tires, typically 15K + miles out of a set, it is just too expensive to change out Angels after, say, 2,500 miles to restore the handling of the bike. So I take the slightly lesser initial performance of the Michelin but use <all> of the tire.

Brian

Well, as you probably know, ANY new tire will usually be much better than any really-old tire, regardless of brand/model.  As tires age, the rubber gets harder, the tread goes away, and there is always detriment (often a lot) of the profile.  The real judgement has to come later- how it performed and handled over its life.

they were handling really poorly (very stiff turn- in, a little squirrely in deep corners) with far more than 1/2 of the tire's life left. The PR's on the other hand started out very, very good and really retained most of their performance and neutral characteristics all the way to the end of the tire's tread life.

That was my experience comparing the PR to the original Bridgestones.  When the "stones" were not even half worn, they handled horribly and developed strange wear patterns.  The PR4-GT's handling started out MUCH better than the Bridgestones, got worse as their wore, but stayed REASONABLE through the entire wear (always being better than the Bridgestones were when those we NEW)... which was surprising.  On previous bikes, all my tires wore more like the Bridgestones (regardless of brand).

Well, as you probably know, ANY new tire will usually be much better than any really-old tire, regardless of brand/model.  As tires age, the rubber gets harder, the tread goes away, and there is always detriment (often a lot) of the profile.  The real judgement has to come later- how it performed and handled over its life.

 Of course of course. The PR4 was actually pretty nice and consistent beginning to end imho BUT new to old, this new tire seems to corner more authoritatively near the strips.

I called Michelin. Guy said that they were to come out spring or summer, he didn’t have a date . Yup, pretty vague. He said to call back in few weeks , he might know then.

I distinctly remember reading them saying something like late 2018, early 2019 and mid 2019. I gave up 'cause of that.

I'm waiting on this as well. I won a certificate for a set of new tires from Michelin at a MSTA rally in Kerrville TX (yeah, I do still feel a little guilty about it, but I don't know why), and wanted to try the PR5 GTs but I can't wait forever since I don't know how long Michelin will take to fulfill the certificate. I imagine they could take a bit longer than say Revzilla or any of the other online tire dealers I've ordered from in the past. If anyone hears anything definite please post here before I get impatient and order the PR4 GTs.

Twisted Throttle has them but they are very expensive.  FR - 234.95  Rear - 338.95

https://motorcycle.michelinman.com/motorbike/browse-tyres/by-vehicle/kawasaki/1400-gtr/1400-gtr

...so far no 5gt

Twisted Throttle has them but they are very expensive.  FR - 234.95  Rear - 338.95

That is crazy pricing.  My last set of PR4GT was $356.98 shipped, no tax.

That is the biggest difference, by far, that I found with Angel GT's and Michelin PR2's and PR3's- the rate and amount of deterioration in function as the tire(s) wear. While I believe the original Pirelli Angel's were the best new tires I ever put on my C-14, they were handling really poorly (very stiff turn- in, a little squirrely in deep corners) with far more than 1/2 of the tire's life left. The PR's on the other hand started out very, very good and really retained most of their performance and neutral characteristics all the way to the end of the tire's tread life. And as I get a lot of life out of my tires, typically 15K + miles out of a set, it is just too expensive to change out Angels after, say, 2,500 miles to restore the handling of the bike. So I take the slightly lesser initial performance of the Michelin but use <all> of the tire.

Brian

I am also back to the future with PR2's on the front after waiting for the no-show PR5GT. No problem as PR2's are awesome in the sweepers and wear very evenly for about 12,000 miles- also relatively cheap..

Considering that no one else is selling them and even Michelin doesn’t list them, I’ll assume that anyone who claims to have road 5gt is selling a vapor tire

Considering that no one else is selling them and even Michelin doesn’t list them, I’ll assume that anyone who claims to have road 5gt is selling a vapor tire

Probably.  I just now looked on Twisted Throttle.  None are listed as GT, and instead of "Road 5" they say "Pilot Road 5".  Also no reviews or ratings.  Although they list our sizes.  I thought they weren't going to use the name "Pilot" on the 5's... so I am thinking they are just speculative listings.

https://www.twistedthrottle.com/michelin-pilot-road-5-sport-touring-rear-17-inch-size-190-50-17-73w-tubeless-radial-tire

https://www.twistedthrottle.com/michelin-pilot-road-5-sport-touring-front-17-inch-size-120-70-17-58w-tubeless-radial-tire

The standard PR5 is good enough, for me anyway.

Guys,

I have about 10K on a set of Road5s.  I too was anxious to see the GT version out, but for whatever reason M is moving slowly.  At any rate, the standard PR5 is working well for me.  I know that load rating is the issue with the non-GT version.  For the 10K miles so far this summer it has been 30% high speed interstate, 40% normal city roads and inner city highways (rough roads in Seattle area) and 30% hauling ass on curvy blacktop in hot weather.

They have performed as well as I can recall the PR4GTs ever did. I ride single, 150#, ~22# in the each saddle bag, ~15# in the top case for a total of 209lbs. at all times.  On a recent trip to Laguna Seca I had an extra 30# on the back seat making it about 240 lbs. total.

I would not hesitate to get another set of PR5s when needed in lieu of the GT version.

Safe Riding!

Gilbysan aka - Fat Ninja

  I know that load rating is the issue with the non-GT version. 

I'm no tire expert, but IIRC the Michelin tire guy (Eric Miller) said that in the case of the PR4 that the GT version has the exact same load rating as that of the non GT version. He said that the GT version is just stiffer. He also said that the perfect tire for the Concours14 currently is the PR4GT not the PR5. He kept referring to frame stiffness, I didn't ask but I was thinking he meant suspension stiffness? He indicated that the sport bikes have the stiffest frames so they have the most compliant tires, touring bikes have less compliant tires and that dirt bikes have the least compliant tires. Again I was thinking that he really meant suspension not frame stiffness, but then that could be just me not wishing to think that my C14 frame isn't stiff? I also don't think of dirt tires as stiff but then they are usually at lower pressures so perhaps he was referring to the tires natural sidewall stiffness at zero pressure. He seemed to think that most would find that the PR5 on a touring bike would double up on the cushioning between the suspension and the compliance of the tire it would feel...squirmy?...I think he said squirmy..might have been squirrely or mushy. (all those tech terms sound the same to me  )

Regardless as to whether I heard correctly or misunderstood what he was trying to convey...The PR4: PR4GT; and the PR5 50/series rears all have the same weight speed rating 73W (270KPH @ 365 kg or 167.77 mph @ 804.6 lbs) and the 55/series rears all are all 75W (167.77 mph @ 853.18 lbs). Again I'm no tire* expert, but I'd be surprised if the PR5GT came out with a different load rating than the others respective to aspect ratio. (in other words 73W 50/series and 75w 55/series)

*to be totally too honest, I'm not really an expert in anything yet (and considering my age it's not likely to happen, ever.), but I'm getting pretty good at looking up useless crap on the internet. 

At your age you're probably not an expert on stiffness either.