Michelin Road 2, 3, 4 and 5's

[Coomers]

Ok I know I know this is a subject that has been beat to death. I just want to see if others have had similar experiences with Michelin Power Road or as they call them now Road 5 or 6 tires.

The stock Bridgestone’s on my 08 Conny went to crap at about 3000 km, the tires looked fine but the handling was faltering i.e. awkward at slow speeds and having to maintain bar pressure at normal speeds to keep the bike from standing up.  I didn’t realize this till I rode a friends Conny fitted with Michelin PR2’s which made the handling neutral.

I immediately switched to the PR2’s and loved them, after a few sets I then switched to the PR 3’s and was disappointed how quickly the handling went to crap even though the tire visibly looked fine. After a number of sets of PR 4’s with the same experiences I went back to the then hard to find PR2’s with much better experiences.

A few years ago I purchased a new to me 2018 Conny that the previous owner had installed a new set of the OEM Bridgestone’s. I assumed I was going to have to replace the Bridgestone’s very soon but was pleasantly surprised, I road 11,000km before requiring replacement and at this point the tires was visibly ready to be changed. It seems that the version of Bridgestone’s that the Conny came with were of a different quality to the ones that could be purchased.

When it can time to replace the Bridgestone’s I debated buying another set of the Bridgestone’s or the then new Michelin Road 5’s for significantly more money. I went with the Michelins and again after 10,000 km although the tire visibly looks fine when one runs their hands over the tire the front is cupped and rear is scalped with significant ridges in the tread and handling has gone to crap.

I’m curious as to others experiences and what milage they are getting from their tires before the handling falters. I could certainly ride many more miles on my current set of Michelins seeing as they still have lots of tread but I won’t enjoy the handling. I can no longer purchase Michelin PR2’s so I'm looking for options that what others have had success with.

Thanks,

[maxtog]

You neglected anywhere to mention if you were getting the "proper" tire, which is the GT.  By not specifying "GT", I have to assume you have been using the non-GT?  The PRx is not the same as the PRxGT

My understanding is that cupping and such is mostly caused by more weight than the tires are really designed around.  The GT is designed for sport touring bikes like the C14: PR2GT PR3GT PR4GT Road5GT Road6GT

Michelin knows this.  Look at this search for current recommendations from them, *only* the GT's will appear:

https://www.michelinman.com/motorcycle/browse-tires/by-vehicle/kawasaki/1400-gtr/1400-gtr/2011/1400

[Freddy]

 I can no longer purchase Michelin PR2’s

You should be able to - they still make them.

[connie14boy]

Ok I know I know this is a subject that has been beat to death. I just want to see if others have had similar experiences with Michelin Power Road or as they call them now Road 5 or 6 tires.

The stock Bridgestone’s on my 08 Conny went to crap at about 3000 km, the tires looked fine but the handling was faltering i.e. awkward at slow speeds and having to maintain bar pressure at normal speeds to keep the bike from standing up.  I didn’t realize this till I rode a friends Conny fitted with Michelin PR2’s which made the handling neutral.

I immediately switched to the PR2’s and loved them, after a few sets I then switched to the PR 3’s and was disappointed how quickly the handling went to crap even though the tire visibly looked fine. After a number of sets of PR 4’s with the same experiences I went back to the then hard to find PR2’s with much better experiences.

A few years ago I purchased a new to me 2018 Conny that the previous owner had installed a new set of the OEM Bridgestone’s. I assumed I was going to have to replace the Bridgestone’s very soon but was pleasantly surprised, I road 11,000km before requiring replacement and at this point the tires was visibly ready to be changed. It seems that the version of Bridgestone’s that the Conny came with were of a different quality to the ones that could be purchased.

When it can time to replace the Bridgestone’s I debated buying another set of the Bridgestone’s or the then new Michelin Road 5’s for significantly more money. I went with the Michelins and again after 10,000 km although the tire visibly looks fine when one runs their hands over the tire the front is cupped and rear is scalped with significant ridges in the tread and handling has gone to crap.

I’m curious as to others experiences and what milage they are getting from their tires before the handling falters. I could certainly ride many more miles on my current set of Michelins seeing as they still have lots of tread but I won’t enjoy the handling. I can no longer purchase Michelin PR2’s so I'm looking for options that what others have had success with.
Thanks

The PR2's were superior for mileage as i always got at least 12-13K miles every time i bought a pair. The subsequent series of PR3,4,and 5 were never as good, and cost a lot more. I'm on my 3rd set of Angel GT Pirelli's which perform well and last about 10K. Rear tires should always be the 55 series too for best neutral handling.

[Coomers]

Yes I had forgot to mention that I have been running the GT versions of the Michelins and I'm also a stickler for air pressure.

The last time I bought PR2's I was no longer able to buy the rear 190 and had to go with a 180 so I figured they were no longer produced.

I'm just curious if others had similar experiences and had better luck with Pirelli Angels or other.

Thanks,

[maxtog]

Yes I had forgot to mention that I have been running the GT versions of the Michelins and I'm also a stickler for air pressure.

Cool

The last time I bought PR2's I was no longer able to buy the rear 190 and had to go with a 180 so I figured they were no longer produced.  I'm just curious if others had similar experiences and had better luck with Pirelli Angels or other.

I have used the PR3GT twice PR4GT three times and like it- no problems with cupping, last a long time too.  But now those are probably gone too.  So I, also, will be interested to hear feedback about the 4's and 5's and 6's GT now.

[maxtog]

I have used the PR3GT twice and like it- no problems with cupping, last a long time too.  But now those are probably gone too.  So I, also, will be interested to hear feedback about the 4's and 5's GT now.

*DUH*  I have been using PR4GT the whole time (corrected previous post)

Set 1, OEM Bridgestone:  4/2011, lasted 8,900 miles
Set 2, PR4GT: 3/2014, lasted 18,020 miles
Set 3, PR4GT: 5/2017, lasted 15,991 miles (had bad puncture and decided to replace)
Set 4, PR4GT : 10/2019, lasted 16,832 miles so far

Front is now wiped out (no tread on left side, not much on right).  Rear is at wear bars in center and could go longer.

Last set:  From rockymountainatvmc.com (was Jake Wilson), they charged tax this time, free shipping, $393 total.  Now they have only the front PR4GT with no rear.  They don't have the Road 5GT at all.   The Road 6GT set is a jaw dropping $514!!

RevZilla has PR4GT front only as well.  Road 5GT $514.  Road 6GT in front only.

CycleGear has PR4GT set $374, Road 5GT set $515, no Road 6GT.

Are the 5's and 6's made of gold or something?

[Boomer]

I'm on my second set of PR4GTs on my C14 and they seem to last around the same as the two sets of PR4s (non-GT) I had on the same bike prior to the GTs. I generally get around 10k miles on the rear and 12-14k miles on the front. However, these are to the wear bars as we are not allowed to run below 1mm tread depth across 3/4 of the width of the tyre here in the UK. Even then I rarely get to the wear bars as by then the tyre feels like crap. I have not tried the PR5 or PR6 yet as my annual mileage is currently running at around 1500 miles per bike. By the time the current tyres wear out I'll be fitting PR8s. 

[maxtog]

Are the 5's and 6's made of gold or something?

Well, that is what I get for waiting just a few days.  CycleGear is now out of rears.  Every place I checked all have PR4GT fronts and no rears.  I ended up on Amazon, who has a vendor with a few left.  So set on order (between 2 vendors) for $412.  Not great, but only $19 more than my last set.

[Big Red]

I think I might try Kenda for my next set. I was unimpressed with my MR5s. I am pushing max load all the time, though.

[maxtog]

Well, that is what I get for waiting just a few days.  CycleGear is now out of rears.  Every place I checked all have PR4GT fronts and no rears.  I ended up on Amazon, who has a vendor with a few left.  So set on order (between 2 vendors) for $412.  Not great, but only $19 more than my last set.

Amazon screwed me.  Their system showed PR4 GT rear available and that is what I selected.  But when it went in the cart, it showed as only "PR 4" and I didn't notice the lack of "GT".  So on Sat what arrived was a GT front from one non-Amazon vendor, and a non-GT rear from a different non-Amazon vendor.  And *no* vendor ACTUALLY has a PR4 GT 195/50, Amazon's fault, not the vendors'.  I have screenshots because it was STILL doing that even on Saturday if I pretend to order it again.

I am unwilling to run front GT and rear non-GT.  So now I have to deal with returns from two DIFFERENT non-Amazon vendors.  And it will cost *me* shipping on the front tire because they did ship a front GT.

Sigh.

I guess once this multiple return fiasco is all EVER done, I am in the market for Road 5 GT or 6 GT, despite the price.... or jump to a totally different type of tire.

[Coomers]

Wow! you guys are getting way better milage out of your tires, although as mentioned in my original post it seems the handling really slip's even though there is lots of tread left. And maybe that's the thing that bugs me, my other bikes Suzuki Bandit, Yamaha Roadliner and a KLR the handling is better with new sneakers but doesn't degrade to the same degree as the Conny with the similar tread ware.

Does anyone have experience with the Dunlop Roadsmart 4's compared to the Michelin road 4's? I may try the Roadsmart's next time.

[Big Red]

I still like the RS3s better than the MR4s or 5s. Just got better mileage and cost less. I can still get RS3s through CycleGear, so I do that.

[PH14]

Wow! you guys are getting way better milage out of your tires, although as mentioned in my original post it seems the handling really slip's even though there is lots of tread left. And maybe that's the thing that bugs me, my other bikes Suzuki Bandit, Yamaha Roadliner and a KLR the handling is better with new sneakers but doesn't degrade to the same degree as the Conny with the similar tread ware.

Does anyone have experience with the Dunlop Roadsmart 4's compared to the Michelin road 4's? I may try the Roadsmart's next time.

You said you are a stickler for air pressure... What pressure are you running?

[Boomer]

my other bikes Suzuki Bandit, Yamaha Roadliner and a KLR the handling is better with new sneakers but doesn't degrade to the same degree as the Conny with the similar tread ware.

That's a bit of an unfair comparison as none of those bikes has the C14s power and while the Roadliner weighs more it has WAY less cornering clearance and won't be ridden in any way like the C14. As a consequence you will lean your C14 further whilst cornering faster.

I've not tried the RS3/4 as I have zero complaints about the PR4GTs I am running, and this side of the pond the PR4GT are 2UKP cheaper than the Roadsmart 3 in 120/70-ZR17 TL (58W) and 10UKP cheaper for the rear in 190/55-ZR17 TL (75W). Road 6GT and Roadsmart 4GT are exactly the same price as each other here. The Dunlops are probably cheaper in the USA because they are made there (Buffalo, NY) whereas the Michelin radials are made in Spain (Lasarte).

Are you running 42psi front and rear? One of the guys on a UK Facebook group was complaining of poor front tyre life and poor handling and it turns out he was running 36psi front and 40psi rear. Whilst that may be conducive to more feel from the front end when the tyre is new it will cause cupping and that wears the tyres unevenly leading to them feeling awful much sooner and shorter tyre life. You cannot apply race motorcycle concepts to road bikes without consequences as they are ridden in different ways in entirely different environments and NOBODY expects to get 6000+ miles out of a race tyre. 

[Coomers]

I have been running 42 psi in both the front and rear until the last month or so I started running 36psi in the front just to take some of the harshness out of the front end, I figured the tires were punched anyway. Not that the Conny has harsh suspension but I have been riding my Bandit 1250 in AZ all winter and it has significantly softer dampening.

At first glance here in Canada The Roadsmart 3's are $190 less than the Michelin Road 5's. Money isn't the entire answer but unless someone has had a bad experience with them I might give them a try, if its a mistake then it won't be long before I'd be replacing them.

[PH14]

Okay, running a lower pressure will make the tire wear quicker due to increased heat, though since you only began doing that a month ago it hasn't had enough time to factor in the wear you have had.

I am running the Roadsmart 3s and like them, though I do not have a lot of miles on them yet. I just looked and see that I have about 4400 miles on the rear so far, and a little more on the front. They look like they still have over half left. They really do not look like they have worn much at all. They ride great, handle very well, and so far wear looks really goo. I had PR4GTs on it before. These, to me, seem to ride better. These have a lot of highway miles on them from a trip, but about half are from back roads in Wester PA and West Virginia. I run 42 in the front and back. I would not use tire pressure to fix a rough ride, especially on a bike this heavy.  I would happily use the Roadsmart 3s again.

Phil

[Danger4u2]

I use Revzilla to order my tires.  I have all the equipment to change and balance my tires.  I've had a rash of nails lately.  In the past I've put on a new tire. The last 2 tires that got a nail, I've used a patch plug combo.  Again, I've bought the proper tire patching equipment, buffing solution, vulcanizing glue and inner liner sealer. Xtra Seal is the brand I use.
https://31inc.com/product-category/cements-chemicals-and-mounting-lubricants-xtraseal-tire-repair-materials-chemicals/
I have used the Michelin 5's then they came out with the 6's.  I've never found the GT's in stock.  I get around 8 thousand miles from a set of tires. The tire I have on the back now was one of the tires I replaced because of a nail.  I feel confident with my patch plug combo and run the speeds I normally run.  When I installed my used tire I checked Revzilla and they had a set of Road 6 GT's.  $550 for the set. Yes, that's a high price but I have had great results with these tires.  They really stick in the rain.
When I wear out this set of 6's, I'll let you know how the GT's go.

[maxtog]

Interesting.  You are right that Revzilla has both the 6 GT in stock.  I just ordered them. 

$513.98 pre-tax, free shipping.  Ouch.  Earned $25.70 of "ZillaCash" whatever that is.  The header said "Spend $250, earn a free $25 eGift card" whatever that is.

[Big Red]

ZillaCash can be used as cash at RevZilla, CycleGear, or J&P.