| Author | Message | ||
     Gentleman_jon |
Anyone tried these tires yet? I have been using Dunlop Qualifiers, and I like them a lot. Now that I have retired from track days, I would like a tire with longer life, but with good performance in the twisties at brisk road speeds, not track speeds. The Dunlop Sport Touring Roadsmart tires seem more like the old 220's than the Qualifiers, and I have had too many poor quality Dunlops. It seems to me that the Pilot Road 2's are more like a high mileage sport tire than the other sport touring tires,being the only dual compound sport touring tire that I know of, and having been happy with Pilot Powers as well as Pilot Power 2ct's on friends' bikes in the past. Anyone got any experience in this area? | ||
| Sifo |
I put them on my bike at the end of last season, and this season is early, but so far the feel just fine to me. I don't push to the limit though, still have about a 3/8 inch chicken strip on the rear. I ride pretty long distances to get to anything very twisty so the dual compound really made sense to me. My tires always wind up square so I'm hopeful these will do better for me. I've only got about 1,000 miles on them, but good so far. | ||
| Srwitt |
Not Michelins but I am running Diablo Rossos right now. Stick like glue, and seem to be doing ok with 1000miles so far. I'll be looking into Pilot Powers or 2CT's for my next set to see what all the talk is aboot. | ||
| Iamarchangel |
Just switched from Dunlops, which I didn't like, to Conti Road Attacks. It's only been two days but the difference is night and day. I'm really pleased with them. | ||
| Juniorkirk |
i dont run the road 2's, but i run the Pilot Road and they work great. Got almost 10k out of my last one....so i would guess the 2's would be better with the hard middle and soft outside | ||
| Hughlysses |
I think Barker's running a set of PR 2's on his Uly. You might PM him and ask how he likes them. | ||
| Corporatemonkey |
I put RP2's on last summer, I couldn't be happier. They are quiet and smooth with decent wet performance. They are expensive, and most shops do not stock many of them, but I think that will change now the BMW uses them as OEM tires. | ||
| Saratoga |
A guy I ride with sometimes has a Coucours and swears by Pilot Powers. He told me that he averages 8-10k from a set. That thing can chew up the center of a rear tire faster than any bike I've ever seen. No one stocked them when I was looking and yes they were freakin expensive. | ||
| Ratbuell |
I have PR2s on my S2. LOVE 'em. When the S1W wears out its shoes, it's getting 'em too. | ||
| Teh_nub |
I have them on my xb12Ss and love them. The center is supposed to be the same compound as the original pilot road and the sides are supposed to be the same as pilot powers. I have great grip in both wet and dry and ride them harder than the stock tires. Granted the stock tires were dunlop 208's which suck, but they felt better on my buell than they did when I had a set on my CBR. I always rode on Michelin on the CBR other than the one set of 208's which I got in a pinch and couldn't/didn't want to wait on Michelin's to get back in stock. I have around 2500 miles on the tires so far after putting them on late Oct 08'. I so the majority of my riding was done in the cold rainy weather and they stayed planted to the road like "stink on poop". I will buy PR2's again in about 8000 miles hopefully....  | ||
| Od54 |
I've got them with about 4000 miles on them. They are wearing like iron. I down graded from powers after I went through them so quickly. I definitely miss the extra grip of the powers but these are pretty good once they are warmed up. I notice a bit of wheel spin and/or sliding on medium-hard cornering within the first 10 minutes of riding. When wet I've spun em more easily as well. They seam to have a more progressive profile than the powers did, but it could be my imagination. To me they feel flatter in the center and round more on the edges. Take it for what it's worth. | ||
| Teh_nub |
I'm sure the profile is not as aggressive or steep as the powers, but in my case, I went to a 190 rear which changed the shape of the rear tire so I have improved drop in and less "stand up" under hard corner braking compared to the 180/55 dunlops when they were new. From my experience and riding style the 190 rear using a more sport touring geared tire results in a more stable and better handling motorcycle. | ||
| Gentleman_jon |
Well I ordered the Pilot Roads 2. It was a toss up between them and the Dunlop Roadsmarts. I got them from a supplier, Ride Direct. Com, suggested by a Bad Webber on another thread, and they were $310. shipped. | ||
| Jraice |
Look into continental road attacks if you want to ride spirited and still have good mileage. Lots of WOT will wear them and they cant grip under heavy acceleration in corners but if your a smooth rider you can drag knee all day, or so I am told. | ||
| Groffxb9r |
i am running the pilot power 2ct and have 8k on the front and rear and still have at least another 2k to go on the rear. i abuse the hell out of them and burn the rear one off every chance i get!! they laugh at me! i wouldn't suggest any other tire. dual compound 52 degree lean angle. they dont slid coming out of a turn like the dunlops. they give you confidence and dont dissapoint. i have even done second gear willies in the rain. i wont buy any other tire | ||
| Etennuly |
Hi Jon, I have nearly concluded my first test with the PR2 on the rear of my Uly. After using up the D616's I ran Syncs on it and on my City X before that. I really liked the Syncs for handling, wet, 6000 miles per rear and 14000 on a front. I just happened to have a new Sync on the front when the rear Sync went bad. Gotj and Orangulius had switched to the PR2's and suggested I try them. I found the rear PR2 at a local 'Zuki store, so I had them mount it up. Last week it crossed over 9000 miles! The handling is notably better than the Sync IMHO. For the same corners, same speeds, load etc, I would regularly melt the chicken strips off of the Sync, on the PR2 the cornering was easier, more relaxed, and not even using the chicken strip all of the way. There must be a difference in profile and compound to make that happen. I think you will love them unless you ride in mud or wet grass. They aren't knobbies. High speed Interstate running does not melt the center of the tread like I saw in the past. They are excellent in the wet also. | ||
| Corporatemonkey |
+1 on what Etennuly said on the Sync's. I found my sync's aged badly. By the end they felt like flintstone tires. | ||
| Gentleman_jon |
Thanks for the report, Vern. I should have mine next week, and hope to get them mounted before the weekend. My Qualy's are really shot after only 2,000 miles, (one track day). Trying to keep up with my buddy who just got a 999S is turning into a bit of a chore.  | ||
| Etennuly |
Kids......Huh! | ||
| Altima02 |
Best tire I've used. Only have 1000 on them though. Just got back from teh Dragon, tore it up! No chicken strips. No slipping. Handle great! | ||
| Jsg4dfan |
I have a set on my '03 XB9S. I mounted them just before a track day, and ran them at peg-dragging, no chicken-strip level. Only to have them look like they were barely used. The stock tires on the 12S I demo'd at least looked and felt touch greasy after one session, but my tires looked fresh after several. Not enough mileage yet to form an opinion. A froghair (a quantifiable measure in the South) slower steering than the stock Dunlops, but otherwise a good choice in my opinion so far. | ||
| Gentleman_jon |
I just mounted a set of Michelin Pilot Road 2's and my initial impression is extremely favorable. The tires they replaced were Dunlop Qualifiers, which were perhaps a bad set, as they were completely toasted after only 2200 miles, one track day. I had raised the ride height in the rear, ( I have an Ohlins rear shock), to help the Dunlops turn in better, and I left the ride height unchanged, thinking I could lower it if the bike proved to be unstable. It did not. On the contrary, the bike now handles better than I recall it handling when the Dunlops were new. Of course this could be partially do to the well known phenomenon where any new tire handles better than any completely clapped out one, but I think there is more to it than that. Now to see how long they last. | ||
| Gentleman_jon |
Update: 1. I did have to lower the rear suspension, because the bike became very slightly unstable over 110, not that I would ever ride it that fast. 2. After setting the suspension, I went for my usual Sunday morning canter with the lads. The guy in the lead seemed to have something to prove, and everyone agreed that he was going rather faster than we normally go. None the less, I did not feel that the tires were in anyway lacking at speeds that seemed to me to be at the limit of sensible street riding in tight twisties. This seems to correlate nicely with Jsg4dfan's remarks directly above. Bottom Line: Great tire for the street, and they are supposed to be great for the rain too. The perfect tire for March Badness, one might say! | ||
| Jraice |
So for a street rider would I never need to go to pilot powers or PP 2cts? Thats what I was planning on trying after the stock Pirelli's are no good... But you guys make these Pilot Road 2's sound like the holy grail! | ||
| Corporatemonkey |
So for a street rider would I never need to go to pilot powers or PP 2cts? The PR2's have a touring center section, and the a very soft outer edge that is very similar to a full on sport tire. If you can out ride a set of PR2's on the street you need to take yourself to a track. Here is one of the better (more trusted) reviews online http://www.webbikeworld.com/Motorcycle-tires/miche lin-pilot-road-2/ | ||
| Gentleman_jon |
If you can out ride a set of PR2's on the street you need to take yourself to a track. I agree. I was just sick and tired of changing tires all the time, but in the back of my mind I was always concerned that maybe, possibly, just one time, the sport tires would save my butt. After using the PR2's I don't really think that this is a concern on the street, unless you are one of those guys, ( you know who you are), who think they will always be able to get away with riding track speeds on the street. If you do want to do track days, then of course the sport tires are the way to go, especially if you are in the intermediate or expert group. Just look at a pair of worn out track tires and you will see why. For beginners, the PR2's might just do the job. | ||
| Jraice |
But with the harder center, things like braking in a straight or even slightly leaned angle are compromised, no? Thing is, I do occasionally do longer straighter rides and think that the mileage would be nice but I also want to feel super secure in the twisties as I work on my skills to improve. I am nowhere near track speeds on the street, by almost anybody but some cruisers I would probably be called a slow rider (I dont feel slow but there are some crazy fast guys out there). I just dont want to buy a Road 2 and not feel the confidence with it to push myself and work on my skills. Sounds like it is a viable option though. | ||
| Gentleman_jon |
I hear you Jordan. Another thing to consider is that worn out sport tires are WORSE than sport touring tires in good shape. Example. The last sport tires I used, the Dunlop Qualifiers were great when I put them on, but at 2000 miles they were done. The thing is, the handling started to fade at about a thousand. Track day guys only expect to get one or two days out of a tire. Considering your use, I might suggest that you will have better handling MORE of the time with the PR2's. Once you flatten the center of your sport tire, the handling is really not what it was, even if the shoulders are still good looking. Going to sport touring tires was a bit of a leap of faith, but the I am very glad I did it. | ||
| Jraice |
Thanks guys! So what exactly is on the buell stock and how does that compare (sport, ST...etc...?). I am happy with my tires, cant complain, but that doesnt mean I cant get improvements. And I think the PR2's is the way Ill go, my dad just got back from Vegas and I definetly plan to do some trips like that with him, in which riding with a PP would probably kill it from that trip alone. So yeah just curious how the PR2's compare to the stock tires but sounds like after this summer when I get these stock puppies all used up, Ill have some PR2's on the way! | ||
| Johnnymceldoo |
My 05 12scg has dunlop 208's which everyone says suck. I think Iam going to order the pilotroad 2's tonight. Are many of you guys doing your own tire changes? |
