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Tire Lifespan

Mayakovski

GT Reference
GT Famiglia
Joined
Dec 17, 2017
Messages
1,091
Location
Comox, BC, CANADA
Greetings all;

Just wondering what the average lifespan is for the stock tires on a V7 III? I have almost 5000 KM on them and am heading out in a few weeks for a 1200 KM trip.

I am not a wanna be racer, I ride carefully and always make sure my tires are at the correct pressure.

What kind of life can I except out of them?

Thanks Maya
 
As you likely know -- but just wanted some "anecdata" for comparison -- this is a classic case of YMMV ... in a most literal way.

My V7's OEM are the Pirelli Sport Demons.

First, the disclaimers:

I'm not a boyracer, either, but I pretend now and then. ;)

I spend virtually all (think 99+%) of my time on back roads, not interstate highways. Naturally, some of those are straight, but I am blessed with grand twists and turns, so I tend to use more of the side surface than say someone in Kansas. :giggle:

In addition, I am not a 18-YO Italian guy, but have strategic reserves of avoirdupois, as in 220# before ATGATT and several pounds of side-case contents.

Now, for some reason(s), my V7's rear tire seems to be wearing very little -- in fact, I can see no sign of wear at all! -- at 3.5K miles. I have 6K on the V7, but my brother holed the original at c. 2.5K. I did just replace the front (because I thought it "flawed"), tho it showed more wear than the rear ... but remember that it has 6K on it. Replaced it with a Conti RA3. Will do same for rear when that is needed.

Interestingly (at least to me :D), for years, I routinely got 4 or 4.5K miles on my Norge and Griso -- admittedly different beasts than our V7's -- until I shod them with MPR4's. Now get 7-8K miles with no other changes whatever.

I could, as always, babble on, but that should do for a start for one guy's opinion.

Bill
 
First, bear in mind that many folks get more than I do.

Second, I disagree about "criminality."

It has been my observation that tire technology -- and perhaps especially so WRT motorcycles -- seems to have advanced exponentially over the past two decades.

Suppose it depends on what we seek, and, obviously, we are not talking about track tires. But I buy tires first for performance, by which I mean safe performance. I detest dismounts while underway! :cry:

That means seriously sticky in wet and dry. That is asking way more on a two-wheeled conveyance than a four-wheeled stable one.

Mileage is not irrelevant, but it is down the list.

Again, YMMV, but I am OK with 6-8K for a rear tire. Would I like more and cheaper? Yup. But, in the meantime, to me, the traction is worth the miles.

Bill
 
Fair enough, good points.
I was just very surprised to find that a single tire for a motorcycle is more expensive than a single car tire and has maybe 1/5th the lifespan.
 
welcome to the wonderful world of play toys! Just look at the price of a prop on a 200 HP compared to a 30Hp outboard.
I got 4500 on the Arizona V7 rear and 3500 miles on the Ga V7 rear. same worthless demon as Bill ridden the same just different qualities of roads. take it easy and you should make it home. have a set of Continental attack III ready to go on.
FYI back in the early 70's our salesman running in iowa on mostly concrete roads got double the mileage I got in Wisconsin on blacktop on Ford Econoline vans. too many variables to allow for.
 
I just got 15,000 km (9,320 miles) on a set of MPR4 GT and was thrilled. The roads around here are rough with broken pavement almost everywhere. For around $500 CAD a set they were well worth it. The front was bald on the left side and the rear was bald in the middle.
In North America we travel further turning left so the uneven front wear is normal.
 
If you are looking for a tire that may last a little longer, be looking at dual compound tires. The center is a bit harder than the sides so you get longer wear in the middle, but still grip in turns.
 
^^^^^^

Have heard that NA piece before, Raven, but remain skeptical. Curious for authority if you have handy. Don’t go scurrying to google; I can do that. Just curious.

As for tire wear, I, too, have MPR4 GT’s on my Norge. Very, very impressive rubber.

Bill

P.S. John, I posted that before seeing yours. The tires that Raven mentions — and I second his motion — are dual compound. Actually they may even be triple compound. Dunno what’s available for the V7 line, but I have just committed to the Conti RA 3, and will see how they do.
 
Thanks for all the info, lots to digest. I will keep a close eye on them. I have Continental attack III tires on my list for next summer.
 
Bill, without looking for the sources of my statement, the one very obvious point of longer distance travelled is at intersections. When you turn right it is done next to the curb in a short radius. When you turn left you must cross the distance of at least one extra lane and more if it is a multi lane road.
 
On my Stelvio I had Pirelli Scorpion Trail II, I've done on them about 13.000 km of well paved twisty roads before changin them, and they still were in fair good conditions...
 
I had Sport Demons from new on my MkIII. Front had some life and back was almost shot at 10,700kms. We have some quite coarse road chip in NZ. I'm a pretty sedate rider. Just fitted a pair of Klassics. Time will tell. So far they feel great.
 
Thanks for all the input folks, really appreciate it. I took a close look at the tires last night and both have a lot of tread depth left, no missing pieces and yes, they still have chicken strips around the edges. ;) As I said I am a conservative rider. Our roads are in very good shape so I should have plenty of life left in them. At least for this year.
 
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