[Author Index] [Date Index] [Thread Index]
[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next]

Re: TIRE MILAGE



You wore a tire out in 471 miles?  I hear that some people have gotten 2500 miles out of a rear, and others have gotten near 10000 miles or more.  A lot of it has to do with riding habits and the desire to keep the tires properly inflated.  I took one summer trip down the interstate between 85 to 90 indicated, pulled over and saw the center of the tire's rubber balling up and wearing fast.  I slowed my speed down about 10 mph and pulled over and the rubber wasn't balling up anymore.  High speed kills a tire.  Another way to think about it is to think of the horsepower requirements required (exponential, not linear) to run a bike at a certain speed versus another, and the power required is going through the rear tire.  We must keep in mind that these tires are sportbike tires and cannot last while heavily loaded at higher speeds cause they overheat.  My guess is that 42 psi was on the low side for the loading condition.  Due to the cross sectional profile of a sportbike tire, small changes in pressure and/or loading conditions can make a significant impact on the size of the tire contact patch.  The general consensus is that the BT57's suck, and the preferred replacement is the D-205 (better mileage) or D-207 (better stickiness)  by Dunlop, unless you like spending more money on other brands, which are good.  I have replaced my rear with a BT57 at about 7500 miles, in effort to keep the tires matched front and rear.  I will replace both with D-205's for the sake of longevity.  I have heard that the 205's work perfectly fine for the street, and that you would have to be on a race track to fully utilize a 207's performance.



     *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *
      The ST/RS Mailing list is sponsored by Jack Lilley Ltd.
          http://www.TriumphNet.com/st/lilley for more info
   http://www.TriumphNet.com/st for ST, RS and Mailing List info

=-=-=-= Next Message =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=