[PadG]

Re; “Just how much does riding style as a variable affect tire longevity?”, other than the very astute entry from
“ #3 · Jan 10, 2023 A lot! “, I can’t even think of by what metrics “how much” could be measured.
So, I would rephrase the question as a simple statement; “Riding style variables affect tire longevity”.

Re; #10 · Jan 11, 2023 …”how does the Dunlop handle the wet roads? I am interested in trying out the tire, but wet road handling is important to me!”; from personal experience riding in slick and rainy Northern Oregon with my 2006 and 2018 RT’s, the Roadtec 01 GT is my preference. Lively, intuitive, communicative tire, and phenomenal tire for wet weather riding, and on wet / slippery reduced traction surfaces. They also wear quite evenly.
I’ve used but was never impressed or confident with Michelin Road 2,3,4 & 5. The Dunlop RoadSmart 3 was better in the above areas, but recently removed them from the 2018 RT after less than 700 miles. The rear in particular consistently slipped and lost grip in those conditions, triggering the ASC / DTC.

Thanks for the info on the Dunlop! I have had great luck in wet weather with the Michelins, and the Road 6GT was really fantastic. I believe that I will give the Dunlop a try when my present tires are worn out.

EDIT: oops. . . . missed your last comment! So, you don't think that the 3 was good?

 

[GoldenWest]

Thanks for the info on the Dunlop! I have had great luck in wet weather with the Michelins, and the Road 6GT was really fantastic. I believe that I will give the Dunlop a try when my present tires are worn out.

EDIT: oops. . . . missed your last comment! So, you don't think that the 3 was good?

No, not for the reasons (conditions) I cited.
Overall it was fine in the dry; but not in wet / slippery surfaces & conditions, which I encounter regularly.
I just never felt 100% confident, especially the rear tire.
BTW, I owned “Michelin Road 2,3,4 & 5”, I never owned the Road 6 GT.

Thanks.

 

[GoldenWest]

FWIW, it I were to look for a Roadtec 01 alternative, I would probably lean towards the Conti RoadAttack 4.
Reviews indicate a solid wet (and try) contender.
Thanks again.

 

[jzeiler]

This guy obviously locked up the front wheel more than once in a right hand turn, most likely pulsing ABS kept him from going down.

 

[GoldenWest]

Yikes! Wonder if the left side looks similar.
Also wonder why he’s riding on such shallow “spent” tires, especially in this condition.

 

[JimW]

This guy obviously locked up the front wheel more than once in a right hand turn, most likely pulsing ABS kept him from going down.

View attachment 181389

Yikes! Wonder if the left side looks similar.
Also wonder why he’s riding on such shallow “spent” tires, especially in this condition.

Hate to say it guys, but you weren't there....

First, very little front brake involved while cornering: you are not looking at ABS pulsing, though I can see how you could think that.. I'm much more of a brake hard before the turn and gently roll on throttle as I hit the apex.

Yes, the tire was definitely near the end of its life, but I actually looked at them and checked pressures before we went out that day. We knew that they were nearly shot, so we looked at them before every ride. But, I still had rubber on the sides. It was pretty much down to the wear bar, but looked pretty much like the center section in the photo, with a very slight amount of cupping. The rear tire still had about 1/64" left on the wear bars.

You are aware that the Road 5 GT is a dual-compound tire and has much softer rubber on the sides? Well that day the temps were in the upper 90's, and they had just resurfaced the road last spring, so parts of it were like glass and we were having a lot of fun getting some pretty extreme (for me, 46º-47º) lean angles. We just got that rubber hot and scrubbed it off that day.

Don't really wanna sound defensive, but you obviously felt pretty comfortable making some pretty judgmental statements here. After 50+ years of doing this, I'm pretty comfortable saying you're wrong. I did learn a lesson in what a 615lb bike can do to a tire in those condition, and that was the point of sharing this.

 

[nestastubbs]

First, very little front brake involved while cornering: you are not looking at ABS pulsing, though I can see how you could think that.. I'm much more of a brake hard before the turn and gently roll on throttle as I hit the apex.

Sounds like a fun time was had! If that was ABS pulsing on the front at that lean angle, then I bet you would remember that feeling, and likely not do it again if you stayed upright 8^)

Last time I was on those roads, I was practicing trail braking and holding some front brake deeper into the turn. Even then I would have just the slightest pressure at those lean angles shown on your tires. Then again, I don't have a throttle/brake/lean log to confirm what was really happening.

I have only ever felt the ABS kick on on my front tire while entering a turn once. That was here in VT when I came in hot to a sharp right at the crest of a hill, I was braking hard while still upright, and I felt the back tire come up and the bike was very smooth in modulating the brakes to bring the rear back down. I was puckered and can't imagine I had the fine motor control to have done it myself.

It was the moment when I realized that I could kill myself very easily on this big of a bike without the electronics. It burned a vision into my mind of that back end coming around and then catching and high-siding me across the oncoming lane, over the cliff and 30 ft down into Lake Catherine, if I was lucky and missed the trees.

I hope to get back down to NC this year, maybe do some day trips around a campsite.

 

[JimW]

The electronics on this bike are a wonder... I've felt both front and rear ABS a couple of times when I've had to go to emergency stop mode, but fortunately, that's pretty rare.

We've done some of the rider courses at the BMW Performance Center in Greer, SC. They showed us video of a guy doing a panic stop on one of the bigger BMW's after a car pulled out on him while he was halfway through a pretty high speed sweeper. The bike just stood up and stopped! I just don't know how it's possible to ignore years of muscle memory and suddenly just clamp down in the middle of a curve. I guess historically you would of probably wind up doing basically the same thing, and end up doing a doing a low-side slide into the car vs a t-bone, so maybe it happens the same way but has a better outcome? That's one I don't want to try out.

It's when I get on my Bonneville and start downshifting that I realize how really spoiled I've become: rev-matching is a perishable skill!

 

[wbrenner]

Thanks for the info on the Dunlop! I have had great luck in wet weather with the Michelins, and the Road 6GT was really fantastic. I believe that I will give the Dunlop a try when my present tires are worn out.

EDIT: oops. . . . missed your last comment! So, you don't think that the 3 was good?

I have been using Roadsmart 3s for some time. Have not really rode them in the rain for the past three years, but when I did, I felt a bit uncomfortable on them. I have recently upgraded to Roadsmart 4s. My dealer informed me that the 4s had better longevity and better rain performance. I have not put them to a real test yet. The 3s and 4s both handled rather neutral, which I enjoyed.

 

[PadG]

I have been using Roadsmart 3s for some time. Have not really rode them in the rain for the past three years, but when I did, I felt a bit uncomfortable on them. I have recently upgraded to Roadsmart 4s. My dealer informed me that the 4s had better longevity and better rain performance. I have not put them to a real test yet. The 3s and 4s both handled rather neutral, which I enjoyed.

Thank you also for your input as well! I guess that I will be staying with the Road 6GT!

 

[JimW]

Yep, I appreciate that feedback as well. The Road 6GT was pretty pricey, and that deal Dunlop had through BMWMOA sounded pretty good. The GT6 has very good handling on the mountain roads around here and, I think, seems to be decent on wet surfaces. I do debate with myself though, because unlike wbrenner, I usually don't have to take the bike out if it's wet. But the other side of that argument, is that it is in the mountains and the weather here is totally unpredictable at certain times of the year. So, for now, I'll think I'll stick with the GT series.

 

[PadG]

Yep, I appreciate that feedback as well. The Road 6GT was pretty pricey, and that deal Dunlop had through BMWMOA sounded pretty good. The GT6 has very good handling on the mountain roads around here and, I think, seems to be decent on wet surfaces. I do debate with myself though, because unlike wbrenner, I usually don't have to take the bike out if it's wet. But the other side of that argument, is that it is in the mountains and the weather here is totally unpredictable at certain times of the year. So, for now, I'll think I'll stick with the GT series.

On my trip west last June/July, I had no choice but ride in any conditions! I ran into heavy rain several times, and one instance in Colorado, I got caught in torrential downpour rain, heavy enough that cars and other bikes pulled aside to wait out the downpour. I had no problems in keeping on riding, because the Road 6GT had felt as if I was riding on dry road, and I do have my methods of continually checking with deliberate tap on brakes as well as controlled acceleration. Did a 90° turn to enter the drive up to my destination of the day, and that lean felt quite normal. Zero slippage.

The other product that had allowed me to keep riding was the RainX for Plastic. That stuff is great!!! My usual issues with riding in the rain is that my face shield would get covered on the outside with fine mist, making it very difficult to see. The squeegee that one often have on a finger of the riding gloves do help to clear it, but the mist usually quickly reform. This RainX (make sure that it's the one for plastic!) makes the mist bead up and run off! Works like a charm.