Tires

[fuel80guy]

Im converting my 85 to 17 inch wheels and rims are in getting powder coated.
Front wheel is off a 90 fj and rear gsxr 5.5 wide.
Im looking for good hwy tire and long lasting.
Its been suggested to me to try the conti-motions.
Any input would be great to hear .

[aviationfred]

I have a set of Conti-Motions on both my 87' and 89'.

The tires have worked very well for me. I have about 4000 miles on one set with no noticeable wear on the front and a very slight squaring off of the centerline on the rear. I plan to continue purchaseing these tires. Great price and decent mileage.

Fred

[andyb]

Depends on what kind of riding you do and in what conditions, really.

I do a lot of straight highway miles (welcome to IL!) with the occasional twisty section and not infrequent dragstrip use.

A friend just put ContiMotions on his ZX11, and likes them, but no idea of life yet.
I've run Bridgestone BT023GT's (the -GT is for heavier bikes, anything over 650lbs with fuel and rider) with reasonable results, perhaps 6500 miles per set.  The front tires don't last very well, so they end up getting replaced as a set instead of the old 2 rears : 1 front ratio.
I hated the Pirelli Angels.  Wear was comparable to the Bridgestones, but they never felt as good to me, and were noticably slippery when cold.

Recently I stuck a set of Pilot Power 2CT's on the ZX9, and I must say that I wish I'd have done it earlier.  They stick like they're glued down, even when cold.  Turnin is sharp without being nervous, and they hold a line when cornering hard with minimal effort.  If they last more than 4500 miles, I'll cheerfully plunk down the money for another set.

Nothing rocks like having absolute faith in your tires.  Probably the biggest change you can make to give the bike a very different feeling is tires, so don't be afraid of trying something new each time.  Depending on how hard you ride and how much you value longevity, your own views will be different than someone else's idea of the perfect tire.  After having a crash many years ago due to a lack of grip when I needed it, I've been a big fan of changing tires more often and having grip every time I need it.  To me, it's a little like buying a chain; you buy something great, swear at the cost, and then wonder why you didn't do it before, and vow to do it again the next time you have to replace things again.

[Pat Conlon]

I currently have Michelin Pilot Road 3's and I have been impressed with their longevity.
Now at 6500 miles on the back tire and 8500 on the front, and they have about another 1,000 miles left in them. 7500 miles with Randy's 1350 engine is impressive.
Warm up is moderate, dry weather is very good, rain is excellent with these tires.

The new Pilot Road 4's are supposed to have even better (20% longer) tire life.

I have found a new favorite.

[ribbert]

Depends on what you want a tyre to do and how important you think they are (as in how much you are prepared to spend)

Is sticking to the road important or long life? you can't have generous amounts of both but there are a lot of tyres that strike a reasonable middle ground.

With 17" wheels you are spoilt for choice.

I am more interested in grip for both performance AND safety reasons but this comes at the expense of long life, I get around 7000 - 8000 km's from a set but I don't care, it sticks like glue and I ride a lot in the wet and view them as cheap insurance. A reviewer of this tyre said "once he got the pegs scraping in the wet he saw no point pushing them any further"
I don't do that but I love having that sort of grip in reserve. I like my tyres to out perform my bike and it's rider.

There are probably a dozen tyres that members here will swear are THE best hoops.
Good luck trying to sort out who's reason for their choice makes the most sense.

As this is not an FJ specific thing, general research on the net is pretty helpful, tyre reviews, user reports etc. and unlike many riders, magazine reviewers check out all the tyres out there and have a good base line for comparison.

A recommendation for a tyre is of little value if you have not tried others for comparison.

Before converting to 17" wheels I had my tyres let go far more times than I deserved to get away with, it has only happened once in the last 70,000km's since converting.

What ever you fit will transform you bike, the right tyre choice will raise the bar even higher.

Although I am on my 4th consecutive set of the same tyre (this time I did fit the recently released GT version which seem to be wearing better) it is important to keep and open mind as tyre technology changes rapidly and different manufacturers play catch up and leap frog each other with new whizzo attributes.

I just read Andyb's comments below:

Recently I stuck a set of Pilot Power 2CT's on the ZX9, and I must say that I wish I'd have done it earlier.  They stick like they're glued down, even when cold.  Turnin is sharp without being nervous, and they hold a line when cornering hard with minimal effort.  If they last more than 4500 miles, I'll cheerfully plunk down the money for another set.

Nothing rocks like having absolute faith in your tires.  Probably the biggest change you can make to give the bike a very different feeling is tires, so don't be afraid of trying something new each time.  Depending on how hard you ride and how much you value longevity, your own views will be different than someone else's idea of the perfect tire.  After having a crash many years ago due to a lack of grip when I needed it, I've been a big fan of changing tires more often and having grip every time I need it.  To me, it's a little like buying a chain; you buy something great, swear at the cost, and then wonder why you didn't do it before, and vow to do it again the next time you have to replace things again.

Couldn't have said it better myself, except I don't like his tyre choice and he probably doesn't like mine!

Noel

[Pat Conlon]

Im looking for good hwy tire and long lasting....

Noel, that was a long post considering that you did leave out a critical piece of information...
Is it a secret?

[ribbert]

Im looking for good hwy tire and long lasting....

Noel, that was a long post considering that you did leave out a critical piece of information...
Is it a secret?

Ha Ha, it's not a secret. I intentionally didn't identify it. That would make 13 tyres that people here swear are the best. What I choose, for the reasons I mentioned, are somewhat irrelevant to the point I was making.

They are Conti Attack 2 GT's.  As well as a lot of other cool technology and performance they are the only ones that I reckon have got the dual compound concept sorted.
I've just had a look at my bike and the update to my previous post about the GT version is they a wearing VERY well (and it's been over the Summer)

At this stage I would say I look like getting 20% - 30% more mileage from them and they still don't spin up in the wet at WOT in first.(not using the clutch to encourage it) I only do this occasionally as a means of determining traction. It's a lot less painful than leaning it over until they let go.

I go through one and half to two sets per year and wear rate depends on the season.

I always have a look around and a read up when new tyres are around the corner to see what is new to the market since my last set.

I am also fortuneate having an ear to the ground in the business.
I have a friend with a bike repair shop, he has 5 qualified mechanics and 3600 regular customers on his books, many of whom he supplies tyres to, so he gets a lot of feedback. He has always been interested in tyre technology as well.
His customers cover every sort of riding imaginable so it's very good feedback. Some of these customers have been with him for 35 years and some bikes he's been servicing for over 300,000km's

I find him an excellent source of information on real time tyre performance.

Noel

[~JM~]

I like the Avon RoadRiders on my vintage bikes & that is what I will replace my current Metzelers with.

Check out the pricing on Amazon.com. I just bought a new pair & they were a bit less than $200 with free shipping. They arrived 3 days later & look great.

Good luck
~JM~

[fuel80guy]

Ive found a set of pilots locally but the rear is 180/55/17 and ive been warned about clearance issues with chain.
What needs to be modded for my fj to run a 180 tire?

[Pat Conlon]

I've had no problem running 180 Michelin tires.. Pilot Power or Pilot Road, no problem.
.Dunlops, Avons, yes, the shoulders are wider.....Michelin, no.
Clearance to the chain is about .25"

There is a post in the General Section about a sale on the new Pilot Road 4's....$300 for a set.
Your front rim off the 1990 FJ is only 3" wide so you will want to run a 110/70-17 tire.

When (not if) you do convert over to the '87/88 FZR rim (3.5" wide) 120/70-17 will be the proper choice.

Cheers