Tires

[TopV]

Given the choice, which is the better tire EMO the brigstone or dunlop 404. Have only got 10500 miles and need new rear tire after 12 months. Open to all suggestions Thanks!

[sarges46]

No one will say bridgestone...all else is fair game! Dunlops are good, avon is good, michelin commander is good,

 

metzler are dangerous as there have been a number of tires with chunks coming off them as the reports go.

[halfwitt]

Hey I get to do this for the first time....AVONS! I just put Venoms on my 07 a couple of weeks ago and love them. All you need to do is say, "Avons, turn please!" and they do the rest. Stick like glue in the corners though the first 100 miles were a little slick. There is a road I ride every morning to work with deep ruts from heavy trucks. The BRICKstones had a hard time staying on track - the Avons don't know the difference between that and a flat road.

 

IMHO - AVON!

[Guest Boomerbiker]

AVONS!!

 

I run the smaller front tire, too. Had the Brickstones swapped out at time of purchase. They are junk and make lots of noise. Avons quiet and usre footed in the rain. The rear replaced at 13,600 miles. Had some tread left, too. SW Moto; got them overnight.

[GeorgeS]

I know this will get dicey !!

 

Avons are great, will last about 14K,

 

Dunlop D404, Cheapest, only run about 8K and are toast. ( I do not reccomend them for heavy bikes, great for a 500 lb, 500cc bike for running around the city )

 

Dunlop's New, E-3, Best for Milage, reports of over 20K with them. !!

( yes thats right, 20K !! )

 

Also, the caseing of the E-3 is twice the thickness of the D404.

Tread is also thicker, this is Dunlops tire for the GoldWing.

 

I just installed one, ( E-3 ) rode it 700 miles last week, I am very satisfied.

Replaced the Avon, which was OK, its still on my Spare wheel, and will re install

to run out the last 3K miles, over the winter season for local rideing.

 

I will admit the Avon rideing handling is a little better ( Very Little ) then the E-3, but the much longer milage, and thicker caseing of the Dun, E-3 are worth the little extra money.

 

OK, thats my 2 cents worth.

 

IF you get a D404, you will pay less , but you will pay twice as often !! Double your mounting and balanceing fee's if you pay to have the work done.

 

E-3 is a Better , Safer, tire.

Edited August 20, 2008 by GeorgeS

[pegscraper]

I had no complaints about the D404 tires. I got 15,000 miles out of my replacement set. I ended up going with Avons though, because I wanted the narrow front tire in a WW, and Dunlop doesn't make one.

[Jethroish]

Life of a tire will vary with riding styles. Where someone may only get 8000 miles on a D404, I got 13,500 on my original rear 404. For the money, I think the 404 is a great tire.

Bridgestones? I have no experience so I can onlygo by what has been reported here. Same with Metzlers, although my dad runs only Metz on his Kaw Voyager with no problems.

 

Just 2000 miles ago, I replaced my tires with Dunlop E3s. I have no complaints about them. They stick great to the road are good in rain.

Edited August 20, 2008 by Jethroish

[Tartan Terror]

Avons hands down!

[Squidley]

Avons hands down!

 

 

Yep!....and the Michelin Commander a close second

[1BigDog]

Did someone say Avons???

[TopV]

want to thank you all for your in put. Have decided to try the 404 www this time around, will let you know how i make out with them. Once againe thank you.

[Yammer Dan]

Very Low mileage on "Blue Beast" with 404. And everything else!! Avons got 5600 on rear and handled the best!!

[yamahamer]

15K on my AVONS and still have tread! I will buy them again well worth the money!

[big dude]

got 14000 k on my dunlop 491 elite 2's. never thought much about them untill danob11 asked me about them. never had a problem and are wearing nice. 4yrs old ready to replace after eureka springs rally or a while after, before next riding season.

[a1bummer]

metzler are dangerous as there have been a number of tires with chunks coming off them as the reports go.

 

Wish I had seen this before I had the ME880 Marathon's put on my bike. Does anybody know why this happens? I'll keep ya posted if I have any problems. Also, have any of these "bad" tires been replaced under warranty?

 

Thanx, Bill

[TopV]

I want to thank you all for your input. The tiers are in and i have recived both the bottom rails and top rails for the bags. Next is to get it all but together and see if it all helps the looks of things. Next will be the passing lamps but thats a winter project, because they want more to put them on than they cost.

 

So once again thank you all

[DragonRider]

Avons on both my bikes, the 1st Gen and the VStar 1300.........only way to go, had Dunlop 404 on both, lousey mileage from both, I thought the 404 would last longer on the Vstar but it didnt, almost the same exact mileage when they were worn out..........I will NEVER put anything else on my bike, you pay a little more for them but you get what you pay for...........Quality product at a good price. Need I say more............

[Silver Dollar]

The original poster has made his selection, but I just want to offer this... My '05 that I purchased less the a year ago had Dunlops with 7200 miles on them. There was not much life left in the rear. I was ready to put on Avons when I ran across an ad for IRC tires. I am no stranger to Avons, as I run them on my VTX. I had never heard of this brand before. After some searching, I found that they were made as OE for a Suzuki heavy cruiser. I decided to give them a try. They only offer the narrow 130 front, but it is offered in a standard or reinforced model with a higher weight rating. (I went with the reinforced tire.)

 

So far the tires are doing quite well. They handle nicely; as with any new tire. On a run to Ontario a month ago, I did a total of 2500 miles, 2 up, with no issues at all. Even riding about 70 miles in heavy rain posed no issues. Of course the jury is still out on these. I will post any concerns about this brand as I wear them. Oh! The price for the set was about 215.00 shipped. I didn't mean to hijack the thread, but thanks for letting me post here.

[Marcy]

I had no complaints about the D404 tires. I got 15,000 miles out of my replacement set. I ended up going with Avons though, because I wanted the narrow front tire in a WW, and Dunlop doesn't make one.

 

why the smaller front tire?

[Tom]

My Metz chunked at 1700 miles and they were going to replace them,no cost to me..Would not give money back so I had them put Avons back on(I ordered them thru SWMOTO tires) and just ate the cost of the Metz...My life is worth far more than taking a chance on them..OHHH the only reason I put on the Metz is it was all they had in stock at the dealer and I needed tires for a run to Big Bend kater that day. Just My 2 cents worth. Tom

 

By the way I run STOCK sizes as it handles so much better in my opinion.

[Kurt13]

I have just under 18000 km on my original Dunlop tires which came on my new 2008 Venture and they are not quite down to the wear indicators yet. They have some mild weather checkng in the rubber. I will be replacing them in the spring as we will be taking a large trip in July. I live in northern Ontario , Canada, Maybe the tire wear is better here.

[midnightventure]

The d404s want to follow grooves on the highway. The E3s and the Avons are the best.

[hunter 1500]

I have very few miles on the brickstones as we called them on anouther forum and so far they are alright. The trouble with them on my LC1500 is the front tire being a dual compound tire would cup and when they started doing that they would handle at all. I tried metz and hated them. Worst rain tire ever. Last set I had on it was one recomended by a lot of other owners. k555 on the rear and a 404 on the front and they handled great.

The rear tire lasted about 8k but partly due to the way I ride. We have a lot of twisty roads here and I ride a little on the aggresive side. I don't really care how long the tire last as long as it has good grip in all weather conditions. This being said I will try the 404 on my first tire change and if I don't like them I will go to the Avon because it sounds like most here recomend them. So far I have no complaints about the Brickstones though time will tell. Just my .02

[1sttenor]

why the smaller front tire?

 

Many feel the handling is better. I like E3s so I use the smaller front tire. Between the smaller size and getting the 404s off the bike feels 200 lb lighter in twisties. All our roads here are twisty!

[hig4s]

Wish I had seen this before I had the ME880 Marathon's put on my bike. Does anybody know why this happens? I'll keep ya posted if I have any problems. Also, have any of these "bad" tires been replaced under warranty?

 

Thanx, Bill

 

From what I have gathered about the Mtez, is appears that most if not all the chunking problems are on the tires made in Brazil, check the side of your tire and see if it says Brazil or Germany. If it says Germany it will be in fairly large print, if it says Brazil it will be in pretty small print. To me that says volumes.

 

I switched from Brickstones to Avons with the smaller front, HUGE difference. And having come from sport bikes when I was younger I love the lighter feel. The smaller front Avon also has a higher load rating than almost any stock size front tire. And the stock size Avon rear has a higher load rating than either tire that Yamaha uses from the factory.

 

I think the E3 rear also has a higher load rating than stock.