[SportSV]

Hello everyone, my stock MEZ4s are worn out (chicken strip) what would recommend as repalcement and any comments welcome!

Mainly street riding for commute, and weekend spirited rides.

Performance is more important than wear, though good wear would be nice too!

Looking at the metzler M1's for now.

and...Has ayone tried a 70 tire in the front, how does it feel?, is the response better?

Thank you

 

[DanB]

70-profile tire => larger diameter => increased rake and trail. Even if you raise the fork tubes 13mm to get the rake back to what it was, you still have ~5mm more trail than with the 60-profile. I think the main reason for going to a 70 to fit track tires. I'm sticking with the stock tire sizes for similar usage to yours, + a track day or two.

I'm thinking Dunlop D208ZRs, haven't heard anything bad about them, and they seem to be cheaper than the Metzelers, Pirellis, Michelins, Bridgestones.

 

[Guest]

A vote for the Metzeler Z6 Roadtecs. Maybe not a performance tire per se, but I doubt you'll ever use up all the traction they provide on the street.

"...stock MEZ4s are worn out (chicken strip)..."

I didn't get your meaning here. Did you 1) wear out the center first or 2)the edges (!?!). Get thee to a racetrack anon if it be #2!

But really, unless you ran out of grip on the Z4s, I don't see where fitting sport tires makes sense, unless you're planning on track days. But then, if you commute regularly those tires won't be fit for the track anyway...

 

[tyger508]

im looking for the same thing, just a rear tire. I need one soon, i have an M1 on the front but she still has plenty of life left. I can feel the M4 run out of traction exiting corners if i get on the gas hard. I would like a sport tire because im gonna be hitting the track soon too.

I know this is a can of worms, but i wouldnt like to go michelin because its french and i've never been a fan of any french stuff, should i match the front tire and get an M1 for the rear? sorry to ask a question on your post, im just in the same boat and need more info!

 

[SportSV]

"...stock MEZ4s are worn out (chicken strip)..."

I didn't get your meaning here. Did you 1) wear out the center first or 2)the edges (!?!). Get thee to a racetrack anon if it be #2!

But really, unless you ran out of grip on the Z4s, I don't see where fitting sport tires makes sense, unless you're planning on track days. But then, if you commute regularly those tires won't be fit for the track anyway...

[/quote]

Nah, I bought my bike with 11K on it original tires, from a lady who mainly used it on the freeway hence the flat center and had too many people(friends and co-workers) telling me to get rid of those tires.

My commute is only a 10 minute ride, so I ride more/longer on weekends.

 

[SportSV]

I know this is a can of worms, but i wouldnt like to go michelin because its french and i've never been a fan of any french stuff, should i match the front tire and get an M1 for the rear? sorry to ask a question on your post, im just in the same boat and need more info!

no problem, what about french fries? like them?

 

[Mike]

Try the Bridgestone bt014. I think Chapparel has them for less than $170 a pair.

bt014 versus Dunlop 218 or 208

the Bridgstone has more grip, better life, quicker turn in, and are less expensive. No comparison.

Z6 are good also. They're a little heavier but will last between 6-8,000, depending on what you're doing with them.

Also, try and get a matched pair, brand new.

 

[tyger508]

hmm, really? a matched pair? I would say that my front still has about 500 miles left on it. Is it a big deal if i dont put them on at the same time? besides the fact that i will constantly be rotating (change the rear, then the front, then the rear). Is the bridgeton the best? i know that is an impossible question to answer, but i would like sport, not sport touring.

I will look into the BT014 for now.

no problem, what about french fries? like them?

they are called freedom fries, arent they? haha, but yea, i like em. I would chose upstate wings hands down though, if ever i had to choose :!:

 

[Mike]

Yes, a matched pair. For example, don't use a sticky tire on the rear and a touring tire on the front. don't mix radials and bias ply. It's a general rule of thumb not to mix and match brands but if you know of two that work well together then by all means.

I sometimes will replace a rear without the front, of course they're the same tire.

Also, bt014 is not a sport touring tire. Bridgestones sport touring tire is the bt020.

 

[Tom B]

I went with the BT014's myself....great tires. I went through a set of BT010's and a set of BT012SS on my former ZRX1200, so I have a lot of confidence in the BT014's....which I broke in today.... 8)

 

[Nexus242]

I have Mets Z6s and they are very sticky, great wearing after 4500 miles and haven't failed me yet.

 

[Guest]

Get a 180 rear, everyone wants one.

 

[Throttlecrazed]

It doesnt matter if you mix profiles/ compounds on the bike... racers do it all the time. Hell I do it all the time. BTW, the profile of the tire changes as you put miles on it (ie: gets flatter) and a rear will wear out more quickly than the front so they are not exaclty a "matched pair" Hope you understand what im sayin.

Im getting ready to put on a 65 series Pilot Power in front and a Metz Z6 in back, I like the profile of the Z6 better and it will give me a little more life. I dont mind the rear end moving around a little more than the front anyway, but for me, the front needs to be good when im running fast, or im going to push it off the road. Plus I have the 180 on the rear so it will stick a little more even with the harder compound.

Rode another SV with the pilot power in front and stock MEZ4 in back... that was interesting. Looked more like a flat track rider than anything going around a turn around... was kinda fun.

If you only have to ride 10 mins then you can get sport tire for rear... life wont be that bad and will stick when you want to power out of something. Im also guessing that you dont want the rear end to start moving around so maybe mixing tires is not right for you but it IS an option.

Hope that helps

 

[tyger508]

yea, i DO want a sport tire, not sport touring. I always hear good things about the Z6, but i think i would rather have the extra sticky for the track days this summer. The M1 i have upfront is a sport tire, so i wouldnt really be mixing if i had a BT014, because they are both sport tires i believe. Best place to buy online? Anybody recently bought tires online and been happy with the price/customer service? TIA

 

[zoltan]

It doesnt matter if you mix profiles/ compounds on the bike... racers do it all the time. Hell I do it all the time. BTW, the profile of the tire changes as you put miles on it (ie: gets flatter) and a rear will wear out more quickly than the front so they are not exaclty a "matched pair" Hope you understand what im sayin.

Im getting ready to put on a 65 series Pilot Power in front and a Metz Z6 in back, I like the profile of the Z6 better and it will give me a little more life. I dont mind the rear end moving around a little more than the front anyway, but for me, the front needs to be good when im running fast, or im going to push it off the road. Plus I have the 180 on the rear so it will stick a little more even with the harder compound.

If you ride in the wet at all, you need to match the Z6 rear to either a Z6 or M1 front. Due to the rear thread pattern you'll severely compromise the wet performance on the tire unless you do.

 

[Throttlecrazed]

If you ride in the wet at all, you need to match the Z6 rear to either a Z6 or M1 front. Due to the rear thread pattern you'll severely compromise the wet performance on the tire unless you do.

Great, good info... now all I need is a little data to back it up. Something like 100% of all racers use a matched pair of rain tires because if you dont things are going to mess up.

... BTW, I really dont think you can find that kind of info. Pretty sure they work the same in the wet as they do in the dry. Its not like the tread patten puts some kind of impulse load on the tire and if the rain grooves are not running the same way its going to mess up. Ever notice how the front and rear patterns are not the same anyway? Im no expert, I just like to look at things in a fresh light most of the time so if you can find something a little more concrete, post it... would love to read

 

[Guest]

70 series is excellent. The bike just felt a lot better with it on. I hear pilot powers are the tyre to have nowadays. Give one of the dual compounds a try im sure youll love them. Definately get a 120/70 front and 160/60 rear though.

 

[zoltan]

If you ride in the wet at all, you need to match the Z6 rear to either a Z6 or M1 front. Due to the rear thread pattern you'll severely compromise the wet performance on the tire unless you do.

Great, good info... now all I need is a little data to back it up. Something like 100% of all racers use a matched pair of rain tires because if you dont things are going to mess up.

... BTW, I really dont think you can find that kind of info. Pretty sure they work the same in the wet as they do in the dry. Its not like the tread patten puts some kind of impulse load on the tire and if the rain grooves are not running the same way its going to mess up. Ever notice how the front and rear patterns are not the same anyway? Im no expert, I just like to look at things in a fresh light most of the time so if you can find something a little more concrete, post it... would love to read

That information comes straight from Metzeler. If you want to, call them up at 1-800-747-3554 and ask them. The reason is the Z6 rear tire has zero tread on it's center, so it has no water clearing ability when running straight. If the front tire doesn't clear a path well enough through the water, you'll run into traction problems in the rear.

There may be other tires than the Z6 or M1 front which would work well enough, but those are the only ones Metzeler says will work.

 

[Throttlecrazed]

All front tires clear a path through the water, or they would not have traction in the first place. If they didn?t it would be a pain if you hit the front brake in the rain. I see nothing special about the tread design on the Z6 front and I really don?t see anything special about the center water channeling of the M1... the groves are cut across the tire.

Why would I want to call Metz? The chances of me getting to talk to someone that is knowledgeable about the specific design elements that went into the Z6 front (or rear) is slim... besides would you actually expect them to say that any tire will work? They want to sell more tires

Something tells me that Ill have a chance to find out sometime... will have to pay attention to how much throttle it takes to break the rear loose... of course I might have to try it multiple times :lol:

Still interesting... let me know if you find anything else... Did Metz publish anything about this?

 

[Northwind]

Ive never seen Metzeler claim that the Sportec front works well withthe Roadtec rear; they specifically recommend only using an exact pair of any of their tyres. However, so do most tyre companies- Bridgestone have always recommended against the highly popular 010/020 combination.

having tried it, I wouldn't recommend the Roadtec for track day use. It's a fantastic tyre, for road use it's better than the Sportec on practically every front, but on the track you want a degree of straight line braking grip and feel that the Roadtec just doesn't deliver, IMO. I've got a second set of wheels that'll either get a pair of Rennsports or Sportecs when I'm fit enough to do trackdays again. On the road though, the Roadtec's never let me down, and as long as you're riding safely it probably never will.

Plus, to understand the meaning of oddgy grip, you have to try and ride on really sticky rubber in freezing, wet conditions... Give me a set of OEM tyres over Rennsports any day for my winter commute