Kawasaki Versys Forum banner

Tire mileage replacement thread

27K views 154 replies 82 participants last post by  SmoothRoad 
#1 · (Edited)
Post your achieved mileage and impressions with tires here when you replace them.
 
#61 ·
Got my '11 Vs650 last spring and it had the Oem frt and a Sportmax2 on the rear. I had zero confidence in the frt after a slide and the rear was getting squared off . I like to replace tires in sets so I have a new set of Bridgestone T30 Evo's mounted and ready to go. I will update later in the summer with my opinion and wear data. I have approx. 10500km on the bike right now.
 
#64 ·
call me shocked: 25k on a front tire

I just replaced the Dunlop Roadsmart II front tire on my Versys. I keep records of all the maintenance. I was shocked to see that I had put 25,414 miles on this front tire!

:surprise:

I don't think I have ever gotten that many miles out of a motorcycle tire in my decades of riding.

Admittedly, I tend not to ride the Versys that hard, mostly for long-distance use. I have other bikes for track use or hooning about. But still, that seemed extreme. I wondered if I forgot to write down a tire change, so I went back and checked my order history at the only place I buy tires (you can imagine where that is, if you know anything about my work), and I haven't bought a front Roadsmart in two years. So it must be true.

Is it just me or is 25,414 miles insane?
 
#66 ·
I just replaced the Dunlop Roadsmart II front tire on my Versys. I keep records of all the maintenance. I was shocked to see that I had put 25,414 miles on this front tire!

:surprise:

I don't think I have ever gotten that many miles out of a motorcycle tire in my decades of riding.

Admittedly, I tend not to ride the Versys that hard, mostly for long-distance use. I have other bikes for track use or hooning about. But still, that seemed extreme. I wondered if I forgot to write down a tire change, so I went back and checked my order history at the only place I buy tires (you can imagine where that is, if you know anything about my work), and I haven't bought a front Roadsmart in two years. So it must be true.

Is it just me or is 25,414 miles insane?
What size is it? My Tourance front (130/80 x 17 REAR tire) in AZ has OVER 20,000 miles, and only about half worn, but this I expected after posts (years ago!) by Gary in South America, who got over 36,000 miles from his...!

Yes that to me seems insane. I just ordered a new rear tire for my 2015 got 2700 miles before it started to show cord. I don't think I ever got more than 6-10000miles out of a front tire.
I just removed the rear Dunlop 222 from my '15, at 9,606 kms - it was TOAST! - (5,956 miles) which is the FEWEST miles I've EVER got from a tire on any of my three Vs, :frown2: and, in fact, the OEM Dunlop rear on my '09 was replaced by ContiMotions at 12,035 kms, and STILL had a fair amount of tread left...!
 
#70 ·
Can't wait for my Conti Motions to wear out. Worst feeling tire I have ever used. It lasts though with hard rubber compound. Just does not feel consistently grippy or secure handling. Does not inspire confidence. Wish I had spent more for Angel GT's or PR4's.
 
#71 ·
My rear motion only lasted 5k miles. Contrast that to over 6k with the OEM Stones or 5.2k with the Conti RA II Evo.
I'm still running a Motion in the front and I think it works great there. No problems wet, dry, hot, cold, it's been superb. I do think it lacks some grip on the drive wheel. My rear would spin up pretty easily under hard acceleration even warmed up with traction control off. Also didn't feel great in rain. The front has no such issues. And the price can't be beat.
Just bought some Metzler 01 today. Some think it's the Pirelli GT with different grooves. Gets really good reviews from what I've seen. Got them for $30 cheaper that the German Contis which are generally $30 cheaper than the competition.
I won't need to mount them for awhile, but I don't trust this new pricing to last. Got mine at Revzilla.
 
#73 ·
Is it possible that the Stock Dunlop tires are that bad?! Worse than a dual sport tire? I dont know it may be just my feeling of sitting back on my V after few days on a rented V-Strom (sorry for the brand change heh). The Suzuki had a pair of Bridgestone dual sport tires dont remember the model, but staying on the road and many twisties in Northern Thailand I could feel so comfortable and confident! Much more confident than on the Dunlops.

I know that the Dunlops need more time to reach the right temperature but it happened to me many times that even with heated tires I could feel slight slipping on a perfect road. This does not allow me to enjoy my bike 100%.

The tires are not worn out yet and i guess it will never be.

Really look forward to replace them with the good quality tires soon.
 
#74 ·
IF you don't like the tires on your Versys, go ahead and replace them now. There's no reason to ride around on tires you don't like.

I've just replaced the Dunlops even though they only had about 1500 miles on them. I was surprised to see the rear tire was already showing some squaring off of the center part of the tread. My riding style is pretty relaxed and I don't carry much weight. It is too soon to say much about the new tires but they do feel more sure-footed so far.
 
#80 ·
BTW - for those of you (Eastern Canadians, as well as those in BC, w/ winter-tire restrictions during periods of the year):

BOTH of my Shinko E705 radial tires have the "M&S" label, so w/ these you can ride ALL year, or at least - as MUCH of ALL year as you wish!

:thumb: - :thumb: - :thumb: - :thumb: - :thumb:
 
#82 ·
Anyone able to throw a suggestion at me? By mileage, superslab gets the most of my miles. By time, twisty 2-lanes get most of my miles. I rarely ride in the rain but sometimes the road surface is a little damp from fog or mist. Often the twisties have marbles here or there. I got right at 5k miles from the stock tires, but after doing 200 miles on the slab this last weekend in the 90+ degrees, they got eaten up pretty fast.

I THINK I want Shinko 009's as my overall best bet for price/performance/lifespan. I don't mind too much if I'm changing them in another 5k miles because I can get a pair for $157 shipped, although several reviews have them lasting longer. HOPING to do more twisties and less slab, too.

Anyone want to recommend me? My 13 is lowered front and rear and I tend to wring the hell out of it here in Appalachia.
 
#84 ·
AdventureSeeker

Buy the Shinko 009's.
A very good tire at a reasonable price.
The last set of 009's on my '08 V lasted 9500 mi.
I ride the twisties aggressively at times, the slab, sport tour, and in the rain and never had an issue.

See post# 49 in this thread.

Just curious, who is quoting the $157 shipped to your door.
 
#87 · (Edited)
Here's a pic I took of the rear after the mechanic removed it in Anchorage. It had AROUND 4,500 to 5,000 kms on it, and I was PRETTY sure it would strand me somewhere IF I didn't get a new one on...!



I'll add another pic of the 'take-off' Shinko which had 4,5xx kms when I removed it, in a few days, and that still looked nearly new....

and here it is (4,556 kms)....

 
#88 ·
#89 ·
Good morning all! I plan on using my V as my daily commuter this year, just as soon as the weather will allow. My shop is 50 miles from my house, with about 5 miles of loose gravel road, and the rest highway. I will also be riding a lot of ungroomed trails (all fairly flat, nothing too knarly), in search of the best fishing spots along the river. I definitely want a more aggressive tire and like both the TKC80 and 705. What's the better all around tire? I like the more aggressive looks of the TKC80, and a knob has to be better on the dirt, right? Will the Shinko's do what I want on the trails, and gravel roads? Will the TKC80's provide at least decent life on the e-way?
 
#92 ·
My recommendation with 12K miles of ridden data behind me has to be the TKC80 (stock 120) front and the Mitas E07 (150) Dakar for the rear. I had run a K60 for about 8500 miles and never had any problems with it in the rain, maybe our Alaskan asphalt is different? It did well on and off road, but the Mitas has done better for me. The TKC is the only tire I will run in the front. I've always been an advocate of having the best possible traction in the front. For the simple fact if you loose traction with the front tire you more than likely will be going down, so set yourself up with the best chance for staying upright as you can. The wear on the TKC in the front will be 10K+ miles if properly balanced (I use Dyna beads) and inflated. They do make a TKC80 to fit the rear but you will be lucky to get 5-6K miles on it. Not sure why but that's what I've seen. The K60 or the E07 rear will give you 10-12K easy. You now have my .02 hope it helps :)
 
#93 ·
Heidenau K60 Scout? Just how bad is it in the rain? Does anyone have any thoughts? Everything the article said sounds great, except for it becoming a water ski in the rain.
Is it bad in the rain? Kinda. It's definitely the slickest rear I've ever had in the rain. I wouldn't call it dangerous but you really aren't gonna be scraping pegs in the rain with that tire.

That said I still freaking love the k60 as a rear. My current setup is a 120/90 17 (rear) tkc80 up front and 150/70 17 k60 in the back. At the moment they both have about 10,500 miles on them and easily have another 3,000 to go and still have great road manners. My setup before this was the same but with a 120/70 front. The 120/90 definitely slows down the steering but it is a lot more stable in the loose stuff. You do have to raise the fender though.

My 2 cents.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top