2007 1200RT with Bridgestone tires

[112124]

I've had my 2007 for a month now. It's outstanding. I was surprised and a bit disappointed that it came with Bridgestones rather than Metzlers. What has your experience been with either of these brands on a 1200RT?

[kbasa]

Mine came with Michelin Pilot Roads, which were decent. I switched to Metzler Z6s when it was time for tires and am happy with them.

What kind of Bridgestones do you have?

[121247]

My 2005 RT came with Metzlers Z6s and I am very happy with them. 8500 miles and good rubber on them.
CW Chicago

[sfarson]

No experience with the Bridgestones on the RT but can mention very impressed with the brand when having them on other bikes.

[cwsenn]

I have an 06RT with Bridgestones currently @ 7,500 miles and lots of rubber left I,m very happy with them. I have a friend with the same and he has replaced his Bridgestones with another set which would obviously indicate his satisfaction as he does lots of 800 mile plus riding days.
You may as well ride and put the miles on the tires and see what you think...

Chuck

[BobMielke]

Count your blessings. My 2005 came with Z6 Metzelers, great tires, but the BattleAx Bridgestones are superior for handling and wear. My Z6 lasted 14k which is incredible. I believe the Bridgestones will match that. The difference is cupping & therefore handling. The BattleAx set is wearing evenly, front & rear and stick like glue in the twisties. They were recommended by my independent mechanic for superior wear and thus far are great. I've also used Michilin Road Pilots on my R1200RT and didn't care for them at all. They wore funny and lasted only 9500 miles.

[TomfromMD]

My 2006 RT came with the Bridgestone BattleAx 020 tires and I've been very pleased with both the ride and wet & dry handling. Wear isn't great at 7,000 miles for both front & rear - defined as new to 2/32" tread remaining (wear bars showing), but they are less expensive than most of the alternatives.

[MEWAYBRIGHT]

My 05 came with Dunlop's... yuck... they were not bad handling but wore out to a point I didn't feel comfortable with at around 4500... I could have maybe got another 1000 out of them but I was planning a long trip and didn't want to have the hassle of getting tires changed in the middle of it if I didn't have to... I am currently running Avon's the AV45ST and AV46ST, they are S rated and handle really well... I only have 2500 on them so I am not sure what kind of life span I will see from them but I am hoping for something around 10 or 12k.

:wave

[BMWDEAN]

My '07 came with Mezeler Z6s. I thought they all came that way! Apparently not :)

<a href=http://bmwdean.home.att.net/blue-rt.jpg><img border=2 src=http://bmwdean.home.att.net/12rt-big.jpg></a>

[Ebet]

My 2006 1200RT came with Bridgestones and I have gotten used to them, but at first they did not seem to handle very well on pavement with vertical grooves. I am more a fan of the Metzeler Z6s, personally. It seems like a personal preference, though, because lots of riders on this thread seem happy with the Bridgestones.

[112124]

Your comments caught my eye before your location. I live in Orange County and have been wondering if the Bridgestones vibrate more than Metzlers going over freeway raingrooves. Sounds like that might be an issue between the two. Thanks for your insights.

[jibimy]

I have a 2006 RT that came with Metzler Z6's that lasted only about 5800 miles. The problem with the back tire is there is no real true way to tell how much tread remains (in the middle of the tire). No grooves running across the center of the tire, so depth measurement is not possible. Handling at all speeds, road surface conditions, and weather was excellent.

I put Michelin Pilot Roads on as replacements. They are much louder, but with a couple thousand miles, there is no visible wear. There is not as much "feel" with these tires.

I've had a couple K1200LT's with the Metzler ME 880's on them. They seemed to be sensitive to air pressure variances (they cupped & wore funky-like), but they did let the bike handle well.

I had Bridgestone on my R1200C and wil not have them again. Also had them as first set of tires on a K1200LT and they lasted 5700 miles. But then again the heavy bikes eat tires or all kinds.

I have a 1978 R100/7 with period Bridgestone tires on it and they wear perfectly even with low pressure.

I guess tire wear depends on several things- pressure, rider and bike weight, temperature, road surface, acceleration and road speeds, tread pattern, shocks, etc.....

Seems like when I was kid that the old Chen Chens lasted longer than all of todays tires. Lot's cheaper then too. Can I be remembering things right?

I may try Dunlop next time. I recall they were pretty good back in the day.

Good Riding
Jiibmy in GA

[marcopolo]

My '06 RT came with Dunlop D220s. Handling was fine, but I didn't like the wear (rear lasted about 9,500 kms -- 5,900 mi). I have since switched both to Z6s, and the rear has 12,000 kms/7,500 mi with some rubber left, though as others pointed out, the lack of rain grooves in the middle of the rear tire makes it hard to judge the wear.

[Burnszilla]

CHP use the 'Police Issue' ride flat Dunlops on their bikes.

[linkadink77]

CHP use the 'Police Issue' ride flat Dunlops on their bikes.

Is it possible to get a set of those. If the answer is yes how? :dunno

[Sully]

hey jibimy,

I had Chen Chens on my x5 (200cc version of x6 Hustler); man, you brought back some memories! Yep, they were good tires, and inexpensive.

I've had Battlax 020s on my 1100RT for the 2 1/2 years I've owned it (only because I can't afford to replace them both at the same time). I've got 4,000 mi on the last rear tire (always inflated to 42psi) and it's already starting to show a flat area on the running surface. Too bad about the poor rating I just read about Dunlops- it's a good American company, they're local (ok, 2 hrs away), and I've been really happy with the D402s I run on my Harley, but the HD gets a lot less 'stressful' riding than my RT.
When I finish college and get a job, I want to try a pair of Dunlops (my wife says if I finish college and get a job, I can have anything I want! And yes, I'm making a list and checking it twice!).
It's easy to feel dumb when you're in college with 20 yr old brainiacs....

sully, up in the Snow Belt near Lake Ontario (they got 6" of snow 10 miles away, and I've got 1")

[Easy]

A set of Michelin Pilot Roads came with my '06 RT. They seem to be ok. I had a pair of Bridgestones on my last bike and they made more unintelligable noise than President Bush at a news conference.

The best set of motorcycle tires I've ever had were Avon Azaro STs. I ordered a set of of Metzler Z6s for an R1100R I had and the dealer mistakenly put on the Avon Azaro STs instead. Althought I was inatially upset, they turned out to be the best set of tires I've ever had. When my Michelins need to be replaced, I'm going back to Avon Azaor STs.

I've had Z4s but they wore out too fast.

Easy
Kerrville, Texas :german

"I've never struck a woman in my life, not even my own mother."
W. C. Fields

[Mr. Frank]

The best set of motorcycle tires I've ever had were Avon Azaro STs. I ordered a set of of Metzler Z6s for an R1100R I had and the dealer mistakenly put on the Avon Azaro STs instead. Althought I was inatially upset, they turned out to be the best set of tires I've ever had. When my Michelins need to be replaced, I'm going back to Avon Azaor STs.



What were the qualities you liked about the Avon Azaros?

[Burnszilla]

Is it possible to get a set of those. If the answer is yes how? :dunno
The tires were the D220. As my mechanic was installing them on the R1150RT-P he said they were run flats, but it doesn't say that on the Dunlop site...
http://www.dunlopmotorcycle.com/tirecatalog_tire.asp?id=74

[Easy]

They have excellent traction on both wet and dry roads. No road noise and good tread life. I sold the bike with 7000 miles on the tires and they still had a good deal of tread left.

Easy :german

"Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana. "
Groucho Marx

[RTRandy]

My 04 RT came with Michelins and they were perfectly fine. I then went through three sets of Z6's. Well actually two. I have a half used set in my garage that I took off prematurely to try the new Pirellis Diablo Strada's for the Nova Scotia trip. These were introduced last spring as a promotion offering the free font tire so I went for the deal. Turned out to be a really great tire. I'm very please with these and they seem to wear less than the Z6's which might not be a better thing implying they are a harder rubber. On the other hand, they've done real well in the rain. Not a popular choice, but they work well.

[Easy]

Frank:

While looking this morning, I found this thread regarding Avon "Tyres". Got to love the way the English spell!

http://www.bmwmoa.org/forum/showthread.php?t=13110&highlight=avon

Easy
Kerrville, Texas :german
"The future ain't what it used to be."
Yogi Berra

[Mr. Frank]

Thanks, Easy. That thread was very helpful.