Tire information

[Bob Walker]

I had a talk with a very well informed Michelin tire rep today. I asked him about the change that were made in the Scooter tire when they changed from the Michelin Gold Standard to the Michelin City Grip.
The tread design is the obvious change but the rest of his explanation I found very interesting. The tire is made in two pieces. The tread is heat bonded to the tire carcus. The tread is made of a changing blend of rubber. The center part of the tread is made of a harder rubber to give the tire longer highway tread wear. As you roll over the edge the rubber gets softer giving you increased traction as the turn gets tighter.
I don't know if other tire manufacturers use this technique but I thought that it was worth mentioning.

Sorry for the error. The name of the tire is City Grip Not City Street.

[Mike Lynch]

I have been shopping for Tires and in trying to find a "matched" set for my 2006 Scarabeo 500 found the pickins very slim.

When will the Michelin City Streets be generally available?

Best regards,

Mike Lynch

[tomd]

Im runnin the City Grip directionals Now 110- 60 up front 140-70 out bck I wasnt that impressed with the ST-66 pirelli's many co's are bonding the tires in similar fashion and all have trade names for it to.. i try n not get to caught up in all that..

[Vonde]

I just purchased a set Shinko's from Motorcycle Superstore and had them mounted locally - had seen them mentioned in an earlier post and decided to give them a try - front [SR567F -110/80-16] and rear [SR568R - 140/70S-16]. I would expect them to have good dry and wet weather handling but with fewer miles than the Gold Stds they replaced.

Also, I considered the Metzler Feel Free [if my memory is correct] which were also available in sets from Motorcycle Superstore.

One note of caution - lead wheel weights are being banned by the EPA and my front tire was balanced with steel weights - steel isn't the problem but the adhesive was. They flew off and one of them was hanging on the spoke when I noticed - this was very close to the rotor and who knows where I might be if it stuck on the rotor and tried to go through the caliper!!!! On the rear I cleaned the rim good and then rubbed it down with rubbing alcohol - the cycle shop says that BMW's and maybe Aprilia's have a teflon coating on the rims to make them clean up easier. All I know is check those wheel weights.

Good luck,

Rick V
2006 Scarabeo 500 GT ABS

[tomd]

the weight woulda been flung on ground couldnt go thru disc pads and rotor

[Silas Fegan]

Im runnin the City Grip directionals Now 110- 60 up front 140-70 out bck I wasnt that impressed with the ST-66 pirelli's many co's are bonding the tires in similar fashion and all have trade names for it to.. i try n not get to caught up in all that..

Hey Tom so what don't you like about the Pirelli ST-66. I just finished a 1400 mile long trip on mine - - hot as hell; soft balcktop; hot concrete; and then the usual Florida afternoon 'gully washer' - - - mine seem to be performing in fine fashion. No complaints - - - what should I be looking for?

[MillCreek]

I have about 1500 miles on my Pirelli ST-66 tires, and I have been pretty pleased with them. They wear very well, and even more important to me, handle our rainy Seattle weather well.

I am thinking of Shinko 705s for the Suzuki dual-sport when the stock Trailwings give out. I think I probably have about 1000 more miles on the Wings.

[tomd]

Nothing at all I wore out a set in like 7500 miles city grips were just coming online and looked good 2 So i snagged a set