I'm about to do a road-trip next month which will likely finish off the tires on my '95 M900. I have been considering the Pilot Road 2's since they came out but didn't need tires until now. I do nearly everything from canyon duties and track-days (1 per year) to commuting and running errands on this bike so the hot sticky latest-greatest tires aren't my bag BTW.
I got 12K on a pair of the original Pilot Road's and they looked almost new but that was on a bike w/less power and less weight (M750) so I was thinking of the Road 2's for my M900. Other than maybe 10 or so times in 12K miles that the ass-end of my M750 got squirrelly on hard acceleration out of a corner, they worked perfectly!
Anyone with some mileage on them care to comment on how they wear?
Anything particular that they do?
FHE?
Should I just get the original Pilot Roads maybe?
Anyone with experience on BOTH tires (Road 1's & 2's)?
Thanks guys, --Stu
Do you mean the 2ct version? if so...um...they f**kin rock!!!! i have about 6,000 miles on mine and you can't really even tell. Good grip. Warm up quick. Good stuff.
If you didn't mean the 2cts...well never mind then. ;D
Remember... you can't tour on a Monster....
Correct me if I'm wrong, but the 2CTs have the same compound as the original in the center and softer compound on the edges/sides of the tire, yes?
I like my original Pilot Roads. They tend to square off a bit if all I do is commuting but have enough traction to wheelie in the rain. That's got to count for something!
Scott
Technically they're the Pilot Road 2's (but they are a 2 compound tire)
I recently added a 180 rear to my 07 KTM 950SMR (which I could compare to an S4R power wise)
For me this is a touring tire. My original Pirelli Scorpion Sycn lasted 4200 miles. Im on the PR2 rear now and am at 6300 miles.
One trip to DIMBY 1400 miles or so, had a flat spot developing. It's continued to grow, but not at an alarming rate. Im told these tires will go 6000 miles + but im skeptical. At the rate it's wearing, I think I might make 5k and I'm ok with that.
I'll be able to better comment on wear trends after i've worn it out.
That said, I think when it does wear that I'll get another one. And when the front dies, I'll get one to replace that one as well.
I can say with first hand experience that this rear tire will stick in heavy rain 90% (or better) as good as it does on dry pavement.
My last trip to DIMBY was in 10 hrs of heavy rain, and as soon as I hit the hills I dialed it up more and more and more as my comfort improved.
It got to the point where I was riding stupidly fast for the street while in heavy rain like that.
Think 5th gear, full throttle, hung off in a left hand sweeper and pulling your left hand off the bars to wipe rain off your visor.
Like I said, stupid fast.
I had one instance where I got the tire to break loose, and I think i must have been cruising at the torque peak and goosed it a little too much. The rear spun up a little and stepped out just a smidge but I brought it back as fast as it started.
That being said, I think that ride definitely contributed to the accelerated wear on the tire [evil]
So to summarize: get a set, you'll like them.
I got over 12K miles on mine, they wore out on the sides faster than the center but I think my usage is atypical because of my location. [moto]
I replaced them with the same ones. Great in the twisties, great in the rain. Great in the twisties in the rain. [thumbsup]
like lots of michelin tread patterns, they seem to go out of shape on the front - the point of the centre triangle ends up very proud of the surrounding rubber. might depend on usage and maintainence as well tho.
Quote from: brad black on December 01, 2009, 01:38:51 AM
like lots of michelin tread patterns, they seem to go out of shape on the front - the point of the centre triangle ends up very proud of the surrounding rubber. might depend on usage and maintainence as well tho.
that's odd... I tend to get that exact problem with Pirelli's and NOT with the Michelin's...
Interesting...
Another +1 for the PR2s. I run them on both bikes and I get >10k miles outta mine (mostly superslab touring and commuting).
just over 6k on my 2ct's. i expect i will get at least another 1k out of them.
i thought they would be done by the end of this past season, but rain, wreck, and reality kept me off the bike a bit more than expected.
Thanks everyone!
This is just the kind of FHE I was lookin' for! I think I'll place the order for some PR2's in a couple weeks.
BTW, I'm currently running Pirelli Road Smarts and I dig 'em...but not as much as the PR's. I'll be switching too from a 180/55 in the rear to a 170/60 (providing they make that size in the PR2...)
EDIT: They do make a 170/60 in the PR2. :D
2ct rocks. 7000 km on mine, little wear. I have 170/60 rear so that size exists.
QuoteAnything particular that they do?
No.
And that`s what I like like, steady grip, no surprices.
Only thing they do is win all wet tests in bike mags waaay before others. [thumbsup]
Quote from: Monsterlover on November 30, 2009, 02:37:33 PM
Technically they're the Pilot Road 2's (but they are a 2 compound tire)
It's needlessly confusing naming. The Michelin Motorycle Tires website (michelinmotorcycle.com) confirms they ARE officially called "Pilot Road 2" but goes on to tout the "2CT dual-compound technology" which makes it look as if the "2CT" bit is part of the name.
To make things more odd, the "Pilot Power 2CT" is the correct name of that tire. Since there are plain old "Pilot Power" and "Pilot Road" tires, it seems silly to have the dual-compound version of one named a version 2 while another is named 2CT. It's their company and they can make whatever dumb naming decisions they want, but this seems certain to ensure few people ever quite know exactly what their products are really called.
That's a big +1
Reminds me of where I work. Every software system has two names and people constantly get confused and argue about things before realizing they're talking about the same thing. To top it off all the names are acronyms and almost no one knows what the letters stand for.
Scott
2ct:
http://www.michelinmotorcycle.com/index.cfm?event=pilotpower2ct (http://www.michelinmotorcycle.com/index.cfm?event=pilotpower2ct)
no confusion on my bike.
says "pilot road 2ct" on both tires
Quote from: greenmonster on December 01, 2009, 02:35:36 PM
2ct:
http://www.michelinmotorcycle.com/index.cfm?event=pilotpower2ct (http://www.michelinmotorcycle.com/index.cfm?event=pilotpower2ct)
Correct: it's "Pilot Power 2CT."
The same website, when referring to the Pilot
Road 2 leaves off the "CT" all 7 times that the tire's name is given. http://www.michelinmotorcycle.com/index.cfm?event=pilotroad2. (http://www.michelinmotorcycle.com/index.cfm?event=pilotroad2.) The "2CT" shown on that page is a reference to "dual-compound technology," not part of the tire name. It's particularly silly and confusing that it's "Road 2" but "Power 2CT."
Quote from: herm (not herb) on December 01, 2009, 05:08:36 PM
no confusion on my bike.
says "pilot road 2ct" on both tires
Interesting. I sold the bike that had Pilot Road 2's on it, so I can't go have a look. The Michelin website even shows a logo for Pilot Road 2 that omits "CT." Odd that they would go to the trouble and expense of developing one logo to use on websites and brochures and a different one to use on the actual product.
There's a photo of someone else's Pilot Road 2 that does NOT have the "CT" at https://www.flickr.com/photos/macktruckturner/2656175611/# (https://www.flickr.com/photos/macktruckturner/2656175611/#) (Apparently, Flickr doesn't like having images hotlinked.)
I guess it shouldn't be a surprise if they use different naming on the website and the actual product since consistency and logic are so obviously not of much concern to them.
Quote from: herm (not herb) on December 01, 2009, 05:08:36 PM
no confusion on my bike.
says "pilot road 2ct" on both tires
mine 2
It is a bit confusing...
Checked my tires today, it says Pilot Road 2, then on 2 other places it says 2ct. ???
Maybe it is like this:
If you order Pilot Road 2, you`ll get dualcompound ones cause all PR2 are now dualcompound.
To get Pilot Power dualcompound, you specifically have to order PP2ct.
If you order just PP, you get the soft rubber in the whole tire.
PP comes in 2 versions, new generation PR only in 1, dual compound that is.
Just my guess..
Seems to be lots of positive feedback here for the Pilot Road 2CT, but after about 3,500 miles on mine I wish I'd gotten the Pilot Power 2CT. Maybe it's just me, but these tires have always felt a bit unsteady at lean, whether hot or cold. Wear is good so far and they're okay otherwise; I just wish they felt more planted in fast sweepers. Haven't ridden with them in the rain much, so no comment there.
The PR2 tires on my Aprilia have over 8k miles on them, and they look like they will go at least 2k or 3k more. That bike is also a lot heavier than a Monster. I've been very happy with them, but I don't ride that bike as aggressively as the others (which have PP).
Looked at my Pilot Roads this moring, looks like the rear is down to maybe half tread depth in the middle. Not squared off but not perfectly round either. This seemed lame until I checked my maint log: just under 8000 miles since the were installed. I'll be getting the Road 2s for sure when I need new ones.
Scott
Quote from: mstevens on December 01, 2009, 10:30:25 AM
It's their company and they can make whatever dumb naming decisions they want, but this seems certain to ensure few people ever quite know exactly what their products are really called.
It worked out swell for me. I ordered a set of PR2's for my Triumph and they shipped me a set of Pilot Power2ct's by mistake! [thumbsup] When I alerted them to their mistake, they said "Keep 'em. It would cost us to much to ship them back and re-ship the right tire."
I have then, and now a set of PR2's on the Monster. Both are good, but the PP2ct's are fantastic. I wish it had worked the other way round so I had the PR2s on the Triumph, but oh well.
The PR2s on the Monster are too new to tell, I'll proabably get my ususal 10-12k out of them. The PP2ct's have about 4k on them and I can't even see wear, yet. But that's normal. It seems on previous Michelins wear becomes more apparent at 8k-10k.