Ducati Monster Forum

What tires are better for riding on the streets? My bike has the Pilot Power, but these are track tires. I want a tire for the real world that will grip to different surfaces and will not slide out or get easily upset. Any Tire recommendations for an S4R that doesn't want to race, but play safe around town?  [moto] [moto]

I have pilot powers and do 75% city riding. Theres only 2 types of surfaces you will encounter mainly. Concrete and asphat. And this tire works great on both.

With the powers I have had the rear tire slide a bit when turning.. maybe there has been a bit of debris or something else.
A tire designed for the street will have more grooves and different shape/materials better suited for the street (including better grip when raining)
I found these Metzeler  http://www.motorcycle-superstore.com/1/28/396/6138/ITEM/Metzeler-Roadtec-Z6-Sport-Touring-Rear-Tire.aspx

Which Pilot Powers do you have?  Regular Power or race?  I used to run the Metzeler Z6 tires since I ride winter, rain, etc and wanted the cold/wet traction.  When the Pilot Powers came out the raves about quick warm up and wet traction persuaded me to give them a try.  The raves were on the money.  Cold damp mornings are not a problem.

I am not sure which powers. These are the stock tires that come with the S4R 2005. Would you recommend the Metzeler Z6 then? how about Dunlop D616 : here: http://www.kneedraggers.com/details/Dunlop_D616_High_Performance_Radial_Rear_Tires--509024d.html

Seems that the best choice for the street could be the Michelin Pilot ROAD 2 !!  http://www.michelinmotorcycle.com/index.cfm?event=pilotroad2 
Any suggestions?

So far I like my Pilot Road 2's.

Other tire threads you should check out:
http://ducatimonsterworldwide.org/index.php?topic=2444.0
http://ducatimonsterworldwide.org/index.php?topic=703.0
http://ducatimonsterworldwide.org/index.php?topic=3690.0

Any sport touring tire will work fine - pick whatever is on sale. Dunlop & Conti make nice ones. Sport tires are a waste of money for street ridden Monsters.

There's a bunch of reasons for that, I wouldn't be super quick to ditch the tires you have - unless they are already in need of replacement.

What was the temp like? Wet?  Dry?  Air pressure in the tire?  See any dark sports on the road (oil/diesel)?  Were you a little heavier on the throttle that day?  There's a ton of reasons why the tire might have slipped.  Sure the one it was, could have been the tire.  But plenty of people really like those tires and have reported great grip.

It's pretty amazing how much you tire being 'off' will affect things.  I went for a ride on a loaner S4R one day and she just didn't want to turn in.  Check the tires pressure, front was fine, but rear was lower than I usually ride.  Added a few PSI and she went from lolling into the bends to be light and lively - a marked difference. 

I guess I'm jsut trying to say, eliminate possible other cheap or free culprits before you drop your hard earned dough on different tires that might not make a difference if something else is at fault.

+1.

I've been happy with wear and grip with Diablo Stradas.

I swtiched from PPs to Corse IIIs. 

I also received 2 speeding tickets in 5 days thereafter.   :P


Coincidence??????

I Don't THINK So.  [moto]

I'm liking my Metzeler M3's so far.  Only about 600 miles on them though, so I can't comment on tread life.

I need to replace my tires REAL soon, and I'm likely going to go for some Continentals.

Specifically the Sport Attack up front and the Road attack out back.  Same geometric and rolling profile, but the rears should last for 5,000 miles or more.  The OEM Diablos are just about flat in the center and were REALLY squirrely the other day.

Nice real-world review here:  http://www.canyonchasers.net/reviews/accessories/road-attack.php

They also look really cool and a MUCH cheaper than the PP's or the Road 2's.

WTH? Where have you been? Glad to see you made it over!

I have the standard PPs on my #1 S4Rs and I've played around w/ the tire pressures and found that Ducati says about 321/2 psi. frt. and 33 psi. Rear and I've run as high as 42 psi in the Rear and 40 psi in the Frt. I'd do some experimenting but don't go crazy w/ the throttle until you find the psi that you feel works best for your type of riding.

32 1/2? That could be the difference in ambient temperature!

The Z6 Met. works well and will last longer, but they are heavy as hell.

I've used several sets of 2CTs and liken em. [thumbsup]

LA

Am I the only guy in the world that has Bridgestones on his bike?  My S2R800 came with Battlax BT014R's.  I'm mildly unimpressed with the wear.  They have about 6500kms on them and the rear still has tread but it's starting to square off.  I'm wondering if I should just throw another one on until the front is toast as well or if I should upgrade when this one wears out.

Can anybody tell me about this tire?  How does it compare to the Michelin Pilot Power and the Metzeler?  Apparently it's a bit cheaper price wise.

Pilot Power 2CT are performance oriented street tires.
Pilot Race are track tires.

You might try Pilot Road 2CT if you're not happy with the PP's.  Personally, I've always wanted the stickiest tire I could buy on my bike, longevity be damned.  I have to agree with yuu, if you're slipping I think there's another cause.

I've been through the original Pilot Roads, original Pilot Powers, a set of Diablo Corsa IIIs and I just spooned on PP 2CTs.

I thought the Roads were good tires but gave up just a little too much corner grip for my taste. The Road 2s should solve that problem nicely and still yield good wear (I think I got 10k mi out of the original Roads). With the dual compound, they might even be enough for the occasional track day for an air cooled Monster, but probably not for an S4.

I have to say though that I like the tire profile of the Powers much better. That super crisp turn-in is addictive and it's the main reason I bought the 2CTs this time around instead of trying the Road 2s. Price is about the same but I don't expect to get any more than 6k mi out of the 2CTs. I got about that out of the original Powers and 6400 out of the Corsas (though I showed steel last weekend :o).

IMHO, there's nothing wrong with Powers for the street except longevity. They warm up great, stick to anything and do well in water. They are stickier than most of us need on the street and hence don't last that long.

I have the same on my S2R1000 and I agree. They have decent grip, but are squaring off at a little over 4k miles...

I'm running Pilot Powers on my M900 and the 999. I am extremely happy as they made a huge difference for the better on both bikes. They get a little skippy if you run over a solid painted line in a well banked corner but I think most any tire would.

Although I've been running several sets of 2ct's, last week I put on a regular Pilot Power. I rode it pretty hard all last weekend in wet and dry up in the Blue Ridge and it works just as well as the 2ct's.  I'll continue to use the ct's on the front.

LA

mine came with pirelli diablos. front & rear. i am on the second rear tire & replaced it with what came on it.

Depends on what you want out of the tire.  Personally, I want grip....I have nearly lost the front on while leaning into a left hander and touching the centerline.  I am convinced if I was on a lesser tire I would not have saved it.  The cold PPs saved my ass, and I am grateful.  I have seen Metzlers perform very well, the Battle axes aren't as grippy from what I have seen and heard, so the new kicks will be 2cts for me. 

I was able to get 10k front and 6k rear on a pair of PP sports, but I rode the rear until it literally fell apart.  Even during failure it was predictable and controllable.  I am 100% sold on Michelin!