HaulinAshe
Well-known member
There was a recent tire review on a web publication that said something about an abundance of opinions being spread as scientific tests. I hope I’ve never claimed to be conducting scientific tests. Where possible, I do make measurements with durometers, micrometers and keep very detailed records in a database of most everything I do to/with the bike, including tires. But for me the proof is in the pudding made from running the same roads, with the same bike, under the same conditions, using nothing different except tires. The resulting feel, handling, whatever performance results you call it, is what I base my opinions on. We all know about opinions, don’t we.
I promised the regular followers of my mindless babble about tires, that I would test the new Michelin Pilot Road-2. Overall tread life is yet to be determined, but the other verdicts are in. Here’s the results…
The FJR is classified as a Sport-Touring motorcycle. If you lean toward the Touring side of that marker, then the PR2 is definitely for you.
My first testing was about 5,000 miles on a front tire only. That tire appears to still have another 2,000-3,000 miles remaining. Something I learned is that the Michelin PR2 does not play well with all its rear tire friends, probably due to differences in the profiles. My advice is that if you cannot run the PR2 as a set, mix it with a Bridgestone BT-021 rear tire. They liked each other just fine in my testing. However, the front PR2 argues with a Dunlop RoadSmart rear in a manner reminiscent of the arguments your grandparents used to have when Grandpaw got roaring drunk. We’re talking everybody clear the room and watch the fight from a good distance.
The most recent PR2 testing was 1,600 miles with a matched set of brand new tires. I was hoping for results that would change my already made up mind. It didn’t happen. Mich PR2s are a great tire. They hold their original profile better than just about anything I’ve run since the original PR truck tires (That’s where they truly belonged, NOT on an FJR). If you are running Iron Butt, frequently heavily loaded two-up, or looking for a tire that will get you across country and back home without a rubber stop, then the PR2 is the tire of choice.
If you typically max at posted +10 and enter corners at less than 2x warning, then the PR2 is the tire of choice. If you frequent gravel roads, goat paths or run my route files faithfully without questioning why Fencer’s girlfriend is staring at you from behind her twisted cig on the front porch, the PR2 is the tire of choice.
IMO, the Mich PR2 is an 85% tire, meaning it can withstand 85% of what the FJR machine can deliver. It cannot take 2nd gear throttle- whacking from even a moderate lean angle. Most anything that lifts the front wheel is beyond the PR2. Pavement irregularities are perhaps its biggest weakness. That includes rocks, sticks, tar snakes and even paint stripes on perfectly dry roads. Traction is easily broken above the 85% marker and the PR2 will travel some appreciable distance before regaining traction. Under the best of weather conditions I could feel the rear chatter under heavy acceleration and braking. Passing across dry white lines in corners with wide paved shoulders, caused the PR2 rear to lose noticeable traction and walk out while crossing the paint through the apex.
Turn-in is silky smooth and predictable. The PR2 is probably one of the most linear turning tires I’ve ever encountered.
So we’re now down to the bottom lines. Here’s my advice, Tour with the Michelin PR2. Sport with the Dunlop RoadSmart. Rumble with my old faithful Pirelli Diablo Strada.
Like most everything in life, you have to give something up to gain something else. Set your expectation needle along the scale between Sport and Touring. It should land on one of the three brands/positions mentioned above.
The Mich PR2 compromises my self-confidence and moves my concentration from negotiating the road and the what's ahead, to a focus on early, hard braking and making damn certain I don't make a mistake in the upcoming corner. The Mich PR2 will definitely give up before reaching the limits of the FJR. On days when my mental and physical abilities are good enough to match the bike, the PR2 leaves me unsatisfied. Now that I'm older and used to be faster, I can't afford to pass up one of my good days just to gain some tread life.
HaulinAshe
I promised the regular followers of my mindless babble about tires, that I would test the new Michelin Pilot Road-2. Overall tread life is yet to be determined, but the other verdicts are in. Here’s the results…
The FJR is classified as a Sport-Touring motorcycle. If you lean toward the Touring side of that marker, then the PR2 is definitely for you.
My first testing was about 5,000 miles on a front tire only. That tire appears to still have another 2,000-3,000 miles remaining. Something I learned is that the Michelin PR2 does not play well with all its rear tire friends, probably due to differences in the profiles. My advice is that if you cannot run the PR2 as a set, mix it with a Bridgestone BT-021 rear tire. They liked each other just fine in my testing. However, the front PR2 argues with a Dunlop RoadSmart rear in a manner reminiscent of the arguments your grandparents used to have when Grandpaw got roaring drunk. We’re talking everybody clear the room and watch the fight from a good distance.
The most recent PR2 testing was 1,600 miles with a matched set of brand new tires. I was hoping for results that would change my already made up mind. It didn’t happen. Mich PR2s are a great tire. They hold their original profile better than just about anything I’ve run since the original PR truck tires (That’s where they truly belonged, NOT on an FJR). If you are running Iron Butt, frequently heavily loaded two-up, or looking for a tire that will get you across country and back home without a rubber stop, then the PR2 is the tire of choice.
If you typically max at posted +10 and enter corners at less than 2x warning, then the PR2 is the tire of choice. If you frequent gravel roads, goat paths or run my route files faithfully without questioning why Fencer’s girlfriend is staring at you from behind her twisted cig on the front porch, the PR2 is the tire of choice.
IMO, the Mich PR2 is an 85% tire, meaning it can withstand 85% of what the FJR machine can deliver. It cannot take 2nd gear throttle- whacking from even a moderate lean angle. Most anything that lifts the front wheel is beyond the PR2. Pavement irregularities are perhaps its biggest weakness. That includes rocks, sticks, tar snakes and even paint stripes on perfectly dry roads. Traction is easily broken above the 85% marker and the PR2 will travel some appreciable distance before regaining traction. Under the best of weather conditions I could feel the rear chatter under heavy acceleration and braking. Passing across dry white lines in corners with wide paved shoulders, caused the PR2 rear to lose noticeable traction and walk out while crossing the paint through the apex.
Turn-in is silky smooth and predictable. The PR2 is probably one of the most linear turning tires I’ve ever encountered.
So we’re now down to the bottom lines. Here’s my advice, Tour with the Michelin PR2. Sport with the Dunlop RoadSmart. Rumble with my old faithful Pirelli Diablo Strada.
Like most everything in life, you have to give something up to gain something else. Set your expectation needle along the scale between Sport and Touring. It should land on one of the three brands/positions mentioned above.
The Mich PR2 compromises my self-confidence and moves my concentration from negotiating the road and the what's ahead, to a focus on early, hard braking and making damn certain I don't make a mistake in the upcoming corner. The Mich PR2 will definitely give up before reaching the limits of the FJR. On days when my mental and physical abilities are good enough to match the bike, the PR2 leaves me unsatisfied. Now that I'm older and used to be faster, I can't afford to pass up one of my good days just to gain some tread life.
HaulinAshe
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