Poll of Tyre Options - R 1200/1250 RT

[yellowjacket]

My first set of tires on my 2016 RT were Z-8's. I only got 4-5,000 miles before they cupped. I am on my 5th set of Michelin Pilot Road 4 GT's and I get 9-10,000 miles on them. I can go into any curve at almost any speed and they hold firm. That is my story and I'm sticking to it.

[RT Slim]

Need to add the new Dunlop Roadsmart IV to the poll as I've moved on from the III. Such a great tire.

[David.]

Done.

[Casbar]

Always had PR4 GT on my 1200. My 1250 came with Z8s, they have been fine. Done around 6k, front is around 2.5mm and rear has still got 4mm, no cupping. But I do run the front with a couple of extra llbs which helps a lot. But a little torn now, whether to replace the front with another Z8 or go to PR5 GT for both, but that would mean replacing the rear which will still have usable tread.

[Our Gee]

What about the Bridgestone Battlax BT023. My own Twincam (purchased as a used bike last August) came with these fitted and are about half worn. They seem ok to me, nothing special though, just ok. There again, at four years old and half worn a true appraisal is difficult. These tyres now fall into the Premium but superceded range so are still available at a good price.

[David.]

Bridgestone Battlax BT 023 added to the poll.

The Bridgestone fitment guide recommends the GT version for both F&R tyres on an RT. From National Bike Tyres, both standard & GT versions of the BT 023 are the same price. This Bridgestone pricing policy is unlike some other manufacturers who charge more for their tyres to fit a heavy weight touring bike.

[Our Gee]

Another one to add to the growing list. The Continental "Contiroad" . Apart from Continental's own Website there does not seem to be much info around.  (Have a search David) Tested and developed with help from Jeremy McWilliams (I know, another racer) and pitched to fit between the Road Attack 2 and Road Attack 3 at a mid-price level. Continental do mention a comfy ride due to excellent class leading bump absorption which will be a plus point for me.

[David.]

Continental ContiRoad added to the poll, I feel a new thread coming on.

[Wierpig]

Need to add the new Dunlop Roadsmart IV to the poll as I've moved on from the III. Such a great tire.

Fancied these but not recommended for the RT1250 on the Dunlop website.Has anyone fitted them or know why?

[Sharkfighter]

Has anyone got Dunlop Mutant fitted? Review done by RiderCam tv on you tube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eLGBOTJIqrc&t=877s He seems to be impressed with them and the price doesn't seem out of the way either.

[beemerboy9]

The BMW Motorrad Tyre Options, http://www.bmw-motorrad.com/com/en/index.html?content=http://www.bmw-motorrad.com/com/en/services/tyres/tyres_main.html,
recommends the following tyre Manufacturers & tread Patterns.

Bridgestone Battlax BT 021, Continental Road Attack, Dunlop Sportmax Roadsmart, Metzeler Roadtec Z6 or Z8 & Michelin Pilot Road 2.

Both my 2007 & 2010 RT's came with Factory Fit Metzeler Z6's & the new (used) 2012 bike has the original Bridgestone 021's still fitted.

I've used Z6's for 8 years without any problems, except, they do tend to break up in the centre of the rear tyre without warning because of the tread pattern being slick in that area.
Got caught out in Scotland last year and have lost a bit of confidence in Z6 tyres, a Michelin Pilot Road (original) was fitted to get me home.
Replaced the front & road on PR1's without any problems, there were wearing well before I changed the 2010 bike for my current model.

Looking at the BMW recommendations & cost of the tyres, I have come to the conclusion that, Bridgestone, Continental & Z6's are all similar at approx. £170 per pair.
Dunlop & Z8's come out at around £190/200, PR2's are not available in B version code for the rear.
(Prices obtained from National Bike Tyres, 01325 316771http://www.nationalbiketyres.co.uk/, for comparison, NBT are my preferred supplier/tyre fitters).

Therefore, I may run the Bridgestone 021's & see how long they last, replace with the same again or perhaps go for Z8's.
(Dropped a VFR when riding on Bridgestone 020's, therefore may have a hang-up about 021's too).

Looks like I'm leaning towards Z8's, they are listed as 1 of 3 tyres for the current LC RT, the other 2 being Continental RA 2GT & Michelin PR 4GT's.

Most of my riding is 2 Up +/- Luggage, mileage is a priority but not at the expense of safety & I appreciate tyres are also a personal choice.

Any help or comments from your experiences would be most welcome, thanks.

Because of the higher speeds allowed on autobahns, the Germans have for many years had strict rules about which tyres are certified for a particular bike. The allowed tyre choice would be entered in their equivalent of our V5.
This obviously led to a lot of problems when the certified tyres were no longer made.


Those strict rules have now changed. Any tyres made after 31/12/2019 of same speed rating, weight rating and rolling circumference as the original tyres fitting to the machine are now allowed. If the manufacturer specifies that a specific tyre MUST be fitted, then this will be entered onto the vehicle log-book.


There are all sorts of if's and but's, but that is the essence of the story. This will also allow Germans to fit (safer) modern radial-ply tyres to machines that were originally registered with cross-ply tyres.


So basically all the old specific endorsements now fall by the wayside.


Further information here  (German).