BMW R1200RT/R1250RT Forum

Well, I have about 1500 miles on the Michelin Road 6GT now and I am still happy with them. Bike handles as it should now and no signs of wear yet.
Tenequip

Done only 500 or so miles on my 6GTs and really like them, time will tell on wear !.

Panman40 wrote: ↑Sat Jun 24, 2023 7:47 am Done only 500 or so miles on my 6GTs and really like them, time will tell on wear !.

What kind of milage did you get on the 6GT's?

AZ-Rider wrote: ↑Sun Jan 14, 2024 3:00 am What kind of milage did you get on the 6GT's?

To be honest I’ve not ridden it much and not at all come the winter. I am noticing the front is squaring off a bit though much sooner than expected. Handling is still good.

I just replaced Mi Pilots. I installed Kenda KM1's and am enjoying response and predictability that I did not have before. I've read KM1's will go over 10k miles, but I'll be happy if they match the Pilots at half that.

Tenequip wrote: ↑Thu Apr 20, 2023 8:34 pm
What do you fellows recommend for the RT? I have Michelin 5 GTs on it now

Randyjaco wrote: ↑Sun Apr 23, 2023 2:21 am I just wore out a R6 rear tire at 6100 miles
I rode them hard, but was a little shocked that they wore out that quickly right down to the cords.

Hi,
That tyre looks odd, it does not look to be worn as flat as the the R5 i have just taken off at almost 8k !


An update to all this. Went for some R6s to my local dealer to be told 2 to 3 weeks for stock. As I was leaving for a trip to Europe in 3 weeks I decided to go for a set of Metzlere Roadtec 01 SE. Excellent tyre, nice turn in, a nice cushioned ride, more grip, wet or dry , than I can use. Just been to France ,Spain and Portugal for three weeks and 4,500 miles just one bit of a slid on a wet greasy mountain pass hairpin, but that was down to a shiny bad bit of road. I really like these tyres and will definitely be fitting some more, they have covered 5000 miles now and I reckon at least another 2,500 left.

I have an '09 RT which used to ride on (different generations of) Pilot Roads. Steering had never been neutral, it always wanted to upright itself in corners. Some say this costs grip.
Then I switched to Bridgestone Battlax T32 gt's and it's hard to exaggerate the difference. It's like I got a whole new bike that's as neutral and planted as they come. I like to scrape pegs but rarely did so on the pilot roads. Now it's easier than ever.

Well I just changed my PR6’s for another set after 11k. Either they wear well or I’m light on them! Excellent handling both wet and dry.

Original Road6GT's on my 2023 RT got 18,000Km before the flattened profile was starting to noticeably affect cornering. Tread was still ok as I do a significant proportion of riding in twisties so helps the tyres wear more evenly - up to a point. I liked the feel of the R6GT as neutral and predictable. I am not a peg scraping type of guy.

Dealer suggested trying Pirelli Angel GT2 which I did. They didn't feel as neutral as the R6GT and had slight centreline movement which felt odd. Then went on a Long tour (16,000km) with mainly straight highway running, and carrying about 30Kg of luggage. After 11,000Km when I reached Perth I had to change them as the profile was too flat- tread still fine. Dealer there suggested Bridgestone T32GT as being slightly stiffer.

After 6,000Km return trip the T32GT's are holding their profile well, both front and back, and plenty of tread. They feel similarly neutral to the Road6.

They are all good tyres. I think the Michelins might be slightly better for wear and neutral feeling. Don't think I would go with Pirelli again. My riding buddy had Pirelli's on his KTM 1290 and the rear tyre fractured suddenly 300Km west of Mt Isa in nowhere land. On replacing, the tyre dealer in Mt Isa noted there seemed to be a defect in the belting visible from the inside. Maybe just bad luck, but our opinions are based on our experiences. Hallelujah for tyre pressure warning system which went off before the tyre was completely flat. That stretch of Barkley Highway in NT is 130Km/hr limit.

I've just worn through a michelin in 8000 miles!

My last one I got over 9k out of it

Maybe I am a bit too hard on the throttle

I'm not sure throttle aggression is that big a factor in wear on an RT because it just isn't that quick off the mark compared with a sports bike. Its brisk but its weight holds it back and gives more traction. Road surface, speed, temperature, curve/straight road etc are big factors. On rougher aggregate tar surfaces at 30+ deg C in Nth Oz at 110-130kph for hours on end I could see the wear before my eyes. Further south where tar was made with finer aggregate, temp around 20, and more variation in speed due to towns and curves it was much less. Sure, aggressive acceleration and cornering will accelerate wear, but talking with local motorcycle cops who ride RT's, they ride like they stole it all day on good city roads and motorways and they claim 20,000km typical out of Road6GT's their preferred tyre. Go figure...

After having the Hayabusa, anything over 2000 miles is a plus

Jggpossum wrote: ↑Tue Aug 13, 2024 9:23 am I'm not sure throttle aggression is that big a factor in wear on an RT because it just isn't that quick off the mark compared with a sports bike. Its brisk but its weight holds it back and gives more traction. Road surface, speed, temperature, curve/straight road etc are big factors. On rougher aggregate tar surfaces at 30+ deg C in Nth Oz at 110-130kph for hours on end I could see the wear before my eyes. Further south where tar was made with finer aggregate, temp around 20, and more variation in speed due to towns and curves it was much less. Sure, aggressive acceleration and cornering will accelerate wear, but talking with local motorcycle cops who ride RT's, they ride like they stole it all day on good city roads and motorways and they claim 20,000km typical out of Road6GT's their preferred tyre. Go figure...

It's normal for any bike to wear a tyre quicker if you are using more throttle!

The RT has more than enough power to cause extra wear when giving it some! That with the extra weight is actually asking more out of the rear tyre

Of course you are absolutely correct. I wasn’t saying otherwise. My own observation is just that other factors also play a big part in how much life we get and most postings don’t take the time to explain differences in riding conditions. Riders quoting 8,000km (5,000 miles) from a set of tyres are probably riding very hard, but most don’t give details about all the other factors. As a steady open road touring rider I expect and get about 15,000+ on my local state roads which are mostly A grade asphalt and have a high proportion of curves. But I noted that with challenging road surfaces, higher sustained speeds in hotter weather on “outback” highways I was lucky to get 10,000Km. In truth I would have changed my tyres at 8,000 on my trip but I held out for a major city with a BMW dealer for an oil change as well. So I’m saying that long distance mostly straight line running on rough tar at constant 110-120kph in hot weather with higher touring weight, halved my normal life.
The info from the motorbike cop was factual. They have regular moments of aggressive riding and their RT’s are specially modified in the ECU to remove some of the traction control features for extra go. The cop claims it is significantly quicker off the mark once you learn how to control it. These guys love the opportunity to give it a squirt. But they mostly ride on hot mix asphalt and cruise around at speeds generally lower than i do as they mostly operate on city roads and motorways. They are also loaded up weight wise with electronics etc. Result… they get 20,000km and these guys wouldn’t let the profile get as squared off as I would so it says a lot about how many different factors affect tyre life.
So when reading these sorts of posts when someone compares tyre brands and talks about significantly better or worse life, I take it with a grain of salt. I can’t say that the Pirellis only getting in truth 8,000km compared with 18,000 for the Michelin R6GT is anything to do with the tyres because of other conditions. Those conditions had nothing to do with my riding style as it is a constant. I stand by my observations about feel and handling and I didn’t like the pirellis much.

BTW. I have since modified my view on when is the best time to change tyres. Yes I can get 15-18,000km on a set but I am sacrificing quality of ride for the latter part of the life due to the squarer profile on the rear tyre. Which is more important the extra life or smoother cornering and feel?

From now on I am going to change tyres every 10,000km service even though they will still have stacks of tread. The joy of a new set of tyres is hard to beat.