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michelin pilot power vs. pilot road 4 or other

9K views 13 replies 7 participants last post by  TT_FZ 
#1 · (Edited)
07 Ninja 650R
I'll be replacing both tires soon, and for many years have been using the pilot Road 2's. The price was increasing, so I saved a few dollars on the Pirelli version, but didn't hold up as well. I'm considering to go back to the R4's now. I've had the Shinko 009 Ravens, and rears wore fast, and the front's tread pattern was awful esp. on metal bridges. I'm not sure if there's anything else I should try. I don't do track days, Just street riding, but like to semi aggressive corner well and like the way 2 compound tire ware. The PR's are getting expensive. Any suggestions?


HR...
 
#5 ·
From my reading, the Roadsmart 2s have more grip on dry roads, and the Pilot Road 4s have more grip on wet roads.

Both are designed to last longer than a faster cornering tire like the Pilot Powers.

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#7 ·
I have had Pilot powers on my old ZX6R and Pilot Road 4 on my ZX10R. I feel like Pilot Road 4 are a lot more reliable and have awesome wet traction. Pilot powers also wear more much faster. Can't say much about cornering hard, but mid part of Pilot Powers wears much faster than Pilot Roads.
 
#9 · (Edited)
You already pulled the trigger on the rear, but next time around, when it is time for a new set ........ have you tried the Dunlop Q3's? I used a few sets for track days last year on my ZX-6R and was amazed at the amount of grip that they provided. I could run within 1.5 seconds of the following day's novice race winners, and I am old and fat. I do not use tire warmers either.
 
#10 ·
I bought the Roadsmart 2 rear to get some of the tributes to a track tire w/ longer life according to the specs and reviews. I was recommended to use a Dunlop Q3 in front to compensate for faster rear wear and change both at same time. I'm not sure if that's a good idea. I change and balance tires myself. HR...
 
#12 ·
Hi there, I said it before and I will say it again, mixing and matching different tires doesn't make sense to me nowadays.

A huge part of the money we pay for tires today compensates for research and development. Look at all the tire presentations, no matter which category the tires are always conceived, researched and developed as pairs working together in unison.

By not using them in the way they were developed we throw all the R&D part away and we end up paying more and getting less out of our purchase.

I 've never had assymetrical wear problems and I don't think I should ever worry about it on a featherweight 72hp bike despite always using supersoft track oriented sport tires. So stop experimenting and instead get the full benefits of a properly developed set of tires next time!
 
#11 ·
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