Oli
Well-known member
Rear tyre size: 190/55
Pressures: 36f/42r ?HOT?. That equates to ~ 34f/38r cold.
Mileage covered: 4713 miles, but they had a good few hundred left in them, so expect 5-6k miles total out of a set.
The Good
- Quick steering:
They without doubt feel the sportiest sport-touring (ST) tyre I?ve used. The rear profile in particular is prominently round and the quick steering compliments the handling of an RR really well.
- Fantastic wet weather performance:
My all time favourite wet weather road tyre was the Pilot Road 3. The Road 5?s are essentially the best tyre I?ve used in the wet. I can?t recall ever finding more confidence in poor conditions than I have on these tyres. The best compliment I can give them, is that when they were in their prime, I had genuine fun on wet roads. I do not think one could reasonably expect much more from a road tyre.
- Handle gravel/debris really well:
This is the first time I?ve considered this in a tyre, but on multiple occasions I?ve met patches of gravel in the road, and whilst they can be avoided, to an extent, I have repeatedly found these tyres to roll over the gravel/debris without having the characteristic fidget one normally expects from a tyre. The only explanation I can give for this is the frankly massive tread blocks on these tyres, which may very well mean that gravel doesn?t contact the tyre in quite the same was as with sport tyres. Regardless, I found it impressive and a desirable trait in a road tyre.
- Quick to warmup:
The only thing to really say on this is that I never noticed the tyres feeling cold when I wanted to lean on them. That?s partly due to being a couple of few miles from suitable roads and I suspect mostly due to the compound of the tyres, which is entirely geared towards road use.
- Dry grip:
I?ve discussed this with others and said repeatedly, but modern ST tyres are sufficiently capable for even the most spirited of road rides. I see no way that a good rider would be limited on any road ride/ride-out on these tyres in the dry. They are wholly sufficient in this regard.
- Longevity:
This is massively influenced by how you ride. If you nail the throttle constantly coming out of turns with little TC it will be knackered in no time. However, if you roll the throttle on you will certainly expect 5/6k miles from these tyres depending on how progressively you ride. Given the wet weather performance, given the extent of the siping and tread design, I think that is a good wear rate, and I certainly wouldn?t value longevity over grip.
Areas for improvement:
- Comfortable limit in the dry is ~45 degrees lean:
You can get 50 (probably more), but the front tyre is definitely pushing at high 40?s lean angle. This is a trait of all ST tyres IMO. It?s hard to criticise as the tyre is geared towards wet weather use, but you definitely feel as though you need a true sport tyre to enjoy that last 10 degrees of lean angle that is achievable on a sport bike. I don?t think that this category of tyre will ever be the only road tyre you need on a sport bike.
- Unbalanced wear:
The wear rate for the front shoulders is unbalanced with the rear tyre. These are the first road tyre I?ve had that?s worn the front shoulders faster than the rear, and I do not use the brakes much. I feel Michelin could improve this by introducing a softer rear shoulder compound to balance out the wear rate. It is of course desirable to see a tyre wear evenly so as to maintain the handling throughout the life of the tyres.
- The large slick shoulders ... why?
The idea is better dry performance and confidence at high lean, but in my experience they are still no match for a true all-round ?sport? tyre in the dry and therefore all the slick shoulder does is limit the wet weather performance, which is otherwise stellar. A shame IMO.
Further to the above, there is a slight ?quirk? to the handling when reaching moderate lean angle at slow speed. It?s tricky to describe, but in essence I found a vague sensation, as if you could feel the transition from massively treaded to nearly slick. This only occurred at slow speed and is of no concern at all, but it is a slightly unusual feeling that you notice on occasion. A quirk, nothing more.
Would I buy again/recommend?
Absolutely! I will be using these for Autumn/Winter use and only changing to a sport tyre when the weather is mostly warm and dry, i.e. late Spring and Summer.
They are without doubt the ?sportiest? feeling ST tyres I?ve used and the handling attributes really work well on the RR. I actually think they steer better than the S22?s I?ve just fitted ...
If you have a GS or equivalent, I would use the trail version of these year round, as their limit is perfectly in line with the limit of an Adventure/Touring bike.
As always, ride safe and have fun [emoji41]
- Oli
Pressures: 36f/42r ?HOT?. That equates to ~ 34f/38r cold.
Mileage covered: 4713 miles, but they had a good few hundred left in them, so expect 5-6k miles total out of a set.
The Good
- Quick steering:
They without doubt feel the sportiest sport-touring (ST) tyre I?ve used. The rear profile in particular is prominently round and the quick steering compliments the handling of an RR really well.
- Fantastic wet weather performance:
My all time favourite wet weather road tyre was the Pilot Road 3. The Road 5?s are essentially the best tyre I?ve used in the wet. I can?t recall ever finding more confidence in poor conditions than I have on these tyres. The best compliment I can give them, is that when they were in their prime, I had genuine fun on wet roads. I do not think one could reasonably expect much more from a road tyre.
- Handle gravel/debris really well:
This is the first time I?ve considered this in a tyre, but on multiple occasions I?ve met patches of gravel in the road, and whilst they can be avoided, to an extent, I have repeatedly found these tyres to roll over the gravel/debris without having the characteristic fidget one normally expects from a tyre. The only explanation I can give for this is the frankly massive tread blocks on these tyres, which may very well mean that gravel doesn?t contact the tyre in quite the same was as with sport tyres. Regardless, I found it impressive and a desirable trait in a road tyre.
- Quick to warmup:
The only thing to really say on this is that I never noticed the tyres feeling cold when I wanted to lean on them. That?s partly due to being a couple of few miles from suitable roads and I suspect mostly due to the compound of the tyres, which is entirely geared towards road use.
- Dry grip:
I?ve discussed this with others and said repeatedly, but modern ST tyres are sufficiently capable for even the most spirited of road rides. I see no way that a good rider would be limited on any road ride/ride-out on these tyres in the dry. They are wholly sufficient in this regard.
- Longevity:
This is massively influenced by how you ride. If you nail the throttle constantly coming out of turns with little TC it will be knackered in no time. However, if you roll the throttle on you will certainly expect 5/6k miles from these tyres depending on how progressively you ride. Given the wet weather performance, given the extent of the siping and tread design, I think that is a good wear rate, and I certainly wouldn?t value longevity over grip.
Areas for improvement:
- Comfortable limit in the dry is ~45 degrees lean:
You can get 50 (probably more), but the front tyre is definitely pushing at high 40?s lean angle. This is a trait of all ST tyres IMO. It?s hard to criticise as the tyre is geared towards wet weather use, but you definitely feel as though you need a true sport tyre to enjoy that last 10 degrees of lean angle that is achievable on a sport bike. I don?t think that this category of tyre will ever be the only road tyre you need on a sport bike.
- Unbalanced wear:
The wear rate for the front shoulders is unbalanced with the rear tyre. These are the first road tyre I?ve had that?s worn the front shoulders faster than the rear, and I do not use the brakes much. I feel Michelin could improve this by introducing a softer rear shoulder compound to balance out the wear rate. It is of course desirable to see a tyre wear evenly so as to maintain the handling throughout the life of the tyres.
- The large slick shoulders ... why?
The idea is better dry performance and confidence at high lean, but in my experience they are still no match for a true all-round ?sport? tyre in the dry and therefore all the slick shoulder does is limit the wet weather performance, which is otherwise stellar. A shame IMO.
Further to the above, there is a slight ?quirk? to the handling when reaching moderate lean angle at slow speed. It?s tricky to describe, but in essence I found a vague sensation, as if you could feel the transition from massively treaded to nearly slick. This only occurred at slow speed and is of no concern at all, but it is a slightly unusual feeling that you notice on occasion. A quirk, nothing more.
Would I buy again/recommend?
Absolutely! I will be using these for Autumn/Winter use and only changing to a sport tyre when the weather is mostly warm and dry, i.e. late Spring and Summer.
They are without doubt the ?sportiest? feeling ST tyres I?ve used and the handling attributes really work well on the RR. I actually think they steer better than the S22?s I?ve just fitted ...
If you have a GS or equivalent, I would use the trail version of these year round, as their limit is perfectly in line with the limit of an Adventure/Touring bike.
As always, ride safe and have fun [emoji41]
- Oli
Last edited:
58 right this year but managed 57 on the left which is a first for me. im back on the michy RS's at the moment and theres too much movement to try for anything else. the best i got on these this weekend was 55's. i prefer the m7rr's tbh and cant wait to get them back on.
