Tires

[northbeachboy]

How do I know if it's time for new tires? My R1150r is a 2004 with a little over 9k, original tires and they look fine.....lots of tread, no rot, and even wear. Of course, the build date on the tires is late 2003, and the dealer says I should replace them because of their age. Never had a problem, no plugs, etc. The bike is stored in a heated garage and I ride conservately....Any advice? Thanks!

[boxermania]

Assuming the 9k miles are all yours it seems the bike doesn;t see much use. As long as the tires don't have any visible problems with dry rot or cracking you are good to go. By law tires can't be sold if they are 6 years old.......don't ask me how that was arrived at.

I would be concerned with the valve stems, you might want to check them, specially where they neck down to go through the ring........push to the side and see if you can detect cracks....if so....have them replaced.

[wncbmw]

+1 on checking the valve stems! A bad valve stem on a perfectly good tire will still leave you stranded. Don't ask how I know.

If you think you will be riding the tires a significant number of additional miles, it might be worth having someone break them down and just replace the stems.

[Airman]

How do I know if it's time for new tires? My R1150r is a 2004 with a little over 9k, original tires and they look fine.....lots of tread, no rot, and even wear. Of course, the build date on the tires is late 2003, and the dealer says I should replace them because of their age. Never had a problem, no plugs, etc. The bike is stored in a heated garage and I ride conservately....Any advice? Thanks!

You'll get a lot of well meaning advice on this, but the reall fix is to ride about 6k this summer and then buy a fresh set in the fall. My `03 is on the third set at 32k I think the front must have at least 15k on it. The dealer just wants to sell you a $300 set of tires. IMHO the date on the tire is important when you're buying new tires, but once mounted, the condition of the tire is what I'd go by. You could get another 9k out of those tires.

[northbeachboy]

Thanks everyone! Airman, the dealer has Metzlers that are dated from 7/08.....these are already a year old......should I buy them or ask for newer/fresher tires?

[BMWEW1]

Like everyone says, ride on them till they wear out. But as they wear keep in mind that wet roads become a serious traction issue with worn tires.

[combustor777]

Thanks everyone! Airman, the dealer has Metzlers that are dated from 7/08.....these are already a year old......should I buy them or ask for newer/fresher tires?

That's not bad. The important thing is to get some heat cycles on them once they are mounted so they don't crack from lack of use. When I ordered tires the rear was made near the end of '07, and this was only a few weeks ago. Probably has something to do with the oddball 170mm rear tire size that we have. Once you have some heat cycles on a tire they will last a long time, but they DO harden with age.

[Airman]

Thanks everyone! Airman, the dealer has Metzlers that are dated from 7/08.....these are already a year old......should I buy them or ask for newer/fresher tires?

Z6's I suppose ? What does he want for these year old tires ? I've ordered tires twice from MotorCycle Superstore and in all honesty didn't look at the date either time. As far as the date, I probably wouldn't have much problem with it, but I might use that to squeeze the dealer. He is probably asking too much for them eh ? I bought a Pirelli Strada last winter to replace the one with the nail in it and I think I paid $140 including shipping. Like I said though, 9k is not much. I'd finish off those stock tires first. I said i'd had three sets of tires, actually 2 1/2, but the front is into the wear bars now so I should replace it.

[R4R&R]

I had a buddy that got a steal of a deal on a Honda Superhawk - only 1900 miles on the bike, but it was like six years old at the time. The tires looked great - hardly worn. The first ride we took out on the good roads, he was losing traction in most of the turns - the tires seemed to have lost their 'stick' although they looked ok. The only resolution was to replace them. Watch the traction level/don't be too aggressive until you've eased into them and can trust them. Otherwise, replace them!

[combustor777]

I had a buddy that got a steal of a deal on a Honda Superhawk - only 1900 miles on the bike, but it was like six years old at the time. The tires looked great - hardly worn. The first ride we took out on the good roads, he was losing traction in most of the turns - the tires seemed to have lost their 'stick' although they looked ok. The only resolution was to replace them. Watch the traction level/don't be too aggressive until you've eased into them and can trust them. Otherwise, replace them!

Yep, with those low miles the tires probably never got the heat cycles necessary to break in. Add in 6 years of hardening on top of that, and you end up with some brick hard touring-only tires! The tires I mentioned being 18 months old came from MC superstore. 170mm rear being an oddball they are probably only produced a batch at a time, and not continuously.