Tire wear

[Riverside]

First let me tell you that I am a new BMW rider. I got a 2004 R1150R in July with 5100 miles on the clock. My ride home was about 100 miles in a steady and sometimes pouring rain. I knew from that I was going to really like this bike and I was right. But on to my question. I now have 7100 miles on the bike and the dealer mentioned I should replace the rear tire. I am assuming the tire is an OEM that came with the bike and I have no problem replacing it. However I had a Harley Sportster the tires lasted considerably longer and wore evenly. On my new toy the tire seems to be wearing more on the outside edges with a noticibly higher center area about 2 inches wide. I have riden a lot of the 2000 miles 2up and have kept the tires inflated to 46 in the rear per the online manuals I have been able to find. Is this ridged wear pattern normal for these bikes or might I have something wrong with the rear tire/wheel?

[sjbmw]

Congrats on the new bike, 5100 miles is barely broken in!

My 2004 came with Metzler Z4's when I bought it in August 2003.
Since then I have been using Metzler Z6's and they usually last 8500 miles give or take a few hundred.

There are a lot of factors to tire wear (weight/loads carried, style of the rider, etc.) and comparing a cruiser to a non-cruiser bike may not work.
There is the belt drive vs. chain vs. shaft drive variable also.

If the bike has 7100 miles, would that mean the tires are 10 years old?
I would replace 10 year old tires immediately. BOTH OF THEM.


good luck, and welcome
herb

[peels]

+1 if those are OEM...ditch em.

old tires are old tires regardless of miles. the rubber dries out and gets flaky...ESPECIALLY in cold climates, when temperature changes radically with the seasons.

learned this on my boat trailer. 8 years of sitting, and maybe towing 500 miles a year, thought they'd be fine...they both grenaded on me the same week, actually causing damage to trailer, and some streaks on the boat.

I dislike how quickly motorcycle tires wear out vs a car-always have, but I need to remember, it is two tires vs 4 on your car, and you cant really have that much tread on a bike, it would be wobbly. Just wish they could be a bit cheaper since they still wear so fast.. i think my metzelers have about 5k on them, the back is decent, but the front is chicken strippin lol. I only use it to commute in a straight line, there is only one good 90 degree turn on the way, i go as fast as safely possible, knee out...but its not enough to wear even

OH On the backroads, i also do the serpentine "tire warming" maneuver like the F1 cars do during a caution. to try and scrub the sides of the tires so they dont get that strip. but doesnt seem to matter.

[macx]

Over the past 50k miles or so I've tried lots of different ones.

Best service was the Metz Z6 Interact, but unfortunately I can't find those any more.
I'm not Kenny Roberts but I do enjoy an exhilirating corner on occasion and my throttle
doesn't stick from non-use :-)

Got nearly 12k out of those.

Next Z8 Interact, wore pretty quickly.

Next Michelin PR3 - wore unevenly and quickly. Maybe my fault, maybe a little too low pressure.
Most guys recommend for average size single rider with some "stuff" around 38 / 42, which I
have since found does seem to increase tire miles.

Then plain Z6 (no Int's available any more). Front lasted real good, back wore fast - ??

Now on 2nd set of Pirelli Angel GT (not the ST). Pirelli adv's them to last 30% longer than
their others. Got about 10 on first set, 2nd set doing well too.

I ride very rough surface road with coarse asphalt since the Z6 Interacts so probly a contributor
to shorter tire life.

Also usually run 75 to 90 on that road (70 miles a day for work) which probly doesn't help either.

Very small handling diff's, but Z6 Interacts were the most solid and sure footed on curves.

Keep asking, others have had way diff experiences than I have had.

[Frank1150r]

Your tire pressure is way to high, recommended pressure is, F-32psi R-36psi. Check your manual for 2up pressure.
I average 7-10 thousand miles per set of tires.

Good luck with your new toy,

Frank

[Martyn]

Your tire pressure is way to high, recommended pressure is, F-32psi R-36psi. Check your manual for 2up pressure.
I average 7-10 thousand miles per set of tires.

Good luck with your new toy,

Frank

Personally I pay little heed to the bike manufacturers recommendation re pressure, but rather I ask the tyre manufacturer.
The bikes manual is up to date the day it's printed; that's it.
Tyre manufacturers know their product, & they continue to develop the product.
Dunlop, Bridgestone, & Conti recommend 36F/42R, & that works fine by me.

[Riverside]

Thank you all for the input. All good stuff. I was planning to replace both tires and have been doing my shopping so all this advice is well timed. Also I mis-typed the pressure ... I keep it at 42 not 46. One thing I may not have been clear on was my concern about the wear pattern. The rear tire has a definate ridge in the center. The sidewalls then go off at nearly a 45 deg angle. I have attached photos. I'm concerned that something else is wrong and want to sort it out before putting new tires on and having the same thing happen soon after putting them on. Anyone seen anything like this and know the cause? While doing my research I noticed the current tires are Bridgestone Battlax 170/60 ZR17. J&P Cycle lists the tires for that bike as 180/55 ZR17. Would someone with an owners manual for the 2004 R1150R look up the stock size please. I am not sure where my starting point is.

[sjbmw]

Take the "/board" off the end of your site address and you will get to the main page.

http://www.r1150r.org

There is a "Tech Tips and Reviews" link in the upper right:

http://www.r1150r.org/other.html


Wheels and Tires

Front Tire 120/70-ZR17
Rear Tire 170/60-ZR17

[Martyn]

Thank you all for the input. All good stuff. I was planning to replace both tires and have been doing my shopping so all this advice is well timed. Also I mis-typed the pressure ... I keep it at 42 not 46. One thing I may not have been clear on was my concern about the wear pattern. The rear tire has a definate ridge in the center. The sidewalls then go off at nearly a 45 deg angle. I have attached photos. I'm concerned that something else is wrong and want to sort it out before putting new tires on and having the same thing happen soon after putting them on. Anyone seen anything like this and know the cause? While doing my research I noticed the current tires are Bridgestone Battlax 170/60 ZR17. J&P Cycle lists the tires for that bike as 180/55 ZR17. Would someone with an owners manual for the 2004 R1150R look up the stock size please. I am not sure where my starting point is.

Lots of people have strong opinions on tyres, & tyre choices, & I'm no exception, but I would respectfully suggest that you consider Conti Road Attack2, Dunlop Roadsmart2, Michelin Pilot Road 3 or Metzeler, all of which in my opinion & experience, are a great deal better than the tyres you currently have fitted. The manufacturers are constantly working on new compounds & technologies & things move on - in only a few years.

[wncbmw]

Re: correct tire pressure. The best guide I heard is there should be no more than 10% difference between cold and warmed up tire pressure.

I tested the 36f/42r recommendations and they were spot on with less than 4 lbs increase when hot.

BTW, I have never gotten to 10K on any tire in 74,000 miles on this bike, regardless of brand, front or rear! But then, I am forced to ride curvy, mountain roads all the time!

[billbeemer]

the rise in the middle of your rear tire is known as a "chicken strip" and means you have been riding straight up instead of leaning in curves. don't worry about, they all do it..........last change i went with pr3's, i like them but don't know about mileage yet.

[milehighboater]

The wear is caused by the dual rubber compound. The tires have a harder center strip and softer sides. If the tire pressure was too low at some point then the sides would wear abnormally quick causing the 45 degree angle you are talking about. I pulled a set of z6s last week and had similar tread wear. When my new pr3s were installed it took me a bit to get used to riding on a rounded tire. I wouldn't worry about it doesn't sound like there is anything wrong with the bike.

[Riverside]

Thanks everyone for the input. Especially the last two posts explaining what I thought was a strange wear pattern. Nice to know it is nothing unusual. I have settled on a set of Metzlers Z6 or Z8... if I can get the right size found somewhere in stock. Anyone ever fitted a 170/55 to the rear wheel? Any problem with going one size smaller on the back? Again I am more familiar with swapping out car tire heights than bikes.