First Impressions: Continental Road Attack 2 R1200RT

[mclassing]

Here are my impressions of the Road Attack 2s after completing 10,000 miles on a set of Michelin Pilot Road 2s.

While we're there though, I'll say the PR2s wore like stone. I never felt uncomfortable with the tires handling.

Though the PR2s wore like stone, they had cupped so badly that I could hardly stand the noise. It was most evident on concrete pavement slightly off the center of the tire.

I had ordered a set of PR3s; however, the "extra cord" tire for the RT was not available for any price from anyone.

Now for the RA2 impressions:

Wow.

WOW!!!

Although I obviously cannot comment on longevity, I can certainly tell you that they didn't feel like new tires. The "Traction Skin" works.

Handling of the RT has improved drastically from replacing the squared off Pilot Road 2s. Turn in on the Contis is smooth and progressive.

Grip. Within the first 100 miles of the tires, I started to push them through the corners. No bad behaviour. Nothing but confidence.

Ride. This one surprised me. I think the PR2s are so hard that they make the bike ride rough. Not the Contis. They seem to help soak up the bumps.

I ran my hands across them in the garage after my ride. They're as sticky as a 2 year old after desert. If these things last 3000 miles, I'll be astounded. We'll see.

They definitely are intended more for sport than touring. They may be more appropriate on an R1200R than an R12RT.

Depending on how long they last and how they wear, I may have a new favourite tire.

YMMV

 

[joezim]

Conti Road Attack 2

I used them on my ST1300 and loved them. They will be replacing the Bridgestones on my new RT

 

[jduke]

I used them on my ST1300 and loved them. They will be replacing the Bridgestones on my new RT

How many miles did they give you on the ST1300?

 

[racer7]

I'll second those comments on the PR2. I like its handling when new (with the B rear) but the front is noisy for a new tire and the rear howls in a turn when worn.
For me, the PR2 did not last as long as the average I got from sets of Dunlop RoadSmarts doing the same riding though its handling when new is more linear and predictable.
Currently running the last of my PR2 rears on my RT and a Pilot Power CT2 on the front- combo fine when new and will see how it does with time. The reason for the Pilot Power CT2 up front is that I didn't want to listen to any more noisy Pilot Roads on the front. Also tesring some PR3s on an R1100S used by my riding partner as her touring bike- that bike is inherently more noisy for the rider than an RT so a noisy tire is less noticeable- and the touring use puts emphasis on wet weather braking an handling. That bike has previosly run Pilot Powers (not the CT2) with no issue but rear tread life was under 4K and front tread life only a little over 6K- that leads to too much tire changing that impedes longer rides.

I am a huge fan of Contis on my cars. They make some Z rated all season tires that are simply outstanding- part of the reason is their relatively light tire weight that helps improve anything that's been running the heavier Bridgestone or Michelin equivalents. They make the same tire in an H rating but it is not as good though rated for longer life.

Be interesting in hearing more comments on the Conti bike tires you're trying from any users.

 

[Ridealot]

I run a set of Conti Road Attack 2's on my F650GS twin. Loved the handling, hated the wear.

The rear tire only lasted 4200 miles. And since there is no wear bars in the center of the tread the tire looked fine one day and was bald the next. Seriously, why would any manufacturer make a tire without a wear bar in the center. It would really suck to leave on a trip thinking you have plenty of tread based on the side of the tire and then find out differently in the middle of no where.

I am still running the Road Attack 2 front tire but switched to a Pilot Road 3 rear. 1500 miles on it so far. Handling is great and for wear it looks like its going to last much longer than the Conti did.

 

[racer7]

Tom
Thanks for that comment. Not even a molded hole to the depth that a wear bar would touch on center? Have to say I agree with you- all bike tires should have a centerline visible tread wear indicator. The problems with the Metz tires lacking them are known and should not have been repeated by another maker.

 

[marchyman]

The rear tire only lasted 4200 miles. And since there is no wear bars in the center of the tread the tire looked fine one day and was bald the next.

Interesting. That tire's brother, the Trail Attack, does have center wear bars. I also get a lot more than 4200 miles on an R12GS. This rear had 10,299 miles when I pulled it and snapped this picture.

 

[exgman]

FWIW the BMW Performance Center fleet of F800s and R1200s all ride on Continental tires. I believe it's the Trail Attack since they all seem to be dual-sport bikes used for road and trail training.

 

[Ridealot]

Interesting. That tire's brother, the Trail Attack, does have center wear bars. I also get a lot more than 4200 miles on an R12GS. This rear had 10,299 miles when I pulled it and snapped this picture.


I ran two sets of the Trail Attack tires. Both sets lasted in the 8K-9K mile range for me.

 

[joezim]

How many miles did they give you on the ST1300?

Close to 9,000 miles

 

[jduke]

That's impressive, 10,000 mile range on a sticky tire is goooood!!

 

[azgman]

I could say the same things about the Bridgestone 023GT tires as the OP said about the Contis. The GTs are specifically for heavy sport touring bikes like the RT and are much better than past Bridgestone efforts.

Lots of good tire choices right now!

 

[mclassing]

Final Impressions: Continental Road Attack 2 on R1200RT

I've now completed exactly (believe it or not) 5,000 miles on the Conti RA2s...

* Front has 3/32 of tread remaining.
* Rear has approximately 4/32 remaining.

Wear was my primary concern after these tires were mounted and turns out is my only complaint.

The tires:
* handled well.
* had excellent grip.
* soaked up the bumps quite nicely.
* did not cup.

I should be more excited about these tires, but for the type of riding I do (longer trips including twisties and interstate highway), they don't wear quite long enough.

Before someone posts a reply saying I replaced perfectly good tires; don't. Between the front being so close to gone and the profiles being more square than round, I was ready to move on.

I replaced these tires with a set of Bridgestone Battlax BT-023 GT. Look for my post on this forum giving first impressions.

 

[lkchris]

The thing about 1st impressions is that the comparison is always to the last previous tire, which is usually old and worn out. Just about every brand new tire feels better in just about every way than an old, worn out tire. I know I couldn't remember how the just-replaced tire felt when new ... maybe 5000 miles and how many months ago.

Magazine tire tests comparing always new tires seem the way to go.

 

[tinytrains]

The OEM Attacks on my R1200R lasted over 8K miles.

 

[hjsbmw]

* handled well.
* had excellent grip.
* soaked up the bumps quite nicely.
* did not cup.

I should be more excited about these tires, but for the type of riding I do (longer trips including twisties and interstate highway), they don't wear quite long enough.

I can say similar things about the RA2 on my R1200R, only I am at 9300 miles on the rear and getting ready to replace it with another RA2. It's started to look squared off since maybe the last 2-3k miles now with no ill effect from it as far as handling goes. The inner wear bars are just becoming exposed. However, the flat center seems thin, looks like the wires may start to show soon, no longer makes me trust the tire, and that's what bothers me the most.
The lack of cupping is what feels good compared to the Z6 I used in the past. Cornering still feels smooth, but absorption of bumps at the rear is pretty much gone by now. The front has something close to 4k miles and still feels good. The RA2 is a better twisty road than straight slab tire, IMHO.

 

[lee]

Seriously, why would any manufacturer make a tire without a wear bar in the center. .

That's my biggest complaint on the Road Attack 2. Last fall we both had to make a unplanned tire change when the cords started to show on wife's back tire. We both had 3/32" to 4/32" of thread next to the center most wear bars, but the center on the tires were toast.
We both had about 8,000 miles on the tires, mounted on K1300S,s, but should have been removed at 7,000 miles.
BTW, Bentonville BMW got us right in and gave us a fair deal on Pilot Road 3s.
The PR3 has a nice center tread you can check at a glance.

 

[Doubleplay]

I'm running Conti Road attacks on my 1200Gs and so far happy with their performance.
As long as a tire works for the style of riding I do and I feel safe and planted I don't care how long it lasts. I never understood the posts about a tire lasting 5000 miles vs another lasting 8000 miles but it's sub par, or I should have changed it 1000 miles ago, etc... What are you guys trying to save? $20-30 bucks for what?

 

[hjsbmw]

I just changed mine and put on another RA2. It took me about four hours including the final drive oil change. I think that has a lot to do with why I am delaying the tire change as much as I can. It's about as exciting as mowing the lawn and especially the rear is somewhat difficult to do also.