Rear tire cracks on K75 - Battlax BT45

This is the second rear BT45 that I have had the same problem with on my K75. On the first tire I noticed the problem at 4000 miles this one 5000. From other posts it seems 6000 is the norm for wear but this shouldn't be a normal wear pattern. I really like the way the bike handles with the Battlax 45's but I think it's time to try a different brand. Other members have posted that they have had similar issues with other brands but has anyone experienced this twice?

Look for the tires date of manufacture. It's the 4 number stamp you'll find on the sidewall. It's read as [for this week in 2011] 2311. That's the 23rd week of 2011.

If the tire is more than a few years old and with you living in MI, you have a shorter riding season then others do, so I'd expect you'll likely see this before you see a tire wear out. That's not necessarily the case, but it's normal for that area. I lived in Port Austin for a while.

What you're experiencing is simple dry rot. It's the tire's way of saying it's not safe to ride on.

Tire Cracks continued

The tire's serial number indicates 2010, that'd be the week of May 16 - 22, 2010, just over a year old which should rule out dry rot. Some kind of rot but not dry rot.
The front tire also a Battlax 45 purchased at the same time as the first rear tire that showed this problem, was manufactured the week of June 28 - July 4 2009; that tire shows a bit of cupping but no other severe wear. None of the tires were purchased from a big web based warehouse, I like to support my dealer whenever possible.

lostandwandering said:

The tire's serial number indicates 2010, that'd be the week of May 16 - 22, 2010, just over a year old which should rule out dry rot.

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Most definately. Return to your dealer and let them contact Bridgestone for a replacement. It happens - just a bad tire.

Rubber is very ozone sensitive and also to some solvent vapors. Any change your bike is stored near a bunch of electrical gear or wrong chemicals? More likely just a bad tire but if I got two of these on the same brand, I'd change brands.

Have no experience with the tire you use but certainly was underwhelmed with the BT-020's that were stock on my RT. The worst current tire in its class IMO.
They didn't rot but that's about he only bad thing they didn't do. Among their less than endearing properties were tramlining, bad behavior on steel bridge grates, crappy traction in the cold and wet, and more but at least they wore out fast.

That certainly looks like a warranty issue to me. I'm on the last half of my first set of BT45's on one of my K75's and expect to get at least 7,500 miles out of them. I liked them so well I put a set on another K75. I know a number of people who use nothing else and have never heard of this kind of a problem.

I had the same thing last year on my 92 K75. This was my 2nd Battlax BT45. Got t 10600 miles on the first, then on the second I got the same type of split in the tread as your photos at 4200 miles. The local shop that I got the tire from replaced it with another Battlax and I got 9800 from the replacement.

Andy Clark
Indianapolis, IN
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1992 BMW K75
BMWMOA, AMA, IBA
Indianapolis BMW Club