Change rear tire to 195/55R17?

[rjforsyth]

One thing I noticed on my new RT1250 was a rather optimistic speedometer.

Has anybody tried upsizing from the stock 180/55R17 to 190/55R17?

This would change the rake a tad and bike may 'steer quicker'.

 

[r0ckrat]

All bikes (and cars) have an optimistic speedometer (in the US). It will either be 5% or 5 mph high, but if you check the ODO it will probably be reading the actual mileage correctly...

It's left over from a time when the US rule was that the speedo must never read lower than actual speed regardless of tire wear.

 

[BC1100S]

One thing I noticed on my new RT1250 was a rather optimistic speedometer.

Has anybody tried upsizing from the stock 180/55R17 to 190/55R17?

This would change the rake a tad and bike may 'steer quicker'.

It would certainly work to get your speedo at least closer to actual speed. I suppose you could check it against your GPS-verified speed. Make sure you have enough clearance for the wider/taller tire. You might also check to ensure the 190 tire you choose is in fact taller than the one currently on your bike. I believe Dunlop lists both diameter and circumference of their tires. Actual circumferences vary between manufacturers.

 

[pglaves]

Out of curiosity what drives the speedo/odo on this model. From our fleet I note that the K75s are electronic off the rear wheel. The R1100RS is cable off the front wheel, and the F800S was strange in that the speedo was electronic off the rear wheel but the odo was electronic off the front wheel.

 

[lee]

All bikes (and cars) have an optimistic speedometer (in the US). It will either be 5% or 5 mph high, but if you check the ODO it will probably be reading the actual mileage correctly...

It's left over from a time when the US rule was that the speedo must never read lower than actual speed regardless of tire wear.

Since I've owned a GPS so I can check, all of our GM products had accurate speedometers.

 

[lee]

This would change the rake a tad and bike may 'steer quicker'.

Usually a wider tire on the same rim will require more effort to lean.

 

[maxscycle]

Perhaps consider a 180/60-17 tire. Same width roughly, but taller.

 

[Rainman48]

To my knowledge, all late model BMW motorcycles in this group, that have ABS / Traction Control use the slotted speed sensor rings and sensors attached to both front and rear wheels to determine both speed AND wheel slip between the two. At least since 1970 in K models, and 2014 in R models. No mechanical cables. They are very accurate as long as wheel & tire specs fall within the range BMW calls for, AND comply with geographic laws that mandate showing lower than legal speeds on the speedometer itself.

 

[gregrice56]

I ran a 190/55R17 for about 30,000 miles on my 2023 RT and it was great, felt better than the stock 180. Of course I recently moved to a car tire