1100 rs tires

[dwidnall@gmail.com]

Hello all again! I am still a newbie so please forgive me for not being able to find any thread that has the answers to my questions!
I have a 1995 R 1100 RSL. Black. Has older pro pilot Michelin 3s on it that are still soft to the touch and lots of tread. I know. I know.
Who is making, or providing tires for my model bike? They seem to be made from unobtainiem! I thought I saw a thread a while back about a Michelin rep saying they will provide tires for my bike. The rear being 160/60 r17 seems to be the biggest problem. I’m not going to scrape any pegs with my current ones, and chances are I wouldn’t even with new ones. I’m sure my thread searches will get better with time and practice! Thanks for your patience!

[PGlaves]

Hello all again! I am still a newbie so please forgive me for not being able to find any thread that has the answers to my questions!
I have a 1995 R 1100 RSL. Black. Has older pro pilot Michelin 3s on it that are still soft to the touch and lots of tread. I know. I know.
Who is making, or providing tires for my model bike? They seem to be made from unobtainiem! I thought I saw a thread a while back about a Michelin rep saying they will provide tires for my bike. The rear being 160/60 r17 seems to be the biggest problem. I’m not going to scrape any pegs with my current ones, and chances are I wouldn’t even with new ones. I’m sure my thread searches will get better with time and practice! Thanks for your patience!

Unless your rear wheel is not stock you should be looking for an 18 inch tire - specifically a 160/60-R18. There are several brands models available.

Purely as examples see this Revzilla page:
https://www.revzilla.com/motorcycle-...lemished=false

[ksdcr]

Hello all again! I am still a newbie so please forgive me for not being able to find any thread that has the answers to my questions!
I have a 1995 R 1100 RSL. Black. Has older pro pilot Michelin 3s on it that are still soft to the touch and lots of tread. I know. I know.
Who is making, or providing tires for my model bike? They seem to be made from unobtainiem! I thought I saw a thread a while back about a Michelin rep saying they will provide tires for my bike. The rear being 160/60 r17 seems to be the biggest problem. I’m not going to scrape any pegs with my current ones, and chances are I wouldn’t even with new ones. I’m sure my thread searches will get better with time and practice! Thanks for your patience!

I’m having the same issue with tires, as the Michelin PR 3 or 4 in 160/60-18 is unobtanium.

I just ordered a Metzeler in the correct size. Not crazy about Metzelers, but maybe they have improved since I last used the, around the turn of the century. Also, Pirelli make the “ Angel” series, that should be available in Sport Touring version.

[dwidnall@gmail.com]

My bad. 18 inch it is for the rear!
Thanks!

[6322]

I ended up with a set of Metzler Z8 Road Techs for my last set. So far so good. I did prefer the Michelins for the previous 100,000 miles on my RS though. It seems like the Michelins had reasonable grip in the dry and wet as well as good longevity. The Metzlers have good grip, wet or dry, but not the longevity, at least that’s my experience. Anymore, it’s not so much a matter of selection as much as what’s available. Good luck with your choice and enjoy that RSL.

[ksdcr]

I ended up with a set of Metzler Z8 Road Techs for my last set. So far so good. I did prefer the Michelins for the previous 100,000 miles on my RS though. It seems like the Michelins had reasonable grip in the dry and wet as well as good longevity. The Metzlers have good grip, wet or dry, but not the longevity, at least that’s my experience. Anymore, it’s not so much a matter of selection as much as what’s available. Good luck with your choice and enjoy that RSL.

That is good to hear, as my RS has had about 5 sets of Michelins.

One thing that I liked about the Michelin’s, is that they gave a more comfortable ride than the previous Pirelli angels.

[dwidnall@gmail.com]

Unless your rear wheel is not stock you should be looking for an 18 inch tire - specifically a 160/60-R18. There are several brands models available.

Purely as examples see this Revzilla page:
https://www.revzilla.com/motorcycle-...lemished=false

You, of course, are entirely correct about my wheel size!
But although the sizes are listed, the availability is not there it seems. I can find a rear for the pirelly and a front for the metzeler (or maybe the other way around) but pairs are not easily found. What is with Michelin and others? Are they giving up on our bike’s one at a time? I don’t understand.. anyway thanks Mr. Glaves for the help.
Doug

[dwidnall@gmail.com]

Unless your rear wheel is not stock you should be looking for an 18 inch tire - specifically a 160/60-R18. There are several brands models available.

Purely as examples see this Revzilla page:
https://www.revzilla.com/motorcycle-...lemished=false

You, of course, are entirely correct about my wheel size!
But although the sizes are listed, the availability is not there it seems. I can find a rear for the pirelly and a front for the metzeler (or maybe the other way around) but pairs are not easily found. What is with Michelin and others? Are they giving up on our bike’s one at a time? I don’t understand.. anyway thanks Mr. PGlaves for the help.
Doug

[senseamidmadness]

The answer is yes -- Michelin has given up on making 18 inch rear tires for anything but cruisers . There are too many other newer motorcycles that have 17-inch rears for Michelin to ignore, and they don't want to spend R and D money on a fairly small market segment.

The one company I've seen that keeps making new models for our bikes is Bridgestone. Their T32 EVO came out two years ago in sizes that fit our Oilheads and it seems like a fine tire. They certainly charge a premium price for it.

When I bought my R850R about two years ago I noticed, like you, that there were only 7 or so options for matching tire sets with the stock wheels. I'm fine with this as all those tires are within my usage needs and I usually have no trouble finding them from reputable sellers on Ebay like Chapparral and Motomentum.

If you want much easier tire purchases and have to have Michelins, you have to swap to the newer 5-spoke Oilhead wheels. They're 17 inch front and rear. The rear wheel from the flying-brick K1200 GT/LT models with its lug bolts are a direct and easy bolt-on swap. The front gets more complex because of the brake hardware swaps, if you care about your wheels matching.

[m_stock10506]

You, of course, are entirely correct about my wheel size!
But although the sizes are listed, the availability is not there it seems. I can find a rear for the pirelly and a front for the metzeler (or maybe the other way around) but pairs are not easily found. What is with Michelin and others? Are they giving up on our bike’s one at a time? I don’t understand.. anyway thanks Mr. PGlaves for the help.
Doug

I wouldn’t break a sweat about using different brands for the front and rear. Obviously, the still have to be for the same type of ride. Modern tires are so good now, they all will out perform just about every one of us. I use the Pirelli Angel GT on the rear of my 1100RT. Either the Dunlop RS4 or the Michelin 4 GT on the front. Personally, I found the Pirelli matching front wore out too fast.

[eastbay]

I just put the Pirelli Angels on my rear. . Not crazy about the Chinese manufacture though. Going to need a front soon. Lots more choices for the front. Thinking Michelin Pilot Road 4 GT , $180 on Amazon. The Continental ContiMotion are 85, less than half. Are the Michelin that much better for a 1100rt?

[ksdcr]

I just put the Pirelli Angels on my rear. . Not crazy about the Chinese manufacture though. Going to need a front soon. Lots more choices for the front.

Stay away from the Avon Storm series. I mounted them to my RS, and the front wore out at 4500 miles. The rear still shows 40-50% tread

[mlindstone]

I recently inherited a 1995 R1100RSL and had challenges finding the rear tire as well - it seems all sportbikes have now standardized on 17" wheels.
I found that Bridgestone has a series for this bike (Battlax) with multi-compound rubber, so you get great mileage on flat roads and and better grip on the twisties. I only got 6K out of the set, but they were great in the rain and with hard cornering.

[massparanoia]

I have Continental Road Attack 3’s on mine and they’re awesome.

[BC1100S]

I have Continental Road Attack 3’s on mine and they’re awesome.

Excellent choice.