Tire brand choices for ninja 250r

[beniblanco]

After reading alot of threads about changing tires from the stock IRC to another brand i see the top 3 being

1)pirelli
2)michellin
3)Bridgestone

[Whiskey]

I have Bridgestone BT45s on for the last 4,200 miles, good tyres good grip & long life, there's still a fair bit of thread on them.

Before that I had Avon Roadriders on, not the most confidence inspiring tyre (but much better than what were on it when I bought it - cheng shing shite) I put over 12,000 miles on them & replaced them with a fair bit of life in them (the shop owner asked if I was sure I wanted to replace them, that there was a good bit left on them), I went ahead as I changed my commute from mostly city to mostly fast backroads & had lost confidence in them once I had the bike running hard on a daily basis. They were unreal in the wet, there was no real handling difference between wet road & dry road on them.

[Alex]

http://www.ninjette.org/wiki/New_gen_tire_options

[LoneRonin]

Looking to stick to stock sizes? If so best options:

Pirelli Sport Demon
BT-45
Michelin Pilot Activ
Metzeler Lasertec

Non Stock

Michelin Pilot Power
BT-0016
BT-003rs

[beniblanco]

I will be doing alot of highway and city driving-say 200km back and forth each day. Looking for good tread life, any recommends?

[Kristofferzero]

My stock tires are Dunlop GT501 and so are my friends. Weird.

[NathanUc]

I love my Pirelli Rosso II's a ton. Even with slightly less milage, I'll gladly buy them over sport demons!

(not exactly stock size, but close enough)

[EsrTek]

For long rides I would not get the sport demons, mine have 1k on them and showing about same wear my stock tires showed in 4k...their compound would be great for trackdays.. awesome grip, but probably not going to last over 5k-7k under normal street conditions before the middle flat strips.
If you want Pirelli's get the new model that has dual compound, harder mid 60% and 20% soft on edges.
I've heard a lot of good things on the Pilot Powers also and many people swear by the battlax line (BT-45's) from bridgestone.

First choice is going to be decide if you want to keep stock sizes (I sure would suggest it) but people race on the bigger sizes just fine, so to me that would be your first choice.

[beniblanco]

I most likely will go with a 110/70/17 front and 140/70/17 rear. I may go 120/60/17 front 150/60/17 rear if the price is right. I was thinking 160 rear before but I think it would be a bit too much.

[Francis]

I've recently changed to Sport Demons, stock size. The difference is night and day.

I love it so far. I'm not sure if I'm even interested in trying out the other ones you've listed.

[LoneRonin]

Originally Posted by beniblanco

I will be doing alot of highway and city driving-say 200km back and forth each day. Looking for good tread life, any recommends?

BT-45, they're dual compound. Harder in center for longer wear with softer edges for twisties

Metzeler lasertec are more touring oriented but plenty capable in the twisites. They're owned by the same people as Pirelli...

If you go with the 140 its will raise your bikes height a couple mm...you may or may not like it but it handles great still. Radials with the 150 rear are even better.

[toua70]

Motorcyclesuperstore is having a really good tire sale. Bridestones are 45% off right now. I just bought the Bridgestone Battlax hypersport S20 (new for 2012) for 185 free shipping and reg price is about 340. I got the 110/70/17 in front and 150/60/17 in the rear.

[lostdaemon]

I'm thinking to get new tires, but wanted to ask for opinions, especially from other SoCal riders who know how horrible the road surface can be. The freeways out here are atrocious - broken pavement, rain grooves, etc, and I'm commuting ~50 miles per day mostly on the 405 and 10. The stock IRC tires on my 2009 have eroded my confidence on the pavement since I took to the freeway (got into a small front end wobble at 70 mph on crap broken grooved pavement last week, really shook me up)

I was looking at Dunlop GT501 or Bridgestone Battleax in the stock sizes, would one or the other, or any other, be a good choice? I'd love to get Pirellis, but I feel like I need more longevity.

Thanks!

[NDspd]

Without me using the Bridgestone's before I can really comment on their longevity. I would say that the Pirelli's are a very soft tire. If you have rough roads, they will wear quicker than most. But they grip super well in the twisties, in almost all types of weather and they don't cost much more than the other brands.

[beniblanco]

Geez sometimes its hard to choose Pirelli sounds good but not for longevity. I am curious about the Bridgestone S20's but would like to get more feedback on our bikes.

[menikmati]

Originally Posted by toua70

Motorcyclesuperstore is having a really good tire sale. Bridestones are 45% off right now. I just bought the Bridgestone Battlax hypersport S20 (new for 2012) for 185 free shipping and reg price is about 340. I got the 110/70/17 in front and 150/60/17 in the rear.

That's probably the MSRP, they are usually around $200 for a set which is close to the same price as the BT-016, so you got a pretty solid deal.

[Jiggles]

Originally Posted by beniblanco

I most likely will go with a 110/70/17 front and 140/70/17 rear. I may go 120/60/17 front 150/60/17 rear if the price is right. I was thinking 160 rear before but I think it would be a bit too much.

Go for a 190 rear, you don't want to look like a chump