Michelin Pilot Street Radial rear tire review

[Skullz]

20K on the rear tire now and still going strong, don't really know how much longer i can go on it but i'll take it as far as it is still safe to do so.

[choneofakind]

Originally Posted by Sirref

OK, I'm definitely doing something that's abusive as hell to my tires, my PSR rear looked worse than that at 7,500 miles (granted 500mi on track but it looked lower on tread before that)

I've run 32f/30r pressures since day one, could be a factor

Pressure could be a factor, but Al is also a giant puss on the gas.

No offense intended here Al, you're an older, wiser, and cautious-er rider who rides with his head. Ben is a young guy and I can infer the difference based on progress I see in his track pictures.

[dcj13]

Originally Posted by akima

You ride a quarter times more aggressively than allanoue

One-and-a quarter, perhaps?

[allanoue]

Originally Posted by choneofakind

Pressure could be a factor, but Al is also a giant puss on the gas.

No offense intended here Al, you're an older, wiser, and cautious-er rider who rides with his head. Ben is a young guy and I can infer the difference based on progress I see in his track pictures.

A few days in an ICU can teach a lot.

[Sirref]

Originally Posted by allanoue

A few days in an ICU can teach a lot.

have you been? I've only been to the er, granted I've gotten there quite a few times

[tfkrocks]

I agree with Al. I've been in the ICU. Although I was relatively ok compared to accidents of other riders I would still prefer not to repeat that experience.

[johnydecali]

With almost 1k on my Pilot Streets, I am just surprised at how big of a difference they made on my 250 from the stock IRC! Totally understand now what people meant that their bike felt like a whole new bike, for me felt that my bike actually woke up and wanted to be ridden. Best part about the Pilot Streets for me is that I gained so much more trust with my bike riding in rain. Huge improvement!

[allanoue]

Originally Posted by Sirref

have you been? I've only been to the er, granted I've gotten there quite a few times

3 days when I was 18. I was driving a '74 Pinto so I am luck to be here.

[Sirref]

Originally Posted by allanoue

3 days when I was 18. I was driving a '74 Pinto so I am luck to be here.

that you are, I can see how that would slow your roll

[land_lubber]

So I got my tyres put on today and all I can say it WOW! what a huge difference they are compared to the IRC. I noticed the difference as soon as I start riding down the road. They are way sticker and tip into the corners quicker as well, I am well impressed with them. Out of all the mods I have done to my bike these tyres are the best and wish I had of got them a long time ago.

[Skullz]

That's what they all say. :P

[Sirref]

Decided to post up a pic of the tires at 7,500mi, currently off the bike for the race season unless I get a rain race. I'll kill them in the fall on the streets and get a new set after since the lifespan of the DRIIs doesn't agree with the mileage that I put on my bike and I don't push on the streets so the grip difference doesn't matter

front

rear

[cadd]

Holy crap!!! Murderer.

[Sirref]

Originally Posted by cadd

Holy crap!!! Murderer.

They still have life left...not much but enough to be worth saving for the fall commutes. I'm so much more comfortable on the pirellis though, it just feels so smooth all the way to the edge of the tire, no signs of the rear letting go at all with the exception of when I do something really stupid like rolling on just that little bit quicker and feeling it step out but only just

[allanoue]

Lots of life left.

Looks like you picked up some extra rubber on your track days.

[Sirref]

Not much, a lot of it was just rubber being torn from the edge of the tread and being pushed into balls. I'd say 80-90% of the rubber that looks like it was added is original tire rubber by feel

[csmith12]

Originally Posted by Sirref

Not much, a lot of it was just rubber being torn from the edge of the tread and being pushed into balls. I'd say 80-90% of the rubber that looks like it was added is original tire rubber by feel

I still have that large ball of rubber from mid-o after the races. Jeezzz, remember this quote? "This is the only time we will leave the track with more rubber than what we arrived with!" hahahahahahahahahaha Chone said "That is that expensive race car rubber, our tires are worth more too!"

[Sirref]

I also won't forget the bike that started smoking because the exhaust got covered with rubber

[choneofakind]

That ball was almost the size of a tennis ball, IIRC. Most expensive pregen tires on the forums, yo. Got me some of that race car rubber on 'em.

[akima]

I just got in from an hour of riding. I've got a DRII on the back and a PSR on the front. I can't give you any scientific analysis but I can tell you that after getting off the bike and feeling the tyres (something I find myself doing quite often) I noticed the DRII was quite a bit warmer, softer and stickier/tackier feeling than the PSR. I ran my thumbs up and down the tyres (SCIENCE!!!) and the DRII really felt like it was holding onto my skin; more-so than the PSR.

I definitely think if you're new to riding and want a very forgiving, planted tyre go for the DRIIs (or if you want to go really really fast!). If you want the mileage, then I think the testimony of the riders on this thread should provide ample evidence that you're going to go a lot further on the PSRs.

As I wont be pushing it really hard on the street and I'm out of my full-metal-noobie period (where a very forgiving tyre is a big plus), I plan on getting a PSR for the rear to replace my aging DRII.

[Sirref]

Yeah the DRII heats up real quick compared to the michelin but it also needs that heat to grip unlike the michelin which will grip just fine with less heat and overheats more easily than the DRII when pushed hard

[choneofakind]

^^ difference between intentions with the tires.

One is mainly a sport touring tire, one is a sport tire. Guesses? lol.

[Numbersix]

The rest of the set finally came in (in 140 rather than 130 width, but OK). Scrubbed off the mold release compound before a bit of commuting rain Tuesday, and they stuck like glue through the wet.

I'm trying to temper my enthusiasm by remembering that I was previously on old, squared, IRC tires, but it's hard to do so. Highest recommendations!

[sharky nrk]

Originally Posted by akima

I just got in from an hour of riding. I've got a DRII on the back and a PSR on the front. I can't give you any scientific analysis but I can tell you that after getting off the bike and feeling the tyres (something I find myself doing quite often) I noticed the DRII was quite a bit warmer, softer and stickier/tackier feeling than the PSR. I ran my thumbs up and down the tyres (SCIENCE!!!) and the DRII really felt like it was holding onto my skin; more-so than the PSR.

I definitely think if you're new to riding and want a very forgiving, planted tyre go for the DRIIs (or if you want to go really really fast!). If you want the mileage, then I think the testimony of the riders on this thread should provide ample evidence that you're going to go a lot further on the PSRs.

As I wont be pushing it really hard on the street and I'm out of my full-metal-noobie period (where a very forgiving tyre is a big plus), I plan on getting a PSR for the rear to replace my aging DRII.

No doubt the DRII is a softer, stickier compound tire than the PSR. Riding on the street in anything close to "normal" commuting ride type, the rear tire is going to see a bit more head input than the front regardless of the tire brand. The front tire tends to be loaded less in normal riding as your not really digging the front in to turn the bike hard with alot of weight on the front, and there is far less for/aft loading front to rear as you ask the rear tire to transmit power typically alot more often then the front has to load during braking. Under throttle application the gear is more heavily loaded as the bike responds to weight transfer as well.

[csmith12]

Originally Posted by akima

I ran my thumbs up and down the tyres (SCIENCE!!!) and the DRII really felt like it was holding onto my skin

[akima]

Yey! New achievement

(Admit it... you like that smell! burning rubber!)

* Akima shoves her smelly finger in Chris' face *

[cadd]

They came in last place here. They even placed the IRC higher than the Street Radials.

Link to original page on YouTube.

[Sirref]

I'm not surprised they fell low at track as they are designed for street and all weather use (the all weather use being the real handicap here) but below IRC level is surprising

the bridgestones being at the top is not surprising though, those are good tires but they give me too much feel. I wish the dunlop A-13 and pirelli sc1 had been in the comparison

[rojoracing53]

Well I've been saying the IRC are good for like 2 years now but they are expensive or an OEM tire. I'm sure none of the top 3 tires on that list would make it over 4k miles on my bike so they are disqualified for long touring rides or commuting. Ari is a faster rider then anyone on this forum minus maybe one member so his slow pace on a casual track day test is still twice as fast as anyone here is ever going to go. He's also talking about a tire for pure track use which I believe we've all agreed the the road radial isn't a track tire.

I've currently got 16,500 miles on the second rear Pilot street radial and it's basically done. It still has around 1000 miles before the cords start showing but I need to order another one real soon.

[choneofakind]

Originally Posted by rojoracing53

Well I've been saying the IRC are good for like 2 years now but they are expensive or an OEM tire. I'm sure none of the top 3 tires on that list would make it over 4k miles on my bike so they are disqualified for long touring rides or commuting. Ari is a faster rider then anyone on this forum minus maybe one member so his slow pace on a casual track day test is still twice as fast as anyone here is ever going to go. He's also talking about a tire for pure track use which I believe we've all agreed the the road radial isn't a track tire.

I've currently got 16,500 miles on the second rear Pilot street radial and it's basically done. It still has around 1000 miles before the cords start showing but I need to order another one real soon.

Minus maybe one. Lol, so modest jason

[Sirref]

Originally Posted by choneofakind

Minus maybe one. Lol, so modest jason

He totally meant @alex.s

haven't you beaten ari in a ninja race alex?

[cadd]

From my own personal experience, I feel more stable with the rear Michelin PSR compared to the stock IRC. This is especially true on a very hot & sunny 90+ degree day, when taking a turn and there's snake tars on the road. With the stock IRC, I would feel the rear step out a tiny bit. But this is pretty consistent and I expect it every time I see snake tars on the road. With the Michelin PSR, I take the same turns, leaning the bike over the same and very rarely does the rear step out.

PS - this is street riding.

[akima]

Originally Posted by cadd

From my own personal experience, I feel more stable with the rear Michelin PSR compared to the stock IRC. This is especially true on a very hot & sunny 90+ degree day, when taking a turn and there's snake tars on the road. With the stock IRC, I would feel the rear step out a tiny bit. But this is pretty consistent and I expect it every time I see snake tars on the road. With the Michelin PSR, I take the same turns, leaning the bike over the same and very rarely does the rear step out.

PS - this is street riding.

I had that same feeling as you when I used the stock IRCs. I mentioned it to a bunch of more experienced riders and most of them suggested it's more likely the rubber in the tyre was flexing giving the sensation of drifting/stepping-out... but it wasn't actually.

Either way: my experience is the same: the PSRs feel more stable and are more confidence inspiring.

The DRIIs just feel amazing. When I have more disposable income I will probably go back to using them instead of the PSRs as I don't do any touring-type riding like Jason and Nevada Wolf do. I love the feeling the DRIIs provide of being stuck to the road! When people say that these bikes are capable of a lot more than us noobs put them through I can believe them. It's nice to know that I'm riding well within the capabilities of the bike on the road.

[sendler]

Awesome high milage riding! Thanks for the real world reports on the Michelin Street tires. The Bias ply version came stock on my R3.

[alex.s]

Originally Posted by Sirref

He totally meant @alex.s

haven't you beaten ari in a ninja race alex?

no. ari is a front runner. i was more of a mid pack or back marker

[Sirref]

Originally Posted by akima

I had that same feeling as you when I used the stock IRCs. I mentioned it to a bunch of more experienced riders and most of them suggested it's more likely the rubber in the tyre was flexing giving the sensation of drifting/stepping-out... but it wasn't actually.

Either way: my experience is the same: the PSRs feel more stable and are more confidence inspiring.

The DRIIs just feel amazing. When I have more disposable income I will probably go back to using them instead of the PSRs as I don't do any touring-type riding like Jason and Nevada Wolf do. I love the feeling the DRIIs provide of being stuck to the road! When people say that these bikes are capable of a lot more than us noobs put them through I can believe them. It's nice to know that I'm riding well within the capabilities of the bike on the road.

I love the DRII rear but not the front, I prefer the PSR front but the more realistic version is DRII front and PSR rear (which would help for realistic street riding as the DRII rear doesn't last long and doesn't have much in the way of wet grip)

Originally Posted by alex.s

no. ari is a front runner. i was more of a mid pack or back marker

I stand corrected

[cadd]

Originally Posted by Sirref

I love the DRII rear but not the front, I prefer the PSR front but the more realistic version is DRII front and PSR rear (which would help for realistic street riding as the DRII rear doesn't last long and doesn't have much in the way of wet grip)

That's the setup I currently have. DR2 up front & PSR in the back. Have roughly 7,000 miles on this setup.

The only thing that may pose an issue for track (or aggressive) riding is the uneven chicken strip wear. I am a pretty conservative street rider. My rear PSR has chicken strips the width of my thumb. The front DR2 has chicken strips the width of my pinky.

I was concerned that I may run of lean angle up front....then on second thought, for my riding style, that'll never happen!

[allanoue]

Originally Posted by cadd

That's the setup I currently have. DR2 up front & PSR in the back. Have roughly 7,000 miles on this setup.

The only thing that may pose an issue for track (or aggressive) riding is the uneven chicken strip wear. I am a pretty conservative street rider. My rear PSR has chicken strips the width of my thumb. The front DR2 has chicken strips the width of my pinky.

I was concerned that I may run of lean angle up front....then on second thought, for my riding style, that'll never happen!

What sizes are you running?

[cadd]

OEM size. 110 front and 140 rear.

[Sirref]

Originally Posted by cadd

That's the setup I currently have. DR2 up front & PSR in the back. Have roughly 7,000 miles on this setup.

The only thing that may pose an issue for track (or aggressive) riding is the uneven chicken strip wear. I am a pretty conservative street rider. My rear PSR has chicken strips the width of my thumb. The front DR2 has chicken strips the width of my pinky.

I was concerned that I may run of lean angle up front....then on second thought, for my riding style, that'll never happen!

if you're coasting through corners (I.E. not trailbraking into or throttling hard out) then you should theoretically be using the same percentage of the tires which would mean a larger strip on the rear though not by much. This sounds like the case

Trust me, it's not easy to run out of tire in the front. You'll hit mental walls from obscene entry speed first. Most people that I know that are racing in the class aren't using their whole front (but definitely are using the whole rear if they're on a 140, almost the whole rear on a 150)