Vote your favourite XTX Tyres
 

With this new tyre poll those of us who have tried various type of tyres on their X's can highlight their favourite choice for those who are new to the bike and might use the advice based on our experience to make their mind on their next purchase

You will find here a list of the most popular tyres all you have to do is vote for your favourite ones, you can vote as many as you like.

Please also tell us what you were looking in a tyre and why you made that choice.


Thanks

I voted for Avon Distanzia.

I've had Pirelli Dragons on before and they squared off very quickly (500 miles) and I was looking for something with a bit more meat on them but still a soft supermoto tyres. I'm very happy with Distanzia tyres as they last longer than the Pirelli tyres, don't square off anywhere near as quick, they are super sticky, excellent in the wet and can handle loose gravel on tarmac where the Pirelli tyres don't do gravel at all. Also the profile of the tyre makes a dramatic improvement on the handling of my bike. 10/10

Just like Mic, I was not impressed with the original Pirelli tyres because of their premature decay signs of squaring, the pirelli are only really great in perfect riding conditions such as clean tarmac and hot surface where they do stick very well once heated, however those conditions are not found 24/7 and in the wet and on gravel the Pirelli fail big time, not to mention that they are bloody dangerous on cold frosty mornings.

Knowing that I wanted something with more grip I started searching for the perfect tyre and I found out about the Maxxis through a Supermoto weblink, the Maxxis are indeed excellent tyres for this bike, though you have to fiddle a lot with the inflation to get them not to wobble at high speed with pressures as low as 26 to 28 psi. Yet the downside of the Maxxis is their life expectancy as they wear out before your eyes at around 1600 to 1800 miles. After 2 set of Maxxis I then opted for the Avons, trying first the wet Pro-Xtreme Rain (Azaro)

Now the Azaro are the grippiest tyres for this bike, bar none, you can ride up the ****ing wall with these tyres like geko's and I mean you can lean your bike confidently on waterlogged roads!!

But as soon as it is a dry day the back tyre will wear like a pencil rubber, so once again excellent tyres but lowest life expectancy ever.
Strangely this is not the same for the front Avon Pro-Xtreme which last and last and last. As a result I was forced to fit a rear Distanzia and keep the front Pro-Xtreme as it would have been a waste of money to bin it, my finding were that I managed to wear out 2 rear Distanzia with that same front Pro-Xtreme on!! To be honest with you all that combination of a rear Distanzia and a front Pro-Xtreme has been the best ever for me. Even after it finally wore out and I have replaced the front with a proper Distanzia, the feel of the bike is slighlty different but as I always say tyre choice is strictly personal and some people might feel more confident with a set up when others wouldn't.

I think when my front Distanzia is worn I will re-fit another Pro-Xtreme and stick with the Distanzia for the rear.

Provided you look after the Distanzia properly you can expect anything from 3500 to 3800 miles for the rear and more or less the same with the front ones but the front Azaro Pro-Xtreme will last you well over 7000 miles while the back one you are lucky if you get 800 miles out of them. I believe these are designed only for track use.

Good luck in your tyre choice.

When I got my XTX it had a Pirelli Dragon on the front and a Michelin Pilot sport on the rear. Both looked as new when I got the bike. Once I got used to the bike I found the Pirelli ok but a bit dicy in wet conditions and the Michelin Pilot Sport totally sh]te. The Michelin was all over the place even in the dry it just wanted to slide. It quickly squared off leaving cornering not that pleasant.

Changed over to Avon Distanzia and got to say the turn in felt much much better on the front. Super confident in the corners and in the wet they are superb. I loved blasting out of bends with 100% confidence the rear was gonna comply in a predictable manner.

Cost and endurance all matter to myself and the Avon really gives you the best or near best after much consideration. For me there is no other option, looks, performance, cost and mileage are great. A must have.

BT-020,good mileage,good in the rain.Probably would not suit riders in cooler climates as they take some warming up.:smilies0948:

I'm on my second set of Distanzia's and in my humble opinion they tick all of the boxes. I tried a set of those Goldspeeds � brilliant fun, super sticky but deadly in the wet so no good for an all weather comuter like me (although I grinned for a whole lot of our short lived summer).

So where is the cheapest place to get your Avon distanzia tyres on line please lads.
Andy

Busters.

http://www.busters-accessories.co.uk/default.asp

I was just quoted �112.25 to fit a rear distanzia and �10.00 to fit my own tyre to a wheel if i bring it in myself.
So that would be a saving of �18.27
Andy

Hi

I'm about to get a new rear tire for my xtx. Has anyone here ever tried the michelin pilot road 2ct? I'm hoping for some durability, does anyone have any approx. miles? What other models are equivalent to the 2ct?
appriciate quick response, gotta order soon...

Forget the michelin Pilot... go fur the distanzia as in the above post Busters

Avon Distanzia AM44 160/60HR17 Rear.
Avon Distanzia AM44 160/60HR17 Rear
Price: �78.99

I got one last nite on ebay fae blackanround

Thank you for choosing RoundAndBlack.
Please call 01582-600788 (Monday - Friday 09:00 - 17:00 (Closed weekends & Bank Holidays)) with your Credit/Debit card details to pay for your item/s, we accept ALL cards including Electron & Switch.
If you would like us to call you please send an EBay message with your number & a good time to call. http://pics.ebaystatic.com/aw/pics/s.gif
�75 :dark1: 300163728749 http://pics.ebaystatic.com/aw/pics/uk/spacer.gif 160/60HR17 Avon Distanzia AM44 Rear Motorcycle Tyre

ye cant do better than that surley.........jist look in modifactions under tyres an see wit guys have tae say about Distanzia`s............

Have you tried the 2ct? I'm told that the regular old pilot and the new 2ct are two different tyres.
Anyone tried the bridgestone bt021?

// Jeans

I got 4800 miles out of my Maxxis supermotos. And I wasn't exactly taking it easy on them. Maybe just using one at a time does make them last longer. =@)

Do they ship to norway?

Yes they do.

http://www.busters-accessories.co.uk...ipping+Charges

I need a new tyre, so am I right in saying a Distanzia 120/70HR17 AM43 would be good on the front or could anybody recomend something else for normal day to day riding to the office and back. There's a new Continental on the back from when I bought the bike and the pirelli on the front is on its way out.

G'day

I'm looking for an all-purpose tyre, thinking of the Avon Distanzia from all the comments on their dual purpose ability, does anyone know where i can buy these in AUS, or anyone that sells them on the net and ships to AUS???

If there is a better recommendation for an all-purpose tyre (80% communiting and twisities 20% off road), you're opinions are highly appreciated!

Cheers
:sbike:

How far 'offroad' can be happily ridden on the XT-X?
Been looking at some of the pics of days out people do on their 660s.
But Most, if not all, are riding the R or the Z, with that big front wheel.
How much difference does the small wheel size make, if I put some dual purpose tyres on?

Here you go.....

http://www.proaccessories.com.au/pro.../distanzia.htm

I can ride "normal" gravel roads comfortably on my XTX (with Distanzia's). However, if the road has been recently graded, or the gravel gets deep or chunky, then it becomes hard work. The 21" front of my XTR works better in those situations. I would not take either on any greasy/slippery grass/clay roads, they are NOT dirt bikes.

I've put a set of Goldspeed Ultra Street Supermoto tires. Rear one lasted 3000 km. Then I put Pilot Road 2 2CT in the rear as it a sport touring tire, so should last much much longer. I've left Goldspeed in the front as the front lasts for ages. So this combination is great for me as the rear end lasts for a long time because of the dual compound tech. Also it has a sharper profile than the rest of the sport touring tires, which makes a good fit for the Goldspeed front.

So, in the future, I think I will always put super sport in the front and sport touring in the rear, for obvious reasons (I don't have money to change rear every 3000 km :))

And amongst the sport touring class, Road 2 2CT is in the top. Others to consider: Metzeler Z6 Interact & Dunlop Roadsmart

Had Distanzias fitted today. HOORAY!!!
Shame it's raining heavy tho. Too wet for me on new tyres anyway.
I'm pretty sure the old tyres were what the bike was born with.
3400 miles later the rear definately had a nice flat on it and although the front tyre looked ok to me, the first corner out of the workshop and I went round the corner somewhat easier than normal. Nearly over-steered! funny how you can get used to 'wear' almost unnoticed until you get new tyres on.
I know they need a little wearing in, so will wait for the rain to stop, tomorrow the experts say, and before I set off check the tyre pressure because the lovely dude at the tyre place has probably inflated both tyres to the recommended pressure, which I'm lead to believe is probably too high.
I seem to remember reading here somewhere that 28 ish is probably fine?
I'm also thinking that when loaded with luggage and passenger I need to inflate the rear a little more, is this right?
Bring on the dry weather. :)

When I had mine fitted the guy that fitted them put the Avon recommended pressure in and not the 28-30ish Yamaha recommend. The pressures were far to high, quite scary riding home. Once I'd corrected to the Yamaha figures much better. Still took my time mind for the first 100 miles but they just got better and better. Great Choice. :partyondude:

After 3000 miles my rear pirelli dragon is almost gone.
The tire is good when its dry and stuff but in the wet its horrible.
First time I drove in the wet with them I had a 20 meter drift through a corner.
Drifting is fun but not when you don't expect it.

Looking into the Avon at the moment, been reading good things about them.

Mutants
 

Had my xtx for just over 3 weeks now from new and loving it,had sports bikes for years but this is way more fun on the back roads,anyway I've got the OE Pirellis on,have found them ok in the dry,good lean angles,grippy when warm,no wet riding as yet but rear already looking iffy after just 908 miles,I've been looking at the Dunlop Mutants as replacements but u all seem to rave about the Avons,prefer the look of the Dunlops but it's how they hang on that matters so don't know what to go for now,seems as people like both on here.....help :walk1:

Dunlop RoadSmart
 

I've not pretty much finished my first rear tyre on the XTX, Dunlop RoadSmart lasted for about 6000km, might have 2000 left in it if need be. I did have a bit of a problem with the inner tube keeping the pressure in, so I have ridden it occasionally with too low pressures, so you should expect more from that tyre. The grip is very good, I have yet to find a clean tarmac corner where that tyre would slide, I might be a sissy though. Front tyre is in very good condition still.

I'll probably go for something a bit more multi purpose on the next set, since the tyre shows pretty bad gashes of dirt road usage, I'm afraid I might get a puncture if I get unlucky. My use, 60% commuting, 30% twisties, 10% dirt.

got my rear tyre changed this week, got 3100miles out the pirelli dragons. Fitted a distanzia for �118. Don't know yet how good it is but looks big and chunky.
hushy

I've 3500 miles on the bike from new,it's had 3 rears and 2 fronts,have had to go to Road Smarts to make e'm last,how the hell you guys get mileage out a Dragon I've now idea,mine did 1000 miles and it completey scrap,nice to ride,but just hopeless wear wise.

Hushy,, ye will NOT go wrong wi a Distanza........ the best fur these bikes... wet or dry

Distanzias all the way. In 20 years of all year round riding, I've never experienced wet weather grip like these. Even better in the dry. Can't fault them, except on longevity, but you can't have it all.

did my usual when needing any for the xtx. check the forum for guidance and price. but luv the look of the new tyre.
hushy:026:

BT-090
I have yet to try a tire that can compete with that in corners. At any temperatures, its so sticky theres no way it would slide off in corners. Only downside is tire wear, only lasts for about ~3000km

Might try a BT016 but does anyone have experience with it?

xt660x rubbers
 

At last, the
Pirelli Dragons have gone, slightly squared off, after 2200miles.
A pair of Avon Distanzia fitted and wot a differents, I can now go round a wet corner, not lookin like a new rider, it felt like riding in the ice, everytime it rained. Horrible Dragons .
I got them from, ride in bike tyres, reading. �248, nice chap, easy to do business with,
So lookin forward to riding the bike each morning, :sunny:

Well all very interesting reading!!! I use my X mainly as a scooter so 80% of the time it is in the city, with some small blasts within a radius of 100 to 200km of home, any more than that and things get both tiring and weavy, as over 140kph she tends to become too light on the front so a bit wavy.....and I do use her all year round, rain and shine.
So my tyre idea was really the same as I use for my Vito van and the wife's Polo, I have two sets of wheels for the van and for the car so come November time I fit the wheels with the winter tyres and then in March ish I put the summer wheels and tyres back on, this way I dont bother with chains.
Roma is at sea level BUT around the city we have several places much higher up, and over the winter the law says that you MUST have either winter tyres or snow chains.
So for the XT I want to have my normal "summer" tyres (I have Pirelli Dragons which I like in the dry) and then purchase a set of Avons or Contis for the winter months. We had some snow last year which is unusual for Roma and when I tried the XT on the snow I fell off after about 5 metres hehe......

Mitas E-07