Stock Tires on '07 VFR's?

I ended up low siding on what was an average low speed left hand turn. on my way to work not sporting around. The rear just went out.


This is pretty much the exact same thing that happened to me as well (mine was also a low speed left-hand turn, oddly enough) and that's why I got rid of the ME4's with only 800 miles on 'em.

I have comprehensive insurance coverage, with a $1000.00 deductable, so I didn't report it to my insurance carrier, I just paid for the repairs out of my own pocket, which amounted to ~$1200.00, including labor as well as a set of Road Pilot 2CT's.

FWIW, you may have noticed in the thread I pasted that I ranked the Bridgestone BattlAx (BT021) fairly highly, this based on my experiences with these tires which were OEM on a 2007 BMW K1200GT.

I really liked the Bridgestone Battlax's on the Beemer, but unforrtunately within 2000-3000 miles the front tire was cupping like crazy, and the rear tire was wearing prematurely, and it soon picked up a nail (not the tire's fault, of course.)

[As an aside, I'll mention that the Beemer was loaded with options, including Tire Pressure Monitoring (TPM). While riding, I almost always set the 'bike computer' display to include the TPM readout. Well, one day I was out riding in the middle of nowhere when I noticed that the TPM readout for the rear tire was dropping by 1 lb. ~ every 10-20 miles, and once the readout dropped below 38 psi, a warning icon began flashing. I briefly stopped the motorcycle, and quickly found a big 2" f*cking nail in the rear side wall. TPM is the bomb in my opinion, especially on a sport-touring motorcycle.]

Anyhow, given the fact that the BattlAx's were cupping and wearing out quickly, I decided to replace them and try my luck with a set of Metzeler
Z6's, which were another OEM tire for the BMW K1200GT. (At the time I was only into my 2nd season of riding, so I didn't know what I now know, or...what I might think I might know!)

Well, I quickly found that the Z6's couldn't hold a candle to the Bridgestone BattlAx's, and I quickly missed them. Ughh! I also found it rather odd that the rear Z6 tire, in its sport-touring version (at least in 2007) actually had no tread grooves in the middle 3rd of the tire. Instead, it was as smooth as a baby's skin. Hmmm, what's up with that? I ended up disliking the Z6's almost as much as the ME4's when I went from riding the Beemer to a 2007 VFR 800A.

So (while still riding the Beemer in 2007), I ended up selling the Z6's and replaced them with Dunlop Qualifiers, which I found to be even better than the BattleAx's, which is saying something. I rode the Qualifiers with great pleasure and confidence until I totalled that Beemer (totally my fault) in
11/07.

I replaced the lost BMW with a new '07 VFR in 2008, which brings my long-winded story (sorry!) back full circle, as to why I got rid of the ME4's and decided to finally try what a good many motorcyclists and master technicians often regard as the best on-road tires, those being Michelins. (I swear by Michelin Cross Terrains for my SUV's.)

As I mentioned somewhere else, the Road Pilot 2CT's are the best I've rode so far, and my Holy Grail search for tires is over. Give me Michelins any day for the kind of riding I do.

While I'm still a newbie, I've managed to log nearly 30,000 miles over the course of 3 riding seasons so far, but I have no track experience whatsoever. On the other hand, I think that I have developed a fairly good 'Feel' for how tires behave and perform in the course of riding 3 different motorcycles since I first began riding in 2006, and like I've said, so far the 2CT's are the bomb as far as I'm concerned.

YMMV.

 

So how bad can I expect the Dunlops that came on my 08 to be? Back in the day I loved the Micheliens. Planning on a complete restoration of my 87 I'M also wondering what choices for front 16s are currently available.

Some hard core racers back in the day swore by "Michlops." I forget which was which but they liked a Michelein and a Dunlop used in conjunction.

Why does Honda spend a fortune on R&D, then ship a bike with substandard rubber?

 

The Dunlops that ship standard on the VFR are much maligned for premature cupping on the front. I can't attest to this since mine came with the Metzlers. Basically, you should figure on riding the OEM tire (Whatever mfg) while looking for some new tires and be ready to swap when you can. While you have the time, do you research and pick what you think would be a good tire for you.

 

I've got the Bridgestone BT-020's on mine. I'm only using them because the previous owner put them on, and they're taking forever to wear out. OK grip, but nothing special. I'll be replacing them with the Pilot Road 2ct, as I've literally not heard one bad review on them. Best wet grip, and longest lasting, and they also have pilot power compound on the sides. $305 shipped.