[Dookoo]

I've been curious about the Darkside since getting my Wing and hearing all the stories. I'm not asking if you ride Darkside in the twisties because I know many of you do. However, here it is point blank: Is there anyone out there that truly believes that a cartire is superior to a mc tire in the twisties at extreme lean angles?

 

[LarryinSeattle]

I rode behind a Concours for 300 miles on a pretty brisk ride this weekend. He knows how to ride. He did not leave me behind. I dragged the pegs a few times during our ride. My car tire stayed in the corners without any issues. Some of the roads were dirty as this is pretty early in the riding season here and I felt no giving in to sand at all.

Now I have to qualify this. I have owned the bike now for 6,000 miles. 5,000 of those miles have been with the car tire. The first 1,000 miles I was getting used to the bike and I don't have a good comparison between the two. I just know that I am not concerned about that rear tire.

One other comment about my tires. I put a Dunlop 404 on the front of my bike and the CT on the rear. The CT has lowered the gearing a little on the bike.... but the front tire has the speedo working within one mile an hour, checked several times on my GPS. I am very happy with my tire choice and I would put those right back on if I had a tire failure.

I am glad you asked that question.

 

[Chopin]

Well Dookoo. I see the number of Darkside riders is growing over at the GL1800. I'll be on board with the next tire change. My days of intentionally dragging foot pegs are distant memories so I rely on you whipper snappers to test the extreme limits of performance; knowing full well that I can safely follow behind at my own pace. Go for it.

 

[LarryinSeattle]

Chopin.... I usually ride to slow enough to read the mailboxes, however, my friend had the lunch tickets and I didn't dare get left behind!

 

[Dookoo]

Well Dookoo. I see the number of Darkside riders is growing over at the GL1800. I'll be on board with the next tire change. My days of intentionally dragging foot pegs are distant memories so I rely on you whipper snappers to test the extreme limits of performance; knowing full well that I can safely follow behind at my own pace. Go for it.

To clarify, I dont like touching hard parts down at all. Because of the limited lean angle of the Wing, I just position my body, knees out, chin to mirror in an effort to get the most out of my bike in turns without scraping and keeping the Wing upright as possible. I'm done with replacing lower cowlings and footpegs. And now my centerstand looks like its been taking some hard hits too. The Darkside sounds rather convincing. I suppose I'll be looking for a used rim and have to decide which tire. I don't think I'll kill this thread by asking and have to find out for myself.

 

[Canuck623]

I would never run a CT on my wing. Ask yourself.....and your insurance company......do you have coverage if you have an accident that is deemed tire related? I know I do with a bike tire. According to a lawyer friend, with the car tire you are out of luck.

 

[Dookoo]

Personally, I am not going to worry about what insurance companies will or will not cover because its my own choice. I am positive that good ct are as good as any mt as I am surprised how much punishment I give my car tires. There are too many Darksiders who have proven the reliability and safety of a ct on a mc. My goal is to have the ultimate ride with my Goldwing, all things considered (comfort, traction, mileage, passenger feedback, etc.). I only started this thread because my favorite type of riding involves endless curves, switchbacks....really anything which pushes me to ride hard. I have sportbikes for the track, but my Wing has a special place in my garage as I take it everywhere, single and two up. I cannot do this with my sportbikes because I am so mileage limited both in terms of comfort and tank mileage. Plus, my wife will not ride anything but the Wing.

 

[LarryinSeattle]

I would never run a CT on my wing. Ask yourself.....and your insurance company......do you have coverage if you have an accident that is deemed tire related? I know I do with a bike tire. According to a lawyer friend, with the car tire you are out of luck.

Sorry Canuck623, but I strongly disagree.

You can make your own choice regarding a car tire on a Wing. But the insurance fear is: Total misinformation.

A tire...... is commonly referred to as a car tire but is rated for weight and speed. PERIOD. There has never been a law suit or a case disallowed due to an accident involving a motorcycle with a car tire. Your attorney is mis informed.

Sorry. GOOGLE and find a case....... then come back to the forum and display it. This is repeated over and over by people who just want to use fear as a means.

Gosh, I rode my wing down to your home town three weeks ago from Seattle with that car tire on the back. Had you asked me over for a cup of coffee, I would have came over and you could have test rode my bike with that car tire on the back. Or just had coffee and told me about Phoenix.

Whatever. Have fun in that sun down there. I heard it was in the high 90's today there. It was 65 and sunny here and I rode 350 miles to Mt. St. Helens and back. I got 40 miles to the gallon on the $4.10 87 octane. What a great day it was.

 

[budoka]

This is as varied a subject as oil is getting to be. As with all things bike related it's a personal choice. I'm happy you're happy Larry, and if you go that way Maestro good on ya, it's just not for me. One of my mechanics does it on his Vulcan 2k and is fine with 'his' decision. I'm more unfine with his choice of rides than his choice of skins (again a personal reflection, I believe in loyalty to the stuff I sell) although I'd ride Red in 95% of cases anyway 'cause I believe in Honda build quality along with the fact that it writes my paycheck.

 

[Canuck623]

Sorry Canuck623, but I strongly disagree.

You can make your own choice regarding a car tire on a Wing. But the insurance fear is: Total misinformation.

A tire...... is commonly referred to as a car tire but is rated for weight and speed. PERIOD. There has never been a law suit or a case disallowed due to an accident involving a motorcycle with a car tire. Your attorney is mis informed.

Sorry. GOOGLE and find a case....... then come back to the forum and display it. This is repeated over and over by people who just want to use fear as a means.

Gosh, I rode my wing down to your home town three weeks ago from Seattle with that car tire on the back. Had you asked me over for a cup of coffee, I would have came over and you could have test rode my bike with that car tire on the back. Or just had coffee and told me about Phoenix.

Whatever. Have fun in that sun down there. I heard it was in the high 90's today there. It was 65 and sunny here and I rode 350 miles to Mt. St. Helens and back. I got 40 miles to the gallon on the $4.10 87 octane. What a great day it was.

If I had known you were coming.......Might have even had cake. I am not saying you shouldn't but said I wouldn't. That's what's so great about this country. I get to say I won't and you get to say you will. I am not forcing my will on you........I spoke to a Law Tigers lawyer. He said that insurance companies look for ANY reason not to pay. If there was a CT involved they could and would have the right because of the manufacturer specs and all. He did not, nor did I say it had happened yet but that's another cool thing about this country. A lot of the laws come from court cases. It's only a matter of time till someone decides to give it a spin in court. It is illegal in the UK. This is a fact!! I also know that Canada has laws regarding types of tires being mixed on different axles but don't know if it includes Motorcycles. PM me next time you are coming down. My wife and I are the GWRRA Chapter Directors for Chapter R in North Phoenix. Only 40 per gallon? I get 46 all day with my Dunlop E3 on the back.

 

[LarryinSeattle]

If I had known you were coming.......Might have even had cake. I am not saying you shouldn't but said I wouldn't. That's what's so great about this country. I get to say I won't and you get to say you will. I am not forcing my will on you........I spoke to a Law Tigers lawyer. He said that insurance companies look for ANY reason not to pay. If there was a CT involved they could and would have the right because of the manufacturer specs and all. He did not, nor did I say it had happened yet but that's another cool thing about this country. A lot of the laws come from court cases. It's only a matter of time till someone decides to give it a spin in court. It is illegal in the UK. This is a fact!! I also know that Canada has laws regarding types of tires being mixed on different axles but don't know if it includes Motorcycles. PM me next time you are coming down. My wife and I are the GWRRA Chapter Directors for Chapter R in North Phoenix. Only 40 per gallon? I get 46 all day with my Dunlop E3 on the back.

Darn it.... I did post on here that I was going to Phoenix for two weeks prior to making the trip. Oh well. Maybe next year when the rain gets to me here again and I have to get out of dodge.

 

[Canuck623]

Ahhh Must have missed it. So many threads on here and I don't take a lot of time on these forums. As you can see by my post count and join date.

 

[Chopin]

Ahhh Must have missed it. So many threads on here and I don't take a lot of time on these forums. As you can see by my post count and join date.

Damn! You almost qualify as a lurker.

 

[LarryinSeattle]

I know a lurker when I see one.

 

[Canuck623]

Damn! You almost qualify as a lurker.

LOL. A lurker would log in and never post. I post when I log in....just don't get here a lot. May step that up a bit. I have beenm spending a lot of time on a car related forum but it is slowly going to the dogs.

 

[Kid61]

I WILL NOT put a car tire on my Wing and here's why: The Goldwing handles way too well to use a tire that tries to stand the bike up straight all the time. Only if I pulled a trailer would I use a car tire. With a trailer you just need something to handle the weight and handling/maneuvering is more difficult anyway.

I've been running a car tire on my metric cruiser for about a year now--it's coming off this week. I put it on because the bike was eating rear tires up about every 6,000 miles riding 2-up a lot before I got the Wing. I got sick of the expense so I put one on to last a while. The cruiser handled tougher 2-up anyway so the car tire wasn't making things noticeably worse and it wore much better. But a car tire does funny things at low speed especially--it seeks it's contact patch all the time. It takes more effort to lean it because it always wants to be flat straight up and down. It will hold fine in a curve--maybe better that a MC tire--but it will stand the bike up straight unless you forcibly hold the bike down. You can adjust to it quickly--but everything takes more effort other than cruising straight down the road. It is very good at that.

You'll see all sorts of comments on all the forums about how great a car tire is on a MC. Under certain conditions it is superior to a MC tire I think. But if responsiveness and ease of handling is a priority for you then forget it. They wear like iron and brake real well in the rain for sure. But I got tired of fighting the square profile every time I wanted to lean. My Wing handles so well (Traxxion suspension) that I will never corrupt it with a car tire.

 

[LarryinSeattle]

I WILL NOT put a car tire on my Wing and here's why: The Goldwing handles way too well to use a tire that tries to stand the bike up straight all the time. Only if I pulled a trailer would I use a car tire. With a trailer you just need something to handle the weight and handling/maneuvering is more difficult anyway.

I've been running a car tire on my metric cruiser for about a year now--it's coming off this week. I put it on because the bike was eating rear tires up about every 6,000 miles riding 2-up a lot before I got the Wing. I got sick of the expense so I put one on to last a while. The cruiser handled tougher 2-up anyway so the car tire wasn't making things noticeably worse and it wore much better. But a car tire does funny things at low speed especially--it seeks it's contact patch all the time. It takes more effort to lean it because it always wants to be flat straight up and down. It will hold fine in a curve--maybe better that a MC tire--but it will stand the bike up straight unless you forcibly hold the bike down. You can adjust to it quickly--but everything takes more effort other than cruising straight down the road. It is very good at that.

You'll see all sorts of comments on all the forums about how great a car tire is on a MC. Under certain conditions it is superior to a MC tire I think. But if responsiveness and ease of handling is a priority for you then forget it. They wear like iron and brake real well in the rain for sure. But I got tired of fighting the square profile every time I wanted to lean. My Wing handles so well (Traxxion suspension) that I will never corrupt it with a car tire.

I know what you are talking about. I damn near break a sweat when I go to put the bike onto the side stand. Sometimes, when I am just gonna run into the store, I just shut the engine off..... leave the bike in gear and just leave it standing on that car tire without bothering with the center or side stand.


Kid,

Welcome from Seattle!

 

[Kid61]

I know what you are talking about. I damn near break a sweat when I go to put the bike onto the side stand. Sometimes, when I am just gonna run into the store, I just shut the engine off..... leave the bike in gear and just leave it standing on that car tire without bothering with the center or side stand.


Kid,

Welcome from Seattle!


Thanks, Larry--glad to be here. I love to talk bikes and the other forum was just too nasty and full of idiots so I thought I'd give this place a try.

A lot of guys love the DS tire on a bike and ultimately it's everyone's personal choice and I respect that. I'm expressing my opinion about why I won't do it on my Wing--I should not try to discourage others from trying it. I will say that when I go back and forth between bikes the effort required to maneuver the cruiser at any speed is real noticeable. Is it all because of the DS tire? Probably not. It could be that the awesome handling of the Wing makes the cruiser feel like a motor home regardless of the tire. I'll know for sure how much is tire-related next week when I get the cruiser back with a MC tire again.

I ride about 7,000 miles/year. I'm not in a position to take advantage of the characteristics of a DS tire. Others who are may find the compromises well worth it.

 

[ptwingmn]

wow! with all the pros and cons and logical & illogical rationell about the DS car tires, I think I am going to try and put MC Tires on my car. I want to see if it corners better, and if it will track better on the steel bridges here in FL. I think it is only logical and fair to do a reverse comparison. what would we call it? The "Lighter Side"? gotta love it !!!!. Now were back to which brand tire is better, oh nuts!

 

[LarryinSeattle]

Dookoo,

Do you have an update on your car tire?