[MileCruncher]

As we all know, ADV or Adventure Bikes are a growing segment in India. Multiple reasons, but those have already been discussed multiple places across various thread.

The typical ADV wheel configuration in India is

1. 21" Front / 18" Rear
2. 21" Front / 17" Rear
3. 19" Front / 17" Rear

The most common profiles for each wheel size are:

21"

1. 90/90

19"

1. 100/90
2. 110/80

18"

1. 140/80
2. 130/80

17"

1. 150/70
2. 150/60

Tyre types are
Full road
80/20 Road
70/30 Road
50/50
Full Off road

Earlier ADVs in India were the middleweight or 1000cc+ bikes sporting tyres from Pirelli, Michelin and Metzeler. Now with the advent of KTM 390 ADV and Himalayan and the Xpulse we now have domestic manufacturers also making ADV tyres. Especially Ceat and Apollo.

Do tell us which tyres have you been using and its pros and cons. Along with availability and pricing.

[shyamg28]

Originally Posted by MileCruncher

...Do tell us which tyres have you been using and its pros and cons. Along with availability and pricing.

RE Himalayan 411 BSIV (90/90 R21 + 120/90 R17) - A lot of 2-up riding with luggage.

1. Ceat XL Gripp (front & back)
Good tyres. But I rubbed and slid the rear quite severely because of that sharp rear brake (or my lack of modulation).
Lasted about 17k kms I believe (can't remember).
Had a puncture the same night I took delivery (could be my fault for not checking pressure or some circumstances or stars being misaligned, no clue).



2. MRF Mogrip Meteor (front & back)
Great road biased tyres and hard compound made them last almost 20+k kms.
Seen Spiti Valley, the Manali-Chandratal-Kaza stretch as well. A bit of off road training included.
Pretty decent.
Costed 11k.



3. Apollo Actigrip (front & back)
Costed 12k but I sold the motorcycle soon after changing.



Suzuki V Strom 650 XT (110/80 R19 59V + 150/70 R17 69V) - A lot of 2-up riding with luggage.

1. Bridgestone Battlax A41 (front) + Metzeler Tourance Next (back)
Front was stock from factory. Rear I had to replace pre-emptively because of a slashed stock rear tyre. Both lasted decently long - say 17-18k kms.
The issue I had with the Tourance was that it is a pure road biased tyre. So even a bit of muck would kick of TC. Gravel and sand was also challenging.
The Tourance Next costed me 17k.

Battlax rear tyre slashed


Tourance Next rear.


Tourance Next rear being changed.


2. Metzeler Tourance (front & back)
Great tyres! 80-20 more than 70-30 (lol as if I know the difference).
Much more confidence inspiring. Taken to the MMRT track as well and did a fabulous job. Rear lasted about 14-15k kms.
Also seen incidental rough roads in Ladakh & Bhutan and did a great job.
Total cost 35k.

Tourance going in for change.


Tourance after CSS.


Tourance front.


Considerations for the future -

1. Pirelli Scorpion Rally STR - some time or another, I definitely do want to taste this. Cannot afford right now.
Cost can be anywhere between 35-40k I believe.

2. Metzeler Karoo Street - a friend has them and loves them.

3. Shinko E705 - heard great things about these too. Probably most expensive of the lot.

4. Pirelli Scorpion Trail II - also heard good things about these.

[libranof1987]

I have the BMW G310 GS, and just changed the tyres today.

The 310GS gets this ratio as stock: rear: 150/70/17, front: 110/80/19; the bike came with Metzeler Tourance.

Given my usage (both how much and where I ride), it didn't make sense to spend 40-50k on the Tourance. So, I was looking for options. The 2025 KTM 390 Adventure now comes with the Apollo Trampr Xr (it came with Tourance earlier); and I was able to test them thoroughly on-road as well as off-road quite a bit during our review.

Some friends recently got the Apollo Tramplr Xr on their KTM 390 Adventure as well, and have only good things to say.

I went to the tyre shop our riding group frequents, and since the Tramplr doesn't come in the stock size for the GS, the mechanic suggested the 150/60/17 for the rear, and the 100/90/19 for the front. Got both the tyres changed for ~9.5k, including fitting and balancing.

[BullettuPaandi]

Originally Posted by MileCruncher

18"

1. 140/80
2. 130/80

I don't have anything to add as I'm still on stock tyres on my XPulse, which has 120/80 R18 on the rear however; seems to be the case with the new 210 as well. I don't know how common this profile is, given that this is the least expensive bike, I felt it could be common.

Thanks for initiating this thread! Keen to browse responses.

[advstreak]

Originally Posted by MileCruncher

19"

1. 100/90

Here is my experience on the lower end of the segment tyre of my KTM ADV 250:


MRF MOGRIP METEOR:

Stock tyres on the KTM ADV 250. They lasted till 33K km with a couple of mm tread left in the rear. The front had less than a mm.



REISE TOURR

The comparison with MRF Mogrip and the first impression is here:

https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/motor...ml#post5704378 (Ownership Review | KTM Adventure 250)

Overall great tyre for the price, and I would recommend all MRF Mogrip people to spend 6k INR for the set and upgrade to TourR



REISE TRACER

TourR suffered an unfortunate early death due to a killer puncture after doing 27k km. Then I got the TraceR and here is the first impression:

https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/motor...ml#post5949154 (Ownership Review | KTM Adventure 250)

Originally Posted by shyamg28

Considerations for the future

You can consider TVS Eurogrip Trailhound STR and SCR. They seem to be launched in big ADV sizes, although the initial availability might be limited as they were just launched a couple of weeks back.
However, they do not seem to be available for the stock size for the V-storm 650.

https://eurogriptyres.eu/tyre/trailhound-str



https://eurogriptyres.eu/tyre/trailhound-scr

[shyamg28]

Originally Posted by advstreak

...You can consider TVS Eurogrip Trailhound STR and SCR. They seem to be launched in big ADV sizes, although the initial availability might be limited as they were just launched a couple of weeks back.
However, they do not seem to be available for the stock size for the V-storm 650...

There was a fair bit of excitement about them when they launched.
We've been paying an arbitrary premium for tyres so far.

When they had launched it, one of the presentiation slides did show this, which has the V Strom's size & speed rating requirement.


I'm yet to meet or know of anyone that has tried them out. Will wait for it.

Also, that they're being called a 90:10 tyre, usually implies 100:0 based on real world feel & usage.
I like the Tourance because they're a realistic 80:20 tyre for my skills.

[skviknaraj]

Originally Posted by shyamg28

There was a fair bit of excitement about them when they launched.
We've been paying an arbitrary premium for tyres so far.

When they had launched it, one of the presentiation slides did show this, which has the V Strom's size & speed rating requirement.
Attachment 2748876

I'm yet to meet or know of anyone that has tried them out. Will wait for it.

Also, that they're being called a 90:10 tyre, usually implies 100:0 based on real world feel & usage.
I like the Tourance because they're a realistic 80:20 tyre for my skills.

Originally Posted by advstreak

You can consider TVS Eurogrip Trailhound STR and SCR. They seem to be launched in big ADV sizes, although the initial availability might be limited as they were just launched a couple of weeks back.
However, they do not seem to be available for the stock size for the V-storm 650.

https://eurogriptyres.eu/tyre/trailhound-str

Attachment 2748850

https://eurogriptyres.eu/tyre/trailhound-scr

Attachment 2748849

Not happy to pour water on this party, but TVS has supposedly launched these tyres, pricing is not available and dealers do not have it. I am eagerly waiting for the Eurogrips as they come in the stock size required for Transalp.( Not many R18 available in the market ). The new tyres are not listed on the website yet. I am also not able to get the dealer list through their webiste. God knows what their marketing team is upto.

For the last couple of weeks, I have reached out to them through Instagram and website, but no fruitful response till now. In the event I get more info, will post it here. BTW if anyone does know any Eurogrip dealer, please let me know.

[MileCruncher]

The standard tyres of Tiger 800 are 100/90 - 19 & 150/70 - 17

However 100/90 is hardly available so a lot of owners have moved to 110/80 profile. My used Tiger 800 XRx came with Pirelli Scorpion Trail tyres with 110/80 - R19 front and 150/70- R17 rear.

I have ridden extensively in the rain and these road biased stick to the tarmac like crazy. They can take bad roads with aplomb but become twitchy on offroad. I would call them 90/10 road biased tyres.

While there is still a lot of tread left, I think they are getting closer to 5 year mark and starting to show cracks. So replacement will be due.

Given that Pirelli Scorpion Trail / Michelin Anakees / Metzeler Tourance all cost the earth and the moon ( 40-45k for the set), I'm thinking Indian tyres.

I do see Reise tyres in the size but they are mostly trail oriented.

I have ridden briefly the F900GS and Desertx both of which come with Pirelli Rally STRs. I feel the bike being twitchy on the concrete roads of Mumbai. And that made me a little hesitant to lean aggressively on corners. What is the feedback of the janta on these Rally STRs. How do you manage ?

If no desi alternative is found, I will have to sell my third kidney to procure these tyres ( the other two have already been sold to maintain the white err blue elephant)

[Cyborg]

Originally Posted by MileCruncher

Given that Pirelli Scorpion Trail / Michelin Anakees / Metzeler Tourance all cost the earth and the moon ( 40-45k for the set), I'm thinking Indian tyres.

I would suggest not changing to any Indian tyres for your bike. Please do not compromise on safety with anything else which is what you would be doing by compromising on your tyre choice.

Of course you are aware the only things keeping you upright are these black circular things. You have an expensive, powerful motorcycle, just put the best tyres out there and be safe.

Cheers

[praful]

Originally Posted by MileCruncher

What is the feedback of the janta on these Rally STRs. How do you manage ?

I don't have desi feedback, but I have the Pirelli Rally STRs on my bike for around 6K Kms. The configuration is 90/90-21 and 150/70-18, both running tubeless on these 70/30 tyres. I don't have experience riding on concrete roads with those tyres, but for dry tarmac, I find them to be excellent, whether it's highway speeds (130-140 kmph) or on the twisties in the mountains. Never felt like I was running out of grip, granted I don't go ride like I have a deathwish so maybe I might not have pushed its performance envelope much.

Wet tarmac has been great as well so far, in my mind I am not confident, but they have never lost grip or have I had moments where TC kicked in to control the situation. But I have not ridden on wet twisties hard, where I think they might run out of grip.

Off-road

As long as things are dry mud, rocks or grass the tyres are pretty decent and hold line well. The moment you hit the wet stuff like slush, etc you're in for a "fun" ride. As the blocks are not very tall and quite closely spaced, the slush fills in the gaps very quickly and makes its a racing slick in the wet stuff.

Pic for reference - https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/attac...3364.jpg?stc=1

Next I'll going at least 50/50 and changing over to either the Metzeler Karoo 4 or the Mitas Enduro Trail or Dunlop Trailmax Raid, just waiting to use the current stock STRs till they are no longer safe for my use. But I might have a last-minute change of heart and go all in with the 20/80 Mitas Enduro Trail XT+.

[MileCruncher]

Originally Posted by praful

I have the Pirelli Rally STRs on my bike for around 6K Kms. The configuration is 90/90-21 and 150/70-18, both running tubeless on these 70/30 tyres.

I'm surprised you calling the Pirelli Rally STR as 70/30 tyres. I thought of them as more like 50/50 tyres. They seem to defacto OEM on these F900GS and DesertX here in India.

As regards to use case, I don't have death wish too. My typical riding is 100-120Kmph range on 4 lane highways and 80-100 in the dual lane, non divider highways. My doubt is how will they hold in India highway tarmac conditions at 100Kmph on a long sweeping curve. The Scorpion Trail just sticks to the tarmac and urges you to push further.

Next I'll going at least 50/50 and changing over to either the Metzeler Karoo 4 or the Mitas Enduro Trail or Dunlop Trailmax Raid, just waiting to use the current stock STRs till they are no longer safe for my use. But I might have a last-minute change of heart and go all in with the 20/80 Mitas Enduro Trail XT+.

Isn't the Mitas Enduro Trail XT not road legal ?

Any thoughts on Shinko Trailmaster E705 ?

[praful]

Originally Posted by MileCruncher

I'm surprised you calling the Pirelli Rally STR as 70/30 tyres. I thought of them as more like 50/50 tyres. They seem to defacto OEM on these F900GS and DesertX here in India.

Yes, they are definitely not 50/50 tyres. There is the Pirelli Rally (not STR), which is closer to being a 50/50 tyre. The rally STR are default tyres for a lot of ADV bikes (mine included) and others like the Yamaha Tenere as well. Because quite simply, most ADV bike owners will never venture off-road, those that do will stick to simpler trails that are dry and offer plenty of traction. It makes sense to give bikes with a more road-oriented tyre that looks off-roadish.

Originally Posted by MileCruncher

As regards to use case, I don't have death wish too. My typical riding is 100-120Kmph range on 4 lane highways and 80-100 in the dual lane, non divider highways. My doubt is how will they hold in India highway tarmac conditions at 100Kmph on a long sweeping curve. The Scorpion Trail just sticks to the tarmac and urges you to push further.

The Rally STR will fit the bill for this, but if you have no intentions of going off-road, get a more road oriented tyre 80/20 or 90/10 (like the Metzeler Tourance Next 2 in the thread above) as it will help in wet conditions more and also for surfaces like concrete.

Originally Posted by MileCruncher

Isn't the Mitas Enduro Trail XT not road legal ?

They are road legal, they are homologated for 20% road use, but highway speeds on wet tarmac might be like skating. Which is why I am very skeptical of getting them! Here is a chart of the tyre classification from Mitas.

Originally Posted by MileCruncher

Any thoughts on Shinko Trailmaster E705 ?

Sorry, never used Shinkos, the Rally STRs are my first set of tyres on this bike. On my previous bike I had the Michelin Sirac (80/20) which was excellent for my use back then, and since India had started imposing the ISI standard on tyres and therefore no Sirac was imported to India, I moved to the equivalent tyres from Ceat, the Gripp XL, which was OK in the dry and a bit tricky in the wet.

[BullettuPaandi]

Originally Posted by praful

Next I'll be going at least 50/50

I've only browsed through specs and haven't ever used after-market tyres; so, a noob question:

Is the On-to-off road rating such as 80:20, 50:50, etc. representative more of off-road capability or on-road durability?

Reading your post, it sounds like you'll be going for a more off-road oriented set of tyres next. If we consider mud evacuation alone, a simple spaced out block pattern will do the trick, but with a significant compromise in durability on-road. But, say a manufacturer employs some patented thread pattern with relatively narrow channels and harder carcass, which are only slightly less effective than the spaced out 50:50 tyres in mud evacuation. Now, will they advertise it as a 'more durable 50:50 tyres' or say 'more off-road capable 70:30 tyres'?

[praful]

Originally Posted by BullettuPaandi

Is the On-to-off road rating such as 80:20, 50:50, etc. representative more of off-road capability or on-road durability?

The numbers are supposed to indicate the Ratio of On-road to Off-Road use, for example, a 90/10 is oriented for 90% road use vs. a 50/50 tyre that is meant for 50% road and off-road use. It is a means to represent the balance between on/off-road performance of a tyre. I do not think there is a very accurate science behind what goes into determining this ratio (maybe there, I haven't the mindset to research that deep )

Durability is an entirely different factor driven by the type of compound of the tyre and the type of construction.

Originally Posted by BullettuPaandi

Reading your post, it sounds like you'll be going for a more off-road oriented set of tyres next. If we consider mud evacuation alone, a simple, spaced-out block pattern will do the trick, but with a significant compromise in durability on-road. But, say a manufacturer employs some patented thread pattern with relatively narrow channels and harder carcass, which are only slightly less effective than the spaced out 50:50 tyres in mud evacuation. Now, will they advertise it as a 'more durable 50:50 tyres' or say 'more off-road capable 70:30 tyres'?

Yes, around where I live, there is a lot of rain and the off-road bits tend to be slushy around the year, so I need more off-road capability than my current set of tyres offers. But usually to get to the nice off-road bits, there is a lot of highway riding involved as, hence I need to retain some on-road performance as well.

I think you are mixing durability with the on/off-road performance. Narrow channels will lead to mud getting stuck more easily. So as the height and spacing of the studs increase, there is generally speaking more grip off the road, of course, with a corresponding decrease in on-road performance. Look at the image in my previous post and then look up the tread patterns of the Mitas tyre models; it will give you a clear idea of how the tread pattern changes.

I think there will never be a do-it-all bike and tyre combination, you need to find the balance that works best for your individual use.

[BullettuPaandi]

Originally Posted by praful

I think you are mixing durability with the on/off-road performance.

I think I just wasn't articulate enough with the question. I'll try putting it differently: If a set of tyres is more or less equally capable in on and off roads- i.e. a 50:50 tyre- but it is significantly more durable than typical 50:50 tyres in the market, won't the manufacture rather advertise it as 70:30 tyres to appeal to a larger market?

Browsing Mitas' catalogue was in fact what caused this confusion in me. There are multiple versions of their Enduro Trail. A spaced out block pattern such as in the Enduro Trail-ADV is well known for paddling through mud; but it's only rated as 70:30. On the other hand, their Enduro Trail+ ones use this 'chevron' block pattern, adopted from the agricultural and earth movers type of tyres, which are rated as 60:40. Both these seem equivalently capable off-road; only the ADV version seems to have treads of multiple compound I think means a harder central than softer side ones, as they're better rated for two-up/luggage-heavy touring, which I think explains them advertising these as more road-oriented than the Trail+ and Enduro ones.

Attaching screenshots from their catalogue.