Michelin PR3

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Did I just read that correctly ! 24,000 miles on a set of PR2's
Absolutely, though the next time I'll probably change them a bit earlier, seems that the closer the tread got to the wear bars, the less adhesion they exhibited.

Here are the log entries for the tires.

Saturday.13.November.2010 18,650 miles
Replace Front Tire - Michelin Pilot Road 2 120/70R18
Replace Rear Tire - Michelin Pilot Road 2 170/60R17​

Tuesday.13.December.2011 42,757 miles
Replace Front Tire - Michelin Pilot Road 3 120/70R18
Replace Rear Tire - Michelin Pilot Road 3 170/60R17​
 

indypup

Accidents HURT! Safety doesn't
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Absolutely, though the next time I'll probably change them a bit earlier, seems that the closer the tread got to the wear bars, the less adhesion they exhibited.

Here are the log entries for the tires.

Saturday.13.November.2010 18,650 miles
Replace Front Tire - Michelin Pilot Road 2 120/70R18
Replace Rear Tire - Michelin Pilot Road 2 170/60R17​

Tuesday.13.December.2011 42,757 miles
Replace Front Tire - Michelin Pilot Road 3 120/70R18
Replace Rear Tire - Michelin Pilot Road 3 170/60R17​
I take it that you ride very conservatively?
 
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I take it that you ride very conservatively?

Define conservatively please.

This morning's commute was 35 miles, in just under 40 minutes elapsed time, includes local roads, interstate highway, NJ turnpike, the Lincoln tunnel, and city streets. NJ/NYC traffic is not the place for the mild or timid of heart.

I've searched for the twisting mountainside roadways, but alas we have none to speak of here in New Jersey. Um unless we include the Watchung mountain range with a typical elevation of 400 to 500 feet.
 

SteveST1300

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I've searched for the twisting mountainside roadways, but alas we have none to speak of here in New Jersey. Um unless we include the Watchung mountain range with a typical elevation of 400 to 500 feet.
Not a mountain road like in the smokies or blueridge but ride 521 or just come on up and we can go and ride in the Catskills plenty of good roads up there and its just a short ride.
 

Shuey

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OK, just replaced my first PR3 rear. 15,124 miles.

I cut a cross section out of the tire and there was still 3/32" of center rubber left above the cord.

Note: If most of your riding is upright, the wear bars are NOT useful to gauge remaining tire life. They are to far off the center and the harder rubber there.

The front tire looks great with plenty of life left, so it's still on for some more road time. I look forward to seeing what mileage it will get.

Shuey
 

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Joe
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Wow, that's great Shuey.... guess the PR3s are on my list next as soon as I wear out my new PR2s.
 
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OK, just replaced my first PR3 rear. 15,124 miles.

I cut a cross section out of the tire and there was still 3/32" of center rubber left above the cord.

Note: If most of your riding is upright, the wear bars are NOT useful to gauge remaining tire life. They are to far off the center and the harder rubber there.

The front tire looks great with plenty of life left, so it's still on for some more road time. I look forward to seeing what mileage it will get.

Shuey
I did the very same thing with my Conti Road Attacks (Original version) at alittle over 10.5K
It looked like about the same amout of tread left (your photo)
My Conti's were the best handling tires right down to the end, and they were very quiet with
no cupping or noise.
How did the PR3's do as far as cupping and noise in the turns? (like going over a grated bridge noise)
Everyone's still trying to get me to try these tires...I just don't quite trust dual comp tires yet.
I tend to stick with Steel belted Metzelers or Conti's.
But I would be the first to admit, they are getting expensive changing tires every 6 months.
 

Shuey

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How did the PR3's do as far as cupping and noise in the turns? (like going over a grated bridge noise)
But I would be the first to admit, they are getting expensive changing tires every 6 months.
No noticeable cupping, however, I haven't had any cupping to speak of since I started running with a TPM system of one brand or another. I'm convinced that most lost air in tires is from . . . checking the air pressure with a hand held gauge. With a TPMS in place, I know what the pressure is without checking and on rare occasions have to add a pound or two, usually due to altitude differences as I travel. Maintaining a consistent pressure seems to me to resolve cupping as an issue.

Noise - custom earplugs, so I'm not a good judge of noise as a factor with tires; they are all quiet! It's a pretty subjective thing in any case "quiet" for one rider is "obnoxiously loud" for another. If anyone is ever sharing some road with me and wants to check out the noise factor, I'll be glad to trade rides for a few miles.

Performance - Now that I know distance has improved with the PR3s and the front tire is still running strong and they run well on the dry or wet, specially WET, I now like the PR3s better than the, PR2s which I have absolute confidence in. The PR3s also really clamp down on the corners, although I'm not nearly as aggressive as I was when I was younger . . . 3 years ago, and never really pushed the corners to levels many riders here do! :)

Whatever tire you find that gives you confidence is a good choice. The tires are what keep us rolling along and off the road. For me, I'm confident in the PR2s and think the PR3s are a big improvement.

Shuey
 
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Shuey

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You guys running 42 psi front & rear still, with the PR3's?
Yep. It was what worked best for me on the PR2s. I'll probably run a few experiments with the threes to see if they run the same.

Shuey


PS: I like the barred owl a lot. Good pic.
 
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dduelin

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You guys running 42 psi front & rear still, with the PR3's?
I am light and prefer 38-40 F and 40-42 rear depending on day riding or loaded on a tour or camping. I think a few lbs down in the front calms the nervousness of PR2s and PR3s on the ST1300.
 
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I love thhe PR3's. I replaced my Bridgestones with these and turned my ST into a point and shoot machine. I will never look back. I've had Metzlers, Dunlops, Bridgestones and these are by far the best handling tires. The installer said that it should be 36lbs on the frint and 42lbs rear to get maximum wear and handling on the bike.
 

owl

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That's quite a difference from the standard 42 quoted pressure for the front - have you been running on 36?

What was the wear patternand mileage like?
 

dduelin

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That's quite a difference from the standard 42 quoted pressure for the front - have you been running on 36?

What was the wear patternand mileage like?
42/42 is Honda's recommendation. Older Michelin product line brochures gave similar TP pressure recommendations to what Speedy posted for previous Pilot Road tires on ST1300 fitments. We Americans like to sue each other - what is a tire corporation to do but toe the line the vehicle manufacturer draws. I like to run the front PR3 at 38 to 40 depending on the load. This works well for me. It feels good the way I ride. I have ridden two sets of PR2s and now have about 10,000 miles on a PR3 front and it has worn very well with very little scalloping. At this mileage previous PR2s would have a corse feel or buzz when braking. The 2 wore lumpy under my care no matter what pressure - I ran the first one at 36-40 and the second at a firm 42 lbs in an effort to get a better wear pattern. It did not matter.
 
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owl

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Interesting. I've gone from a PR2 to a PR3.

Was quite happy with the PR2's but the 3's were supposed to be an all round better tyre, especially in the wet. We shall see. Have about 2500 miles on them so far and have been running at 42/42. I did think it felt a bit firm at the front so I'll drop it a bit & see what happens.
 
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Great comments here. I trusted your advice, and ordered up a set of PR3's for my 05. Had to schedule an appt 2 weeks in advance to get them mounted, and of couse it decides to rain like crazy this morning, but cleared up for my noon appointment. While I'm waiting for them to be put on, it clouds up again, and boom bang, lightning and everything. Just when the rain got the heaviest, the service guy comes out and says "O.K., You're all set!"
(I hope these things are as good in the rain as they said). He then said "It's raining out there, so be careful - new tires are slippery for the 1st 50 miles or so" - (Great!, new tires in a thunderstorm) I very cautiously made my way home, and these tires felt very stable, and I did not feel uncomfortable at all! It is definitely a whole different feel than the old ones. I'll see how they do on dry roads after I get a couple of miles on them.
 

omniron

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I replaced my previous set of PR2s with PR3s, front and rear at the same time. The PR2s were very good and performed very well. They went a little over 12,000 miles, with some tread left but I didn't want to run out of tire on a trip. I just returned from a 5-day trip into New Mexico, adding another 2,000 miles to these tires. I have about 3,500 miles now on these tires. They are better than the PR2s, without doubt. Not just on the slab, but in the twisties too.
 
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