Bridgestone T30 GT's - How do you like them?

Originally Posted by Johnny Rocco I've just installed a pair of T30's on my '01 ST.

For comparison, the last two sets have been a G547 front (Bias) and a BT020 rear (Bias)

For reference, I have been riding for 45 years, blah-diddy-blah :smile:

The two most noticeable differences are these-

1) Tires are noticeably stiffer and make slightly more road noise.

2) The roll-in is a little smoother than the bias pairing.

Grip seems to be the same, straight up to out on the edge.

Slightly more nervous on gravel and loose dirt.

All that's left to be seen is the mileage.

That said, I've been very happy with the bias pairing.

T30's were $318 Cdn, the pair, installed (off the bike).


Update on the T30's, about 5K (3000 miles) in.

Grip is consistently good in the dry and fine in the wet, no surprises.

Wear is even, with no evident scalloping.

As another inmate mentioned, they REALLY dislike tar strips, to the point where I was nervous going through sweepers laced with them.

Very nice ride at higher speeds (70-95+ mph)

Wear seems to be in line with what I was seeing with the bias setup.


T30 update. . . 8-30-2015
I'm at 9000 km's now (aprox. 5400 miles)

Tires are basically toast, though I could probably squeeze another 500 km's out of them.

Wear front and back even.

Front shows even wear, but there's evidence of beveling or stepping.

Rear shows even wear, with some light scalloping at the siping.

'Some' of that unusual wear may be down to not being religious with tire pressures, but never more than two psi out of spec.

Bottom line(s)- comparing G547/BT020 bias ply to T30r's.

Higher speed (70-100+ mph) running goes to the T30s.

Tar strips? The bias pairing is markedly better.

Wet weather riding? Nod to the bias setup. The T30s had me second guessing grip and slowing, particularly in the damp and light rain.

Overall ride and feel go to the bias setup, by a small but measured difference.
Probably not as stiff a carcass as the T30s.


Roll in behavior was fairly even, with a very slight edge given to the bias tires as it was easier to make inputs mid turn.

High speed sweepers on smooth pavement goes to the T30s, on less than ideal pavement the bias plys.

Gravel and loose dirt go to the bias setup, due to a softer carcass I think.

I'm going to go back to the bias setup next time, but will not rule out the T30's as an option. I just prefer the bias feel overall.
I will consider other radial options.

For reference, I ride an '01 ST1100.
Most of my riding is on the 'sporty' side of sport touring.

I hope you find this of some use

Well I just got back from a trip with my wife and we did about 2600 miles in 8 days on two bike. Nice easy riding and much different than when I am by myself. Before the trip as I mentioned earlier I put on a new back T30GT and as mentioned in the previous post I only got 6100 miles out of the rear.

This trip is starting to show much different results in tire wear. The front T30GT now has 9000 miles on it and will be replaced this coming week. I have a track day next Saturday and I don't thing the front will pass inspection even though I am not quite to the wear bares.

The back with nearly 3000 miles is looking like new. Riding with the wife on the trip plus a lot of very nice two lane roads at lower speeds, average 45 mph, I believe are adding to their longevity. I will continue to monitor but at this rate I should push 9000 miles as I was hoping to in with the first T30GT.

I went through 2 sets of T30's on my ST1100 and got about 9000 miles plus/minus a bit.

I have a 2004 ST1300 and ride solo all the time. At 5K miles, visually, the thread still had plenty of life left. Being used to the BT-023, I reasoned the wear was on par and I should get about 10K out of them. What a surprise I got when I looked at them at 6K miles and found the center had wore past the wear bars. Will not buy this tire again. Since the BT-023 is no longer is available, I will buy the Exedra Max. With that tire I got 13K, see https://www.st-owners.com/forums/showthread.php?147902-Exedra-max

I'm very happy with these tires. They stick like glue and feel very soft which had me checking the air pressure thinking they were low, not the case. They just feel soft which is probably the soft compound although they are a dual compound tire. I love the way the bike handles on all road conditions. I am happier than any other tire combo I've run on any of my bikes over 39 years of riding. Mileage report...I understand the major complaint is lack of mileage and I cannot report back on this yet as I only have 2,000 miles on mine showing very little to no wear at this time. With that being said, I really don't care what kind of mileage I get out of them as they are so darned inexpensive. $200.00 to my door, how can I complain?I will report my mileage results.
NOTE: They offer two tires, one being the "GT SPEC Tire" made specifically for our heavier weight Sport Tourer, with the dual compound, offering higher mileage. That's what I purchased.

I've gone through 3 full sets of T30 GT's. Really like them, but rear wear sucks; all 3 have been about 5k... The front is great; minimal cupping and wear is nice and even over it's life. Usually get 2 rears to 1 front.

playfair said:

I've gone through 3 full sets of T30 GT's. Really like them, but rear wear sucks; all 3 have been about 5k... The front is great; minimal cupping and wear is nice and even over it's life. Usually get 2 rears to 1 front.

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EXACTLY the outcome I've had (and reported). You'd think that they'd have re-engineered the rear tire by now. However, it could be that they don't mind only giving 6k to the rear tire....as long as we replace it with another GT30! I LOVE the front and
it with a PR4 rear. ZOOM-ZOOM. Can't wait for MLR and the SToc events to get here.

Gilly57 said:

EXACTLY the outcome I've had (and reported). You'd think that they'd have re-engineered the rear tire by now. However, it could be that they don't mind only giving 6k to the rear tire....as long as we replace it with another GT30! I LOVE the front and
it with a PR4 rear. ZOOM-ZOOM. Can't wait for MLR and the SToc events to get here.

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I'm getting the same results. I'm in need of a new set, 7 K on this rear, front has close to 14 K and still looks good, no cupping wearing nice and even. Great tire and the price is right! Has anyone tried the T30 EVO?

Indian Express said:

I'm getting the same results. I'm in need of a new set, 7 K on this rear, front has close to 14 K and still looks good, no cupping wearing nice and even. Great tire and the price is right! Has anyone tried the T30 EVO?

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I'm running Evos on the 700X but when I bought them just a few months ago the ST1300 Evo sizes were not available in GT spec. They still aren't AFIK.

dduelin said:

I'm running Evos on the 700X but when I bought them just a few months ago the ST1300 Evo sizes were not available in GT spec. They still aren't AFIK.

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The EVO GTs have been available in ST1300 sizes for a bit as I posted in a separate thread. I just finished off a rear in 2 weeks, what can I say? 3,025 miles, including a 1,700 mile trip to Florida and back. The mountain miles I did around Deals Gap were some of the hardest-on-a-tire I have ever done and the Evos did well. More pressure sensitive than the old style T-30 GT (keep em aired to max 42 psi) but the new rubber compound and revised contact patch provide a noticeably different feedback that suits the bike well. Like before the front lasts significantly longer than the rear and while the rear feathered the leading edged of the tread the front looks perfect and shows very little wear. I was into the side wear bars on the rear and the center was about half gone at most.

I only had a few miles of hot pavement riding and they stuck well but the tire has lost some of that Bridgestone direct-connection feel that I always loved. They are closer to a Michelin feel than before though they still steer/turn quicker. Great tires and I think they wear slightly better than the old style T-30s. I have worn several old style GT rears out in 1,200 miles (sides bald, centers like new) but I believe the EVOs are good for about 400 miles more before they go bald as I still had some rubber left on these.

If you like great handling the stones are great tires whether you choose EVO GT or just the GT.

kebrider said:

The EVO GTs have been available in ST1300 sizes for a bit as I posted in a separate thread. I just finished off a rear in 2 weeks, what can I say? 3,025 miles.

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Maybe an obvious thing to all....but 3,025 miles on a rear tire is "good"....and they lasted 2 weeks ? Oh my. I realize you were in a GREAT riding area, but unless you own a tire shop...you'd
likely go through ...what, 3-5 rear tires a "season"? No judgement here, just astounded at what an annual rubber need would be at those rates.

Gilly57 said:

Maybe an obvious thing to all....but 3,025 miles on a rear tire is "good"....and they lasted 2 weeks ? Oh my. I realize you were in a GREAT riding area, but unless you own a tire shop...you'd
likely go through ...what, 3-5 rear tires a "season"? No judgement here, just astounded at what an annual rubber need would be at those rates.

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With my 4 bikes I went through 31 tires last year. I used to provide detailed tire tests to my friends in the past but that was when I went through over 40 a year. I have slowed my pace a bit in the mountains which means my testing consistency is not what it once was so I don't delve into details. Basically when a tire is good enough that I would buy it again I speak highly of it. My reported mileage is always accurate because I keep detailed records and while they are always very low they are for reference only.

So if I average 1,500 miles and someone else averages 10,000 miles when I get more miles out of a particular tire then I would expect everyone to get more miles. This is not always a perfect science of course so I usually test at least 3 sets of a tire model before I say what their wear rate is like but only one set usually tells me how they perform. 2 rear tires a month on the ST is the norm when I play in the mountains with the front (only used T-30 GTs since I bought the bike 3 years ago) usually good for 2 rears.

I also have a Cogent Dynamics modified front suspension and a Penske rear shock which allows me to really enjoy the mountains on the ST. The bikes mass keeps things sane but it is very entertaining to ride at the obvious expense of tires and brake pads. I have a Cycle Hill tire changer and an Ingersoll Rand air compressor that stay pretty busy most of the time.

Typical mountain tire with lots f center tread left but zilch side tread.

Thanks for the info

dduelin said:

I'm running Evos on the 700X but when I bought them just a few months ago the ST1300 Evo sizes were not available in GT spec. They still aren't AFIK.

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You bet they are available. FedEx just dropped off 2 front EVO GT's and 2 rear EVO GT's for my ST1300.
I'm as happy as a clam on high tide here on the west coast.

These might be my next tires. I replaced my rear PR4 last year because of a puncture. I could have purchased a full set for the cost of the one rear. I now have 2 plugs in the replacement rear.

Al Gully said:

You bet they are available. FedEx just dropped off 2 front EVO GT's and 2 rear EVO GT's for my ST1300.
I'm as happy as a clam on high tide here on the west coast.

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Ok, great. I know which tires I'll buy when the current T30 GTs are done.

I suppose thee is no chance the T30 GT evos will be available in St1100 sizes.

Broc - The fronts on the ABSII that you have are the same as the ST1300 front. I've done the ST1300 rears (170/60 instead of the 160/70) many times. But then I don't know if you have vehicle inspections like England where they might fail you for the wrong tire size.

Thanks Uncle Phil, no we don't have any inspections here, so I might as well try the 170/60 GT rear next time, I'll be needing tyres on the VFR next month so I'll try the regular T30 evos on her.

The ABS does just fine and I didn't notice a lot of difference on the sidestand or the centerstand. Maybe a little, but not enough to concern me.

Thanks Phil, we discussed this before!! I don't rush into things that's for sure,my abs packed in anyway long ago, fault at the rear modulator I think, combined brakes work as good as abs the way I ride the ST anyway. I'm slightly more of a speed merchant on the vfr though