Dunlop "Road Smart"....early review...

[uptoblackwood]

I've needed to put new tires on the bike....so this month I finally got to it. I had been pushing the miles out of the PR's and had been waiting for a front PR2....and waiting, and waiting. I had a bit of good rubber left on the front and went ahead and put the new PR2 down on the back wheel. I liked it a lot. I was hoping for the front PR2's to be available when the front finally gave up the ghost...but it was not to be the case. Last week I put one of the new Dunlop "Road Smarts" on the front...just to check them out. I know that front/rear tires are supposed to work together...i.e. tread design moves water together; shape of the F/R tires are made to work in concert...etc. But what the heck....

So...I put over 1300 miles on this combo over the past four days in the Texas Hill Country. Here's what I think so far.

The Dunlop rolls fine but you can feel the tire roll in the handle bar. Nothing bad...smooth but grainy (best word I can think of) feel in the bar.
I scrubbed this tire in and with two perfect and two not so perfect days put it to the test.

I've never pushed harder in the corners. This front tire allowed a controlled roll into the corner and held fast all the way. The tire appears to be "rounder" than the PR's or PR2's.

The tire seemed less "bouncy" (than the PRs)....it stuck to the road better in bumps/dips...expecially when I was loaded during the travel to and from Dallas. It might have stiffer side walls....or it might just work better with my Sonic Springs.

One day, I did the 20 or so miles of gravel and construction on FM 337. This tire did a LOT better in the gravel than the PR's. I was surprised. I liked my PR's (three sets now)...and still do like them....but the Road Smart did a lot better job in the gravel..loose and hard packed. I was able to ride though all of that mess with a very secure feel in the bike. Don't get me wrong....I'm not headed for every fire road in North America.

The final two days of riding were in damp foggy weather. The roadway was slick and I modified my plans to do more sight seeing than corner hugging. The Road Smart felt very sticky on the wet, slick roads.

I have no idea about what kind of milage I'll get out of this tire....and I can't anticipate other problems or issues that might come up. I know a lot of folks have had really bad luck with the older version of Dunlops touring tire. I'm hoping this tire will keep working well through it's life. The Road Smart front and PR2 rear seem to work together fine.

The only negative is in the grainy feel in the handle bars. I always use ear plugs so I can't comment on volume levels while underway. I would bet it's louder than the PR's, based on the feel in the handle bar.

I like it a lot so far. I'll post up more after I get more miles on these combo.

Forest

 

[STeve1300]

Keep us posted...thanks.... To SE Wisconsin riders.... Cedar Creek Motorsports on HWY 60 is attempting to use tire sales and installation as a way to bring more traffic into their store... New Parts guy.... met him last week... He claims he will match any internet price, have Dunlops in stoc or have them w/in 2 days.... guaranteed install while you wait,,, and install price for the ST1300 was unbelievably inexpensive (I think I remember under $60 for the set including stems) Their phone # is 262-377-5700.

 

[uptoblackwood]

I bought the Road Smart (front) from Cycle Gear, for a price matched $120 (their regular price was $129) and they charged me $20 to mount the tire. I brought the wheel into the store and they had it done in about an hour (three tires in front of my job). The Dunlop Road Smarts, in ST 1300 sizes....seem to be readily available just about everywhere. A plus.

Forest

 

[wolfxoman]

I'm waiting for more info on any other tires. Currently I'm running AVON STorms and love them. Any other tire will be a hard sell for me.

 

[uptoblackwood]

Keith....that's right....ST1300 sizes. Not sure about others....

Forest

 

[kwslhs]

thanks.

These will probably be my next tires.

 

[global_driver]

My ST1100 was due for tires this summer. Kamikaze Cycle Parts in Wichita KS had some good reports from buyers of Dunlop Road Smarts. I went to the Dunlop website and studied the Road Smart tire details (diameter, overall width, etc) vs both the OEM 103s and the 205s. Here's the details:

FRONT TIRE DIAMETER WIDTH
D103F 110/80-18 25.04 4.37
D205 110/80ZR18 25.03 4.21
Roadsmart 120/70ZR18 24.74 4.61
This is the ONLY Roadsmart for an 18" rim - makes the choice easy!
It's about a 1/4" smaller diameter, but a little wider. I checked the available clearance between the current tire and fender, etc and checked OK for the wider tire.

REAR
D103R 160/70-17 25.83 6.42
D205 160/70ZR17 25.44 6.33
Roadsmart 170/60ZR17 24.99 6.54
The rear Roadsmart took a little more "calculating". Both the 170/60 and 160/60 were about 1/2" small diameter than the D205. However, the 160/60 was narrower than stock. Tires bigger than the 170/60 were too wide. So, the 170/60 it was.

Kamikaze checked and they were available! So they got ordered, arrived a few days later and promptly got mounted.

To say I'm pleased with them would be a huge understatement. The bike felt better than it ever has with any tire and its got over 35,000 miles! The bike feels lighter than it ever has felt before, the wet grip is wonderful and the dry grip is beyond anything I'll ever need. I'm sure you could get a little better dry grip, but it would a "sticky" sport tire with minimal tread life. They currently have over 1500 miles and you can't tell them from new. I've got a Saddle Soar 1000 coming up in three weeks, plus the daily 80+ mile round trip commute to work. Soooo, it shouldn't take too long to see how the tread wear works out.

You may think you can't find the ST1100 "sizes" in the Roadsmart but, there are sizes that will work. OK, they aren't the sizes in the Honda book, but the bike didn't read the book! Try 'em!!

 

[saaz]

I am running the Roadsmart 110/80 front and 170/60 rear. The 170/60 is a touch lower, revs slightly more at highway speeds but works well. The ST11 rear rim width is within the range specified for the 170/70. Grip and behaviour in all weather is great, tyre life and behaviour over tyre life unknown (I have only dome 2000kms). Downside to the rear is it sits lower so you have to be a bit more careful about the sidestand.

 

[Hornet]

I just installed a new set of Roadsmarts on my '05 ST1300.
Very pleased with their performance ! Almost 600 miles this past weekend going over to the Northern California coast. From freeways to the curviest roads around the handling was superb. A vast improvement over the Metzler Z6's that they replaced. Good traction, very neutral and smooth too. I highly recommend the Roadsmarts and they're priced right too.

Tim

 

[Redondo Rider]

I changed out my stock tires for the RoadSmarts at 12K. The stock tires were well past their prime and looking rather dangerous.

I have since put roughly 1,500 mi on them, which is pretty easy considring I commute nearly 100 miles daily (Redondo to Irvine) mostly on the 405 freeway, and I couldn't be more thrilled! I'm not a track day rider and certainly not as articulate as those who have already commented, but all I can say is these tires brought a whole new level of performance out of my '07 ST 1300.

I too highly recommend them!

 

[global_driver]

Long term update on the Road Smarts on an ST1100. I've currently got 13k+ miles on a set - almost all highway miles commuting to work + long-distance trips.

As you can tell, we don't much "canyon carving" in the Great Plains, so the molding sipes are still there! The handling has been wonderful, both dry & wet. The front has an odd wear pattern - the center is actually a little "taller" than the sides. However, I haven't been able to detect any handling changes with wear. The rear still wears more on the center, but not near as much as with other tires I've tried. The long rain channels on the rear are worn down to nothing in the middle, and the front is worn down to the wear indicators. Time for new skins! And, they will be Road Smarts, again. The only thing worth noting is riding in turbulence, as behind a semi. The bike moves around a little more with the Road Smarts than with others. It may be due to the slight change in geometry with the tire sizes available on the ST1100, combined with the quicker handling these tires provide. Not a big deal and small price to pay for everything else these tires provide.

A used bike shop here in Kingman KS, Bobz Bikz will order anything at great prices, and mount very reasonable, so it's time to give him some business. By the way, if you are looking for a used bike, he is one of the best in the country - I've never heard of a dissatisfied customer - he lives on reputation. People have bought bikes from several states away, then send their friends his way for their bike. His website is: www.bobzbikz.com. They started out in the back room of a barber shop. After several years, they are moving 500+ bikes a year. Not bad for a town of 3,000 people.