If you hear anything please let me know...I saved my old Storm 2...maybe there will be a positive outcome.
I would imagine something like the site using strong words like banning a tire could open itself up for legal action. I know that Mellow in the past has made mention of a less harsh Not Recommended rating from the site. That would be more in line with a tire review that a magazine or other group would do. I know that this was done for the Dunlop Roadsmart. I don't know if the same has been done for the Storm.Guys this is an issue that has been going on now for over three years...I am so pissed that we have not called for a ban on these tires for the st1300. Avon will not back this tire if its mounted on the 13...I figure some one has to get hurt before there is a forum Notice...I call on the forum and to put out a Notice to all members to not mount these tires and on these bikes.. This is a safety issue ...Mellow please address this issue
If you go to their web site they have a fitment guide.Now tell me how, besides a forum such as this, an ST owner is supposed to know that these tires are not suggested for use on the ST1300? I purchased two from two different sources (one front, one rear). Both sources knew what bike they were going on...heck, one mounted the tire for me. Neither said anything about the tire not being used on the 1300. The size is correct; the weight and speed ratings are correct.
I strongly suspect there may be two possible problems:
- Defective batch of tires. This can be found when we all compare date codes, which is one thing the NHTSA will look at.
-Improper weight rating (misprinted, or not as much margin for error as other brands). I thought about this since my rear tire worked fine several thousand miles, until we rode 2-up. On our first 150 mile ride 2-up, we got off the bike and the tire literally looked like it was melted, as if it was cooked with a torch. The second 2-up ride resulted in the same effect, and the tire gave out the last couple miles of the trip. There was more damage and wear in those <600 miles of 2-up riding than in the previous 4000 miles.
Just thoughts, and I'm no tire expert- just posting my observations.
For what it is worth. I don't recall reading of a front Storm having an issue. It is always seems to be a rear. I don't know why. I won't buy them for the 1300 as I am happy with the Hankook rear and there are other good front tire options for the same price. Why not just put on a PR3 PR3 BT023 ect.MAKE: HONDA
MODEL: ST 1300 / A 2002 AND UP
Front Pressure: Not Available
Rear Pressure: Not Available
No Avon Fitment Available
Yeah I think it is pretty common that they look at the size called for and stop looking at that point. The ST isn't that common of a bike so they most likely wouldn't know that Avon doesn't recommend it. I like I said though. I love the Storms on my 1100. I have a set on there now. I wouldn't hesitate to run them on that bike.I'm running the BT45 front now, and will never change unless they are no longer available. But as for the Storms, I had my rear installed while on the road during a trip. I already had the front on, and asked the shop about a rear to match. "No problem" was the reply. There was no opportunity to do research...I put my faith in the shop who, I'm sure, put their faith in Avon. Yes, I do research when I can- in fact, when researching long lasting, high quality tires for my wife's bike I went with Avon touring tires because the EX500 community raves about them and they have no reported failures. They are NOT Storms.
And the shop who installed my rear tire did a good job, price was reasonable for a walk-in, and they are a very large shop (Iron Pony in Columbus, OH). I'm sure they only looked up the size and saw they had one to match my front. And although I like my current BT45, the Storm 2 front was the only other long-lasting front tire I had. 12k miles, which is almost twice as long as any other front tire I used. It handled well and wore evenly almost all the way.
There are lots of people out there that don't do research though and some that do but choose to ride them anyway because they like them and haven't been bit yet. While I don't care for a BT023 rear I was happy with the front. I got 18K miles on one of those. The rear lasted less than 6K and I was down to the cords. PR2 has done me well also.MAKE: HONDA
MODEL: ST 1100 PAN EUROPEAN 1991 2003
Front Pressure: 2.5 bar (36psi)
Rear Pressure: 2.9 bar (42psi)
Technical Specifications
Tire Tire Service Rec Rim OW OW OD OD Depth Revs Revs
Model Position Sku Tire Size Index Sidewall Rim min-max mm Inches mm Inches mm per km per Mile
Storm 2 Ultra Front 4559417 110/80ZR18 (58W) bw 2.5 2.50 - 3.00 109 4.3 631 24.8 3.8 523 836.8
Storm 2 Ultra Rear 4566413 160/70R17 * 79V bw 4.5 4.25 - 5.00 166 6.5 654 25.7 6.8 513 820.8
Correct. They are the right size, right speed and weight ratings, but not listed for the ST1300...that tells me there is something odd about that particular size.The storms are great on my 1100....but I believe that I read on the Avon website that these tires are not recommended for the 1300??
I really don't understand the reasoning behind it. I have speculated that it may be related to the publicity around the stability issues with the 1300 in the UK. Avon is a UK company and they may have been in the middle of all of that. By not recommending the tire they are not missing out on a huge market as there really are not that many STs out there. If there was a lawsuit due to a stability issue that listed Avon as a party of the suit they have a defense as they show on their website that the Storm isn't a tire they recommend for use on the 1300. It may be as simple as that. However the tire failures we have seen may point to another issue. But you thought that the load rating was within range so I don't know what it would be. There are only so many specs that a tire has. It seems that it meets all of them yet we have the failures. A question I have had that I haven't seen answered is if the Storm rear isn't designed to fit the 1300 then what does it fit. I think that the tire we use is kind of an oddball. Which would explain why they are harder to find when needed locally at the last minute.Correct. They are the right size, right speed and weight ratings, but not listed for the ST1300...that tells me there is something odd about that particular size.
Our blow outs were on ST1100s... just saying...Personally I love Avon Storms. On my 1100 that is.