Avon 45/46ST Tires No Longer Recommended?

[ST090]

A while back I recall reading somewhere--but I can not recall where or the validity of the claim-- that Avon is no longer recommending their 45/46ST tire for the ST1300 because they has reduced the rating of the tire. Does anyone have insite to the validity of Avon no longer recommending the 45/46ST for the ST1300?

It is strange, if true, because their web site still shows the 45/46ST as being the proper fit for the ST1300.

I posted this same inquiry to the MSN List and hopefully there will be a consensus answer.

 

[NormanPCN]

Any reports from people on the web is second hand information. Why not go to the source, or have your tire dealer make an inquiry. If you get an opposite response to what someone else gets then you have conflicting info, which basically means Avon has no idea what they are saying.

That said. My dealer did call and got an aokay. I emailed Avon and got an okay, but the response did not seem very knowledgable. A couple of posts I have read had one person who called Avon and got a not recomended response and the other had someone at a bike show get a not recomended response at some booth. This was all a long time ago.

If Avon was inconsistent ages ago when the controversey started then hopefully by now they speak with a unified voice.

 

[R.Markus]

Avons: Avon has announced that the AV45/46 is not recommended for the ST1300, and that the rating is being decreased from V to H.It seems the sidewalls are not as stiff as they had hoped, and excessive flex heats up the tire, causing poor mileage.Especially on heavy bikes. Some people have tried the AV45 / AV46 combo, with mixed results. Some liked them, some hated them. However, even the people who liked them went back to the BT020s or to the ME-Z6 / ME-880 combo as more cost effective tires.

This was taken from here .

 

[NormanPCN]

To be more specific, the word I got from Avon, was with a old rear tire with a new front tire at high speeds and heavily loaded. That combination was deemed unaccatable. US highway speeds are not considered "high speed". Avon does not have separate reccomendations per country. Supposedly the rear tire was going to be redesigned.

 

[Rolling Thunder]

According to Avon - they do fit - 2002 forward

This is what I found at the Avon Tyre website (it does have a "fitment" for the ST 1300 with the 45/46 Azaro's:
http://www.avonmotorcycle.com/us/en/Fitments.asp

:biker:

 

[Zaphod]

I talked with the Avon rep a week ago at the Toronto Motorcycle Show. She has been at the show for a few years now and certainly seems to know what she is talking about.
I can't remember her exact words, so please don't consider this a quote.
What I took away was that the 45 / 46 tires are not recommended for the ST1300 / Pan European because of the speeds that are common in Europe. The tires just won't handle running all day at 160 - 180 km / hr on a bike as heavy as the ST. She suggested that at "normal" North American speeds, the tires should be fine, but Avon will not recommend them.
With regard to re-designing, my sense was this wasn't on the horizon.

Also worth noting, Metzeler now have a new Roadtec Z6 C-spec rear tire for the ST and a couple of other heavy bikes. Up until last year, they were recommending for the ST the B-spec tire which, by the way, is still around.

Cheers, Bill

 

[NormanPCN]

Also worth noting, Metzeler now have a new Roadtec Z6 C-spec rear tire for the ST and a couple of other heavy bikes. Up until last year, they were recommending for the ST the B-spec tire which, by the way, is still around.

Cheers, Bill

I do not see a B-spec tire in the rear 170 size, or front for that matter. I do see such a tire in the 180 size. Got part numbers for the B and C spec Z6 tires.