mixed tires bias on rear radial on front 1500GL

[jdavidsmit]

just got home from having a new front tire installed for my 1990 1500GL. Started to install the Rotors and noticed the new tire was a radial. I call the Honda dealer and he said I should not notice any difference in the handling with the mismatched tires.
I would never mismatch tires on my car or truck. does the same apply with the bike??? The dealer said he did not stock bias tires for either the 1800 or 1500.

HELP before I do something stupid.

[cbx4evr]

Curious what kind of tire it is?

The 1800's came with radials whereas the 1500's were bias.

Here's what Dunlop says about it. Make your own conclusions.

Can I change my tires from bias ply to radial or vice versa?

Bias and radial tires have significantly different dynamic properties. They deflect differently, create different cornering forces, have different damping characteristics, as well as other differences. In order for radial tires to be introduced into the two-wheel market, it was necessary to change certain characteristics of the motorcycle. The introduction of the radial tire led to such things as modified frames, wider wheels, new steering geometries and suspensions. Therefore, it is recommended that a motorcycle be used with the type of tire construction that it came with originally. If a change is to be made, then it should only be done if the motorcycle or tire manufacturer has approved the change. Above all, do not mix bias ply and radial tires on the same motorcycle unless it is with the approval of the motorcycle or tire manufacturer.

[WingAdmin]

From the Dunlop site:

Bias and radial tires have significantly different dynamic properties. They deflect differently, create different cornering forces, have different damping characteristics, as well as other differences. In order for radial tires to be introduced into the two-wheel market, it was necessary to change certain characteristics of the motorcycle. The introduction of the radial tire led to such things as modified frames, wider wheels, new steering geometries and suspensions. Therefore, it is recommended that a motorcycle be used with the type of tire construction that it came with originally. If a change is to be made, then it should only be done if the motorcycle or tire manufacturer has approved the change. Above all, do not mix bias ply and radial tires on the same motorcycle unless it is with the approval of the motorcycle or tire manufacturer.

That said, some manufacturers (Harley, for one) ship their heavier tourers with a radial on the rear and a bias on the front.

There are NO manufacturers that do the opposite, and from a quick Google search, I found that it's almost a universal recommendation to NEVER have a radial on the front and bias on the back.

In any case, Honda specifies ONLY bias tires for the Goldwing.

[cbx4evr]

Avon says this about it:

TIRES: RADIAL VERSUS BIAS
While running a bias ply front tire and a radial rear tire can be acceptable in certain applications, you should never run radial front and bias rear as this can create an instability issue.

[jdavidsmit]

after thinking about it for a bit I decided not to keep the radial tile and have the dealer get me a bias, when I called him back he said he would order the tire today and it should be here is a couple of days. I guess im just old enough to not take the risk.

[jdavidsmit]

The tires on my 1500 are Dunlap E3's. with less than 3000 miles, that said before I retired the bike spent most of it's time setting in my brothers's barn, living in an apartment I only had 1 parking spot. every time I went to ride I always had to put air in the front, so all the sitting and low on air caused the front tire to develop cracks around the tire close to the rim. anyway when I started rebuilding my forks I posted a picture and WingAdmin suggested I get replace it. the air leak was a bad stem core.

Thanks again, this site is great