I chose a Hankook H426 195/60/16 tire to put on the back of my wing. It is a passenger car/light truck tire. It got very good reviews for longevity, quietness, traction and in wet and snow conditions. This tire has a natural curve to it and the edges are rounded also, not flat like a performance tire. Spare rim and tire only cost me about $150.00. So far I have traveled 700 plus miles in the past 3 weeks on this tire.
Some history on me and my riding experience. I'm 50 years old, been riding for 43 years. 6.5 years on Goldwings, raced MX for 19 years, (until 5 years ago, no didn't crash out) this is my second wing. Rest of my riding has been trails and street riding on a Suzuki SV1000 or Enduro bike. I love the twisties but also ride backroads and interstates to get from point A to B. Like to get alittle aggressive on the mountain roads. Recently added Progressive Springs to my 02 bike which makes it handle much better.
Here are some questions and answers you may be wondering about.........
-Gas mileage- has not changed while using a car tire.
-Speedometer- It is only about 1.5 or so mph off. 65 is like 63.22 actual. I can live with that.
-Tire is smother and quieter than a mt on the road. Is more stable on dirt or gravel roads. Used to feel every little rock under both tires, now only the front. Tar snakes or cracks in road are almost unfelt on the rear now.
-PSI used-Started off with 37 psi but the tire felt soft, too soft for me. Possibility "settled" in the turns some or that is what I felt like it did. Raised the psi to 40psi and love it. Handles great. No feel of "settling" from the tire.
-Head-shake at slow speeds- If you ever remove your hands from the handlebars to adjust clothing or something, the head-shake is pretty much gone now. Much more stable.
"S" turn transitions-With the 205 tire I could feel the flat spot, with the 195 and the curvature of this tire, I feel virtually none. The more you ride the better it will feel. At first I felt slower going from left to right back to left, but now I feel as quick on the ct as I do a mt.
-Going over curbs at an angle- If going real slow I feel a touch more but nothing drastic.
-Does ct feel funny on slanted roads? No, I have purposely hit divides in pavement and here in La the tracks in a lane get rutted in asphalt because of the heat. No difference than riding with a mt.
-4 way stops- You know how you can inch along at 4 way stops with out putting your feet down but you have to wiggle the bars back and forth some.....well the bike is much more stable at slow speeds at 4 way stops even riding 2 up. I have to move the handle bars very little if any.
-Edge wear on the tire from curves- I got some dirt on my tires from my damp yard but did not wash it off so I could see where the tire was wearing while in the turns. Since I replaced my front springs with progressive springs I drag the sides very little now. Still the wear pattern is still the same as if the ct was on a car. It does NOT ride on the sidewall, contrary to popular belief.
-This tire is a 60,000 mile tire but if I can get 25-30k out of it I will be happy.
- Rode 2 up with the wife and the bike stayed very stable in all situations.
-Have not ridden in the wet yet but the ct has a better way of shedding water than a mt, contact patch looks bigger than a mt. I rode the bike in water then dry pavement with both tires to determine this.
-Braking seems to be faster and more stable.
-Especially at first I felt it did take more effort to turn the bike in a sharp turn at speed but now there is no problem. A mt falls into a turn, a ct wants to sit back up quicker in my opinion.
-Just put on a new E3 on the front but may go double dark when this one wears out with a Battleax B45. Rear sport/touring tire. Reports of 30,000 on the front with this tire.
Hope I have answered some of your questions if you are researching whether to go dark or not. Fell free to ask if you have any questions.
