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New user
Posts: 4
| Last week my dealer had the Victory demo truck her so I went for a ride on aJudge, a Boulevard and A CR 8 ball.
The Boulevard and the Judge both had Metzlar tires and they really handled the tar snakes without any slippage, even on the curves. My question is should I switch to Metzlars on my Vision? I really hate those tar snakes. My dealers Service Mgr is dead set against anything but Dunlops. Says he has had too many problems with the Metzlars with vibration issues. Anybody have any experiences with Metzlars on A Vision? |
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Visionary
Posts: 4278
| I did Metzler on the front and found the tart snakes all most all gone. Every now and then there is one but it doesn't scare me the way the E3 did
I will do another one when its time. It does great in the rain |
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Tourer
Posts: 495
Carrollton, TX | I have used Metzler, Avon, Bridgestone and Dunlops and I prefer the Dunlop EIII's. First you need to understand how important the tire is to the design of the bike. When a bike manufacture starts the design of a bike they start with the frame and the tire and build everything else including the suspension around these components. I got this from a frame engineer at Victory that explained this in detail. Besides all of this a key spec of the tire is it's load capacity and the Elite III has a load capacity of 992 lbs. while the Metzler has a load capacity of only 827 lbs. The Vision is a heavy bike and when loaded and a passenger on board you need this load capacity. No other tire for the Vision has this high of a load capacity. There are lot of articles on the Honda Gold Wing and Harley forums of the Metzler's de-laminating in hot temperatures when loaded down. A friend of mine's wrecked two years ago when his Harley Ultra with Metzler's de-laminated in Sturgis and his wife on the back was killed and he was seriously injured but lived. |
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Tourer
Posts: 482
Beer Collins, Colorado (there is no fort) | "No other tire for the Vision has this high of a load capacity."
Not true- Avon Cobra has an 80 load rating matching the E3.
Just my personal opinion: Metzlers suck-worst mileage I ever got (both shot at 7,500 miles) from two tries using them on the back of my '99C-no way would I put them on MY vision.
Edited by ByteN2it 2013-09-02 7:15 AM
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Tourer
Posts: 599
New Mexico | ByteN2it - 2013-09-02 6:04 AM
Just my personal opinion: Metzlers suck-worst mileage I ever got (both shot at 7,500 miles) from two tries using them on the back of my '99C-no way would I put them on MY vision.
Although I have not used Metzlers on my Vision, I have had on other bikes and was very happy with some of their performance characteristics. They handle great, and are terrific in wet climates.
I do have to agree their downfall, though, is they wear out much quicker than the Dunlop. Especially in hot riding conditions.
Worked perfect for me in the Seattle area as there was a lot of rain, and seeing as the riding season was shorter it would take 2-3 years to wear one out, about the timeframe I wanted to replace the tires anyway.
I am replacing the front tire this week with another E3, but have been tempted to try the Bridgestone. Is the 'Load Capacity' as critical on the front tire?
RideVictory -Where are you located?
Edited by Boots 2013-09-02 11:24 AM
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Tourer
Posts: 495
Carrollton, TX | ByteN2it - 2013-09-02 7:04 AM "No other tire for the Vision has this high of a load capacity." Not true- Avon Cobra has an 80 load rating matching the E3. Just my personal opinion: Metzlers suck-worst mileage I ever got (both shot at 7,500 miles) from two tries using them on the back of my '99C-no way would I put them on MY vision. This must be new one. The Cobra AV72 which is what is listed for the Gold-Wing and Victory Vision is rated at 74H according to the Cobra Website. The other problem I have run into with using anything other than the Dunlop is if you do long trips on the Vision as I do and you need to get a tire replaced for any reason on the trip you can always find the Dunlop EIII as every Gold Wing dealer carries them but anything else is hit and miss and you don't want to mix brand of tires on your bike. The Bridgestone G704 is only rated as a 74H as well so it's load capacity is not to spec for the Vision. |
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New user
Posts: 4
| I'm located in Minneapolis area. Lots of tar snakes used on all types of roads here. Thanks for everyone's help. Now leaning back to E3s. Just wish they were better snake handlers!  |
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Visionary
Posts: 1632
Jasper, MO | Spock - 2013-09-02 1:27 PM
ByteN2it - 2013-09-02 7:04 AM The Bridgestone G704 is only rated as a 74H as well so it's load capacity is not to spec for the Vision.
Both my owners manual AND my factory service manual for my 2008 Vision list the OEM tire as a Dunlop E3 with a 74H load rating.
Dunlop increased the load rating from 74H to 80H at a later date.
74H was the original load rating called for on the Vision. It IS to spec for the Vision. Is 80H better than 74H? Sure. Did Dunlop change the actual construction of the original E3, or just raise the load rating for marketing purposes? I dunno.
I don't worry about the 74H tires on my bike.
Ronnie |
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Tourer
Posts: 599
New Mexico | rdbudd - 2013-09-02 2:29 PM
Both my owners manual AND my factory service manual for my 2008 Vision list the OEM tire as a Dunlop E3 with a 74H load rating.
Dunlop increased the load rating from 74H to 80H at a later date.
74H was the original load rating called for on the Vision. It IS to spec for the Vision. Is 80H better than 74H? Sure. Did Dunlop change the actual construction of the original E3, or just raise the load rating for marketing purposes? I dunno.
I don't worry about the 74H tires on my bike.
Ronnie
Wow - Great info
I just downloaded my owners manual for my 2009 from Polaris website. 63 H front and 74 H rear. Very interesting...
Edited by Boots 2013-09-02 7:12 PM
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Iron Butt
Posts: 612
| My Avmetdun 74E3704 tires handle tar snakes beautifully in the morning and evening, especially near sunset and later, but for some reason, around 2-6 in the heat of afternoon with the sun shining, they decide to totally change and behave like Dunlop E3's. It's almost as if I'm using two different brands of tires. hmmm...
As we all know, tar snakes don't change when they heat up under direct sunlight, so it must be the tires.
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Visionary
Posts: 1308
Sand Rock, AL United States | not changing brands based on how they handle tar snakes, it's a non-issue with me. they will squirm a bit on the tar but with my current front tire having 23,500 miles, I can live with that (so can my wallet) considering my tar snake riding is small percentage of my overall riding. |
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Cruiser
Posts: 166
Bullhead City, AZ | Car tire on the back but have kept the E3 on front. I switched to the car tire to get better mileage in the heat but I have not found a front with the right speed and load rating. The car tire on the back exceeds both |
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New user
Posts: 4
| Thanks everyone. Speaking of lomg tires last, anyone hae any comments? I bought my Vision with 10,000 miles on it and it now has 14,500 on it. The back tire is pretty smooth in the center and the front is getting there. Wondering if it is time or can a bit further. The post with 23,500 made me pause a bit. |
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Visionary
Posts: 1308
Sand Rock, AL United States | I am averaging 16+ K out of me rear. I do run them longer than most. I got 17,400 is my best on the rear but fiber was showing. |
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Visionary
Posts: 1632
Jasper, MO | RideVictory - 2013-09-09 8:20 AM
Thanks everyone. Speaking of lomg tires last, anyone hae any comments? I bought my Vision with 10,000 miles on it and it now has 14,500 on it. The back tire is pretty smooth in the center and the front is getting there. Wondering if it is time or can a bit further. The post with 23,500 made me pause a bit.
I've pretty well decided that comparing the miles one person gets from a given type and brand of tire to what another person gets is a waste of time. There are way too many variables, to include the riding style, the roads, the weight carried, how often the tire pressures are monitored, etc. I've worn out a rear Dunlop E3 is as little as 8000 miles and I've had a Dunlop E3 go 14,000 miles, all on the same bike. The 8000 mile tire had a lot of aggressive riding, and two-up riding on it, while the 14,000 mile tire was ridden two-up on trips, but more conservatively. A buddy who rides SOLO most of the time gets more miles than that out of the E3.
I've found that riding conditions affect the tire wear more so than the brand.
If the tire is worn down to or past the wear indicators, its time to replace it, regardless of the miles on it.
Ronnie
Edited by rdbudd 2013-09-09 10:39 AM
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New user
Posts: 4
| I agree when it worn past the indicator time to replace it. I think I'm there and I agrre are a lot of variables but your information is helpful in determining a range for perspective purposes.
Thanks. |
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Puddle Jumper
Posts: 37
Dayton, OH | My original set of E3s lasted about 10K miles. Unfortunately I checked them a 9K and then again at 11K. The rear didn't look good at 11K. I probably could have gotten another 2K out of the front but I was about 600 miles into a 1200 mile road trip and had them both replaced. The second set I replaced with about 9K on them with Avons and have been happy with the longevity of the Avons. I've got about 9K on them now with plenty of life left in them. As far a tar snakes are concerned, I have yet to find a tire that's impervious to them. The photos are of my first set of E3s with 11K on them.
Well I thought I uploaded some photos!?!? The rear looked like an onion with chords showing in several places; the front was pretty much flat in the center and almost down to the tread wear indicators.
I do use Metzlar Sportmax on my XZ12r; they inspire a lot of confidence when cranked over as well as good wet weather traction.
Edited by BlackMandingoWarrior 2013-09-09 4:33 PM
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Tourer
Posts: 494
Akron Ohio area | Metzlers do not make a tire for the Vision, front or rear.
Don't believe me?
Look on their website or call them.
The NEW E3 MT (Multi-Tread) is my choice for an upgraded tire for my Vision.
I have 11,000 miles on my rear E3 MT and foresee at least 4,000 more miles before the wear bars are even close to being touched.
I haven't heard my tires sing with this set yet, so I'm inclined to believe that it's the old E3 rear tire that sings in the corners rather than the front tire.
The new front E3 MT has just been released and I can't comment on it because when I put new rubber on my Vision the rear MT was the only one available.
I agree that tar snakes on very hot days sometimes give me the WTF's, but that's been true on every motorcycle I've ever owned.
We will have to wait for someone to purchase and ride the new E3 MT front tire and write a review on it. |
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Tourer
Posts: 494
Akron Ohio area | I've been informed that the Dunlop front tires will not have the Multi-Tread feature contrary to what the Dunlop website claims and the new part number.
I'm still very impressed with the rear E3 MT that I currently have mounted on my Vision. |
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