NEW TIRES FOR THE V7-850

[rogerdj]

Fitted Bridgestone T32 front & rear. Front is now a 110/80 and a much better handling Guzzi for it.

Had these on 2 previous Triumphs a T100 and a T120, I rate this tyre very well with good wet and dry grip (we ride all year round here)
They arnt the longest lasting tyre but are priced accordingly. Will be putting them onto my V7 850 eventually.
PS, T32s with tubes, I used to run on the Triumph 36 psi front and 40 psi rear, would imagine it could be similar on the Guzzi

 

[rwortman]

From my V7-850 pdf owners manual. 110/80 is an approved tire.

 

[rogerdj]

Dunlop Arrowmax tyres and harsh ride.
I have done some 1600kms on my V7 850 Special now ( bought the bike new), here in New Zealand our tarseal features quite course metal chips in it and Im finding the ride quality on the V7 quite harsh ( I have fitted Shock Factory rear shocks so upgraded the rear). I suspect some of the harshness is from the tyres which appear to be relatively hard rubber compound compared to most radial tyres. Also the 'recommended' tyre pressures at 36/36 seems a little unusual but these are bias construction tyres and Im more used to radials with tubes on similar sports touring bikes where I would run 36/40 or even 38/42 (correct pressure on the 10% max pressure rise after riding for 20 mins)
Can anyone comment on this?
I had fitted to my previous bike a Triumph Bonneville T100, Bridgestone T32 tyres, and are thinking these might be the way to go on the V7 also (110 on the front 150 on the rear). Im not overly worried about tyre life, 8000 to 10,000 kms is acceptable to me, more about ride quality and grip in the wet as we do get our share of rain here and I ride all year round.

 

[Vagrant]

I've got T32 on the front of 2 V7's because there are no conti's around. They aren't contis but they sure beat bias. Can you get one for the rear? None for the early v7's.

 

[GTM®]

Can anyone comment on this?

Yes, get rid of the bias plies. Either the Mutants or the Roadsmart III’s are also (kind of) available for the 7-850. My guess is they’re trying to fully deplete the last of the 3’s, before they make the IV’s in these sizes.
I just checked and Conti RA4 150/70-17 will be available ~6.1 (yet not showing at all on their website!) - and the front is not showing a hint beyond a 120/70-18 front. Progress (kind of)?

 

[Brojon]

Had a lot of bikes over the years and decided after my VStrom to get back to a basic bike.
Pleased to say the 2021 Centenario V7 E5 has scratched that itch.
My only complaint is the OEM tires are nothing to brag on.
I really liked the Michelin Anakee 3 tires on my Strom but they're not available in guzzi size.
I found the thread here about the Dunlop Mutant tires. They look like just the ticket!
Long wearing and best in class handling even in rain.
I'm curious tho as to why it was suggested going to a lower profile.
Stock is 110/90-18 & 150/70-17 - it was suggested going to 110/80-18 & 150/60-17.
Ultimately you're throwing the speedo off and adding artificial miles since the tire is shorter = more rotations per mile and the ECU will read that as higher miles.
Can anyone explain why you'd do that? It's a pertinent question since I'm due for a tire change.

 

[kildareman]

The front stock is 100/90 18. I and many others have gone 110/80 18. I've left the rear alone. The OEM were dog poo handling, and frankly not safe in Irish climatic conditions - rain. Changing the tyres and front's ratio have me a bike that handles smoothly, especially transitioning from one side to the other. There's no flopping/ dropping into a bend now.
My tyres of choice. Bridgestone T32.

 

[rogerdj]

Fitted T32s to my V7 850 now, certainly a softer ride, had to 'break' them in on a wet ride and they didnt let me down but then again throttle control and with 65hp the original Dunlops where also acceptable.

 

[Brojon]

The front stock is 100/90 18. I and many others have gone 110/80 18. I've left the rear alone. The OEM were dog poo handling, and frankly not safe in Irish climatic conditions - rain. Changing the tyres and front's ratio have me a bike that handles smoothly, especially transitioning from one side to the other. There's no flopping/ dropping into a bend now.
My tyres of choice. Bridgestone T32.

I did the math (finally) for the Mutants and the front is only a 4mm total height difference. No big deal.
The rear however is a substantial 30 mm total height loss. That works out to about a 4% "penalty" in mileage since it has to turn more to go the same distance. I think I'll still go with them and hope for the best. What clinched it for me was a reviewer that said it was the best rain tire he'd ever had plus sand and loose gravel. While he stopped short of saying 80/20 I got the sense this tire was grippy in many circumstances.

 

[kildareman]

I did the math (finally) for the Mutants and the front is only a 4mm total height difference. No big deal.
The rear however is a substantial 30 mm total height loss. That works out to about a 4% "penalty" in mileage since it has to turn more to go the same distance. I think I'll still go with them and hope for the best. What clinched it for me was a reviewer that said it was the best rain tire he'd ever had plus sand and loose gravel. While he stopped short of saying 80/20 I got the sense this tire was grippy in many circumstances.

For the rear stay at the oem profile 150/70. Together with the 110/80 on the front you will be happy.

 

[Brojon]

For the rear stay at the oem profile 150/70. Together with the 110/80 on the front you will be happy.

The Mutant isn't available in that size. I thought about the Streetsmart 3 for rear but they aren't in stock anywhere.

 

[kildareman]

The Mutant isn't available in that size. I thought about the Streetsmart 3 for rear but they aren't in stock anywhere.

On the EU site there is a 150/70 17 listed

Product code 637494

search: mutant 637494

 

[Brojon]

On the EU site there is a 150/70 17 listed

Product code 637494

search: mutant 637494

I'm in the US so ...
I ended up ordering the 110/80 mutant for the front and the Michelin Road 5 in 150/70-17 for the rear.
Both tires are highly rated for wear and traction.

 

[GTM®]

I wouldn’t recommend these tires if they didn’t work well.
For those not locked into Government restrictions, I challenge anyone not counting rotational miles to a friendly ride down any road of their choice on the same bike, and your tire selection vs. mine.
You can read my Bio HERE. Be sure to post yours below if you challenge me here.

 

[rogerdj]

a Couple of questions on the use of a 150/60-17 as against the std 150/70-17 and my interest is due the V7 850 on our roads is high geared and many days I cant comfortably pull 6th gear so a 4.7% difference (lower) in dia would actually suit me.
- as the 60 profile lowers the rear by 30mm I assume the front forks need to be dropped by 30mm also, or less?
- if the speedo is driven off the gearbox? a smaller dia tyre would appear to make the margin of error of the speedo less not more?. I have seen a chart that says with the 60 profile tyre the speedo will read 96.5kph for an actual speed of 92.0 kph which is about the 5% error one expects from a speedo.
- the 60 profile gives a lesser sidewall height that the 70 series, is there any noticeable difference in ride quality as a result?

 

[DK90]

Anyone know if you can squeeze a 160 width tire through the swing arm? The 160/60 Mutant would be closer in height to the stock size over the 150/60 that is offered. Unfortunately it doesn't look like we get the 150/70 Mutant that the European market gets.

 

[GTM®]

- as the 60 profile lowers the rear by 30mm I assume the front forks need to be dropped by 30mm also, or less?
- if the speedo is driven off the gearbox? a smaller dia tyre would appear to make the margin of error of the speedo less not more?. I have seen a chart that says with the 60 profile tyre the speedo will read 96.5kph for an actual speed of 92.0 kph which is about the 5% error one expects from a speedo.
- the 60 profile gives a lesser sidewall height that the 70 series, is there any noticeable difference in ride quality as a result?

So the tire is 60mm shorter overall? If just 30, then the drop is 15mm.
Speedo data is from the ABS wheel sensors. It is already optimistic/reads higher than actual.
I’ve not done any testing with a smaller tire yet. We've installed one set of Conti RA3s on a V7-850 only so far.
I highly recommend lowering the forks 10-15mm on a completely stock bike. Unless you also do the superior 110/80R-18 front, but I still highly recommend it. Correct suspension is also critical, but that’s for the other thread.

 

[GTM®]

Anyone know if you can squeeze a 160 width tire through the swing arm? The 160/60 Mutant would be closer in height to the stock size over the 150/60 that is offered. Unfortunately it doesn't look like we get the 150/70 Mutant that the European market gets.

More important is swing-arm clearance, however 160 is best on a 4.5 rim width. I can’t find any rims specs right now. Anyone know?

 

[DK90]

The Dunlop site says 4.25 (v7-850), 4.5, and 5 rim widths are all "applicable" for the 160/60, but the 4.5 width is "recommended." Eh, anyway just curious if anyone had tried to fit a 160 width on their bike yet.

After taking a further look at the tire specs on the Dunlop site, the actual overall height difference on the Mutant 150/60 vs the 160/60 is nearly the same, 24.57" vs 24.69." Goes to show that plugging listed sized into a tire calculator is meaningless.

 

[rogerdj]

Todd, this is what I found on line, its saying the difference is 30mm in the diameter. So the 60 series will in fact lower the rear of the bike by 30mm which seems a lot, it might suit us shorter people and also take some of the lean out of the side stand! secondary bonuses but for the aggressive might cause some main stand dragging... And yes I have already a 110/80R-18 front fitted (T32) so fitting a 60 series to the rear will definitely require lowering of the front I'm guessing? The same calculator on the front tyres tells me the 110/80R-18 change drops the front diameter by 4mm, so not as major as the rear tire change.
Re the speedo also I did wonder if it was actually driven off the gearbox.
thanks for the reply again!