Stuart’s GoldWing Blog

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To put my experiences and views into context, I’ve ridden Goldwings continuously and exclusively since 1998 and I am now on my seventh. The first Wing was a GL1500SE but the rest have all been GL1800s, all US models and all with ABS – as of course do all UK model GL1800s.

I’ve ridden upwards of 160,000miles on a Wing, some of it in straight lines but as much as possible on non-motorway roads.  I enjoy exploiting the excellent handling of a GL1800 and I ride to make progress more often than I dawdle along.  So my tyres are sometimes working hard for their living.

I have used tyres from four different manufacturers including two different designs of tyre from two of them, so six different GL1800 tyres altogether.

It’s important to mention that I check my tyres regularly (at least twice a week)  for pressure and damage.  Tyres need to be checked in this way to allow them to perform reliably and well.  I know how important tyre pressures are and what a big influence they have on tyre wear and performance from my Kart racing days – so I check my tyre pressures almost every time I take the bike out.

Sticking to this routine of frequent tyre checks has helped to ensure that when I compare tyres I am always running them as they are designed to be run and so I am giving them all their best shot to impress.

I also always use proper, genuine Ultraseal tyre treatment in both tyres.  Manufacturers are not all that keen of this stuff but I think it helps to reduce risk (of a rapid deflation and loss of control after a puncture) and I have had no experience of it having any adverse effect of any kind on tyres or handling.

Original (2001) Bridgestones

My first set of GL1800 tyres were the original Bridgestones fitted to the 2001 Wing when it was built.  They were a disaster.

They had a double drain groove that ran all around the circumference of the tyre and they flatted really badly in the centre.   If you click on the picture of me sitting on a red bike to get an enlarged view, you will be able to see the double grooves which these tyres had around their centreline. After just 1900miles Honda agreed to fit a new front tyre free of charge because of this flatting but the same thing happened with the replacement.

This time I had a home visit from a Bridgestone technician who was quite shocked when he saw the wear on the front tyre.  He checked my tyre pressures and asked me how often I checked them.  The pressures were fine and he found no damage, just the spectacular flatting.

Bottom line was that he authorised another replacement front tyre and a while after that Bridgestone changed the design of the tyre to a single drain groove, which they still have on their current tyre.

Current Bridgestones

I’ve since tried this modified design (the current Bridgestone G704/703 tyres) and found them to be quite grippy with good short term handling performance BUT they are made of quite a soft rubber and they still flatten in the centre after only 2-3,000 miles.

Centreline Flatting and Handling

Centreline flatting has a dramatic affect on the tyres handling.  It causes the tyre to ‘track’ along tarmac joints and along white line road markings.  For this reason the Bridgestone is not a tyre I would choose to use or recommend.

Flatting of the front tyre bad enough to have an effect on handling can develop when you won’t be able to see it.  At these early stages you can however feel it.  If you run your fingers across the tyre you will notice a slight rounding about half an inch or so either side of the centreline.  You are feeling the edge either side of the flatting on which the tyre runs as you corner, hence the effect on handling in the wet or on white lines.

I do quite a lot of servicing of GL1800′s for friends and I have seen Bridgestone tyres on their bikes which have done 8-9,000miles.  Wheels with these tyres on them can be stood upright when you take them off the bike, such is the flatting which occurs on Bridgestones by the time they have done these mileages.

Another effect of this flatting is that the tyre can be very noisy when the rider leans into bends. Wingers have asked me to the check wheel bearings on their bikes because they “can hear a funny whining noise when I’m in a  bend”.  This is because of the flatting and the bike riding on an edge in the bend; it causes a ‘cupping’ distortion of the tyre profile.

Dunlop D250

If your overriding requirement is a tyre that gives top mileage then the Dunlop D250 is a good choice.

I have had several sets of these tyres and they last well.  One friend loves them and he regularly gets over 11,000miles from a set.

But personally I don’t like how the D250 performs in the wet.  Its really skittish and doesn’t offer very good grip when compared to other tyres.

I suppose if the tyre is made of a harder rubber compound (to give higher mileage) this might explain why it doesn’t seem to perform quite as well in the wet.

Every set of Dunlop D250 that I’ve had were replaced at round about 8,000miles when they too started to develop a bit of a flatting spot and their performance deteriorated on white lines etc.

Dunlop Elite 3

I also tried the Dunlop Elite 3.  I bought them in Florida a few years ago (before they were available in the UK) and fitted them for a trip we were doing to Vienna, Austria.

Unfortunately after only 500ish miles the front wheel started to develop a marked wobble.  It got so bad that that I had to divert to find a Honda dealer and have the tyre replaced!  Incidentally I got great service from Tyrol Sud Honda, a GoldWing specialist. Unfortunately the only tyre they had in stock was a Bridgestone, but even a Bridegstone was better than that wobbly Elite3.

I understand that Dunlop have since developed the E3 design further and have cured the wobble problem.  I  recently organised a pair of these to be fitted to a friend’s bike, so he will keep me posted on how they perform.

Large Wingers

Incidentally if you happen to be a rider of large stature Elite3 might be your tyre of choice.  They have the highest load rating of all the tyres that are available for the Wing. Big riders and passengers can overload the tyres of a GL1800; the weight limits in the GL1800 handbook and on the tyres are not there for fun.

Metzeller ME880

I also tried Metzellers.  These were fine until the front wheel developed a serious wobble, just like the Dunlop Elite 3 had done.

I had the front tyre removed and sent back to Metzeller for testing and I guess they agreed with me because they gave me a credit for the front tyre.

I don’t think this problem I had was a fluke.  I have heard of some other Wingers experiencing the same problem too.

Because of this experience I haven’t tried Metzeller tyres myself since then.  I haven’t heard that Metzeller have done anything to modify  their tyre design either, so I probably won’t.

Venom Radial - correct for a GL1800 but now supercede by the Cobra

Avon Venom

At the moment my favourite make of tyre is Avon.

I started with Avon Venoms, which I thought were a great tyre for me but when Avon announced the new Cobra I had a pair fitted to try and it’s been my tyre of choice ever since.

However I did have another set of Venoms fitted recently when Cobras were temporarily out of stock.  Unfortunately, unnoticed by me at the time they were a mismatched pair – a radial on the back and a cross-ply on the front.  The handling (admittedly compared with the previous tyre, which were Cobras) felt very odd.  I started checking for suspension faults before I noticed that the front tyre was a cross ply.

As Stuart has reported elsewhere on this Blog, the combination of a cross ply on the front and a radial on the back might not be illegal but by my standards it’s not remotely acceptable.  The Supplier replaced the mismatched Venoms for me when I raised the problem with him and I am back on Cobras.

I have nothing against Venoms as long as they are a properly matched pair of radials but I understand that radial venoms are no longer made, so effectively they are, as far as the GL1800 is concerned, history.

Cobra has a snakeskin sidewall finish

Avon Cobra

I am now on my 4th set of Cobra’s and I think they are the best tyre I’ve had on the Wing.

I like the handling in dry and wet conditions, they’re really grippy in both situations, and they give good mileage too.

The last set of Cobras that I removed from my bike had done 9260 miles.  They were worn right down to the wear marker and still handled well.  They hadn’t developed any flatting as far as I could tell and I hadn’t noticed any tendency to track on joints or white lines.

I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend Avon Cobras to anyone who asked for my opinion.

These are just my own experiences and thoughts.  I hope you find them useful.  I am no tyre specialist or trained tyre technician, but I do ride quite a few miles per annum on my Wing.

Editor’s Postscript: These are Ian’s personal experiences and views and while he makes no claim to be a tyre expert, he makes good sense to me.  This is a very informative Article and I am most grateful to Ian for sharing his experiences.

Ian bought his first GL1800 as soon as they became available and has ridden more miles on a GL1800 on twisty roads than anyone else I know.  He therefore comes in very useful, discovering problems well in time to warn the rest of us.  He is therefore (among many other things) my Tyre Guru, which is why I went to him.

He is an exceptionally skilled and perceptive motorcyclist who really understands how to handle a GL1800 and how to tell when something isn’t right.   He is an IAM Senior Observer and he has also passed a ROSPA advanced riding test at the highest (Gold) level.  He has a racing background and he was also one of the Founding Members of Elite Wings.  Incidentally he has his own very interesting Winginit website, which you might like to visit.

If you have any questions please use the Comment facilities of this Blog and I will try to get Ian to answer them. Tyre manufacturers are also welcome to respond if they wish.