🛞Tyres

How it works

Tires are the motorcycle's only contact with the road: a few square centimeters of rubber per wheel handle grip under acceleration, braking, and cornering, as well as absorbing small road irregularities. This is the ultimate safety component, and the most heavily loaded. A motorcycle tire is built from a carcass (textile or steel plies) that gives it shape and strength, flexible sidewalls, a treaded contact patch (the grooves channel away water to reduce aquaplaning), and a rubber compound that balances grip against longevity. Inflation pressure is critical: an underinflated tire overheats, wears at the edges, deforms, and makes the bike unstable and heavy to steer; overinflated, it reduces the contact patch and grip. The rubber also ages over time (hardening, cracking) independently of tread wear. Failure modes include: tread wear (down to the indicator, 1 mm minimum by French law), irregular wear (flat spots from heavy braking, scalloping or saw-tooth wear revealing a pressure, shock absorber, or alignment problem), damage (a bulge after an impact), punctures, and aging (rubber hardening after a few years). Warning signs: vibration at certain speeds, degraded handling, loss of grip, visible wear. Fitting and balancing require specialized equipment and belong in a workshop; checking pressure, wear, age (DOT code), and damage is within anyone's reach and should be done regularly.

Maintenance tips

• ✓Check the pressure of both tires regularly (at least every two weeks) and always when cold, using a reliable gauge, at the values recommended by the manufacturer. Incorrect pressure is the leading cause of abnormal wear, vibration, and poor handling.
• ✓Regularly inspect the tread and sidewalls: tread depth against the wear indicator (1 mm minimum by French law), irregular wear (flat spots, saw-tooth patterns), cuts, bulges, or embedded objects.
• ✓Check the tires' age via the DOT code on the sidewall (4 digits = week and year of manufacture): rubber older than roughly 5 years hardens, loses grip, and can vibrate even with little tread wear.
• ✓When replacing tires, stick to the size, load and speed ratings, and type recommended by the manufacturer, and follow the rotation direction marked on the sidewall when fitting.
• ✓Have the wheel balanced after every tire fitting: imbalance causes vibration at steady speeds, felt mainly through the handlebars.
• ✓Respect the break-in period for a new tire (a few dozen kilometers ridden gently): new rubber, smooth and sometimes coated in mold-release agent, offers reduced grip at first.
• ✓Adjust your caution to the conditions: a cold, wet, or worn tire grips much less; persistent irregular wear should prompt a check of pressure, shocks, wheel bearings, and wheel alignment.