tyre pressures

[johno235]

Hi,

Have purchased a 2003 v11 Lemans this week and on reading the manual note that the tyres pressure recommended are 2.2 bar and 2.4 bar for front and rear respectively having converted this to psi (nearest whole unit) as 32 front and 35 rear the bike is fitted with 120 front and 180 rear. Is the manual correct ? pressures seem on the low side in comparison to jappers (36/42) with same tyre configuration.

Would appreciate advice from more seasoned guzzi owners

Many thanks

 

Johno

 

Ride safe

[Slavomir Musilek (R.I.P.)]

I use 2,2 on front and 2,4 on rear and I use my owm manometer as those on gas-stations differs one from another usually in more than 1 atm

[steffen]

What tire do you use?

I have Metzeler z6, and I just recently found out, that Metzeler recommends 2,5 front and 2,9 back, which is way more than factory recommandation. Now I go with Metzelers recommandation, and it has definetely settled my bike down. It used to weave in the high speed curves...

 

/Steffen

[Dan M]

This is very nearly a tire thread. You'll get a few opinions on this one johno.

I have Pirelli Diablos and run 35psi front and 38psi rear.

[tmcafe]

Tire threads, oil threads... The manufacturers differ in terms of their recommendations. Metzeler says go with theirs (32/36 minimum), Michelin says go with bike manufacturer's (which sometimes appears too low). One rule I've learned from some sources is to check pressure when cold as usual, and then see how much it raises after you've done some riding, including high speed, twisties, whatever you do. Pressure should go up by about 10% (somewhere I saw 5% in the front). But some say you can't go wrong pumping up your tires to max on sidewall.

[stormsedge]

Johno, I find that my RM gets squirrelly at anything less than 34F/37R...I typically run a higher pressure, about +3 or +4. I weigh in at about 200 pounds. Cheers. k

[Baldini]

Try Guzzi pressures, if you're unhappy try upping to tyre manufacturer's - or in between. I run Guzzi pressures & am happy: various tyres, mostly sports riding. But different tyres, different roads, different speeds, different styles - each to his own. Only time I've had small variations in pressure really make big differences in performance was on racetrack.

 

KB

[GuzziMoto]

Tire pressure is a personal preference as well as a technical issue. Higher pressure will allow higher loads and speeds by preventing heat build up. It will also make the steering lighter. The down side is a smaller contact patch and less grip due to the lower running temp. I run lower pressure then most on this board, 32 psi front and 34 psi rear. I do add a pound or two in the rear when touring with the bike loaded.

I think the best thing to do is start on the high side and keep dropping a pound at a time until the bikes handling stops improving and starts getting worse again and go back that last pound. Just don't go below where I'm at or tire wear will increase dramatically.

[Dan M]

Tire pressure is a personal preference as well as a technical issue. Higher pressure will allow higher loads and speeds by preventing heat build up. It will also make the steering lighter. The down side is a smaller contact patch and less grip due to the lower running temp. I run lower pressure then most on this board, 32 psi front and 34 psi rear. I do add a pound or two in the rear when touring with the bike loaded.

I think the best thing to do is start on the high side and keep dropping a pound at a time until the bikes handling stops improving and starts getting worse again and go back that last pound. Just don't go below where I'm at or tire wear will increase dramatically.

 

Well put GM.

 

I think most will find it hard to distinguish the handling difference made by a pound +/- on the street. I would err (or is it air?) on the high side. Modern tires grip so well, an extra psi or two will lengthen service life without giving up too much adhesion.

[Skeeve]

Lots of recommendations here, and none of'em bad: typically, the manufacturers' recs are preferred, since they know their own tires best, but they may not have bothered developing a specific requirement for a niche bike like a Guzzi, and so you may just get some generic factors if you contact them. Guzzi's recommendation for the stock fitment can be assumed to be best, but Bridgestone isn't even making the 020s any more, & nobody much liked them on the V11s in the first place!

 

Hard and fast rule: tire pressure variation should be less than 10% btw cold & hot, ie: you inflate your tires to 33F/36R in the morning, go out and show that twisty mountain road who's boss & test immediately after, and the pressures should be no more than 36F/40R; if they're higher, you need to raise the cold pressure [to keep the tires from flexing & heating up so much. I know, it seems counterintuitive... ]

 

If the pressure has hardly changed at all from your cold settings, then you can lower your starting pressures and get more grip [but shorter life] out of your tires.

 

Ride on!

[GuzziMoto]

Skeeves advice about pressures going up 10% is an old tried and true racer method, except they use 15%. The only thing to add for street use is to check after a hard ride, not just a ride to work or whatever.

Funny thing about higher pressures equaling higher mileage, I seem to get better mileage then many here and I run lower pressure then most. And while too low an air pressure definetly hurts tire life, I think too high a pressure also has a bad effect on mileage. I would not venture too far from Guzzis recommendations without some sound evidence.

[johno235]

Hi,

Thankyou gentlemen for your input as the bike has only done 6000kms it is still on the BT020`s I have left pressures as handbook listed and did a 300km ride yesterday on variety of motorway, sweepers and twisties ( haven`t had so much fun with my pants on for a long time) with no dramas so will leave them as they are and revisit it when I replace them no doubt with a set of Z6`s which I have found with other bikes to be a good sport touring tyre with good longevity.

This is my first Guzzi and I have got to say this bike as SOUL and is a hoot to ride but then you seasoned Guzzi owners already know this so forgive the ramblings of a newbie owner

 

Johno

 

Ride Safe

[Baldini]

....I seem to get better mileage then many here and I run lower pressure then most....

 

We all ride differently. There's huge variations in the demands put on tyres. Tyre wear could be doubled from one rider to another just by use, everything else being the same. It's same as comparing individual fuel consumption...same bike, same set up, 2 riders = 2 different mpg...or try comparing miles travelled by 2 different riders completing same journey....brake wear....etc...

KB

[GuzziMoto]

I agree that there are other things that effect tire wear more then exactly what pressures you run. In fact, that was part of my point, that as long as your pressures aren't unusually high or low wear will not be increased noticably by your pressures. But if your pressures are outside the normal range in either direction your mileage may suffer.

So, as long as you keep your pressures within a normal range( to me that's probably within 4 or 5 psi from what Guzzi recommends), set your pressures to where you are comfortable with how the bike feels.

[Dan M]

I agree that there are other things that effect tire wear more then exactly what pressures you run. In fact, that was part of my point, that as long as your pressures aren't unusually high or low wear will not be increased noticably by your pressures. But if your pressures are outside the normal range in either direction your mileage may suffer.

So, as long as you keep your pressures within a normal range( to me that's probably within 4 or 5 psi from what Guzzi recommends), set your pressures to where you are comfortable with how the bike feels.

 

The smaller contact patch and lower rolling resistance of higher pressure will effect fuel economy but if you have a heavy fist on that throttle you'll never notice it. Riding technique and fueling set up are the major players for gas mileage.