Michelin Commander II
Road Warrior
Joined: Jun 2012
Posts: 1,672
Likes: 17
From: Orange, VA,
When i bought my new to me 99 EG Standard the indy put new tires on it, they are called Mitsu something, can't remember the whole name, after 5k miles I was shocked to see most of the tread gone, never having replaced a mc tire before anybody reccomend a good one?
Outstanding HDF Member
Joined: Nov 2008
Posts: 2,246
Likes: 19
From: Cypress, TX
I've been happy with the commander II I put on the rear so far. It handles good. I only have about 1000 miles on it. It hhas worked well in the rain. I'm not going to say its a better handling tire than the Metzler I had on it but I don't notice much difference. I just hope it lasts longer. I was going through a Metzler rear tire every 7500-8000 miles.
Banned
Joined: Mar 2012
Posts: 11,232
Likes: 16
From: Socialist Republic of the USA
I've been happy with the commander II I put on the rear so far. It handles good. I only have about 1000 miles on it. It hhas worked well in the rain. I'm not going to say its a better handling tire than the Metzler I had on it but I don't notice much difference. I just hope it lasts longer. I was going through a Metzler rear tire every 7500-8000 miles.
Dude, your avatar is killing me, making me dizzy.
Anyway I called Michelin at 9:47 EST and a girl told me someone from the motorcycle department would return the call. When I called Dunlop I was given an answer on my initial call within a couple minutes. Have yet to hear back from the Michelin Man. Must be eating doughnuts....
Banned
Joined: Mar 2012
Posts: 11,232
Likes: 16
From: Socialist Republic of the USA
At about 3:35 I had yet to get a return call from Michelin motorcycle division so I called again. The person that took my call tried to reach them but after almost 15 minutes of being on hold I had enough. They said the best time to call is before 9:00 AM EST. Like I said previously, I was on a couple occasions able to get an answer from Dunlop in just a couple minutes.
This will hopefully not be a deal breaker for me but I do have some questions about the tire and would like to talk to someone that can answer them. Hopefully I will have better luck tomorrow if I remember to call and have the time.
In any case here is an interesting link with some videos. My wireless connection at work is a bit on the slow side so I only watched the first one. Just thought I would share.
http://www.michelinmotorcycle.com/in...vent=commander
This will hopefully not be a deal breaker for me but I do have some questions about the tire and would like to talk to someone that can answer them. Hopefully I will have better luck tomorrow if I remember to call and have the time.
In any case here is an interesting link with some videos. My wireless connection at work is a bit on the slow side so I only watched the first one. Just thought I would share.
http://www.michelinmotorcycle.com/in...vent=commander
Road Captain
Joined: Apr 2010
Posts: 692
Likes: 34
From: Texas
MikesLikesBikes - kind of curious as to what questions you have for the Michelin Man.
I think I got a reasonably prompt e-mail from them once. Never tried to call them. I do like their tires. Just got my rear tire installed this weekend. Definitely a smoother ride than the factory dunlop (which I got about 10K miles out of with probably another 2K left on it). Have not been riding it real aggressively in the turns yet while I break it in.
I have had the front tire on since the beginning of summer.
I think I got a reasonably prompt e-mail from them once. Never tried to call them. I do like their tires. Just got my rear tire installed this weekend. Definitely a smoother ride than the factory dunlop (which I got about 10K miles out of with probably another 2K left on it). Have not been riding it real aggressively in the turns yet while I break it in.
I have had the front tire on since the beginning of summer.
This will hopefully not be a deal breaker for me but I do have some questions about the tire and would like to talk to someone that can answer them. Hopefully I will have better luck tomorrow if I remember to call and have the time.
Banned
Joined: Mar 2012
Posts: 11,232
Likes: 16
From: Socialist Republic of the USA
MikesLikesBikes - kind of curious as to what questions you have for the Michelin Man.
I think I got a reasonably prompt e-mail from them once. Never tried to call them. I do like their tires. Just got my rear tire installed this weekend. Definitely a smoother ride than the factory dunlop (which I got about 10K miles out of with probably another 2K left on it). Have not been riding it real aggressively in the turns yet while I break it in.
I have had the front tire on since the beginning of summer.
I think I got a reasonably prompt e-mail from them once. Never tried to call them. I do like their tires. Just got my rear tire installed this weekend. Definitely a smoother ride than the factory dunlop (which I got about 10K miles out of with probably another 2K left on it). Have not been riding it real aggressively in the turns yet while I break it in.
I have had the front tire on since the beginning of summer.
Cruiser
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 116
Likes: 0
From: Birmingham,AL
I asked if there was a problem using the Commander II rear with an E III front and of course the answer was "We never recommend mixing tires". I know many people that have different manufacturers tires front and rear without a problem.
Yes there is people that mix tires and never have a problem. But if the manufactuer said it was not a problem mixing tires and then there was a problem and they would be sued in a heartbeat.
Also why would Michelin recommend to use a Dunlop rear tire with a Michelin front tire or vice versa. Michelin doesn't make money from Dunlop sales, they want to sell Michelin tires. <G>
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Extreme HDF Member
Joined: Nov 2007
Posts: 14,670
Likes: 139
From: East of the Sun, West of the Moon
HD even recommends (regardless of tire manufacturer) not to mix tires so I wouldn't put a whole lot of weight into that response as it certainly is a typical "corporate sales" response. Dude, if you like what you read about the tires, put them on and be on down the road. Otherwise stick with what you like and leave it alone. These are fairly new tires and not a whole lot of people have much "mileage" experience with them yet.
I put a set on prior to Sturgis and previously used Metzlers on all bikes. We rode 5300 miles round trip (the very long way) and I liked the feeling, the response, the traction, and the quietness of the tires. I will tell you that they track those black tar marks in the road like the Dunlops do but other than that 1 thing, I love em and as soon as the stockers run out on my 12 flhtk i just bought, I'll be replacing them with the Commander IIs
I put a set on prior to Sturgis and previously used Metzlers on all bikes. We rode 5300 miles round trip (the very long way) and I liked the feeling, the response, the traction, and the quietness of the tires. I will tell you that they track those black tar marks in the road like the Dunlops do but other than that 1 thing, I love em and as soon as the stockers run out on my 12 flhtk i just bought, I'll be replacing them with the Commander IIs
Last edited by UltraNutZ; Sep 12, 2012 at 08:44 AM.
Cruiser
Joined: Apr 2012
Posts: 210
Likes: 1
From: Arkansas
I ride a 06 EG it has a little over 24,800 miles on it. I've had 3 rear tires on my bike since i bought it new, the first was the factory Dunlap, it did ok, i replaced it with a Dunlap around 10,000 miles and that was one of the worse tires i've ever had, felt like it was running flat for the first 2000 miles, real squirrely but it did settle down and i still got 10'000 miels out of it, then i put a Metzler on the rear, i loved the way it handled, i was real pleased with it until about the last month, i've got right at 5000 miles on it and the last 1000 miles the center has really flattoned out and went to wearing fast, and the side tread is feathering real bad. In two weeks im putting a Michilan on the rear and see how that does.
The shop, not HD, told me $310 for the rear tire mounted and balanced , new wheel bearings and new brakes on the rear, didnt sound to bad to me compared to what HD would charge.
The shop, not HD, told me $310 for the rear tire mounted and balanced , new wheel bearings and new brakes on the rear, didnt sound to bad to me compared to what HD would charge.