Cbr250R Irc Rear Tire Fail?

[ja99]

I read a few posts damning this tire as slippery and I previously didn't have an issue with it on my bike. However, having just gone sideways thru a round about outside Ao nang in Krabi, I think it is time to renew or change both tires. 40,000kms on Thai roads and I finally come unstuck.

The road from Phuket to Phang Nga is black in the left lane, I would guess from diesel overflow from trucks headed north. The right lane not so bad tho not a good idea to sit there either. The warning came on a left hand curve where I leaned a fair bit and the rear end slid about a foot, alarming to say the least and was lucky not to come off there.

In aonang, I approached the round about slowly, didn't see anything on the surface, leaning just a tad and the rear just slid out from under me. Somehow, my left hand got jammed between the bar and fairing, breaking my thumb in the process. More on the great way Krabi hospital treated me and the insurance cover later..

Looking at the black film deposited on my shorts and shirt sleeve, the road surface no doubt contributed to the event. The tires didn't have any obvious deposit visible tho they both look shiny and hard/slippery to touch. 13000kms on them, time to replace even if plenty of tread still left. Maybe after 2 years copping a fair amt of sun on them, the compound starts to perish?

A visit to main Hondashop in krabi came up with 6000baht quote to replace both tires. Whilst there, I ran my (good) hand over the same new tire on the 300F and it has a soft sandpapery feel to it, definitely different to mine, so the big question is there any other brand to be had for same price or near enuf?

Apart from a minor scratch on the lever and exhaust and foot peg, the bike is at least not damaged.

So then, was it the road surface or the tires or a combination that caused this?

The main reason I am posting this is to remind riders not to get complacent about dry roads and tires still with tread on them, or you can find out the hard way like I did, not recommended..

[papa al]

Sir:

No tire is going to stick to a road lubricated with oil 'n' whatnot.

Many Michelin bike tires are designed for (water) wet roads.

They incorporate fine silica (sand) in the rubber.

Good longevity too.

Not expensive brand.

Maybe your best bet.

I fall down on wet curve before and now have Mich on 3 bikes.

[mark131v]

ja99, my missus has a ninja 250 which had IRC tyres on which I think are the same size as the CBR 250. I finally persuaded her to stick some Pirelli Sport Demon's on and the bike is transformed, I had to fight as she was adamant about the IRC's being ok as they had plenty tread, happy to say she is now fully converted, well worth the money for the extra safety and feedback

Edited January 29, 2015 by mark131v

[dave_boo]

Can't go wrong with Pirelli. Call Charley (it's actually a female...never asked about the name) at Showpo and she can have them shipped down to you. Doesn't cost much more than buying stock tyres at the dealer.

[ja99]

ja99, my missus has a ninja 250 which had IRC tyres on which I think are the same size as the CBR 250. I finally persuaded her to stick some Pirelli Sport Demon's on and the bike is transformed, I had to fight as she was adamant about the IRC's being ok as they had plenty tread, happy to say she is now fully converted, well worth the money for the extra safety and feedback

I am sure the Pirellis are excellent but probably twice the cost of Irc s? Had an Angel St on my bm 800 S and it was brill. BTW, irc same on ninja as my 250r.

[ja99]

Sir:

No tire is going to stick to a road lubricated with oil 'n' whatnot.

Many Michelin bike tires are designed for (water) wet roads.

They incorporate fine silica (sand) in the rubber.

Good longevity too.

Not expensive brand.

Maybe your best bet.

I fall down on wet curve before and now have Mich on 3 bikes.

Oddly enough, Inever had an issue with the irc s in the wet. I came off at 1pm, the road and tires would have been nice and hot too.. Edited January 29, 2015 by ja99

[Eliot Rosewater]

Get some pirelli's

The cheapest ones are about the same price as the stock ones but better

[mark131v]

I think both the CBR 250 and Ninja 250 both have the same budget IRC's on, I cant remember how much the Sport Demons where because I got some MT60 Corsas for my bike at the same time but it was not overly expensive but what I can say is I am not exagerating when I say the Ninja feels like a completely different bike now and instills way more confidence than the IRC Road Killers ever did, I think for the price it is possibley the single most sensible thing you can do for your bike and your safety, like I said even my wife who generally hates to spend money on stuff she reckons will last 5 minutes longer is fully converted which is saying something....!

[macknife]

Do not put new IRC tyres back on the bike. they are notoriously bad. Pirelli Dragons are only 3-4000Baht for the pair which is much less that the 6000B you were quoted. (you didn't say what brand tyres) Rosso IIs are about 7-8000b. Michelin are also excellent tyres.

The tyres may not have been responsible for your slip(I bet they were) but after 12000kms on IRCs they are due a change.

[apetley]

Sir:

No tire is going to stick to a road lubricated with oil 'n' whatnot.

Many Michelin bike tires are designed for (water) wet roads.

They incorporate fine silica (sand) in the rubber.

Good longevity too.

Not expensive brand.

Maybe your best bet.

I fall down on wet curve before and now have Mich on 3 bikes.

I put some Michelin Street Pilots on my cbr recently. I have always liked Michelins and these are no exception. Fantastic value too at about 3k bht the pair. Edited January 29, 2015 by apetley

[ja99]

Do not put new IRC tyres back on the bike. they are notoriously bad. Pirelli Dragons are only 3-4000Baht for the pair which is much less that the 6000B you were quoted. (you didn't say what brand tyres) Rosso IIs are about 7-8000b. Michelin are also excellent tyres.

The tyres may not have been responsible for your slip(I bet they were) but after 12000kms on IRCs they are due a change.

6000bht from Honda shop, uses only Irc for the 250 as per the originals.. Dragons sound like value indeed!

[ja99]

Sir:

No tire is going to stick to a road lubricated with oil 'n' whatnot.

Many Michelin bike tires are designed for (water) wet roads.

They incorporate fine silica (sand) in the rubber.

Good longevity too.

Not expensive brand.

Maybe your best bet.

I fall down on wet curve before and now have Mich on 3 bikes.

I put some Michelin Street Pilots on my cbr recently. I have always liked Michelins and these are no exception. Fantastic value too at about 3k bht the pair.

Wow, good price on the Michs..the 250 manual states only put Honda ircs on, as others can interfere with the Abs system, no idea on issues there..

[ll2]

whatever but not the same ircs. they are just dangerous tires.

any pirelli model is good, a set of rosso2 is best for 7000 thb.

[apetley]

Sir:

No tire is going to stick to a road lubricated with oil 'n' whatnot.

Many Michelin bike tires are designed for (water) wet roads.

They incorporate fine silica (sand) in the rubber.

Good longevity too.

Not expensive brand.

Maybe your best bet.

I fall down on wet curve before and now have Mich on 3 bikes.

I put some Michelin Street Pilots on my cbr recently. I have always liked Michelins and these are no exception. Fantastic value too at about 3k bht the pair.

Wow, good price on the Michs..the 250 manual states only put Honda ircs on, as others can interfere with the Abs system, no idea on issues there..

Does the manual really say that? 555 absolute b.s. Bought the Street Pilots at Sumet Cycle in BKK.

[dave_boo]

Wow, good price on the Michs..the 250 manual states only put Honda ircs on, as others can interfere with the Abs system, no idea on issues there..

That's hilarious. The system should measure the amount of slippage and there should be enough smarts to adjust the duration and frequency of the braking system cut off to maintain proper operation across a range of tyres. If it can't, how does it work for the stock tyres when new versus when they are well worn and don't offer as much traction?

[ja99]

Sir:

No tire is going to stick to a road lubricated with oil 'n' whatnot.

Many Michelin bike tires are designed for (water) wet roads.

They incorporate fine silica (sand) in the rubber.

Good longevity too.

Not expensive brand.

Maybe your best bet.

I fall down on wet curve before and now have Mich on 3 bikes.

I put some Michelin Street Pilots on my cbr recently. I have always liked Michelins and these are no exception. Fantastic value too at about 3k bht the pair.

Wow, good price on the Michs..the 250 manual states only put Honda ircs on, as others can interfere with the Abs system, no idea on issues there..

Does the manual really say that? 555 absolute b.s. Bought the Street Pilots at Sumet Cycle in BKK.

Yep, it says that..presume u have abs and no issues?

[apetley]

Sir:

No tire is going to stick to a road lubricated with oil 'n' whatnot.

Many Michelin bike tires are designed for (water) wet roads.

They incorporate fine silica (sand) in the rubber.

Good longevity too.

Not expensive brand.

Maybe your best bet.

I fall down on wet curve before and now have Mich on 3 bikes.

I put some Michelin Street Pilots on my cbr recently. I have always liked Michelins and these are no exception. Fantastic value too at about 3k bht the pair.

Wow, good price on the Michs..the 250 manual states only put Honda ircs on, as others can interfere with the Abs system, no idea on issues there..

Does the manual really say that? 555 absolute b.s. Bought the Street Pilots at Sumet Cycle in BKK.

Yep, it says that..presume u have abs and no issues?

I don't have abs tbh but a couple of friends do. One runs Pirellis the other Michelins with absolutely no issues.

[ja99]

Wow, good price on the Michs..the 250 manual states only put Honda ircs on, as others can interfere with the Abs system, no idea on issues there..

That's hilarious. The system should measure the amount of slippage and there should be enough smarts to adjust the duration and frequency of the braking system cut off to maintain proper operation across a range of tyres. If it can't, how does it work for the stock tyres when new versus when they are well worn and don't offer as much traction?

Good question, only Honda can answer that. The PDF manual on the web for 2011 model,

[dave_boo]

Wow, good price on the Michs..the 250 manual states only put Honda ircs on, as others can interfere with the Abs system, no idea on issues there..

That's hilarious. The system should measure the amount of slippage and there should be enough smarts to adjust the duration and frequency of the braking system cut off to maintain proper operation across a range of tyres. If it can't, how does it work for the stock tyres when new versus when they are well worn and don't offer as much traction?

Good question, only Honda can answer that. The PDF manual on the web for 2011 model,

You misunderstand...I'm not questioning your veracity...just that Honda would put that in their manual.

[ja99]

Wow, good price on the Michs..the 250 manual states only put Honda ircs on, as others can interfere with the Abs system, no idea on issues there..

That's hilarious. The system should measure the amount of slippage and there should be enough smarts to adjust the duration and frequency of the braking system cut off to maintain proper operation across a range of tyres. If it can't, how does it work for the stock tyres when new versus when they are well worn and don't offer as much traction?

Good question, only Honda can answer that. The PDF manual on the web for 2011 model,

You misunderstand...I'm not questioning your veracity...just that Honda would put that in their manual.[/

quote] not sure what I misunderstood here, just stating what's in the manual, which I was a bit sus about anyway..

[biker Bob]

Do not put new IRC tyres back on the bike. they are notoriously bad. Pirelli Dragons are only 3-4000Baht for the pair which is much less that the 6000B you were quoted. (you didn't say what brand tyres) Rosso IIs are about 7-8000b. Michelin are also excellent tyres.

The tyres may not have been responsible for your slip(I bet they were) but after 12000kms on IRCs they are due a change.

I was at Showpow last Saturday and paid 9400 bath a set of Rosso ll for my ER6N. Great tires.

[ja99]

Do not put new IRC tyres back on the bike. they are notoriously bad. Pirelli Dragons are only 3-4000Baht for the pair which is much less that the 6000B you were quoted. (you didn't say what brand tyres) Rosso IIs are about 7-8000b. Michelin are also excellent tyres.

The tyres may not have been responsible for your slip(I bet they were) but after 12000kms on IRCs they are due a change.

I was at Showpow last Saturday and paid 9400 bath a set of Rosso ll for my ER6N. Great tires.

I bet they are good, however the Michelin pilots look the best value at 3-4k, probably not an option in Krabi, 4 weeks till I can ride again.

[taninthai]

Think I know the roundabout you are talking about ,yep it's a slippety surface always had fun sliding the truck around it ,there is couple of dodgy spots like that around ao nang.

[hansgruber]

40,000 kilometres on a set of tires? Change your tires every two years or they tend to go hard and lose their softness.

I did only 6000 km in two years and still change them regardless of mileage. Don't risk your life on old rubber.

[ja99]

Think I know the roundabout you are talking about ,yep it's a slippety surface always had fun sliding the truck around it ,there is couple of dodgy spots like that around ao nang.

Its the round about at Fossil beach that leads to aonang. I went around it a few times in the wet season, no problem. The on duty cop there came over and picked my bike up, stored it and called ambulance. He looked after me, I must say.

[ja99]

40,000 kilometres on a set of tires? Change your tires every two years or they tend to go hard and lose their softness.

I did only 6000 km in two years and still change them regardless of mileage. Don't risk your life on old rubber.

13000kms on those tires, u r right about 2 years, the rubber has gone hard near the edges..

[ttakata]

Just another tire tip for any new people reading.

Don't overinflate your tires like the locals do.

Too much pressure reduces the contact patch of tires and reduces grip.

Get a decent pressure gauge and try to maintain the bike's recommended psi (not the tire's rating, but the rating in your bike's manual).

I'm guessing the locals overinflate to get better mileage and reduce refill frequency but it reduces grip performance and can be dangerous.

A long time ago I took a CBR250 and Ninja250 around a track (both had identical stock IRC tires) and I crashed the Ninja because the owner never adjusted his tire pressure.

I wasn't braking or doing anything stupid to cause the crash; it just washed out mid turn.

After the crash I checked the pressure was in the high 40 or maybe 50psi range.

The CBR250 was set to ~30psi before hitting the track and even though it has a horrible suspension compared to the Ninja250 it survived because the tires had more grip.

Edited January 31, 2015 by ttakata

[taninthai]

Think I know the roundabout you are talking about ,yep it's a slippety surface always had fun sliding the truck around it ,there is couple of dodgy spots like that around ao nang.

Its the round about at Fossil beach that leads to aonang. I went around it a few times in the wet season, no problem. The on duty cop there came over and picked my bike up, stored it and called ambulance. He looked after me, I must say.

yep that's the one also if you head to ao nang from that roundabout all the way to end of the road you come to a t junction beware if turning right as its the same sort of road surface again ,the truck will just spin the wheels in 1st and 2 nd gear .

[wow64]

Get some Pirelli Sport Demons like another poster said.. have them on my little cbr300r and its changed the bike.. so much more grip.

Edited February 2, 2015 by wow64

[ja99]

Just another tire tip for any new people reading.

Don't overinflate your tires like the locals do.

Too much pressure reduces the contact patch of tires and reduces grip.

Get a decent pressure gauge and try to maintain the bike's recommended psi (not the tire's rating, but the rating in your bike's manual).

I'm guessing the locals overinflate to get better mileage and reduce refill frequency but it reduces grip performance and can be dangerous.

A long time ago I took a CBR250 and Ninja250 around a track (both had identical stock IRC tires) and I crashed the Ninja because the owner never adjusted his tire pressure.

I wasn't braking or doing anything stupid to cause the crash; it just washed out mid turn.

After the crash I checked the pressure was in the high 40 or maybe 50psi range.

The CBR250 was set to ~30psi before hitting the track and even though it has a horrible suspension compared to the Ninja250 it survived because the tires had more grip.

Good idea to lower the pressure to recommended Psi.. I had mid 30s for the rear which may be too high for the hot road surface in the dry season and why it lost grip, apart from being a bit old. I thought the suspension was fine on the Honda but I havent ridden a Ninja (yet/)..