Dunlop RoadSmarts Not too smart

[2linby]

SO I decided to abandon my much beloved Michelin PR5's for another brand based on a great price only to find I made a mistake. While I've had success with Dunlops in the past but my "new to me" Dunlops Roadsmart III tires ride like I'm on a washboard road. Perhaps a slight exaggeration, but they are hard. They ride hard. The front at times feels like I'm riding on iron, not comfortable at all like the Michelins. I tried 36-34-32 psi to see if this changes the "feel" and at 32 they are not very firm and sure footed in corners. At 36 they are hard as rocks. 34 seems to be a compromise, but not as compliance and confident as the PR5 and PR4''s were. Sad to say I'll be running these down until I either can't stand it or have the money for another set of PR4 or 5's. Lesson learned I guess. Saving a buck for confidence wasn't what anyone wants in a motorcycle tire. Glad I've got a few miles under my belt as these tires aren't for a beginning rider. They kind of remind me of the very old K591 "murdercycle tires". Hard as hell and would ride 15, 20 thousand miles and still have tread. Hard as rocks and shitty as hell in any wet conditions. Just one mans opinion. 

Edited August 12, 2020 by 2linby

[DavidS]

Just curious, what are the dates stamped on the sidewall? Just curious if they sold you an old tire......

I love the PR5's myself, I had them replace the brand new stock tires (Dunlop I think) with Michelin PR5's before I rode the bike off the showroom floor.

[dazzler24]

Interesting feedback.  I too was considering those Dunlops before opting for the Michys.

And just for some context, when I went from the original Dunlop D222s to the PR5s, my first/early impression was that the ride was so much 'softer' on the Michys.

I've mostly only heard good things about the Dunlop Roadsmart 3s so this is interesting.  Different compound formulas or ingredient quality from different parts of the world or manufacturing plants....??

[1moreroad]

Thanks for the feedback.  If they're like riding on a washboard, did something happen to the wheel during the install?

I put about 8000 miles on a Roadsmart 3 including a track day, and my experience didn't match yours at all.  Quick to warm up.  Dragged pegs immediately after being cut loose from lead-follow to learn the track.  Good in all weather conditions.  Fine over expansion joints - no better or worse than anything else.  Except for the track day, this was all at 36 front 42 rear.

Maybe I just need to try Michelins if they're that much better.

 

EDIT: Just thought to add that the negative experiences described are close to my experiences on the new Roadsmart 2s, but not the 3s. Roadsmart 2s remind me of sport tires from the early 2000s with slow warm up and slides on pavement seams.

Edited August 12, 2020 by 1moreroad

[kmev]

I have 9,000 miles on a pair of RSIIIs. I rode the Alcan with them last summer and thought they were great. Wet, dry, chip seal, curves, interstate - no complaints. I, too, purchased these instead of Michelins due to the lower cost, but I'm very happy with them and appear to be getting better mileage from them than what others are reporting from Michelins. RSIIIs will be my go-to tire from now on. 

[fddriver2]

I've been on RS3's since they came out. 7-8 years(?) I feel it's a great all around tire/tyre. Good feed back, plenty grippy for my skill set wet or dry. Decent wear. I haven't done track days, I would like to though. But I put close to 50,000 miles on them with my XR1200 and close to 40,000 miles on the FJ. 

Weird that you're having such a bad experience. 

[johnmark101]

Count me in as another who finds your experience with these tires unusual.  I have run a set of these on my Tracer and two sets on my Ninja 1000 and found them to be a very good sport touring tire, and a bit on the sport side of the equation.  Good in the wet, excellent dry grip for the class and decent mileage.  Good bump compliance as well.  They have received positive reviews on line.  My only gripe, and it is a minor one, is that the front cupped a bit toward the end of the tires life.

Truthfully, any of the sport touring tires from any one of the major brands are going to work well, with each having their own characteristics.

Sorry your experience with them is not so good.  Tires are not cheap and it would not be much fun having to ride around for several thousand miles on a tire that did not inspire confidence. 

[TheBigG]

Can it be a fake one? 

[roadrash83]

I will gladly spend the extra money for the Michelin PR5. I have been running them or their previous models for quite some time and they have never let me down. Dunlops would be my last last choice for a road tire. The last 5 street bike I bought all had OEM Dunlops on them and I could not wait to burn them off and put Michelins on.

[denveryzf]

I have about 7k miles on my RS3's, and they have been great so far.. I run them at 32psi front and 36 rear since I almost never have passenger and not much in the hard cases. From the looks of them, I think I may get another 5k miles out of them before they need to be replaced.

[Stew]

I'm on Dunlop Sportsmax front and rear. Done 2000 miles on them. Running 32/36 pressures, but I get zero feedback from them. They have also started getting wiggly on road seams, white lines etc.
I like to be able to feel what my tyres are doing, and these seem to be too solid or something, I can't feel anything. They haven't let go or anything, but I feel like I am not properly connected to the road (if that makes sense)

Not my choice of manufacturer for tyres , ever.

 

[micah2074]

I'm a YUGE fan of the RS3's. For me they handle well, last a long time, and feel good. The lower price is a great bonus. With that being said buy and ride what you feel the most comfortable. Also, don't compare a factory model tire to aftermarket. There's a difference.

[littlebruv]

I suppose its also how you have your suspension setup as well

[jthayer09]

I've posted a couple of times on this forum about my dislike of the RS3s, I'm at the wear bars on the rear with 11,000mi and I will not be buying them again.

While good in rain and good tread life, like you I find them oddly rigid/stiff and fairly difficult to turn-in. The worst things about the tire for me is that the tread gives me high-speed wobble @ 95 MPH+ and the tires take forever to warm up compared to stock D222s.

I ride year-round and the stock D222s were much better in lower temps being quicker to warm up, and I didn't have speed wobble until I was at the speed limiter (115mph); they lasted me roughly 9,000mi. The Roadsmart 2s is supposedly a revision for the D222s and are almost exactly 1/2 the price of the RS3s, even if I had a positive experience with the RS3s it's definitely not 2x better than the RS2s in any metric.
 

[johnmark101]

8 hours ago, roadrash83 said:

I will gladly spend the extra money for the Michelin PR5. I have been running them or their previous models for quite some time and they have never let me down. Dunlops would be my last last choice for a road tire. The last 5 street bike I bought all had OEM Dunlops on them and I could not wait to burn them off and put Michelins on.

The Roadsmart 3 you would buy from a dealer or on line is far better than any OEM Dunlop.  Not saying you would like the Roadsmart 3, but it is a far better tire than any OEM.  The tires that come on new sport touring bikes are built to a price point.  This guy explains it well.