Continental Road Attack 2 GT Tires

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Just Krusen

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Continental Road Attack 2 GT Tires

Two weeks ago I installed a set of Continental RS2 GT tires on my 2013 FJR. I had a set of Michelin PR3s’ with over 12,000 miles on before them. The PR3s’ were pretty nice for the first 5 or 6000 miles. After that they really felt like crap. I liked the handling at first but that was short lived. The PR3s’ were better than the Bridgestone 023s’ that came with the bike. I pulled the 023s off at 6000 miles because the handling sucked.

So I wanted to try something else. I ran the original Continental RA on my 2006 BMW R1200RT and had very favorable results with them. The RA2s’ are supposedly improved for better handling and mileage. I used to get about 8000 out of them on the BMW. They handled great in rain or sunshine and stuck to the road no matter what. The BMW never had that hard to lean over feeling that I’m having with the FJR once there’s a few thousand miles on the tires.

Anyhow, I have the new RA2 GTs’ on my FJR now and love what they have done for the bike. I only have about 400 miles on them so far. I believe they have improved the handling more than the PR3s did when they were new. The bike tips in with almost no effort at all. Once in the turn the bike is extremely neutral to where I can take my hands off the bars and it will continue to hold the turn. The PR3s’ were good when new but never this good.

The big question is how long will they last on the FJR. I’ll be happy if they make it 8000 miles especially if the handling does not suffer terribly. I should have 6000 miles on them by the end of September when I get home from my last mountain ride of the year and will report back at that time.

My riding includes a bunch of interstate running to and from the Smokey Mountains. Speeds usually around 80 mph. Fairly aggressive in the mountains, pegs are known to touch. I weigh 164 lbs and travel light, no trunk.

Ed “Just Kruse’n”
Naples FL

 
Thanks for the review, son-in-law works for Continental/General tires and I can get a set at a significant discount!
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Ed, i put a set of those on in June, just before a 5,000 mile camping trip to Newfoundland. They performed very well with my bike fully loaded with camping gear, and my 200lb ass on board. Had a variety of differing conditions over the ten day trip, ranging from low 40's, rain and high gusty winds, to the mid 80's sunny and gusty winds, and I was never worried about the handling. Have a total of about 7500 miles on them now, and reckon I can squeeze another 1000 or so out of them.

I had been running the Pilot Road 2's almost exclusively, and do think they last longer, and performed a little better in the wet, but they are hard to get now, and I have heard mixed reviews on their replacements. I will likely order another set of the Conti's in the coming weeks.

 
You can still get PR2 at the Motorcycle Superstore at a good price and free shipping.

 
Just out of curiosity... What pressures are you running? We all wear out tires out at different rates due to an infinite number of reasons so I will not even guess as to what you tire life should be.

Also I am curious as to the definition of "handled like crap". Does this mean that there was reduced traction? Cupping? Increased turn in resistance?

 
I have a set of RA GT on my Gen 1 (and yes, I know about the recall = FREE TIRE!).

They went about 8000 miles, but I tend to be pretty easy on tires. The front is very sensitive to cupping, keep it aired up around 40-41lbs.

 
Just out of curiosity... What pressures are you running? We all wear out tires out at different rates due to an infinite number of reasons so I will not even guess as to what you tire life should be.
Also I am curious as to the definition of "handled like crap". Does this mean that there was reduced traction? Cupping? Increased turn in resistance?
I run 40 front and 43 rear. I check air pressure every week, more often on trips.

"Handled like crap" means turn in resistance to me. Getting the bike to tip in was a chore. It's amazing that worn tires cause this much of a difference on this bike. My Concours also felt this way on worn tires. But my R1200RT and Gold Wing never had the resistance to turn in. Once over there was no problem with traction. Mileage was much better than I expected.

 
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