Hi Guys,

Need to get new tyres for the 14R.
When in Australia I swore by the latest Michelin Pilot Power 3's but since my move to New Zealand I have found the roads are a lot more abrasive and so local riders are advising Metezler M77RR's as they are a German tyre and are designed for German roads that are very similar to New Zealand's so there is a balance between great performance and durability.

Do any of you have any experience and feedback on the Metezler M77RR's?
Web reviews are good but I was wondering how they go with 14's.

Thanks in advance guys.

* Last updated by: yannih on 1/9/2016 @ 2:19 AM *

I've owned a few different tires now. I've found what professional reviews say is what I can expect. The only issue with professional reviewers is we only get a snapshot of the tire's performance. Rarely do we get a review that covers the life of the tire.

I had M7RRs. What the reviews say is what you can expect. Great tire IMO. Good feedback and feel, steering was lighter like Q3s, stable in turns. I experienced the longest wear of any of my aftermarket tires so far, 3500 miles.

If you mount/balance your own tires, they seemed more difficult to mount/dismount than other tires. For example, when bead breaking the front I had to strap it and still was barely able to break the bead. It was a bitch, I nearly gave up and took it somewhere. Then some of the rubber stuck to the rim. I assume this is from heat build up, but hadn't seen this on the 2 previous sets I dismounted (including Q3s).

Here's my analysis on why Q3s are "better" for aggressive riding (track/winding roads). M7RRs build heat very quickly as it seems do the modern high mileage sport tires. The problem is they build up too much too quickly. In aggressive riding this is why Q3s are slightly better than M7RRs because they won't build up so much heat so quickly. Try M7RRs a couple pounds higher than your run other tires unless you just set them to 42 and roll. Then still do not expect them to 100% of the best tires, more like 97%. S20 Evos seemed to exhibit this same heat building pattern, although my recommendation is M7RRs over S20 Evos for many reasons (reviews are accurate on S20 Evos too).

M7rr's are great IMO, I am on my second set. They wear better than the M5 and grip pretty much the same. I had to replace the rear at about 3k because I picked up a nail but it still had good tread left. The front still looks good with 3500 miles. They are reasonably priced as well. Go for it. Heres what the tread looks like

I have a feeling I'll like these Rosso IIs. I'm expecting something similar to the M7RRs since they're about the same place in the tire line up and Metz and Pirelli are the same company now. Reveiws are similar. M7RRs may fall slightly more towards the Diablo Corsa though, I visualize M7RRs being at a point between the Rosso II and Corsa.

So far M7RRs would be the "permanent" choice of M5s, Q3s, and S20 Evos.

zx14 rider are the tires you're buying still made in Germany? Or have they started shifting production to China like Pirelli?

Vic they are german.

I considered them after some reviews and talking to a guy at the local tyre place. Apparently, the shape of them is different to your standard sport/touring tyre like the Angel GT or Michelin PR3/4. The bike will turn in faster, which I'm told is a bit disconcerting till you get used to it, then you will love it, so I am told.

I ended up getting Pirelli Angel GTs because I got a great price but will consider these next time.

PS Hope NZ is treating you well yannih.

Hi Victhing, when you talk of heat build up in your tyres are you measuring this by tyre air pressure increase ?
Or a seat of the pants thing ?
Surely the quicker a tyre builds its heat the quicker you can get INTO it, as it were, as long as the heat doesn't continue, get excessive, causing TOO much pressure increase & tyre deformation ?
Personally the more traction / faster wear rate the better, I can't believe some of the BIG mileage you guys are quoting on the forum !
I,m using Dunlop GP Racer Medium on the front & Dunlop Sportsmart rears on my bikes, stick like wotsit to a blanket.
Around 3,000 klm from the rears & 4 ish from the front end.
I do push bikes a bit. Only road mileage, zero commute, maximum 90% back roads.
Heres a rear Continental I pushed a bit on my ex KTM 1190, peg scraping,s R US.

No arguments with what you're saying. Mine are visual observations of different tires under similar circumstances. Unfortunately I don't have any roads you'd really call twisty. So when I get home and can observe what my tires look like compared to each other based on touch and go sport riding.

Then I can compare this observation to what reviewrs say comparing tires. So far it's made sense that this could be why Q3 may be slightly better on a track than M7RR or S20 Evo.

Just got through the life of my first set of M77RR's.
Very impressed. Got just over 7,000kms out of them on harsh road surfaces, riding pretty hard and carrying a fat bugger at around 102kgs.
Never let me down at any stage.
Highly recommended.
I have just put on some new Metzler Z8's just to see how they run compared with the M77RR's.
Should get a few more kms out of these.
Lets see how we go...