Spare Parts - Tyres
My choise of tyres has been decided by what I could get locally.
My leo was originally fitted with Pirelli SL26. For the winter 1998/1999 I changed to Schwalbe Powertrack. The rear Pirelli was worn down but I saved the front. Then in the Spring of 1999 I got a Sava MC16 on the back and put the original Pirelli back on the front.
The winter 1999/2000 I had hoped to try the Bridgestone ML50, but my dealer could not get hold of the 140/70-12 for the rear (when I wanted it), so it was Schwalbe Powertrack once again.
In june 2000 it was time for new tyres again and I had Sava MC16 mounted both front and rear. The Sava's are not as uniform as one could ask for, so the wheels had to be balanced. The front wheel got 50g while the rear got 30g. The front is much more sensible to vibrations than the rear, but I have not had weights on either the Pirelli SL26 or the Schwalbe Powertrack. Then it was close to winter again and I tried to get hold of a pair of Heidenau Snowtex - again without luck so rod trough the winter on the Sava.
Then in spring 2001 I got a Heidenau K58 on the rear and continued with the fron Sava MC16. In february 2002 I had the wheels powder coated and decided to put new Hidenau K58 on - both front and rear. The Sava still had lot of thread but after my crash I had lost my confidence in the tyres performance on wet roads ...
You can also see this and other details in a table on the My Leo page.
But the local dealers don't stock many options, so maybe I should just order the tyres myself well before I want them fitted
Scootering 1998
Scootering has made a test of tyres on the Leonardo which is published in edition 153, October 1998. They tested on a small track in the dry. After two days of testing they rated the tyres as follows:
- Hutchinson, Funzy
- Continental, Zippy 1
- Bridgestone, Hoop
- Metzeler, ME-7teen
- Cheng Shin, Maxxis
- Sava, MC16
- Bridgestone, ML50
- Dunlop, GT 301
- Heidenau, K58
- Pirelli, SL36
- Vee Rubber, 12"
- Shwalbe, Power Slick
A small quote about the fastest tyre:"The Leonardo has extremely high ground clearance, but for the first time we managed to deck something down. Surprisingly, it was the engine casings themselves. These are, in effect racing tyres for the road". But since speed is not everything on the road, their choose for a road tyre was the Continental Zippy 1 (With the Bridgestone Hoop a close second), because the Hutchinson Funzy and I quote:"Even the Rolling Stones did'nt look so old, so quickly". The only obvious missing tyre in the test was the Michelin Bopper, which might have been a close race with the others.
Whats available in 12"
Here is a small chart with tyres that I know are available in the right sizes. According to my "Use and maintenance manual" you can only use 140/70 on the rear off the 125/150 but you can choose between 130/70 and 120/70 for the front. The 250 ride with 130/70 on the rear.
Scooterings test showed that the narrower front tyre gave better lap times with the Continental Zippy 1, so decide for yourself. (But the speedo will be even more inaccurate with the 120/70 - it will show ~3% more)
I have not included tyres that are not available in 140/70 even through 130/70 can be mounted. A 130/70 tyre result in a rolling distance that is ~3% smaller than 140/70 (all else equal) so you will also be running with a ~3% lower engine/road ratio (lower gearing).
If you know of other tyre tests, please let me know. I would also like your comments, preferences or prejudices here as well :)
Tyres for Aprilia Leonardo 125/150
| Brand |
Model |
Sizes |
Thread Depth, Comments |
| Bridgestone |
ML 50 |
130/70-12 49J
140/70-12 60L |
5,3 mm
5,7 mm |
| Cheng Shin |
Maxxis |
130/70-12 56J
140/70-12 60P |
5,5 mm
6,0 mm |
| Continental |
Zippy 1 |
130/70-12 62L
140/70-12 65L |
6,0 mm
6,0 mm |
| Dunlop |
GT 301 |
130/70-12 56
140/70-12 60 |
4,3 mm
4,3 mm |
| Heidenau |
K58 |
130/70 - 12 62M
140/70 - 12 60P |
5,9 mm. A good all weather tyre that also last long |
| Snowtex |
  |
For the winter 2000/2001 Heidenau has annonced the Snowtex tyres. It has some fabric mixed into the rubber which should give better grip on ice and snow. The have first started the production by the end of september, and it should be available in many different sizes. Read their german flyer for more information. |
|
| Metzeler |
ME 7 TEEN |
120/70 - 12 51
130/70 - 12 56L TL
130/70 - 12 62L reinf TL
140/70 - 12 60L TL |
4,7 mm
5,0 mm |
| Michelin |
Bopper |
120/70-12
130/70-12 56J
140/70-12 |
|
|
|
Dexter |
120/70-12
130/70-12 56J |
|
| Pirelli |
SL 26 |
130/70-12 56L
140/70-12 60L |
|
|
|
SL 36 DJ |
120/70-12TL 51L SL36
130/70-12TL 56L SL36
140/60-12TL 56L SL36
140/70-12TL 60L SL36
|
3,9 - 5,4 mm
4,6 - 5 mm |
|
|
ST66 |
120/70-12TL 51LFRONT ST66
120/70-12TL 51PFRONT ST66
130/70-12TL 56PFRONT ST66
130/70-12TL 56L ST66
130/70-12REINFTL 62P ST66
140/70-12TL 60P ST66
140/70-12REINFTL 65P ST66
|
|
|
|
GTS23/24 |
120/70-12TL 51P GTS23
130/70-12TL 56P GTS23
130/70-12REINFTL 62P GTS24
140/70-12REINFTL 65P GTS24 |
Speciel tyres for front and rear (The GTS23 is for the front and the GTS24 for the rear). Andrea, Rome taht rides a 250 states "a good choice for both front and rear tyres. The behavior is very precise with an high level of
performance/security."
|
| Sava |
MC16 |
120/70-12 61J
140/70-12 56J |
4,7 - 4,8 mm. Cheap and reasonable grip in the dry, but after my crash I don't recommend it for the front wheel use. The front skid away under me on a wet road. It i snot a bad tyre - I've just loosed my confindence in it |
| Schwalbe |
Power Track |
120/70 - 12
140/70 - 12 |
|
| Last edited: 2002/06/04 |
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