Modern Vespa

Barry at SFSC just installed the K61's, 120/140. the ride is much smoother, feels more solid and the wobble is completely gone. traffic prevented me from hopping on the freeway, but later today i'm going to find some rain grooves and metal grates just for fun---let you know how much more i'll be loving this set.

good to know. next tire replacement I plan on putting them on

Woo hoo!

told ya!

So it was your bike he was talking about! I was there the other day and he told me he was installing these tires and said I should do the same when my tires wear down.

Please keep us posted so we'll know how well they perform. I feel like I'm gliding on water when riding over the rain grooves on my stock tires.

I am putting a new rear tire on tomorrow and can't wait to see how they perform. I too will have the 120/140 combo. Can't wait and I am glad to hear that they perform so well.

Great news! Congratulations!

K61 Unit!

Any update on your new tires? I made an appointment at SFSC to change my tires this coming Tuesday. Just trying to decide which ones to get since I don't feel safe riding over rain grooves on my Savas.

i took the scoot on 101, there's pretty much every bad road scenario possible happening there. the tires are fine on the grooves, i felt them ever so slightly, but the solid smooth ride was impressive as hell. i absolutely love this set of wheels

What did you have on before?

When we bought our GTSs we found the factory SAVA tire to be fine, except for the grooved California freeways. During our first service we replaced them with Pirelli GTS 23 & 24 style tires. They worked well and the wobble was gone.
These are the same tires that came on my wife's MP3 500.

Michelin Pilot City 120/130

Ugh, hate the pilot city compared to the heidenau. So much more stable and less wobble. Seriously, 85 from 101 after SLO was nerve wracking. I survived 85 all alone after 101 after pride parade no problems. We'll see how things go when the rain comes, if it comes.

Not that I'll need new tires again that soon, but I wonder if these are available in Canada? I've never heard of anyone here with those tires on their scooter.

rain, yep that'll be interesting--since i ride throughout the season i hope these tires will be good. coming back from Woodside today, encountered some uber grooves, but the tire did ok, felt pretty darn confident---gawd i love the freeway and these tires make me wanna ride even more.

Good to hear! I hope Barry will have some in stock when I bring my bike in Tuesday. I would feel better having these on before the oyster ride.

Until a few months ago Heidenau were pretty much unheard of except in adventure rider circles. The factory is great about answering availability by email. That's how I found Motoamore

So where can you order a set in the US?

From Heidenau USA....web pages are messed up but here's the contact info,

Moto Amore

John Bettencourt
457 Park Ave. #B
San Jose, CA 95110
Tuesday-Friday, 10-6pm PST
Saturday, 10-4pm PST
1-408-295-3004

moto-amore.com
motoamore@hotmail.com

Barry has a boatload in stock---yeah get them on before the ride!!!

Hello,
I do look at the forums from time to time. The new address is:
Moto Amore
448 E. Santa Clara St.
San Jose, CA 95113
408-295-3004
motoamore@hotmail.com
www.moto-amore.com
www.heidenauusa.com

What's up with the website? It hasn't been updated for a bit but I
didn't think it was messed-up.

goggle took me to this link...
http://www.moto-amore.com/heidenau/products.html

If I follow this link and click on "dealers" it lists,

Scooter Shop

1104 W. Collins Ave
Orange CA, 92867
scootershop.com

1-800-23-VESPA (83772)


HUH?

The scooter shoppe in Orange also have them but their service sucks. I will personally not go back but if you live locally and want to save on shipping it might not be a bad option. They also sell some old scooters and new Kymco's.

Also under dealers it should list Casa Lambretta and SF scooter center besides
Scooter Shop. These are shops that have made a point of keeping an inventory of some amount on hand that suits their customer base. You won't find a lot of 12" tires at Casa Lambretta, but if you really wanted them I'm sure they would order them for you. If you want to order them directly from me that's fine, but it might be a good idea to talk to your local shop about carrying them.

I asked..."Is there a dealer in Canada for the K58 and K61 scooter tires?
Thanks!!"
Heidenau responded "No sorry.
We are looking for one !

With best regards

Rolf Härtner
Export Department
Tel. 0049(0)3529 552 801
Fax 0049(0)3529 512 438
EMail haertner@reifenwerk-heidenau.de
Internet http://www.Reifenwerk-Heidenau.de

Reifenwerk Heidenau GmbH & Co. Produktions KG
Hauptstr. 44
D-01809 Heidenau, HRA 1858
Persönlich haftende Gesellschafterin: Reifenwerk Heidenau Verwaltungs GmbH
Geschäftsführer: Dipl.-Ing. Hartmut Wolf
Registergericht Dresden, HRB 10453
UST - ID NR DE 161426426"

I have a ET$ and went to the Heidenau web site. Somebody please tell me how you are suppose to know what kind of tire to choose. I live / ride in semi-rural area with a lot of "secondary" or lumpy roads and also some nice smooth paved roads... I have no idea what type of tire to get.

I live in an area with some gravel and paved roads in small city MN. I chose the K58, it's kind of an all season tire IMO.

You might want to contact Motoretta, their website is Motoretta.ca, they have three dealerships in Toronto and it would be great if they were able to offer your tires.

i suggest:
front K58
back K62
or the K66 for the 12'+ wheels on GT et. al.

Yes,
Definitely the K58 and K62 for an ET4. I've installed them on a few bikes so far with good results. The K66 IS a great tire for the 12" bikes as well. Good all weather traction without the road noise some people mentioned with the K58.
I have no problem sending tires to Canada if a person or shop was interested.

MotoAmore installed a K61 for the rear of my ET4 while I waited this weekend...

John also took time to show me helmets and goggles - no sales pressure

I will make the trip down to south bay for future needs

Thanks to everyone who chimed in on ET4. So I assume the K61 is not recommended for all around ET4 use?

I don't think they are noisier than OEM Sava's.

The K61 is a great tire, BUT, if you want an all weather tread, something that will deal with water, and dig-in on gravel and dirt roads, then a K62 or 66 is a good option. The K61 looks great on the back of an ET and the K61 130 looks even better. I'm now out of the 130/70-10's though, sorry.
I don't think the K58 is noise either. I can definitely hear them though. I wear a half-helmet so I hear a lot of things. On a good pavement you get a little "knobby" sounding sound. This is mostly noticeable with the 12" tires.
Nothing at all with the 3.5-10's.

My understanding is that K58/62 combo is better for all weather use

I am a fair weather scooterist and went with the K61.

BTW I think the longevity of Heidenaus is due to the amount of tread - couldn't believe those were wear bars at the bottom of a DEEP rain groove

Does anyone know if this "wobble" is attributed to a tire being hard or soft, I'm not saying if the tire is over or under inflated, but in regards to the composition of the rubber being hard or soft?

Just came back from a 65 mile ride on gravel roads. K58's are phenomenal!!!