Modern Vespa

Anybody want to know how long the rear stock tire on a 250 will last? Here is your answer:

My stock Michelin Pilot Sport SC rear blew out at 1838 miles this past weekend. I was trying to push 2K but I guess the rear had second thoughts The thing exploded - sounded like a shotgun going off underneath my bum! Fishtail city after that right onto the side of the road.

Of course the blow out had to happen in a curve in the middle of friggin' nowhere (by nowhere I mean not even cell reception)! Luckily the 250 didn't go down and my mp3 friend made me bitch for 1 1/2 hours back to my house to get the trailer... I just want to say right now that riding on the back of an mp3 is just as much fun as piloting it!

Any ideas for a replacement rear? The fronts are stock and in great shape.

wow that seems like a bit premature of a blowout...even for a 250...what kind of tire is that so i can avoid it.

From what I have read here most people like the pirelli's and the michelin gold standard. I am running a Heidenau K61 on the rear and so far i like it.

I imagine this experience will induce religion about checking tire pressure and tread wear frequently and replacing early.

As for choosing a replacement, what's the weather like in Auburn?  Do you ride year-round?  Do you commute to work?

WTF, I had 3800 miles on my rear before I swaped it out with a Zippy. I could have gone to maybe 4000 but I had some time to kill so I did the swap.U

The tire pressure was for 2up (whatever the manual recommends). I've only had the scoot since early Spring and the heat in Auburn can get up to 110. Dunno why it popped so early. The 250 is for weekend pleasure riding only, don't use it to commute. Avoid the Michelin Pilot Sport SC's at all cost!

son of a bitch look at that hole. Glad to hear you kept it upright. My Michelin made it to around 4300 miles. I wonder if it was the heat on your streets out there. I like my Pirelli rear tire but they say the life span is not as long as some others. So might not be what you are looking for next.

I had a Pilot on my rear for my 250... lasted around 2600 miles but was shredded like yours. Go with the Michelin Gold Standard rear tires...MUCH better quality, though with the inherent 12" "flaw" of the 250 rear tire, you'll still only get around 4K+ with the golds....scootertrap has em:

http://www.scootertrap.com/Tires.htm

Do you ride 2 up all the time? If not that is why it wore out so fast.

I am just over 230 lbs and set mine about 2-3 lbs over single ride pressure

Wayne B

Were those threads showing before you went for your ride?

holy crapoly. I hope your threads weren't showing beforehand.

Todd.

Nope, no threads were showing... Was getting a bit bald but not too bad. The Michelin Gold's are only available for the front on an mp3 250. any other ideas? metzler perhaps?

Any bald is too bald, that is why tyres have wear indicators, if you push past these you are just asking for tyre failure.

You got 199 miles less than I did for the blow out on my stock tire on my 250. Ran 10 rear tires total with life between 1,100 and 2,900. Best life and longest good ride on Heidenaeu K61 but it has to be in 140 size. The 130 size has a center groove which rides squirlly on the rear. The Michelin Gold Standard is available at Scooter Trap and others. They do not differentiate between front and rear on the Gold Standard although some web pages state "front". Some 250s delivered with them. I ran one and it ran well. Best ride on Pirelli Diablo with better life than most. I have already ordered one for my 400.

As to how much life you get on your tire it is largely dependent on how and where you ride. Comparisons of tire life need to be with same rider in same location. High speed makes for short life on 12" rear. Some with mostly city riding get several times the life in the same tire.

I went through rear tires so fast that I ran several until threads showing, but kept a close watch on them as center tread disappeared. Blow out handled well, but bummer being stranded 90 miles from home. Some like the pilots go very quick when the tread is gone and others have a few hundred miles until the threads show. I know I should not have ridden past the wear indicators, but 10 tires would have benn 12 to 14 otherwise with all the cost and time to change. I took advantage of the 3 wheel ride's forgiveness. Also some tires have wear indicators too far to the side. Center can be slick without hitting wear indicators. I also learned to keep a new tire so I wouldn't have to wait for one in the mail when I wore one out.

You got 199 miles less than I did for the blow out on my stock tire on my 250. Ran 10 rear tires total with life between 1,100 and 2,900. Best life and longest good ride on Heidenaeu K61 but it has to be in 140 size. The 130 size has a center groove which rides squirlly on the rear. The Michelin Gold Standard is available at Scooter Trap and others. They do not differentiate between front and rear on the Gold Standard although some web pages state "front". Some 250s delivered with them. I ran one and it ran well. Best ride on Pirelli Diablo with better life than most. I have already ordered one for my 400.

As too how much life you get on your tire it is largely dependent on how and where you ride. Comparisons of tire life need to be with same rider in same location. High speed makes for short life on 12" rear. Some with mostly city riding get several times the life in the same tire.

I went through rear tires so fast that I ran several until threads showing, but kept a close watch on them as center tread disappeared. Blow out handled well, but bummer being stranded 90 miles from home. Some like the pilots go very quick when the tread is gone and others have a few hundred miles until the threads show. I know I should not have ridden past the wear indicators, but 10 tires would have benn 12 to 14 otherwise with all the cost and time to change. I took advantage of the 3 wheel ride's forgiveness. Also some tires have wear indicators too far to the side. Center can be slick without hitting wear indicators.

Once the tread is gone in the middle you only have a few hundred miles, if that to threads.

Wayne B

It's very tricky to locate one...which is one reason I moved to a 500(because of the 14" tire):

http://www.busters-accessories.co.uk/productinfo.aspx?catRef=566005&tduid=6a2a5b1fb75e9287306f942cc3366576&affId=1506797

http://www.af1racing.com/store/Scripts/prodView.asp?idProduct=7520

other prospect:

http://www.motorcycle-superstore.com/5/32/404/5816/ITEM/Pirelli-GTS-24-Rear-Scooter-Tire.aspx

Also ran across this which you might find interesting...most of the rest of us have read it a few times and its an invaluable research source made by Fuzzy:

https://modernvespa.com/forum/topic35817

My OEM Maxxis rear (130/70 - 12" 62P) lasted 7500km, until I ended up getting it changed since my scooter was at the dealer's for other reasons.

It still had plenty of tread left, and it probably could have lasted even longer.

I've spoken to the Australian distributor, and they will be getting more of the Maxxis tyres in for the 250. I'll be sure to stock up when they do.

One person's tyre may last only 1200 miles, another's, 5,000 - and the difference can only be down to riding style and road surface.

Those whose roads are mainly concrete should complain! Those who love acceleration should just smile smugly.

Get a Kenda tire from Motor Sports scooters..And you will be amazed.

Tell us more, UFO.

The employees like pizza and beer..

Now that is really premature failure. I had the first rear tire same as yours, MPS and the other 2 MGS which average out to about 6000 miles. Into the 4th tire now which is a Continental and it is a bit soft compared to Michelins.

Looks like I'll be changing the michelin's every 1600 miles based on all the great feedback! This is a good thing considering it means that I am beating the s**t out of the mp3 which is exactly why I bought it! I love this bike - sooo much fun on the back roads

If you want to stick with Michelin go with the Gold Standard. The Pilots are not designed for a heavy bike. Per Michelin's own web page they are for "medium weight" scooters. I ran two Pilot Sports and one Pilot City. The second Sport and the City were only because it was all I could get without waiting. All 3 had the ride quality suffer within 1000 miles. the Sports did get to 2000 miles but half of that was poor ride. The City went much quicker.

Bloody hell macaid - I have no sympathy. Cocking about and trying to push a tyre to a predefined limit, as opposed to letting common sense prevail could have quite easily gifted you a Darwin Award for an act of sheer stupidity.

You obviously have no concept of safety, and should sell your steed immediately, saving you the cost of a tyre while pocketing some cash which I would suggest should be used to buy you a box to grow old in, far away from any future human contact.

What would have happened if you'd have dropped it? Hit a kid in a pushchair? Made another motorist swerve? Looking at the tyres, you have obviously pushed them way past the wear indicators. You are in a league table below people that somehow manage to run out of petrol.

I have complete and utter loathing and contempt for people who don't take stock of the condition of their machines. You sir, are one such idiot.

SteveO

I like you already, the moderators won't, but I do.

Wayne B

Actually I agree with him.

Back in February I purchased a Michellin Gold for the rear of an MP3 250 from Cyclegear. They are available in the US. Just make sure you get the rear reinforced one.
Jill

I'm careful about my tires and mechanical bits (two kids at home are an overwhelming responsibility, I can't afford to not manage my risks( - but I have run out of gas three times in my adult life. Unfortunately for me my husband is of SteveO's, Wayne B's, and JimC's level of compassion for stupidity combined with carelessness . What I have discovered is that I can learn to be less scatterbrained than my personal nature dictates. Sometimes a little (or a lot) of negative reinforcement does wonders.

Georgiagirl and SteveO, I think it is well documented on this forum that the MP3 250 tire can look reasonable when you set out for the ride and be completely shot by the end of it.

I am totally anal about mechanical parts on my bikes. I have ridden motorcycles for 20 years and was a professional bicycle racer. Coming from a bicycle background you are crazy nuts about tires and air pressure!!! Well, I will tell you that on my 250 I still had tread left when I left for an all day ride. With about 100 miles to go, my tire blow out and looked just like this.
Best thing about the MP3 250 though, is how stable it is with a rear blow out. I was at highway speeds, noticed the rear felt weird and pulled to the side. Husband could not believe I have a blow out.

Give the guy a break! Probably the best thing for everyone with a 250 to do is change out that rear tire at 1000miles to the gold standard or something with harder rubber than those pilot sports.

Cheers,
Jill

GeorgiaGirl, I hope I didn't offend. I am very good at blanket bombing, and some particular topics get my back up more than others, hence the reason I stopped lurking long enough to express the disdain to which I feel towards the OP.

As for running out of petrol, that is another particularly irksome point. At the risk of sounding quite self righteous, if one runs out of petrol, what else isn't one paying attention to?

And JillRide44 - My main troubles were down to the OP's attitude of pushing his luck, as opposed to the well publicised fact that MP3's eat rear tyres. I have a Fuoco 500 and am well aware that my tyre is disappearing at a rate quicker than I would deem acceptable. The difference is, he knew it was in need of changing, but carried on anyway.

While we are on the difficult subject of maintaining machines - you mentioned that you went for an all day ride of an undetermined amount of miles. Did you perhaps fail to check the actual level of tread was OK accross all of the tyre? Not just the edges, I mean, all over the tyre. Did you perhaps check each time you stopped for gas? Just a cursory look would do. Did the tyre still have tread down the center of the tyre when it went?

If you answered no to any of the above, then I'm afraid I'd have to hold you as culpable as the OP. If you aren't making these checks regularly on long journeys (like your owners handbook undoubtedly states) then you also need to be purchasing one of those 'grow old in isolation from humanity' boxes that I recommended to the OP.

SteveO, I think there are better ways to tell someone that they need to be careful for themselves and the sake of others.

If we slap every person on the nose with a rolled up newspaper that comes on and makes a mistake, then we are training people to never post ANY MISTAKES and thus basically not teach others what not to do. While its great that some have ridden bikes their whole lives and are 'expert' level riders, I think the most enjoyable and valuable part of this forum is the sharing of knowledge. When I got my 250, I had no idea that the tire would only last some odd 3K miles. I checked it regularly and while it did not blow out on the road with me, it QUICKLY got real shotty...within a few rides.

Point is, I don't think its appopriate for anyone, lurker, or not to call someone an idiot on here who is simply posting that they blew a tire and sharing. We'll be lucky if this guy post anymore shots like this or starts any topics to get feedback. If I wanted to join a group of elitist bikers who never talk about their real life goofs and only yell and insult one another I would've bought a Harley.

Yes, I appreciate I don't have the most gentille bedside manner, but it gets the job done.

Also, in regards to you closing comment, I doubt if we could have really have called it a 'goof' if he'd have spanked it down the road after losing control, and subsequently lost his own life or took that of another. Its an entirely preventable, and entirely stupid problem to have, unless the tyre has let go from some manufacturing defect.

If you don't like my style, fine. But please don't sit there and tell me that you fault my logic.

So SteveO, tell me how your "logic" tells you that this is preventable and just poor decision making?

As for your 'style' if you "care" so much about the welfare of others, why not register and post tutorials of you and your bike making tire changes, showing how to do proper pre-ride inspections, and giving great advice. Those go a lot further than calling someone names. There are people on here who might be the world's greatest mechanics but ppl don't give them the time of day because they lack the common courtesy skills most of learned in elementary school(or before).

Bottom line, this guy posted a pic of a blown tire, stated that it didn't show excessive wear and that it blew when he got to 1800 odd miles...well BELOW what is normal for that tire even among of who have experience with our rear tires failing or being replaced on our 250s. He stated that he was riding with a friend and that he uses his bike for pleasure riding only. He never said he was riding hard or fast. He even said the bike didn't go down. He "jokingly" said he was pushing for 2K, which is ridiculous because the tire should last longer than that.

Somehow you got that he was a person who never looked at the tire, rode it fast, never checks any other parts of his bike, and is some way deficient in the intelligent department.

I love lurkers. I've seen several come and go..I give you 1 month tops before you're banned...

Me thinks "lurker" has harbored a lot of anger in life and feels better when taking it out on others (catharthis gone wrong). This level of emotional development is commonly found in junior high school students. I hope this poor soul (and I truly do feel sorry for you) doesn't have any children for they will need many years of therapy to deal with his mediocre parenting skills...

Alright, this certainly isn't stellaspeed... You can't post there without being insulted by someone, which is great, but the sunshine carebear feel of modernvespa has it's pluses too. I doubt any modernvespa members have ever comitted suicide after posting and receiving nothing but positive feedback...

So, what's the stupidest thing you have ever done on your MP3? (insert new post here)

I'll start,
riding for 3 months with a loose bearing on the front left wheel assembly... Freeways and all. Looking back I should have found the problem sooner but wasn't intimate enough with the bike yet.

Go.

And to make people feel less stupid, someone on Stellaspeed was checking their fuel level in the dark by holding a lighter to the tank opening. I think that takes the cake.

Don't let him get to you macaid...we've all had mishaps, tires blown, fuel problems with our bikes. The only difference between us and SteveO is that we actually remember what that was like and seek to help others through it not try and yell them completely out of the hobby...

Looking at the picture in the OP, the wear markers must have been worn away many miles before this last ride started. I'm sorry, I'm with steveo on this, those who start a ride with tyres which are on the minimum or below it are not only endangering themselves but potentially those around them. It's also an indication of how much attention they pay to their bikes - I wonder what state the brake pads are in for instance?

Luthor, macaid, shall we hug now, or later?

Blimey - talk about missing the point. Do you seriously think that riding a tyre until it ceases to be any use to man-nor-beast is a responsible thing to be doing? The damned thing exploded - take that as a hint you are doing something wrong, be thoroughly ashamed about it, and never let the fact that you are so irresponsible ever reach the light of day, let alone a public forum.

Luthorhuss - Again, a false closing statement. I've had my fair share of scrapes, questions, and general musings about bikes, sure, like most others. The difference is, that I've also applied common sense and manufacturers guidelines to my foray into the world of bikes, so as not to get... myself... killed...

And please, if I've shouted him out of this hobby, then it's probably for the best. He maybe needs to grow a pair, rather than hide behind his buddy while psycho-analysing me from the shadows.

Man, if I ever make it the UK I am buying JimC and you lots of pints. I think we would all get a long well.

Wayne B