Total Motorcycle Community Forums

One more question, and this one is going to sound insanely stupid...

I have read of a number of tires that are good for my bike, but do I need to stay with the OEM width (R=140), or do the tires just need to be designed for a 17 inch rim, and can be larger width? I have been thinking about this, trying to research, and could justify both options.

I have read suggustions that say to stick with OEM width.

I am curious because I like a rounder profile on tires, and logic would suggest that a larger width would be better. But I am in the New Bikers Forum, so I may be wrong. So does size matter???

The short answer is that your bike was designed to work with 140 width, so it will operate best with that tire.

Going to wide may affect clearances, as well as altering steering in a drastic way.

You can usually safely go another 10 mm or to a 150, but I'd stick with the 140, because fitting a bigger tire to a smaller rim (width wise) changes the tires profile and may cause strange wear.

It's best to stay with tires rated for your rim size, maybe one size up if you want to push it.

You can try finding a tire with a taller aspect ratio.....

....a 140/80-17 will be taller/rounder than a 140/55-17 for example.....


Above was just an example and I have no idea if you can actually find tires in those sizes.....