Dunlop: 208 vs 220

[Gadget]

I thread lightly, so, with that in mind, what are the advantages of the 208's vs. the 220's?
What about life?
These are for a SV650
Does GPMotorsports really have the best prices? I made a few phonecalls and it seems, but do you guys know of a better option?

Thanks for the help.

(if I wanna go to the beers on Fri. I first NEED tires... I am running a slick in the back )

[Anonymous]

I don't know about the 220's. My R1 came stock with 208's. The Dunlop website categorizes them as follows:

D208 ZR - ULTRA-HIGH-PERFORMANCE STREET

D220 - HIGH-PERFORMANCE/SPORT-TOURING

My guess is that the 220's will last longer, but wouldn't have the same grip, but the latter would probably only be noticed on a racetrack or scraping pegs/dragging knee in the canyon.

As for pricing, check our sponsors - Rocky Mountain Race Tire is a Dunlop-only dealer.

*** Also, try TFOG (303-216-2400) - they're in Golden and they have low prices (I bought my last tire off them).

[towneh]

greetings gadget,
the d220 tire is best suited for long distance trips; the compound is very hard !!! i rode them for a little more than 8,500 miles. The mileage was spread between maybe 500 miles around town, then on a trip from here to San Diego, thru Houston, to Jacksonville, up to the Dragon, and back to Denver AND a another trip from Denver to Tyler, then back to Denver. Not very good in the twisties, they skittered in the Dragon but then again... the RF was fully loaded with a big tank bag, saddlebags and a duffle.
**not an all-purpose tire**
henry

also check out TFOG; they pre-flighted my RF900R for my trips!!! ya need reliable stuff for x-country!

[Hoopty]

First off, I SERIOUSLY doubt GPM has the best price on ANY tire. Check out Discount Motorcycle Tire and Performance, they usually have pretty cheap rubber.

May I suggest the BT020's for your SV? I've gone through more sets of tires on my SV than I can remember, but my favorite sport-touring combo was a BT020 rear and a BT010 front. The 010 is stickier than the 020, but doesn't last as long. This worked out well for me as I went through rear tires faster than front tires anyway. I probably got damn near 10,000 miles out of that tire combo. You can go 020's front and rear if you want, but I wanted something stickier for hard-core riding and stoppies.

[HDave]

my ride came with 207's, they were ok.

I replaced them with 208's (after a nail pushed up the purchase date). I like them quite a bit. I do not ride all that hard (yet). They seem to grip just fine and be quite predictable.

I bought them at excel on sale, buy rear at list price get the front for free. It seamed a reasonable deal, but I was under the gun due to the nail issue.

for what that is worth...

[Hoopty]

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention- you should be able to pick up a set of those BT's for UNDER $200.

[Anonymous]

For bridgestones, contact Sean @ Metro. Site sponsor, discounts, you know the drill.

For Dunlops contact Mark @ Rocky Mountain Race Tire. He can't get the 220's I'm pretty sure, but the 208's should not be a problem. (He only deals in high performance tires)

We don't get any discounts on Michelins that I'm aware of but Vanmar probably has the best prices on those.

[Nick_Ninja]

Vanmar ------ and NOT Dunlops

[Gadget]

thanks for the help and tips.

I ended up springing for the 220's since I don't really outperform my bike and I will get 20% more of life...
So I'll wear them and let you know.
The rubbers ended being $250 everything included at GPM (taxes, mounting, etc.)

[Anonymous]

Did you call TFOG? Just curious what their price was. They probably would have had to order them though, and if you're in a rush and GPM had them in stock...

[Gadget]

Yes, I called all the sponsors.
They were ~50 higher in the 208's (which were 17 more than the 220's). They had to order the 220's.