I’ve got a V4 Pikes Peak and in the last three weeks the rear Diablo Rosso IV has picked up 5 punctures on the gravel drive (small shards of flint). It didn’t have any problems for the first 3000 miles and then suddenly a nightmare. Any ideas why. A mechanic said it would be when the tyre is hot and because it’s got worn it’s picking up the shards. Secondly the PP is quite tall for me (I’m 1m 75cm) even with a low seat and minimum preload at the back. I watched a review of the Rosso’s on YouTube and they waxed lyrical about the side grip and said that the flip side is that they are about 1cm taller profile in the centre compared to most tyres. Is that true? Maybe I’ve just landed in a parallel universe.
For small flints to puncture the carcass, I’d venture to suggest the tyre is wearing if not already worn out. I have the same tyre on my V4 Pikes Peak and 600 miles in, I can’t see it lasting even 3000 miles. It is after all, classified as a sports tyre and I’ve never had a sports tyre last on a Multistrada. Andy
A profile common across many of the designated sports and hypersports tyres currently on the market today. The profile of the Pirelli Rosso 4 and Metzeler Roadtec SE are both 195/50/17. The Metzeler is however a sports touring tyre which has a much flatter shape for a longer lasting tyre. Once the Rosso 4 is toast, I’ll be trying the 01SE replacement, the Roadtec 02. Andy
Must admit I had the Roadtec 01SE on my 1260 PP and love them. When I got the V4 with the Rosso IV’s I was worried what they’d be like in the wet. I can honestly say they’ve been much better than the Roadtec 01 SE in dry and wet (but last half as long and get loads more punctures!).
Tyres are very personal, on short acquaintance, I find the Rosso 4’s very slow to warm up, riding in 4°C to 10°C and the combination of cold and wet leaves me very uninspired. I’ll not be buying them and if the Roadtec 02 doesn’t work as I hope, I’ll revert to my old favourite, Metzeler M7RR’s. Andy
As you say very personal. I just find bends a totally different experience with the DR IV’s. Maybe it’s the bike rather than the tyres.
Maybe they are taller - I watched this FortNine vid and he explains the V shape of the Pireli Rosso 1V
Z so yes that's one of the ones I watched and they did say about a cm higher but surely the 75 indicates a height profile of 75% ratio to the width of the tyre and they all have the same width?
2 tyres, different manufacturers, identical sizes but different profiles. The Pirelli link hasn’t been quite as accommodating as the Metzeler link which shows the whole profile but you can see the difference in shape. Andy https://tyre-images.pirelli.com/MKTData/MOTO/files/3683/motooverviewimage/roadtec_01_se_detail_1.png, https://www.pirelli.com/tyres/en-gb/motorcycle/catalogue/product/diablo-rosso-iv
The height - I think means the height of the sidewall and not to actual height of the tyre at its highest point.
Oh wow. So, silly question. How does the speedometer get calibrated when we swap tyres with different circumferences?
On the current generation of Ducatis with electronics, the rpm at 20mph in 2nd gear will vary depending on the circumference of the tyre. Andy
Electricary. Probably an algorithm that does the maths behind calculating the distance travelled by one rotation of the wheel and compare it to the constant it was given. Andy
Erm surely it can’t know the distance it has travelled to the accuracy needed calibrate between different tyre heights. If a tyre has a height of 0.5 cm higher the 2 x pie x radius would mean a 6cm larger circumference. Can the bike tell that difference from a satellite signal (and does the bike receive satellite signals without being connected to a mobile phone with built in satellite receiver?)
The V2 Streetfighter rear has the Rosso IV, 180/60/17 and they, IMHO, make for pretty sharp and sometimes unexpected drops into corners at low speed...maybe unexpected because I'm not used to riding on sports/track oriented tyres. The quirky handling is causing me to consider replacement tyres with a lower profile such as the Road 6 or Roadtec 01 (180/55/17). Fortunately, it is possible to recalibrate the bike for different tyres, through its own TFT menu.
I haven't tried it, so I can only assume it works! In the owner's manual it is under Instrument panel (Dashboard), setting menu - Tyre calibration.
