Tyre traction in this hot weather

[benny hedges]

ahahah nice one seb

i completely mullered the blade rear on sunday round wales, up round trawsfynnyd, ffestiniog, llanwrst etc... looks like ive done a hard track day lol, the sides were completely pickled and blue and the centre almost down to the wool.
picked a few sets up last night so im goner pop one on in a bit, if i cba moving!

in some places on sunday the tarmac was actually bubbling, melted to fook!
again, those bare bits will be very slippy in the wet.

[Image]

Checked my tyre pressure and it was only 3 psi lower than it should be so don't think it's that. I think it's the tyres melting or the road surface being soft or both. I think the melting tyres is the most likely culprit as I've noticed most bikes in front of me leaving rubber marks on the road on cornering.

[sirch345]

Ah well, at least you now know the tyre pressure was not that far out, so that's good,

Chris.

[Keith]

It just dawned on me that we have been forgetting the obvious too. What about our own coolant?? In this heat I am sure the bikes are running hotter and wonder if coolant came out of the overflow directly in line to go over the rear tyre? I know this happened on me when I first had the bike and it scared the crap out of me. Its just a thought

[Wicky]

Any 'extra' coolant goes into the catch tank reservoir - if any is exiting the bike's coolant system it'll be a leak somewhere.

Who, what, why: When does tarmac melt?

I'd bank on it being oil and dust effecting tyre adhesion.

It just dawned on me that we have been forgetting the obvious too. What about our own coolant?? In this heat I am sure the bikes are running hotter and wonder if coolant came out of the overflow directly in line to go over the rear tyre? I know this happened on me when I first had the bike and it scared the crap out of me. Its just a thought

[sirch345]

Except for the very early ones IIRC, there is a coolant drain hose that normally tucks in behind the small standard bellypan/oil filter protector on the lefthand side of the bike. That comes from the water pump housing. Whether or not enough would be coming from there to effect the rear tyre adhesion from a water pump failure is another thing, but I agree worth thinking about and checking out.

Chris.

[Wicky]

That only comes into action if there there's a seal/gasket failure in the waterpump/clutch area. But as you say worth taking a minute to inspect.

[sirch345]

That only comes into action if there there's a seal/gasket failure in the waterpump/clutch area.

Most definitely I agree, even then I'm not sure there would be enough fluid to affect the rear tyre adhesion, only a possibility.

Chris.

[VTRDark]

What about our own coolant??

The clue is in the word coolant It's not just anti-freeze but also a Summer coolant. If it was to boil then there are other issues going on.

(:-})

[Keith]

Except for the very early ones IIRC, there is a coolant drain hose that normally tucks in behind the small standard bellypan/oil filter protector on the lefthand side of the bike. That comes from the water pump housing. Whether or not enough would be coming from there to effect the rear tyre adhesion from a water pump failure is another thing, but I agree worth thinking about and checking out.

Chris.

Well I have gone all through the cooling system and found no faults but discovered that I was filling up the reservoir too much when it was cold. This in turn caused the coolant to expand to a degree it came out of the overflow which correctly said for my bike comes out in the small belly pan area. I now check the expansion bottle level when the bike is hot and have had no trouble ever since. The bike never overheats and I dont get water in the oil or dripping from the waterpump area.

[Smokinjoe73]

Just a note on pressure. Extreme low pressure will eventually cause carcass deflection and some heat, but on the racetrack I consistently run 32F 28R and go way faster than any street ride.

Have also done 3hr endurance races at those pressures so unless you are way lower than that, too low is not the prob.

Lower pressure actually gives a larger footprint. Think of a hard tire acting more like a bowling ball. Tiny contact patch.

The recommended pressure from Honda is for the bike at its full capacity. Rider, pillion, gear, etc. If you want more traction, you need to lower it. It will feel different at first, but you have twice the rubber on the road.

[VTRDark]

Just heard on the news that many roads are melting in the heat and they are sending the gritters out. So watch out for loose grit now as well folks.

(:-})

[Virt]

Just heard on the news that many roads are melting in the heat and they are sending the gritters out. So watch out for loose grit now as well folks.

(:-})

It's a good thing I have no bike capable of being ridden currently then.. No, scratch that. it's definitely sh1t Grit in the summer though??

[sirch345]

Except for the very early ones IIRC, there is a coolant drain hose that normally tucks in behind the small standard bellypan/oil filter protector on the lefthand side of the bike. That comes from the water pump housing. Whether or not enough would be coming from there to effect the rear tyre adhesion from a water pump failure is another thing, but I agree worth thinking about and checking out.

Chris.

Well I have gone all through the cooling system and found no faults but discovered that I was filling up the reservoir too much when it was cold. This in turn caused the coolant to expand to a degree it came out of the overflow which correctly said for my bike comes out in the small belly pan area. I now check the expansion bottle level when the bike is hot and have had no trouble ever since. The bike never overheats and I dont get water in the oil or dripping from the waterpump area.

Interesting that. You should however be safe to rule that possibility out now, as you most likely guessed. So that's good news,

Chris.

[Image]

Sometimes in winter I ride with slightly low pressure to give extra grip on frozen tarmac but I notice the reduction in acceleration even though it's only a few psi.