FIND TIRES

When motorcycles first came on the scene, every ride was an adventure. With few paved roads and a lack of rear suspension, bikes, riders, and tires all took a hammering.

Today, paved highways crisscross the world. Yet, with the incredible popularity of adventure motorcycles, riders can now head off the beaten path whenever the mood takes them.

This dual-terrain capability means motorcycle tires have to cope with an incredible set of diverse scenarios and as we all know, not all tires are equal.

While choosing the best tires for your adventure motorcycle, it is essential to identify which characteristics and capabilities are most needed.

Dunlop can help you choose the best tires for your motorcycle, whatever adventure you have planned next.

Dunlop Trailmax Mission

When it comes to modern adventure riding, the Dunlop Trailmax Mission is an absolute force of nature. It includes all the best design qualities you could ever want in an adventure tire.

The Trailmax Mission is an optimal choice for many top-ranked adventure motorcycle models available today.

These include:

BMW F800GS
BMW R1250GS Adventure
Honda Africa Twin CRF1000L
Honda XR650L
KTM 1290 Super Adventure R
KTM 790 Adventure R
Yamaha Super Ténéré
Yamaha Ténéré 700

The Trailmax Mission features a stepped design. Rather than a continuous tread pattern all around, the grooves are staggered. This feature creates a powerful, stable contact path for street riding.

This aggressive tread design allows for excellent grip on even the most unyielding terrain. It also provides the rider with more stability, which makes the handling feel smoother.

Just like our dominant MX/SX tires, the Trailmax Mission are bias-ply construction which allows the rider to run lower tire pressures for increased traction off-road without damaging the tire. With bias ply stronger sidewalls and strong wrap-around lugs, the edge of the tire remains well-protected from punctures and roadside hazards. 50/50 tires need to tick an incredible number of boxes. So some tires may compromise dirt handling for wet highway traction. This is not an issue for the Trailmax Mission.

The Trailmax runs silent and smooth. The Trailmax’s on-road capabilities are just as impressive as its off-road ones. Along with its long-wearing compound and excellent cornering grip on the street, it has great ride quality, and stability everywhere it goes.

The Trailmax Mission tire took more than two years and 30 prototypes to develop. The good news is, this time investment shows in its performance quality.

Dunlop Mutant

If you are an adventure rider who leans more towards the urban jungle, consider the Mutant.

It excels on the street but can also hold its own on gravel tracks and hard-packed dirt roads. As its name suggests, this tire is a mutation of several different styles. These combine extended longevity, excellent stability, and impressive wet weather handling.

Dunlop’s mastery of rubber technology, utilizing high-silica compounds, is responsible for creating a tire for all seasons. It does this by combining a rounded profile with an aggressive tread pattern. The deep thread channels that work so hard on gripping dirt also repel water.

The Mutant’s ability to handle everything the road and the elements can throw at it, together with its dirt trackability, makes it the ultimate crossover tire.

One of the Mutant’s unique and seemingly contradictory qualities is its ability to offer an impressive high mileage. It does this while also providing a rapid warm-up time. Combine these qualities with the wet grip of a touring tire, and the Mutant redefines the word versatile.

Sportmax Roadsmart IV

The Sportmax Roadsmart IV is an all-around top choice because of its high-mileage performance and is a major improvement over the already stellar Sportsmax Roadsmart III.

For instance, people who ride adventure motorcycles typically use them for their touring comfort and usability. That is why they tend to equip their bikes with sport-touring tires, for the best riding experience.

The tire incorporates the Dunlop MT Multi-Tread™ design. It is this which gives the tire a durable center and excellent grip strength on the shoulders to assist cornering.

Like the Mutant, the Roadsmart IV has a wide footprint, increasing longevity.

The sidewall helps with shock absorption duties for those longer trips. Meanwhile, the tread pattern prevents water build-up.

D606, D908RR, and Geomax EN91

Unlike some of the sportier tires mentioned earlier, the D606, D908RR, and Geomax EN91 have more aggressive tread pattern designs optimized for gripping dirt.

If you are one of those riders who loves to tackle very aggressive terrain and doesn’t mind sacrificing on-road usability for performance, you need a knobbier tread pattern that can keep up and going.

All these tires work brilliantly on sand and mud like a dedicated motocross tire. Yet, they are Department of Transport (DOT) approved for street and highway use.

Their design is knobbier than some other adventure tire options. A feature that is perfect if you prefer to find tucked away areas and corners of the world where other tires fear to tread.

Choosing the Best Adventure Motorcycle Tires

The tires you buy for your adventure motorcycle have a dramatic impact on the feel of each ride. Plus, a great set of tires can improve rider confidence. You would have to consider which tire is the best for your motorcycle based off your rider styles.

Luckily, Dunlop makes a wide range of tires that fit any adventure rider’s needs.

Are you ready to head off on a big adventure? Locate your nearest Dunlop motorcycle tire dealer for professional advice on the best tires for your dual-sport motorcycle.