Tires – French tires more competitive than ever! – The Power One 17 “sculpted for competition

Posted on by admin

French tires more competitive than ever !

Tires - French tires more competitive than ever! - The Power One 17 & quot; sculpted for competition

It was on the sublime Portimao track in Portugal that Michelin presented its latest motorcycle tire to the international press: the Michelin Power One. Or rather its latest tires because behind the same name actually hide 27 models ! Test.

The Power One 17 "sculpted for competition

During the lunch break, the Michelin mechanics are busy: in 1 hour, the 22 motorcycles will change tires to fit on our return to competition Power One. At first glance, the tires are identical: same dimensions, same tread, same color and same name … But it is not. !

Of course, these "new" Power One also benefit from 2CT, SCT and NST technologies … But Michelin has rigged them up in addition to the CPT and MCP! But then, "how it works ?"… Michel Chevalet Michelin explains !

CPT stands for "Competition Profile Technology": it is in fact a profile used "in MotoGP in 2008"by the Auvergne firm to increase the rubber surface on the ground, especially in the full angle phase.

"Compared to the Power Race, we estimate the gain at 15%", explains Éric Leyval before observing, with supporting diagram, that"the contact surface starts from lower and rises higher".

The objective is "better cornering grip, even when taking angles between 45 and 60 °, as well as maximized stability and lane keeping". And in fact, we must admit that this tire is particularly stable on the angle !

In return, it requires a little adaptation time when it comes to setting the angle. All other things being equal – same track, almost the same outside temperature, same CBR600 and same rider – the competition version of the 17 "is more lively: the bike engages earlier and harder.

However, this tendency to enter the curve is quickly integrated. We refocus, we increase the pace and it doesn’t take long to discover that the imperfections of the track are less well erased on this second version of the Power One.

"This is due to the "Maximized Contact Patch" (here is the famous "MCP", Editor’s note) which equips the 17th competition", explains Éric Leyval to Site. This is therefore the second difference between the Power One" circuit / road "and" competition ": the architecture: while the front and rear tires of the Power One" circuit / road "have three layers, the rear tire of the "competition" has four and the front tire five !

"Experts keep the brakes longer and on the angle, and put the throttle faster … and on the angle always", notes the R&D manager. However, without being an" expert "in the chrono, the difference is noticeable: what you lose in comfort, you gain in feeling.

It is especially at the level of the train before that the information goes back better: the handlebars bounce and travel more! "However, there is a "V" version of the front tire: its carcass is softer than those of versions A and B – more or less hard rubber – some pilots prefer it as well.", adds Éric Leyval.

With the competitor’s Power One, we go so far as to modify our trajectories by "rediscovering" certain passages of the track, more irregular than they seemed with the 17 "more oriented leisure..

The fifth driving session on the formidable Daytona 675 allows us to confirm the strengths of this tire: rapid warm-up, foolproof grip and a very good compromise between agility and stability. !

For good drivers, the choice will therefore be based on this category 17 "Competition. On the other hand, there is no longer any question of riding with:"even if they are approved, we do not recommend them for road use. We have better tires for this", cleverly slip the brand managers !

Related articles

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *