PRODUCT REVIEW
METZELER M9RR
Spring and summer riding here in NZ demands a tyre which can cope with hot sticky tarseal ... and wet tarseal . Metzeler ’ s M9RR claims to do both . Words & Photos : Ben Wilkins
W hen it comes to replacing a rider favourite , Metzeler had it ’ s work cut out with the M7RR . The M7RR gained a reputation among sports riders as a tyre that ’ d happily go to the track , scythe through the Coro-Loop and still work ok in the wet . Track , road and commute – the holy trinity of the tyre world . Still , time marches on and no man , or tyre , can rest on their laurels . Enter the M9RR . So when it came to replacing a rider favourite , Metzeler had its work cut out to better the M7RR . When a tyre has a load of fans , messing with it can often send them off to try something else . The plan ? Grippier in the dry , grippier in the wet , and longer lasting . Seems easy enough . But it ’ s not . Oh no .
SURELY IT ’ S JUST BLACK AND ROUND ? Those three things like to play the mutually exclusive game . Historically , if you make a tyre last longer then you ’ ll lose grip at one end of the spectrum or another . Make it grippier and it won ’ t last as long . Traditionally tyres have been made of carbon black , which is good for high mechanical grip in the dry . Somewhere in the 2000s silica compounds came along and gave improved chemical grip making them the choice for wet conditions . Silica was then mixed with carbon black to get the blend of performance a tyre engineer was after . Metzeler says that advances in silica compound chemistry now means it can offer tyres with good wet and dry performance and longevity , all from silica compounds . Seems like a win-win .
30 KIWI RIDER