Kzin said:
Why does it happen? Is it bad? Is it a sign I need to go to a more aggressive tire? I am running sport touring tires at the moment, MEZ4's to be exact. I wanted something with better mileage than the pilot sports that I was running. After my little spill the other day I noticed Blueing near the edges on both the rear and front. I have only heard of race tires doing this and would like some more info.
Bluing is a sign of high heat and means that you're cooking the oils out of the tire. Depending on the severity, you could be losing some of the tire's grip potential. There's a couple ways to reduce/prevent overheating:
- Run more air pressure: Go up 2PSI cold at a time. This is the most likely cause/cure, since a lot of folks seem to run track pressures on a streetbike.
- Soften your suspension
Also, check for anything causing the suspension to bind (high levels of stiction). That forces the tire to become the suspension, putting a LOT of stress/heat into it.
You also might consider changing tires anyhow: MEZ4's aren't all that good compared to their newer sport touring bretheren, (Bridgestone BT-020, Michelin Road), and are being replaced by the new Metzeler Roadtec Z6's. I can say for sure that I didn't like the MEZ4s much when I had them (they came as OEM fitment on my bike).
Scott
