Pirelli Scorpion Rally STR - Long Term Real Travel Test! 

hi from Canada! Another T7 owner here. ive been enjoying your posts, keep it up. That road looks like a dream!!!

Glad to see you back home safe and sound. We are already starving for the trip footage.

Always great content.

I hope you are already at home and healthy, I also hope that you enjoyed Portugal. Big hug from Portugal

I did enjoy the Mitas E07 on my Xt660R. But on the Tenere I think I'll go to a Heidenau K60. It worked great for me in the past, and my riding style is similar to yours. Glad to know you're almost home, have a good trip!

Your video's are always extremely helpful and your reasoning in my opinion is spot on. On my 2021 T7 USA the tires and tube have not been an issue at all. Lucky, maybe. I do believe, when the time comes, I will try the TKC80 in the front and a Motoz Rallz in the rear. Hoping the Rallz will be good on the road for long distance as well. Take care and be safe.

Good info about the tubes. Just bought a Tenere and will keep eyes on the air pressure.

Had the exact same wobbling issue with the factory front Pirelli on my '22 T7. Tech sent me a video showing it do exactly what you described. Replaced it with a new tire of the same type and fixed the issue.

Have them on my Fantic 500. I’m right to the edges. Great handling wet or dry. I was very surprised at how much confidence they give me. Never noticed the noise, but I wear plugs.

Thank you for the information. I have a brand new Aprilia Tuareg with the same tires you mentioned. That annoying sound is there! I was confused about it, I tried twice to solve the problem at the dealer by changing the wheel balance... but after a test drive with another Tuareg - same unpleasant sound and feel - I understand that it's a "feature" of the tires and I need to get used to it. As a result, it was a sort of relief that nothing bad was happening to the bike.

I agree with you Pavlin that the pirelli scorp.rally str are great all-round tyres. As for noise I have not heard any noise from mine on v-strom650.But great video as usual mate,thanks.

Truly a smooth writing dual purpose road racing tire. My Caballero 500 pushes the limits of these babies on the mountain winding roadto where my concern was the sensation of my helmet wanting to come off. Not traction issues.

Good review. Great wear on your tires. Good to know when heading out long distance such as in USA. As you know, long way to Prudhoe Bay AK. Be safe, The last leg before home, always the test of the trip.

thank u my friend

Good review, When I put this tire on my 660, it was making so much noise, i thought there is something wrong with bike, took me a lot of time to get used to noise. Climbed Vrsic pass on April with full luggage and passanger under rain, zero degrees on the top of mountain pass, not a single issue. Great tire but switched to TKC Rocks for now.

Hi, lucky that you have review about this tire. Im searching dual sport tire for my sv650. Cheers!

Thanks for sharing your experience Pavlon. I also upgrade my tubes with heavy duty and put "ride on" in the tube because in my area is a lot of mesquite thorns...even US border patrol uses this. I also heard that mfg companies make deal with Pirelli but the tires coming with the bikes are not made in the same place or with same quality material as their other ones. My rear tire is having small cracks on the sides after just one year and 4,000 miles and i always parking in the shade

Thanks again Pavlin for your hard-earned insights, which benefit us all. I fitted a set of STRs to my recent Transalp, after the stock rear tyre was fairly worn at 5,000 kms. I made this choice (having preferred Pirellis for my road bikes forever) as something of a 'treat' for my new bike, not realising they were no longer made in Italy, like my Pirelli road tyres. After your comments on your (factory fitted) Pirellis on your Yamaha, of course I checked the origin of my STRs! No, not from Brazil in my case (in Australia) - the front is from Indonesia, and the rear is from... China. Like you, I don't wish to make any negative inference on China, and its manufacturing abilities (and so much of our manufactured goods now come out of there!) but this was something of a shock in regard to their price, given that Chinese manufacturing has taken over so much global manufacturing through being able to produce goods more cheaply than the west. I had to pay 'Italian prices' for these Asian-sourced Pirelli STRs, which were a similar price to the 'high-line' Italian Pirellis I last fitted to my road bike (which runs a 190/55 x 17 rear)! But I must say I have had none of the issues you raise with your experience with the STRs. No perceptible noise or vibration (compared to the prevous original tyres, which were also smooth and quiet - fairly asphalt-orientated Dunlop Trailmaxes) on the rear, nor any out-of-true issues with the front. They have been smooth, and fine. I suspect the issues you had with your front STR may have related to your bike being stored for an extended period with insufficient inflation, before you bought it. So far, at a little over 2,000 kms, I have had none of the issues you did, fortunately, and although the rear is not all that grippy on loose surfaces, I would say it performs quite well as a 70% - 30% bitumen to dirt application. But my rear has perceptible wear after only about 2,400 kms, and I wouldn't expect to get much more than 5,000 kms all up. I don't do much high speed on this bike, but do travel around 100 - 110 kmh for extended periods, in warm Australian conditions. I do a daily mix of bitumen and dirt. I run 33 psi in the rear for the most part, and a little more for long-distance on the bitumen. And down to 30 psi (rear) for rougher terrain, as I always did on my older ADV bike. I only ever got 5,000 kms from any rear tyre on my old adventure bike ('95 Cagiva Elefant 750) and about 10,000 from the fronts, and mostly preferred German Heidenaus on that bike, for off-road traction, and smooth ride on the bitumen. They have a continuous centre tread which does not vibrate on the highway. After these few kilometres on the (Asian) STRs, I will probably also return to the Heidenaus for the Transalp, if they are still able to come here from Europe, Suez Canal permitting. The Heidenaus are that bit more aggressive for off-road, and I have a lot of experience with them. I did run a Motoz rear at one point, when COVID meant less choice, but found that tyre severely lacking in upright grip on the bitumen once it was partly worn, and I removed it after about 3,500 kms, and won't use them again. The return to Heidenaus on that bike much better than the Motoz. It just locked up under braking on the bitumen in a very disappointing fashion once half worn. But I have no idea how you get such distances from your tyres Pavlin, in spite of the generally cooler temperatures in Eastern Europe, leading me to ask: what pressures are you running on the long stretches of your trips? Maybe 36 psi or so in the rear? That sort of pressure will extend the life of the tyres, but I find the grip (on bitumen roundabouts for example) a bit sketchy at those pressures, especially when the tyre is cold. The old 'grip vs. wear' decision. 36 psi is the recommended pressure for my Honda's rear, and possibly your Yamaha's also, but I find they need several kilometres to warm up before they grip at the start of the riding day at that pressure. Sorry my 'comments' become so long...

Thank you for your very reasonable comments regarding „50/50 tires“! I have the Rally STR on my Triumph Scrambler 1200 just because the Heidenau that used to be my favorite tire before was not available when I needed new ones last year. I totally agree with you that it is most important to have tires suitable for dirt - even if you do just 5% of dirt roads - on tarmac almost any tire will work but a rider with low skill level offroad will really struggle with street tires on dirt. When I picked up my bike with the new Rally STR it was 🌧 ☔️ quite a bit and I was immediately impressed by the wet grip of these Pirelli! Depending on what friends I am riding with, I sometimes do ride fast and about every two sets of tires I need one set of new footpegs😳😬… This 50/50 or 70/30 or whatsoever categories do make only little sense as they try to relate to the expected mileage on and off tarmac. The categorization should be as to what percentage of both conditions can be covered with the tire. Road to dirt my estimate for the Rally STR is 95/50 road/dirt. Before I had Mitas E-07 just because I wanted to know… they are probably 70/30 regarding my category - Heidenau K60 Scout probably 90/40… I actually had the shaking handlebar issue with the Metzeler Tourance that came with the new bike. Hearing the same from you and Pirelli makes me wonder if this might be typical for tires fitted at the factory🤔 Keep traveling! Martin

I have had these tires for a little while now. I took them on twisty roads with hard panniers and they handled terrific very impressive. I have done light off-road and they were okay but in deep sand or even regular sand they did struggle. Maybe lowering the air pressure would of helped, but I will be trying the Motoz Rallies next.

A good all-terrain tyre, Pavlin, that Pirelli STR. But I wouldn't call them 50-50, rather 70% street and 30% offroad. I have more dirt-oriented Heidenau K60 Scout on my Honda Transalp 600 PD06 which is about 60-40. Next tyres will be Heidenau K60 Ranger for even more offroad-bias. All the best for your adventures on the T7, Günter from Nürnberg/Germany

I put some Dunlop Trailmax Missions on my Tiger 900 and so far so good. I only have 1100 miles on them so no long term opinions. They’re billed as a 50/50 tire and have received some pretty good reviews. I’m like you. I’m not pushing them for ultimate performance.

Amazing how a tyre can change the feel of the bike so much. I have used Continental for 7 years now, and still happy. Perhaps coincidence, but no punctures since I began with them.. Sorry we couldn't meet in Portugal but Brexit created a passport issue for me. We did manage a short trip to Northern France last week ,now that I have passport t back. On Continentals on the new bike. Feels as good on this as the old bike. Feel is very important to me in tyre choice. Feel means confidence. Good topic. Happy travels 👍

Hi, I have a brand new KTM 1290 Super Adventure R, and I have exactly the same problem you describe having wooble at low speed, between 60 and 75 kph, especially noticeable when I release my hands from the handlebar. I checked the torque on the steering head nut, tried adapting rear shock preload, but it doesn’t fix the problem. I heard changing tire has solved problem in many case, and I’m glad to hear you experienced the same. Like you mentioned, probably something wrong with the stock tires. Of course KTM does not want to do anything, according to my dealer, this is normal and I’m not supposed to release my hands from the handlebar... 😀 Thank for your video!

I have also a new Tenere 700 with STR tyres but never had the wobble in the handlebar or a really loud noise during riding even over 140km/h.... They offer endless grip on road, I personally not tested performance off road.

This is the way

Hallo Pavlin, habe eine Frage, warum am Tacho eine Begrenzung von 170kmh steht, die Reifen haben aber ein Geschwindigkeitsindex "V" also bis 240kmh? Und Like aus Hannover

I use the motoz tractionator GPS on my bike after using the heidenau k60 scout and I am loving them. It has a rotation 50/50 and if you change it it becomes more off road. My k60 scout lasted 20k km in the rear but replaced earlier because it was 5 years old. That could be a great tire review.

Hi Pavlin! Another great video! Thanks. Did you considered the combo TKC80 front + TKC70 Rocks rear? You said that you use michelin 4mm tubes on the T7. Any issues with that? They dont get to hot in higway speeds? I use michelin 2.5mm tubes. The stock tubes are no good....

Hello from Romania! Great review as always. Where is that road? It looks very nice

Hi Pavlin, this is a very interesting topic, thanks for bringing it up. I follow you a lot and didn't realise that you run 2 different tyres on your bike. I see you have a knobbly 50/50 on the front and a 80/20 on the rear. Do you do this for longevity of the tyres or is there another reason? I look forward to hearing from you.

Hello Pavlin, i have the same with my front tyre on the crf1000l. But what you do with the rear tyre is amazing. Max. 7Tkm and the rear is blanc. Good luck from Germany. Stefan

With the riding you do , check out the new Motor Tractionator Dual Venture ( Front only Tyre ) ... tests look better than the TCK 80 and better road and off-road. Also you can reverse its direction which is interesting,

I bought my T700 on April 14th this year. Now, at 10.000 kms I can definitively say something on the Pirellis. I have had the same issues with shaking handlebars at 50-65 km/h, but astonishingly enough the problem slowly disappears the more kms I put on it. Other than that the tyres are quite a pleasant surprise. Extremely grippy on dry roads, I even managed to make my panniers touch the ground in faster twisties (Touratech 31 and 38 litres). In the wet they are quite good, too, but I'm always very careful anyway in such conditions. Offroad they are really decent as long as it doesn't become too muddy. The rear tyre should easily be good for another 4-5.000 kms, the front does not show significant wear, so I guess around 25 - 30.000 kms are possible. I don't care about the noise. Offroad rubbers do make some, and to be honest, I somehow like that. I am a diehard fan of Heidenau's K60 Scout and was planning to replace both tyres as soon as the rear is worn out. But the Pirellis are so convincing, that I'll have another Rally STR for the rear wheel and THEN replace them by Scouts. They are even noisier, but as I have pointed out, that's no issue. If Heidenau should for whatever reason stop manufacturing the K60 Scout, I'd probably stick to the Pirellis, and that really says something...

I had the same 2 problems, shaking front tyre and noisy rear tyre. Yamaha replaced the front under warranty (they know about this bad batch of tyres), and I plan to change the rear soon becasue of the noise. Did not know about the bad tubes, will watch the pressure more closely from now on.

I also used str on my resent trip to Romenia. it is really stiff in the sidewall. i had a slow leak in the rear tyre. it felt a bit soft but was fine in the twisties, to my surprise the pressure was only 6 psi. 16000km is really impressive. think i may get 12000 out if mine. on a cb 500x I agree that the rear wheel is to loud and vibrate a little to much. Think its time to try tkc 70 next.

Wow the TKC80 looks really great for 15.000KM. TKC80 works even very well in the dirt and still lasts so long on the road, which is really amazing. I have it also for 11.000KM and I will put the same on again. I feel like there is no point to put something like a STR or E07 on the front if it is just going to last the same.

On the scorpion video, can you explain what the luggage pack was that you were using ? Ripley

România e frumoasă, te mai așteptăm!

Another great video Pavlin! Thank you! I must be the luckiest T7 owner in terms of tyres because i am still on stock tyres (4k km) and i have no problems that you mentioned. Yes front tyre is very slipery on wet surface but other than that they hold really well. But i will probably listen to your advise and get front tkc 80 just for better grip off road when i am done with stock one. Again thank you for great advise and pozdrav iz Srbije!

What obtain petrol do you like to use? The T7 engine is designed to use regular (87) in North America. The top brand petrol stations will have more detergents to clean your engine and prevent carbon build-up. I would love to see you do a video with your opinions on the types and quality of petrol you have found traveling and maybe some myth busting.

Feel the same with the STR on my Tenere and a friends R9T. I like the Michelin Anakee Wild up front. I think it's better than TKC80. But think i will try K60 Ranger next. What will you get in the rear as replacement? E07?

I use Mitas E07 on my F800GS ADV, they last more than 20.000km!

yes 100% , you have done so many trips so your choice counts for all round performace

Exactly my experience with the very very very annoying “wo wo wo wo” from the rear (leaving me thinking for weeks that there is something wrong with the bike), and the slight play of the front wheel and the bad front inner tube that finally got punctured by itself .. no nail not anything!!

Tires usually come with some rating on them ( 48Q,54 S) what rating have your front tkc 80? I bought one tkc 80 with 48Q and wondering if it's OK for a bike like T700. Thank you

These are absolutely SPEC-TA-CU-LAR on the street/highway/twisties. I have them stock on my Norden 901 and I am faster on them and more confident, than on my MT10 with Battlax S22. Also, have not noticed any noise and they are _perfectly_ smooth. However, they fail in mud, as they slide sideways very easily. 7000km on them already and will start looking around for a rear - either TKC70 Rocks, or Anakee Wild.

Greetings from Greece!I have the PIRELLI STR on a SVARTPILEN 401 and after 340km trip (all on the highway without any stopping) with average speed 120km/h and highest speed the 160km/h the rear tube flatted. Do you (or anyone else in the comments)have any experience why was that?Are there any "better" tubes for more km from the stock ones?Thanks again for your reviews!

Halo Pavlin, another great information from yours. Thank you. My experiences were on Shinko 705 on my Verys 300, 24K kilometers today and the condition of tyres were good, I dont know why, maybe can be survive for the next 10K kilometers. The grip on the asphalt was great, I don't know in wet condition since I always avoid it. In gravel or mud was great too. I don't know, but I felt this tyres are too hard (maybe i should lowering my pressure). I plan to try Pirelli Ralty STR, but I don't know, is it worth or not since my experiences with Shinko is great. Regards from Indonesia anyway.

The T7 demo bike I rode had the same issue: Handlebar was shaking, and as I stood up, I could see the front wheel was running out of center. I told the guys, they have to check the spokes and recenter the wheel, but maybe it was the tire? TKC80 rear was almost gone, after 2500km on my 701, how do you get 10k out of it?

Wow!! 16000km mostly road on an ADV tire is pretty impressive.

Just a suggestion for your next tire. Motoz tractionator gps are getting good reviews online, would love to hear your thoughts on them. Might be expensive here in EU tho.

What do you think the usable range of the Pirreli is for dirt. For instance, I don’t think you could use that tire on a dirt road with only 1 or 2 mm of tread remaining? I ask because I am using the Shinko 805 and will be ready for a new tire before the winter. I suspect I can get to 7000-8000 km with usable tread for occasional dirt. It seems my writing style is pretty comparable to yours mostly road but I love to go down a dirt road and have the traction to do it. If you think I can get up to 10 or 12,000 km on the Perelli and have it still be useful that would be good information.

whats the top speed u did on those tyres?

Hi! , i have an F800gs i bought it with mitas e07+ dakar tyres and now i need a new set of tyres i use the bike every day and i do 70 road (some of the times 2 up ) 30 off road im not very experienced off road rider but i need a tyre for both the worlds. Mitas was very good tyre but i need something better for the winter's wet roads, i was thinking about the mitase07+ not the dakar or the pirelli str or the dunlop trailmax mission but im very confused

pavlin, I notice that the spokes and the sand of your rear wheel are pitch black..... Was that dirty on your previous engine as well?

Hello, whrn is tyres new have problem whit rain? It's dangerous? I ride angel gt 2 and it's best to travel and rain but also want go litlle for litlle terrain.

I’ve got these tyres on my Tenere 1200, fantastic tyre with loads of grip in the wet. The longevity is not that good but I do ride my bike hard on A & B roads. I’m on my second set of SRT and will be fitting the same again. Thanks Pirelli tyres and thanks for your review 👍👍

Hello, love your channel. I consider buying the tyre for my KTM 790. I would like to know are they noisy at the speeds over 90km/h (60 miles/h).

What is the weight of these tires?

Watching this video. Cause those tires came standard on my Norden. And i really am interested in your opinion. Just did 200 km'ters on them. So i have no idea how they will handle. Ok, watched it. So thanks. Will use them to get to Turkey. Mail a KTM dealer in Istanbul (Servis & Yedek) to order a pair of AX41. So they can change the tires. In Turkey , Georgië and Arnenia go slow on the tarmac. But with the AX41 can go from the tarmac with confident.

17k km that not about durability, that about Your style of riding. My E-07 finished at 6k 😉 on my AT. Pirelli is so-so tyres same like all 50/50 tyre's. T7 is greatest bike which i ever ride. I believe You enjoy with riding on T7!

Hi Pavlin, maybe stupid question but I will ask it anyway. I have probably the same riding style and setup as you. After 10.000 km I have still 4mm left on my stock Pirelli's. How many km do you estimate I can still ride? Can't find anywhere the original tread depth to do the match myself. Thanks.

what should be the tyre pressure in PSI in this tyre for Benelli 502c which 240 kg dry weight.... what pressure do u recommend for Pirelli Scorpion str...170/60R17 72v

How is the capacity of you tankbag? 12 liters? Or less? Thank you!

Hello, are you coming to the Cluj area?

what about karoo Street Tires and Michelin anakee Adventure

I just buy cb500x 2023 I want to go pakistan from barcelona which tyre you recommend me for around 10000km ride please reply me thNkyou

Genuine natural rubber absorbs oxygen at the same rate it releases it. This isn't a leak but a chemical process dictated by pressure differentials. In the 'old days', this was common, because all rubber was of natural origin. Today, rubber isn't made of much rubber at all, and is mostly silicone based. This is why modern tyres and tubes hold their air almost indefinitely. Genuine rubber does have some extra qualities however. It is able to be stretched further without trying to split, and also has an attraction to water (not to absorb it, but to 'like' it on its surface). This makes for excellent wet traction and in the case of windscreen wiper blades, it clears the screen without leaving a trail of moisture behind. So, plusses and minuses. As an inner tube, a lot of stretch will enable the tube to fit more than one single size of tyre, as well as surviving high shocks from stuff under the tyre... but of course it will need weekly addition of air.

Здрасти Павка:) Не разбирам много от гуми но според мен започне ли една гума да няма сцепление и да подхлъзва е за смяна! Внимавай и безаварийно ;)

Hey .. any advice on mixing of front and back tyres ?

any issues with punctures and where are the Str's made?

New bike stock tyres apparently are not up to the normal standards of these brands. My 2018 AT came new with dunlops and they were essentially plastic, lasted me 25.000km but they were terrible (low traction on road and just a mess on any simple track). The Pirelli Scorpions Rally STR, that i bought after that, were a dream. Not that noisy and really gripy and stable even on road. I think there should be a side by side with stock vs aftermarket.

OEM tyres originally fitted to the bike by factory are not the same as what you can buy in the shop. OEM tyres my appear the same, but they are made cheaper, usually slightly worse. That might be the reason why that Pirelli made your bike wobbly.

At that speed, you could run totally worn out tire with treads hanging out, and still be safe. You can’t use info from other rides on tires.. there is a huge difference in how aggressive people ride their bikes..

I have 3-4mm thread left and they do NOT like grass at all, maybe it has to be Sahara dry. Low speed mud is possible

Did the vibration produce you fatigue in any sense or some kind of bad mood my friend? Saludos desde ciudad de México Pav.

Continental TKC 80's are great tires but do not last. I have a new TKC 70 rocks on the rear and have ridden about a 1600K in the last four days with a few hundred on un-paved gravel. I Had friends riding BMW GS, KTM's and a Ducati Multistrada and all could not believe how good the Tenere 700 was both on and off road.

Why do you use tubes? Why not tubeless?

I have a T7 also. My two cents on those tires: I hated them - absolutely HATED them. All too often you see people saying, "They had great road grip!" So what? Loads of tires do and some even better - and no - they didn't especially in windy conditions. Get hit with a side wind and they would feel like pure slime and like the bike was going to come totally out from under you. Off road - again - pure trash. Any kind of moisture and they slip all over the place. They don't hook up well at all. Gravel roads are fine, but anything else, forget about it. Honestly, a 75/25 road bias tire handles better. You better handling on the road and similar performance offroad. Example: Shinko 705s are better performing, less expensive, and you'll get better mileage out of them.

Pirelli Scorpion Rally STR vs dunlop trailmax raid?

Just got mine pair of Strs, where are yours made in? Mine are China, should I be concerned?

I think I’ll try the Michelin Anakee Wild for my next set of tyres.

Are you sure that tyre that come with your motorcycle is exactly the same model as stock Pirelli model? I heard that this could not be the case. For example on Yamaha R1 OEM tyre was single compound tyre. And tyre you buy off the shelf is dual compound. so that OEM tyre might not offer as much grip or as good a mileage as the off-the-shelf tyre.

Hi!

LOL that pirelli str rear tyre which comes stock on tenere is really a street tyre, horrible off-road especially on wet. On street is fine.

My fabric front str was fine, it last 22k. So i bough another set of these tyres. But yeah.. they are very noisy.

it’s a quite confused review, comparing a pirelli tyre on the rear with a continental tyre on the front. I would have appreciated more to listen to a concrete review after a long use of these tyrea rather than listening to your opinion on the future consumption of tyres

I gave them 22k and still had a thread on them. Front tire is disaster coz around 40kmh is shaking handlebars

On tarmac with offroad tire is very suck, If ride more than 50% asphalts, than ride with asphalt tire. Pavlin recommended is very dangerous.

Never drive faster than your guardian angel can fly

These were the noisiest tyres i've ever bought. They're nice offroad but not worth it if you need them on pavement

Oh man, mine lasted 7000 km only

For mud they are crap, they fill up with mud and become slicks, even in like new condition.

No sound can't hear a word

The design of this tire is so ugly. I prefer the Michelin Anakee wild.

THANK YOU FOR THE INFORMATION ! NO "STR" FOR ME !!! ;-)