Nankang Roadiac “up there with class leaders”
Towards the end of 2010 Nankang released its first-ever motorcycle tyre, the Roadiac WF-1 radial. The range was developed in partnership with Delticom/Pneubo and is sold exclusively in Europe through Delticom AG web portals, including mytyres.co.uk. According to Nankang, three front wheel and six rear wheel fitments are now available in the Roadiac range.
The Roadiac utilises dual tread compound technology; the softer compound accounts for 20 per cent of the shoulder area on the front tyre and 40 per cent on the rear. This compound is intended to increase road holding and reduce warm-up times while offering improved traction when accelerating out of banking. The centre of the front tyre contains 60 per cent of the harder compound while the rear tyre contains 20 per cent. Under the surface lies a zero degree belting system. This uses what Nankang calls a ‘Jointless Space Belt’, or JLSB, in connection with a ‘Single Steel Winding System’; these features are intended to enhance stability in a range of riding situations.
Last year a set of Roadiacs were handed over to UK-based bike tester and freelance journalist Chris “Mossy” Moss. Nankang has given Tyres & Accessories permission to share his comments about the Taiwanese manufacturer’s first motorcycle tyre. After covering almost 750 miles in a variety of weather conditions, at greatly differing speeds on numerous types of road, Mossy’s verdict was that the Roadiac tyres are “very credible sports-touring tyres, capable of competing with the top brands.
“Perhaps the best complement I could pay the tyres is that I see no reason to remove them from the Honda VFR800 I’ve tested them on,” Chris Moss wrote. “It’s my own machine and I’m more than happy to continue using it fitted with Roadiacs. As I said, I think they’re right up there with the class leaders. The only way I could effectively measure their performance relative to the competition would be in a direct back-to-back test. In the absence of that sort of comparison, I’d rate them as good as any other road tyre on the market in this category.”
Mossy described the Roadiac’s grip in dry conditions in temperatures ranging from 5-30°C as “impressive” and said the feed and feedback from the tyres enables a feeling of confidence even during hard riding. “They’re especially good under power, and exiting hard from corners results in secure forward motion in the desired direction,” he commented. The Roadiac’s profile was said to provide a sporty feel, yet the turn-in rate is consistent and predictable, with stability constant regardless of speed or lean angle.
Warm-up times for the Roadiac are short, Mossy reported: “Warming the tyres to get them to deliver their optimum performance doesn’t require much time. And thanks to them not being too temperature-sensitive, even after being parked up for a while they can still be relied upon to provide predictable adhesion.”
All in all, the independent tester said that in dry conditions the Roadiac feels “safe and secure enough to generate lots of confidence in all environments” while in wet conditions the tyre is “arguably even more impressive.” This is, Mossy explained, because “grip levels are so outstandingly good it’s scary trying to find their limits.” He stated that braking, cornering and accelerating, even aggressively, isn’t a problem.
Interestingly, as far as Chris Moss was concerned the only real drawback to the Roadiac was nothing connected to the tyre itself. Rather, it was the brand name it is sold under. The lack of a tried and tested premium brand name may deter riders from trying what otherwise was shown in testing to be a competent tyre – a product that Mossy rated as a 9 out of 10.
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