[BIG MACHINE ZERO: Written by: Tomohiko Nakamura,
Photo by: Tomonobu Fuchimoto/PIRELLI JAPAN]
The Pirelli Angel series, which originated in the 2010 ST, evolved from this year to the GT II through the GT that appeared in 2014.The Pirelli Angel series, which originated in the 2010 ST, evolved from this year to the GT II through the GT that appeared in 2014.
A very different direction from the previous model, which emphasized stability
▲ ANGEL GT II Tax-included Price: Open ■ Support Model: 400cc - Big Motorcycle Class for On-road
In order to clarify the difference between the "Diablo" (meaning the Devil in Italy) series that has gained tremendous support in the world of racing and high grip sports tire, Pirelli has been using the name "ANGEL" for sport and touring tires in recent years.
As the latest product, I met with the GT II, which had been launched this spring, and I already guessed ...... What I guessed was that the grooves carved on the tread surface are increasing more than the previous GT.
The recent trend in sports & touring tires is to expand the groove surface with the exception of some tire manufacturers, and METZELER, which is the same group with PIRELLI, had significantly increased the groove surface in Road Tech 01, which have been selling the tires as the Z8M successor in 2016.
However, in the case of GT II, 2 grooves with a vertical direction but this tread pattern is characterized by rolling around the center of the tire (although the rear tire is intermittent), and it is the feedback of the technology which was obtained by the race's rain tires used in the World Superbike Championship.
Of course, the main goal of expanding the groove area is to improve wet performance. However, in recent years, focusing on the fact that the tread surface during traveling is likely to be deformed due to the increased groove area, and there are also sports and touring tires that combine the phenomenon with light maneuverability and warmth. Then, what kind of characteristics GT II with the increased groove area had?
Well, I would like to say once again that the GT II's ride was above my expectations. At first, the rolling resistance of the push-pull and slow running is considerably less, and the body goes ahead smoothly, and the movement of the vehicle body condition at the corner or course lane change is a very quick and it was a little bit confusing for me at first.
As you can see from the photo, this test car was a HAYABUSA, but during the test ride, I did not encounter any situation where I was aware of the curb weight 266kg.
If I explain "better than my expectations" in a little more detail, I felt that I who had the impression that previous GT was aiming for stability, felt that they might have turned to the direction to the light feeling of swinging movement when I looked at the publicity photos of GT II. And that was a correct, but the actual GT II was lighter feeling than I expected.
The point to paid attention on the front tire is the central two vertical grooves.
▲ In the world of radial tires in recent years, There is a tendency that is "High-grip Sports: Groove Surface Reduction", "Sports & Touring: the groove Surface Increase, and basically PIRELLI has also been following this tendency.
Rear-wheel tread pattern maintains the appearance of the PIRELLI "ANGEL"
While the front tire has a completely different appearance, but the rear tire maintains the atmosphere of the previous model. In addition to the GT letters in the center, the right and left edges are stamped with the name of the product that can be used as a bank sensor.
Diverts drainage technology from the race rain tire
＜FRONT＞
There are various methods to expand the groove surface on the tread by each company, but the Angel GT II has two longitudinal grooves in the center in the form of feedback on rain tires technology for Superbikes.
＜REAR＞
Although it does not go around like the front tire, the rear tire also has two longitudinal grooves in the center. However, on the other hand, the groove surface of the left and right edge parts seems to be smaller than the previous model.
◆Click here for the PIRELLI: ANGEL GT II Product Page
It is resistant to changes in the environment and does not force an aggressive riding.
Now that we've had a long talk about the light feeling of swinging movement, GT II was a tire that does not need awareness of environmental changes, rather than being resistant to environmental changes. Specifically, there is no big difference between the dry road surface and the wet road surface, cold and warm, and even if you ride on prefectural roads and agricultural roads where the pavement condition is not good, we can not feel the disturbance of the motorcycle body posture.
Obviously, this feature is perfect for long touring on roads where you don't know what's going on, and if traveling distance will be longer than longer, the reliability of GT II should increase.
However, if you try to enjoy sports riding on a mountain pass road, you may feel some dissatisfaction, but it is PIRELLI after all.
As expected, it is impossible to make a spectacular push with the huge grip of the front tires like the Diablo series (In the first place, there will be no riders to ride that way with touring), but if you can effectively use the unique light feeling of GT II, the direction of the vehicle's body will change during the first half of the corner, and if you open the accelerator at the end of corner, the ground surface of the rear tire will be pressed with a moderate condition, and a rich traction can be obtained.
The most interesting thing is that the GT II was not a tire that makes a desire that "wants to attack the corner" while riding on the road!This is in contrast to the Diablo series, which creates a desire to “attack the corner” automatically at the moment you enter the Winding Road that looks comfortable. And PIRELLI may be developing this tire by not really attacking the corner but with a light feeling in mind.
As mentioned above, the Riding with GT II was fun enough but surprisingly on this test drive, my sight was directed not only to the road in front of me but also to the landscape, such as the flow of trees and clouds, the coastline and the streets visible in the distance.
How each person feels such character setting is each person, but in terms of clarifying the purpose and aiming to differentiate from the Diablo series, I thought it is a good idea.If I consider about it again, the current Diablo series has 4 types, and the options of high-grip sports are abundant.
That's why Pirelli might have made the sports and touring tires that gave a clear solution.
Tandem riding is also very comfortable
The Angel GT II, which is resistant to environmental changes and has almost no turbulence even on rough roads, making it more comfortable for tandem riding. In dangerous situation with the other tire, it has no problem using this tire.
Size
The Angel GT II is available in a wide variety of sizes to accommodate all types of motorcycle that are bigger than 400cc.19 inches for the front tire corresponds to the adventure tourer.
*(A) is using reinforced carcass corresponding to the heavyweight model.
PIRELLI
PIRELLI was founded in 1872 in Milan, Italy by Italian Giovanni Battista Pirelli, began selling tires since 1890 (his first work was for bicycles).For motorcycle enthusiasts, one-make tires, which have been supplied to the World Superbike Championship since 2004 are famous but the company has long been a manufacturer of Motorsports and won the 1907 Beijing-Paris Car Crossing Rally since then, he has won crowns in numerous races, led by four F1s and WRCs.
◆Click here for the PIRELLI: ANGEL GT II Product Page
