Avon Storm 3D XM Real World Review

Launched at Castle Coombe racetrack last summer, Avon’s new 3D Storms received a big thumbs up from assembled journalists, performing well around Wiltshire’s bendy circuit in warm, dry conditions on a set of one-litre Fazers. Replacing the old Storm 2, the 3D – XM we’re reviewing here aims to deliver better grip in both wet and dry as well as higher mileage. It’s a road tyre aimed primarily at fast powerful litre plus bikes which may be ridden hard and over long distances.

Judging by comments on the world’s bike forums, the track test only whetted the appetite of the tyre-buying public for more road-based information, leaving important questions as yet unanswered about this technology-packed rubber.

The Fazer is powerful, but not in the same rubber-shredding league as Suzuki’s Hayabusa or Honda’s CBR1100XX Blackbird…which is where Avon say the tyre is aimed. Will it cope with over 150 bhp at the back wheel? Does it perform wet, is warm-up fast and are the long-life claims valid?

In short, what’s it like in the real world? We swapped our office ZZR’s PR3’s for a pair of the 3D’s and set out on a 400 mile winter trip around Northern England to find out.

Technology

Manufacturers like Avon seem never ending in their attempts to improve riding safety through new technology, something that has, over the years, transformed riding rubber. Back when most of today’s riders first threw a leg over a bike, tyres were very different. Hard, skinny things (not unlike the riders, ed.), prone to puncture and with minimal grip, most were more suited to being fenders on Thames barges than in preventing a crash.

The New Storm 3D is a case in point. Its a multi-compound tyre, with stickier rubber on the edges of the tread. The more you lean, the grippier it gets. That’s good, but nothing new. What is new though is that the tread pattern now includes sipes; narrow 3-D (hence the name) slits that, if you force them apart, reveal what look like small rubber teeth.

As the tyre is compressed and stretched by the forces imposed on it, friction in these sipes causes the tyre to warm faster and stay warm. The tyre is also allowed to flex slightly yet not far enough to induce the squirm that you can get in a really soft tyre. So you can run a harder compound and still get the same levels of grip and feel; a step towards the holy grail of bike tyres; good grip with long mileage.

So what about the mileage?

The fact that Avon have extra mileage as one of their aims with this tyre is indicated by the ‘XM’ suffix. This follows feedback from riders. Nowadays, many hyperbikes are used not only for Sunday scratching but also for touring. But, with anything up to 200 bhp being pushed through the back tyre leads some riders to experience rear mileages as low as 3000 miles – an expensive business and potentially dangerous if you are on a long tour. The XM is designed to achieve the grip you need when hurtling around on your two-wheel missile, yet improve durability such that wear rates are dramatically slashed. Does it work? read on…

Dry road performance

Our first chance to find out whether the technology works was when we headed two-up for Britain’s Yorkshire Dales on a dry December morning. The sun was shining but the road and air were cold – around 6 degrees C, so we let the tyres warm slowly before opening the taps of our ZZR 1400.

The first thing we noticed was that the ride seemed firmer – not hard, just as though someone had turned the suspension damper up a notch or two. Aviating along the M5 blacktop felt like riding a magic carpet.

A quick lane change to avoid a dozy van driver revealed another unexpected characteristic – turn in was noticeably faster than the PR3’s the Avon’s replaced. This became clearer when tackling the undulating and twisty roads of the dales, but was also noticeable when slow filtering; a welcome bonus on a large heavy bike, especially when carrying a pillion.

Lean angles increased and grip seemed almost unlimited – more than we could use on real roads anyway. The PR3’s had been great tyres, but in the dry, the new Avon seems to have the edge.

No problems with stability at speed either, though the ability to change direction quickly is a characteristic that demands vigilance if you really are nailing it. Then again, if you’re not vigilant at silly speeds, perhaps you shouldn’t be on a bike at all. Don’t worry – this is not an issue with this tyre, we’re just being picky.

In the wet

On the second day of our trip, the heavens opened and we were subjected to precipitation of an almost Biblical nature. As we were half way between Bradford and the bikers cafe at Hawes at the time and on open, windswept roads, we had little choice but to press on.

Roads were streaming water, little rivulets carrying twigs, leaves and wot-not in greasy swathes across the pot holed tarmac. Added to this was the danger posed by liberal donations of shining brown muck given gratis by the farming community. If ever there was a good test of wet weather tyre ability, this was it. Who needs MIRA? With almost 200 bhp and no traction control… hmm. Fresh undies packed? Check.

It soon became apparent however that wet weather grip is almost as good as dry. Despite provocation, there were no serious slides or brown trouser moments. Just occasionally the front felt a little light and the rear gave a sight shimmy, but it was never more than useful feedback – and we were looking for problems. On balance the grip is better than previous Storms we’ve tried but perhaps fractionally less than we found with the PR3’s in the wet. Certainly a first class ticket for fast touring in any weather.

Tyre Life and Value for Money

Bigbikemad’s initial test was a total figure nudging 500 miles on very mixed British roads, from southern motorways to muck-strewn northern twisties. At the end of this abuse there was virtually no sign of wear at either front or rear.

A more meaningful check of high milers on various forums indicates that, even on bikes such as the Blackbird, fronts should be good for 12,000km (8,000 miles) and rears around 8,000km or a good 5000 plus miles. Those are pretty impressive figures but still seem believable to us based on what we’ve seen and researched.

In the UK the tyres cost around £200 a pair to buy online – more if you have them fitted. This is about in line with other premium tyres, but the long expected life means that they may effectively be cheaper than some rivals…..

Fits the following…

The Storm 3D is aimed at Kawasaki’s ZZR1400, Suzuki’s Hayabusa and Honda’s Blackbird, the BMW R1200 and Yamaha FJR1300 amongst others. The full list of sizes available is:

110/80R19 (front), 110/70ZR17 (front), 110/80ZR18 (front)
120/60ZR17 (front). 120/70ZR18 (front)

150/70ZR17 (rear), 150/80ZR16 (rear), 160/60ZR17 (rear), 160/60ZR18 (rear), 160/70R17 (rear), 170/60ZR17 (rear)
190/55ZR17 (rear) , 200/50ZR17 (rear)

Conclusion

We’re happy to recommend the Storm 3D. It’s a good example of modern technology being harnessed to keep our riding safer; and the technology works. Grip is excellent, wet or dry, and the long life claims seem to bear investigation, making this tyre a good choice if you plan on doing a lot of touring or enjoy copious use of the throttle. Thumbs up to Avon.