Not so good, though knobblies will always be noisy on tarmac. The TCK is probably quieter as its made with a softer compound than the Mitas. Just for comparison, I used a E-07 rear on my DR650 which lasted really well, I felt I could have got most of the way from Oz to the UK on it but I was riding solo.

It was good in the (dry) dirt but on some of the twisty tarmac SE Asia roads, it felt a little slippery on the corners (but that could have been how my bike was loaded, ie quite high - and the crud that's generally to be found on these roads) however that's the accepted trade off for having a hard wearing tyre which will last a long time. The E-07 suited me as I wanted a long lasting tyre as I knew getting replacements would be tricky. Softer/stickier tyres will obviously wear more quickly.

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Suzuki DR650 SE: Ride it like ya stole it. Oh, somebody just did...

The Mitas/Trellborg/Barum is an old Soviet block company, built to last, not so much for performance.

Perhaps the E-09 knobby is too aggressive on a A.T for road use?
Could be you went with the wrong tire for that bike/load? Curious ... since you're doing a review ... you might want to list WHAT SIZE tire you used?
Many owners go one size up or down. (EG: my DR650 calls for a 120/17 but many run the more common 130 sections ... both sizes work fine)

I don't agree with your opinion on the Avon Distanzia ... having run several front and rears on several bikes on long trips. The Distanzia is certainly not an off road tire but is great on pavement in ALL conditions. I've run two on my DR650, got 9,500 miles out of the last one. I went off road with it loaded, but had a TKC on the front and ran 18 PSI on the Distanzia rear. Not so bad. Also ran two sets on my Vstroms in aggressive road work. They don't last as long as a Tourance but not bad ... used to be a bit cheaper (in the USA).

Most reports suggest the Mitas are good, long lasting off road dual sport tires ... but most are using them on Thumpers, no? Not big, fully loaded, heavy twins ridden two up. I really think you picked the wrong tire. I doubt it's rated for the A.T. ... could be why it split down the midddle? Exceeded its capacity?

You never mentioned what pressures you tried on this tire. Pressure are critical. I would not totally PAN a tire based on one failure. Many have used this tire with success.
BTW, I'm sure the Mitas distributor would have replaced that tire with a new one (free) .... you need only show up with it at a dealer. (easier said than done, I know)

sorry fellows, my experience
tires are a big problem, everyone have is own meaning,
I by myself
like the mitas 09 for raff terrain, good grip and lasting min. 10000 km,
little noisy on paved roads and only be carefull on wet roads in curves,
but every nobby tire has the same ?
I used it on my BMW r 100gs and now the KLR 650,
but I used the Mitas 07 too,more for gravel roads and track in OZ and NZ,
both lasting very long, and are easy to bring on and off the rim with my short tire mounts,
I try all the tires since the 1979, the tkc 80 is expensiv and last not long, simmilar profil to Mitas 09,last long and cheap, same riding condition,
the bmw r 100 with tubeless rims ,no problems to put and remove change the tire im warm condition,I feel bad that i can't buy them all over the world,
I like them and recommend it very high, for me the best tires in the world for a longtime trialbike traveller,
keep always your mirrows up,and the tires down
FRED KLEIN


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Trelleborg made tires in Sweden for more then 100 years. In 2000 Mitas started to make them on license, but I think they will stop this year. I have been told that the production equipment was moved from Sweden to Czech.
Trelleborg is the absolute best tire for riding in snow and is used by most Scandinavian winter-riders and the army.
Mitas was started as a subsidiary of Michelin in the early 1930s. They have made tires for Michelin, Continental and Barum.

My Michelin T63 is produced at one of the three enormous Czech Mitas-plants.
If you take a look at the Mitas-products you will find a lot of high performance products.

LikLiene Fred says (hi Fred how's things? See you are/have finally left NZ!) everyone has a different opinion about tyres. It sounded like you had a faulty tyre. As they are still mostly hand-made, there is always the chance of a bad one. Personally I love the E-07s I run on my GS. Long life, and I can still beat most of the sports bike boys on the Akaroa GP (local joke).

Cheers bloke

Nigel in NZ

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I've been through two and a bit sets on the outfit and have nothing but praise for the Mitas brand. These aren't the extreme knobblies mind.

Andy

hey Nigel
nice to hear from you, hope the tire running well, also the dogs, you know?
thanks for the visit from the stadium in chCH.

I'm still in Whangarei,until to the end of Oktober or beginning of November, but the klr already left after 32.000km in NZ riding the country to Southamerica,Chile
You 'll fined all over my mitas rubber spread on the tracks and roads from the 07s in NZ on your way, and in the crate to valparaiso i put one set new Mitas E 07 in, and I will take on E09 in the airplane with me, thats how much I like them,
I think they are not avaible in South- North-America
keep the mirrows up, and greetings to your family,
Fred


-------------------------------------------------------------------------I published my first book in NZ, but sorry only in german langage, Nigel you can't read it,

Buch meiner Reise
Ungebremst um die Welt und kein Ende in Sicht
ISBN 978-3-86870-240-8
14,95 Euro Laden oder per PN bei mir
10,-Euro incl. Versand, verguenst. Autorenexemplar
266 Seiten

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I have been driving Mitas E-07 for the last 2 years. They feel a bit slippery on wet tarmac, otherwise I think it is a good value tire for allround use. Havent tried out the E-09, but I will have this review in the back off my mind if I ever need a more "offroad" kind off tire.

I struggle to understand why you're dissing the tyres. After all you made a wrong choice about the type of tyre needed, spend ages on road which is highly likely to make it overheat and delaminate and then whine when it happens.


Reckon you should stick to tourances next time!

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hi
how long is long life , i was thinking of trying e07's on my r1100gs
thanks
shannon

We ran E09s front and rear on our DR650s through Africa last year. I am not the type who rides hard so can't comment on the "performance" side of them. But ours stayed attached to the wheels, worked on sand, dirt and tarmac without noticeable problems and lasted 16,000km.

I was pretty happy with them.

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