Michelin S12 XC Rear Tyre

[SAM511]

I know. I know.

We have all been down this subject line before and everyone has had different experiences and views, but I felt compelled to put up my experiences on the latest XC version of this much reveered soft to interrmediate tyre in size 130/80X18.

I have just put 400 Km of mixed terrain on the S12 XC (with a bit of road as well) with my TE511 and I am convinced about Michelin's claims of an extra 25% better wear. Whilst it fair to say that on a performance only criteria basis the Michelin S12 rear is about the best going for soft-intermediate conditions, I also found out that it crossed over to mid-hard terrain nearly as well; except for bone hard which it does not like.

This XC version of the S12 is noticably better wearing and I had no knob damage at all. The stiffer side walls worked a treat and gave me far better feedback & better control than the old version. I can remember the old version exhibiting more movement in the knobs and feeling rather vague as you moved away from soft/intermediate terrain. Not so with the XC.

Having said all this though if you are hard on tyres as a rider and gas it up everywhere I guess that you will wear anything out quickly. I am very impressed by this tyre and look forward to putting more ride time in with it because it could easily end up being my rear tyre of choice.

I can not comment of the front S12 XC as I have not tried one and probably will not as it appears too spikey in design IMO and aimed more at soft terrain.

SAM511

 

[HUSKYnXJnWI]

I've been running S12 xc's as well (front and rear) and like them alot- your impression has been mine as well.

 

[SAM511]

I've been running S12 xc's as well (front and rear) and like them alot- your impression has been mine as well.

With regards to the fronts, how have you found them when you start going into intermediate (or harder) terrains because on appearance it would suggest that they would not be so great.

I am super impressed with the XC's on the rear.

My only experience previously, again with rears only, was years ago with the original S12 and I thought at the time that its performance window was too narrow being only superlative on soft stuff.

SAM511

 

[HUSKYnXJnWI]

I have other used tires in the past and found these to work the best for me and have just stuck with them. I run them in all types of terrain and do not notice loosing the front. They have been wearing well and seem to not loose as much grip as they begin to wear, better than the original s12. I may not be the best to compare or review, since I don't try new tires anymore. I just stick with the S12s now. Sure sometimes I think about switching it up, but don't. I figure I can predict these tires better in different types of terrain since I know them. My bike is set up really well for me I believe and after that its confidence in what it will do. You know those moments when your comming in hot and hoping "it will stick! it will stick it will stick, Whhooo,,Yes****************************************" and they do. But some of that is bike set up and positioning. I have liked Pirrelli Scorpians fronts but they seemed to wear quicker as I remember.

As for sizing of the rear, I have used the 140 and the 130. I have found both to hook up well. I am going to go back to a 140 next time. The 130 seemed to help lighten the cornering and feel a bit more nimble. Now that I have ran them for 2 seasons, I am going to switch back to the 140 to see if I notice much difference.
Sorry if my opinions are kinda vague, they just work well for me, someone may feel very strongly about another tire and be right for them for sure.

 

[WHITEROCKET5.9]

pretty sure theese are what on my txc450, i was lookin at other options but theese adn the scorpions seem to be the only options available for out bikes? dot rated that is, and do we really need dot tires on the bikes? sorry thats kinda off the subject. no supercross type tires will work? or do they jsut get chewed up superfast? and ive lost the front a few times but in all fairness the bikes suspension isnt setup yet so i am curious how the feel will be once i do that.

 

[HUSKYnXJnWI]

off-road do anything you want, dualsport- DOT needs depends on state requirements. No DOT Requirements in WI- I use whatever I want. By the Way, Michelin S12s are Not DOT. The AC10s are DOT. Main difference between offroad tires an MX tires is a 19" rear, other than that you are just getting picking tires for "soft" "Intermediate" and "HArd pack". As a guidline- "soft" terrain tires Generally are known to "chuck" when exposed to lots of rocks. Some do worse than others. lots of variation/hard to generalize too much.

 

[SAM511]

I have other used tires in the past and found these to work the best for me and have just stuck with them. I run them in all types of terrain and do not notice loosing the front. They have been wearing well and seem to not loose as much grip as they begin to wear, better than the original s12. I may not be the best to compare or review, since I don't try new tires anymore. I just stick with the S12s now. Sure sometimes I think about switching it up, but don't. I figure I can predict these tires better in different types of terrain since I know them. My bike is set up really well for me I believe and after that its confidence in what it will do. You know those moments when your comming in hot and hoping "it will stick! it will stick it will stick, Whhooo,,Yes" and they do. But some of that is bike set up and positioning. I have liked Pirrelli Scorpians fronts but they seemed to wear quicker as I remember.

As for sizing of the rear, I have used the 140 and the 130. I have found both to hook up well. I am going to go back to a 140 next time. The 130 seemed to help lighten the cornering and feel a bit more nimble. Now that I have ran them for 2 seasons, I am going to switch back to the 140 to see if I notice much difference.
Sorry if my opinions are kinda vague, they just work well for me, someone may feel very strongly about another tire and be right for them for sure.

I considered the 140 but looking at them side by side it appeared to me that the overall knob pattern was closer together and not so spaced out on the 130/80. I thought that this would actually help hold the whole thing together better over rocks. The bigger the gaps the more likely the tyre will chunck and tear and I am sure that this probably helped in some way with durability.

I got to say that for a soft/intermediate tyre I was surprised how well the S12 XC held up.

SAM511

 

[WHITEROCKET5.9]

off-road do anything you want, dualsport- DOT needs depends on state requirements. No DOT Requirements in WI- I use whatever I want. By the Way, Michelin S12s are Not DOT. The AC10s are DOT. Main difference between offroad tires an MX tires is a 19" rear, other than that you are just getting picking tires for "soft" "Intermediate" and "HArd pack". As a guidline- "soft" terrain tires Generally are known to "chuck" when exposed to lots of rocks. Some do worse than others. lots of variation/hard to generalize too much.

mine have a dot stamp on it, that doesnt mean street legal ? sorry new to theese things. im used to truck tires, still tryin to figure out the bike tires.

 

[HUSKYnXJnWI]

mine have a dot stamp on it, that doesnt mean street legal ? sorry new to theese things. im used to truck tires, still tryin to figure out the bike tires.

a tire that has been DOT approved is as legal as it gets in terms of "street legal". Tire company's have to spend money to get the tires "approved" and they do on some of their models but not all cause the minute they make a small adjustment the process would start over. Pirrelli is one company that gets Many/ most of their front tires DOT approved for some reason... SO yes Pirrelli offers some great front tire options for offroad and "dualsport/ dot apprived" if needed.

I would suggest that your tires are not Michelin S12s if they say they are DOT approved.

S12-Michelin's website (listed under Motocross/ off road)
AC10-Michelin's website (listed under "dual sport" and states they are DOT legal.

 

[Benriding]

Definately liking the S12 xc tires I have so far, front and rear. Did an enduro this weekend and seem no worse for the wear. Did not get into too much rocky stuff though. I run a 120 on the back of my TE310.

 

[WHITEROCKET5.9]

ok its a s12, i thought it was a dot because i seen it on my front and thought it the stamp was on the rear....front tire is a enduro comp ms? i think, ill have to look for sure in the morning

 

[Eaglefreek]

I spent too much time searching the net about what rear tire to choose. I bought a S12 XC a few weeks ago. I got a flat yesterday, so I figured this was a good time to install the Michelin and a new tube. I ride slower than molasses, but let me tell you, this tire works great. It rained hard during the early morning. I ride tight woods. It's mostly slippery clay with roots. I was really amazed on the traction I got going uphill compared to the stock Enduro Pilot. I should have taken that tire off the first day I got the bike. I did have a couple instances when I wasn't expecting the extra traction and fell over in a couple turns because I was used to the rear spinning and it just hooked and the bike tried to do an instant U turn. Now I need to get a new front. I took a couple spills when I hit some slippery roots. I may give the S12 XC a try up front.

 

[SAM511]

I spent too much time searching the net about what rear tire to choose. I bought a S12 XC a few weeks ago. I got a flat yesterday, so I figured this was a good time to install the Michelin and a new tube. I ride slower than molasses, but let me tell you, this tire works great. It rained hard during the early morning. I ride tight woods. It's mostly slippery clay with roots. I was really amazed on the traction I got going uphill compared to the stock Enduro Pilot. I should have taken that tire off the first day I got the bike. I did have a couple instances when I wasn't expecting the extra traction and fell over in a couple turns because I was used to the rear spinning and it just hooked and the bike tried to do an instant U turn. Now I need to get a new front. I took a couple spills when I hit some slippery roots. I may give the S12 XC a try up front.

I would actually try the Enduro Comp 4 because it has the identical S12XC tread pattern but with a slightly beefed up enduro casing, and consequently is also DOT approved.

 

[huskybear]

I spent too much time searching the net about what rear tire to choose. I bought a S12 XC a few weeks ago. I got a flat yesterday, so I figured this was a good time to install the Michelin and a new tube. I ride slower than molasses, but let me tell you, this tire works great. It rained hard during the early morning. I ride tight woods. It's mostly slippery clay with roots. I was really amazed on the traction I got going uphill compared to the stock Enduro Pilot. I should have taken that tire off the first day I got the bike. I did have a couple instances when I wasn't expecting the extra traction and fell over in a couple turns because I was used to the rear spinning and it just hooked and the bike tried to do an instant U turn. Now I need to get a new front. I took a couple spills when I hit some slippery roots. I may give the S12 XC a try up front.

I have used the s-12 rear in both the "older" design and the newer"xc" design for years on several different bikes and have been quite happy with them. They wear well and hook-up on a wide variety of terrain. I also found them to be very predictable handling as well but that may be because i am very used to them. I usually run the m-12 up front as I found the s-12 front has taller knobs and felt a little "squirmy" to me in turns on harder terrain. I just picked up a set of motoz tractionator x-circuit tires and will be trying them on my wr soon. I was going to go with my old stand-by s-12,m-12 combo but I have heard many good things about the motoz especially on this forum. They are cheaper than the michelins as well. Once i have them mounted up and get a few rides on them, I will post a ride report.(I ride mostly tight single-track that is usually wet,rocky and lots of roots with some intermediate terrain and steep hills as well)

 

[SAM511]

I have used the s-12 rear in both the "older" design and the newer"xc" design for years on several different bikes and have been quite happy with them. They wear well and hook-up on a wide variety of terrain. I also found them to be very predictable handling as well but that may be because i am very used to them. I usually run the m-12 up front as I found the s-12 front has taller knobs and felt a little "squirmy" to me in turns on harder terrain. I just picked up a set of motoz tractionator x-circuit tires and will be trying them on my wr soon. I was going to go with my old stand-by s-12,m-12 combo but I have heard many good things about the motoz especially on this forum. They are cheaper than the michelins as well. Once i have them mounted up and get a few rides on them, I will post a ride report.(I ride mostly tight single-track that is usually wet,rocky and lots of roots with some intermediate terrain and steep hills as well)

I would love to hear of your comparison when you can.
I "think" the S12XC's will be hard to beat, in particular the rear.

 

[huskybear]

I would love to hear of your comparison when you can.
I "think" the S12XC's will be hard to beat, in particular the rear.

I'll post my findings!.

 

[Chillybean]

I used to run s12's but changed to M12's, they last longer and are less prone to knobs tearing off particularly on rocky trails. Just my 2 cents worth.

 

[SAM511]

I used to run s12's but changed to M12's, they last longer and are less prone to knobs tearing off particularly on rocky trails. Just my 2 cents worth.

Hi Chillybean,
Have you used the XC versions.
I have used S12XC's on a 5 day high country ride in the Omeo/Benambra/Dargo area only a few months ago and was surprised how well they did. IMO they were damaged no more that other tyres in our group of 16 riders ie 952's, 404's, MX51's etc.
The only tyre that appeared to handle the terrain better were the Pirelli MX Extra X's that some guys ran.

SAM511

 

[Chillybean]

No just the standard ones. My wife also runs the same, no complaints from us. We only ride a 310 and 250 wich are reasonably kind to rubber no matter how hard you ride.