Michelin Malaysia expanded its motorcycle tyre line-up with the introduction of the Power 6 earlier this year. The Power 6 is the successor to the Power 5 and in terms of line-up, it sits above Michelin’s Road 6 sports touring tyre, and just below the Power GP2.
The Power 6 has been developed using knowledge derived from MotoGP. It utilises a new carcass construction as well as silica rubber that maximises long-term durability and grip in all conditions.
As for the compound of the tyre, the Power 6 is made of dual compound material – soft on the outside and hard in the middle. This is said to improve cornering grip while also improving long durability.
The Power 6 is a road tyre and hence a lot of its construction material is focused on that. According to Michelin, the Power 6 is designed for 10% track use and 90% road use. But despite that, some reviews suggest that the new tyre does pretty well on track as well.
What bikes is it suitable for?
When Michelin Malaysia introduced the tyre back in April, the company said the tyre is suitable for bikes above 600cc. However, according to the official press release on the company’s global media site, the Power 6 is suitable for motorcycles over 300cc, and has already been homologated on the 2024 KTM 390 Duke.
What is it like?
Michelin Malaysia handed us a pair for review about two months ago. We fitted it onto a Aprilia Shiver belonging to a member of our team.
The 10 year bike previously ran on Michelin Power GT at the rear and a Power Cup 2 on the front. According to owner Raimi, this set up gave him the confidence to attack corners.
Raimi is not exactly a power rider in the usual sense, he rides about 200km per weekend and describes himself as a leisure rider.
After two months and 2000km of corner carving fun, and having ridden the bike in fair and rainy weather, Raimi came back with a glowing report.
He said that it has good wet weather grip, and it performs in the wet just as Michelin describes it. He was initially concerned that the hard compound of the mid-section may result in some squirms or slides, but there was none of that.
In the dry, he said the bike feels more ‘flickable’, with sharper cornering characteristics and more predictable grip than his previous tyre choice.
However, he mentions that some tend to mistake the tyre for the Road 6, so Michelin’s idea of having the Power 6 branding embosses onto the tyre was a good idea.
Raimi gave the tyre 5 stars and loves the fact that despite riding 2000km on the tyre, it still looks new.
The Michelin Power 6 is available in Malaysia from RM1,020 to RM2,000 depending on the size of the tyre.
