RYKER: The Darkside Saga - Yokohama rear tire upgrade

I'm not a fan of the Can-Am "approved" Kenda tires on the Ryker, so I'm going to the Dark Side! This is a long video, so skip to the end of the description for clickable time indexes. #canam #ryker #yokohamatire

Can-Am dealers and factory-authorized service centers aren't allowed to install any non-approved tires on the Ryker. Can-Am's only "approved" tires are the Kenda all-season tires for the Rally edition and the Kenda street-tread tires for the non-Rally models. The all-season Kenda tire on my Rally has been awful since Day One. It has VERY POOR traction on dry pavement... I can spin-up the tire at 35 MPH on most road surfaces. The wet grip is just plain scary... it will break loose at 60+ MPH without any special effort.

The front tire sizes are proprietary, so the Kenda tires (whether all-season or street tread) are our only option. However, the rear wheel for the Rally (15" rim) and the non-Rally (16" rim) have automotive equivalents that will fit just fine. The Rally's rear tire (205/55-R15) is a common size for older Can-Am Spyders, and those bikes have been able to enjoy Yokohama and other street radials for many years.

So, it's off to the Dark Side for me... I'm putting a Yokohama ADVAN Fleva V701 on the back of my bike... Maintenant... non merci à Can-Am / BRP! 😉

I tried to get an appointment with James Thorne at Thornolis.com, but his service schedule was booked full through the end of October. So, I ordered the tire from Discount Tire in Katy, TX on Monday instead. Unfortunately, they still hadn't received it by the close of business on Friday. Anticipating a problem, I hedged my bet and ordered the identical tire from TireRack.com on Friday afternoon. The TireRack delivery landed on my doorstep 23 hours later... WOW! 👍👍👍

The Ryker is an unusual beast, and most automotive tire shops won't touch it. So, your only likely option is to remove the rear wheel yourself, dismount the brake rotor (drive hub), and carry the wheel into a service center to have the tire mounted and balanced. The process isn't terribly difficult, but it is tedious and it will require some specialized tools (listed below):

65mm socket for the wheel nut/lug
3/4" long-handled ratchet or a breaker bar
6-8" long 3/4" socket extension
3/4" torque wrench that can reach 221+ ft-lb (~300 N-m)
15mm socket to remove rear fender support (also the rear brake bracket)
floor jack with a padded stirrup or weight distribution bar
small A-frame jack stand or other similar fulcrum support to support the socket & extension when removing and installing the wheel nut
synthetic bearing grease for the brake/hub splines

Time indexes:
0:00 : It's time for a new shoe! TireRack.com delivered my tire in under 24 hours!
2:00 : Introducing the newest Ryker accessory: the Yokohama passenger seat and backrest! 🤣
3:56 : Let the A-hole cager parade begin! Dude in a truck blows a stop sign in front of me, drives onto the wrong side of the road, and then just sits there... WhaaaaTF?
5:05 : Another aggressive A-hole in a truck just misses the back of the Ryker by 6 inches. Oy vey... welcome to Houston on a Saturday afternoon!
5:40 : Arriving at Discount Tire... NO JOY! They can't/won't work on this bike, so it's carry-in only
9:03 : Hunting for tools... ACE Hardware doesn't have anything in 3/4"
11:05 : Arriving at O'Reilly Auto Parts... SUCCESS!
13:23 : Houston cagers are really aggressive and adversarial today
14:11 : Resuming from the garage floor... consuming pizza and beer
15:55 : Beginning the rear wheel removal, using a floor jack as a leverage support point
18:26 : SUCCESS... the wheel nut is loose!
21:00 : Jacking up the bike to unload the rear wheel
24:10 : Supporting the swingarm to level the bike, forgot to remove the rear brake caliper bolts... but where are they?
28:45 : Removing the rear fender support... it's also the rear brake caliper holder!
31:14 : Removing the rear wheel
31:51 : Ride-On Tire Sealant from the inside, problems mounting a new tire on the Ryker's wheel
33:46 : Balancing the Ryker's wheel and tire on an automotive balancer
38:08 : Back home now, cleaning the brake rotor mounting holes with a 10x1.50mm tap
41:34 : More details on using a tap to chase the threads
47:36 : Remounting the brake/drive hub and torquing to 63 ft-lb
50:17 : Rear wheel is mounted, time to secure it with the nut
52:55 : Torquing the rear wheel nut to 221 lb-ft with a BIG 3/4" torque wrench
55:14 : Reinstalling the wheel clip, securing it with a nylon ziptie
58:40 : First ride on the new Yokohama tire is GOOD, it has more traction than the old Kenda!
1:00:10 : WOW... a Skeleton Garage Band! Nicely done! 👏🤣👍
1:03:34 : The Yokohama definitely has more grip
1:05:12 : The cornering grip is 100% better than before, no TC nanny getting in my way now
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QM
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