Dunlop Sportmax Qualifier II review

Dunlop have created an impressive tyre for road riders with a semi-serious trackday habit
It’s in the middle of the corner, cranked over, that these tyres impressed

VISORDOWN RIDING IMPRESSION: Michelin’s 3.3km Miravel circuit has fast corners, rises, hard braking sections and tight corners – in short, the lot. In the hard braking areas the Qualifier IIs felt solid and changed direction quickly through the chicanes in the final third of the track. These direction changes were also very consistent, perhaps a payoff from the Qualifier II’s Carcass Tension Control System.

Confidence is the word bandied about by the marketing bods at Dunlop and it’s in the middle of the corner, cranked over, that these tyres impressed. Although I get my knee down, I’ve never been one for a lot of lean angle, but these tyres encourage you to lean it further, so much so that the peg went down on the R1 and GSX-R1000 swiftly followed by my toe-sliders. No fuss, no drama and the bike was still rock solid in the turn.

The wet weather test was a little unfair since we tried the Dunlops last, at which point we’d grown more confident on the wet test track. But for me it’s all about confidence and the Dunlops were best, followed by Bridgestone’s BT-016. The Qualifier II demonstrated a greater and wider performance margin in pretty much all areas.

VISORDOWN VERDICT: The Roadsmart was a breakthrough tyre for Dunlop, combining incredible all-weather grip with the tyre life to make “fast road” rubber look a bit pointless. But by bringing Roadsmart technology to the Qualifier, Dunlop have created an impressive tyre for road riders with a semi-serious trackday habit.

Read more: http://www.visordown.com/features/tyre-launch-dunlop-qualifier-ii/14264.html#ixzz1ti4lrfSx

From Dunlop

For Supersport riders who need to have confidence in their tyres whether it’s wet or dry, the Qualifier II is the ultimate solution. Designed to help demanding riders cope with the ever advancing Supersports machines, the Qualifier II delivers everything the modern sports rider needs in performance terms whilst not sacrificing reliability and tyre life.

Taking cutting edge technology from the world dominating D211GP race tyre, the Qualifier II brings MultiTread (MT) compound to the street, giving faster warm up times, outstanding traction, more grip and longer life from the word go.

Qualifier II incorporates Carcass Tension Control System (CTCS) high technology, allowing specific areas of the tyre to be tensioned to different stiffness, meaning high speed corners now come with more grip and more stability as standard.
    

Key benefits

    * MultiTread (MT) compound for faster warm up times, longer life and more grip in both wet and dry
    * CTCS for greater Stability under braking and cornering
    * Unique pattern design for higher contact area, pure grip and more feedback

VISORDOWN RIDING IMPRESSION: Michelin’s 3.3km Miravel circuit has fast corners, rises, hard braking sections and tight corners – in short, the lot. In the hard braking areas the Qualifier IIs felt solid and changed direction quickly through the chicanes in the final third of the track. These direction changes were also very consistent, perhaps a payoff from the Qualifier II’s Carcass Tension Control System.

Confidence is the word bandied about by the marketing bods at Dunlop and it’s in the middle of the corner, cranked over, that these tyres impressed. Although I get my knee down, I’ve never been one for a lot of lean angle, but these tyres encourage you to lean it further, so much so that the peg went down on the R1 and GSX-R1000 swiftly followed by my toe-sliders. No fuss, no drama and the bike was still rock solid in the turn.

The wet weather test was a little unfair since we tried the Dunlops last, at which point we’d grown more confident on the wet test track. But for me it’s all about confidence and the Dunlops were best, followed by Bridgestone’s BT-016. The Qualifier II demonstrated a greater and wider performance margin in pretty much all areas.

VISORDOWN VERDICT: The Roadsmart was a breakthrough tyre for Dunlop, combining incredible all-weather grip with the tyre life to make “fast road” rubber look a bit pointless. But by bringing Roadsmart technology to the Qualifier, Dunlop have created an impressive tyre for road riders with a semi-serious trackday habit.

Read more: http://www.visordown.com/features/tyre-launch-dunlop-qualifier-ii/14264.html#ixzz1ti4lrfSx

From Dunlop

For Supersport riders who need to have confidence in their tyres whether it’s wet or dry, the Qualifier II is the ultimate solution. Designed to help demanding riders cope with the ever advancing Supersports machines, the Qualifier II delivers everything the modern sports rider needs in performance terms whilst not sacrificing reliability and tyre life.

Taking cutting edge technology from the world dominating D211GP race tyre, the Qualifier II brings MultiTread (MT) compound to the street, giving faster warm up times, outstanding traction, more grip and longer life from the word go.

Qualifier II incorporates Carcass Tension Control System (CTCS) high technology, allowing specific areas of the tyre to be tensioned to different stiffness, meaning high speed corners now come with more grip and more stability as standard.
    

Key benefits

    * MultiTread (MT) compound for faster warm up times, longer life and more grip in both wet and dry
    * CTCS for greater Stability under braking and cornering
    * Unique pattern design for higher contact area, pure grip and more feedback