The "Can I Put Bigger Tires/Wheels on the R3?" Thread

May want to think that one through. Things like brakes don't mount in the right place. chain out of alignment or rubbing the tire - - stuff like that happens when you go to wider rims/hubs unless you coordinate the other bits. Not saying it can't be done....

What Stirz said ^^^^^^

A 6" rim would not fit the R3 swingarm, which is designed for the 4.5" rim it came with. Same for the front forks--too narrow for a wider rim. Ride the R3 for awhile, then buy an R6 if you want big tires and more power.

thanks for input, its not that I want more power, I think the R3 has very decent power, and im planning to keep it and then buy a bigger bike later on. but I was just planning to switch it up a little by getting some used "R6" wheels or so and having them powder coat. but if it cant be done oh well, im very happy with my R3

My $0.02: Powder coating the stock wheels would be a very nice mod. I think you'd end up really unhappy with your R3 if you somehow managed to put on wider wheels, though. It would really slow down the handling of the bike...90% of the fun of these little bikes is how flickable they are. Wider wheels/tires would really make the bike handle like poo. Plus, they'd be way heavier and really slow down acceleration.

Streetbikechris said:

thanks for input, its not that I want more power, I think the R3 has very decent power, and im planning to keep it and then buy a bigger bike later on. but I was just planning to switch it up a little by getting some used "R6" wheels or so and having them powder coat. but if it cant be done oh well, im very happy with my R3

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Wider wheels

Has anyone got anything other than the stock wheels on your R3. If so could you post pictures and specs. I'm looking for new wheels but don't know what to even start looking for in motorcycle wheels for proper fit.

Wider wheels means:

Front - rotor is now further outboard from centerline, meaning your caliper is now in the wrong place. A bigger tire may interfere with stock fender location.

Rear - rotor AND sprocket are now further outboard from centerline, so now your caliper is in the wrong place AND the drive sprocket is not in line with wheel sprocket, your will chain won't be straight and may actually rub the tire.

It is by no means plug and play with wider rims. It apparently has been done, but be prepared to change triples, get longer axles, move drive sprocket outboard, do some frame mods to accommodate moving the drive sprocket, make new spacers, and some more mods I probably didn't think of. Please post your results if you decide to do it.

What does it do apart from rob horsepower?

Aufitt said:

What does it do apart from rob horsepower?

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It's for looks. Some people really like the wider tire look. If they're gong to go with a 160 or wider tire then they should upgrade to the wider wheel so that the shape of the tire stays as it was meant to be and doesn't affect handling adversely.

http://www.sportrider.com/does-size-matter?image=0

Aufitt said:

What does it do apart from rob horsepower?

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Add (unsprung) weight, limit agility, raise tire cost...

t-rav_12 said:

Add (unsprung) weight, limit agility, raise tire cost...

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True, true and true. But someone doing it for the look probably won't care about those things.......

They wouldn't be making them if there wasn't some demand for them.

If you want it to make your bike look "dope" then have at it. Or get an R6, a zx6r or other bike that already has a 180 and looks better than the r3. Their forks and brakes definitely add to the "dope" look, not to mention lower bars.

Adding the 180 would make the bike turn slow and completely takes away from the fun factor of the bike.

i think it can improve corner stability but better up corner skill with oem tire, ain't it about improving your skill?

Sure, riders skill is the most important aspect, but adding a power commander would outrun any stock r3 on straight lines, right?

Weight on engine reliability

Your r3 will look cool to the general public, but the only thing other riders are going to see is your massive chicken strips in the back. No matter how hard you try to rub them off, you'll run out of front tire long before you get near the edge in the rear.

Would be cool for a show bike though.

Mase said:

Your r3 will look cool to the general public, but the only thing other riders are going to see is your massive chicken strips in the back. No matter how hard you try to rub them off, you'll run out of front tire long before you get near the edge in the rear.

Would be cool for a show bike though.

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Not to mention, a normal rider will see the front end and be like "budget bike" right away lol.

I have a lot of rider friends and a lot of non rider friends. All the non riders pay absolutely no attention to bikes.