Dunlop Releases All-New TrailMax Mission 50/50 Adventure Tire
A new 50/50 adventure tire from Dunlop designed for traction and longevity.
“This is a very difficult segment to tackle because of the wide variety of uses and fitments, but I believe customers will be surprised that the Mission delivers such a high level of grip no matter the surface and will also exceed their mileage expectations,” said Mike Buckley, Senior VP, Sales and Marketing.
The Falken Connection
For the first time in its history, Dunlop tapped into newly available resources. Dunlop Motorcycle Tires’ re-acquisition by Sumitomo in 2015 gave the design team access to the engineers at Falken tires. Falken, a Sumitomo brand, has had tremendous success with the Wildpeak A/T3W, an off-road oriented light truck tire that puts a premium on ruggedness without sacrificing street performance. The Dunlop team was ultimately able to incorporate several Wildpeak elements into the all-new Mission.
Trailmax Mission Development
Lots of R&D went into the Dunlop TrailMax Mission tire with more than 30 prototypes produced over a span of 2 years, and 12 months alone spent just developing the unique tread pattern. According to Dunlop, the Mission was designed to deliver knobby-like performance off-road, while delivering great grip on the street.
One of the primary goals was durability. Several months were spent piling on the miles—on the street, at the Huntsville Proving Grounds in wet and dry conditions, on gravel roads, trails, tire-shredding rocky terrain, and every condition Dunlop test riders could find. Dunlop also utilized a high-speed testing oval in Texas to put the Mission through durability torture.
The result according to Dunlop: Consumers can expect to get double the miles of some of the competitive rear tires, and more than that from the front. The production version of the Mission rear tire delivered 8,000 miles during testing.*
*Test conducted by independent contracted riders on a 250-mile mountain loop. Tire sizes 110/80B19 front and 150/70B17 rear, on 2017 Suzuki V-Strom.
Tread Pattern
One of the things that make the Mission unique is that Dunlop did not create a one-design-fits-all tire. Different bikes impose different demands on tires, so Dunlop engineers tuned popular fitments of front and rear tires for a diverse application of ADV bikes so that the tires consistently achieved Dunlop’s objective of performance and longevity. These differences apply to both the tread pattern and construction.
Dunlop incorporated Staggered Step technology in both the front and rear tires. These steps give the side knobs more rigidity and lug stability to prevent flex, and create more biting edges so as the tread wears, the next biting edge “steps up” to grab hold of the substrate. In the rear, there are three different sizes and shapes of lateral blocks depending on tire fitment, a direct result of extensive testing.
Staggered Step: These steps give the side blocks more rigidity, and create more biting edges for increased off-road grip.
Aggressive Upper Sidewall: Wrap-around side lugs add rigidity and durability in rocky terrain, and improve steering in sand, mud and gravel.
Tread Grooves: Deep tread grooves help the Mission deliver uncompromising grip in a wide variety of off-road terrain, explains Dunlop.
Common Tread Elements
Front and rear tire patterns have more in common than differences. One visual distinction for both front and rear is the prominent wrap-around side lug inspired by the Falken Wildpeak. These lugs have several advantages; they add rigidity and durability in rocky terrain; allow lower pressures to be run off-road with less risk of pinch-flatting; they help provide steering stability in sand, mud and gravel surfaces; and they have an uncanny ability to allow riders to steer out of ruts off-road, even on the really big and heavy ADV bikes. Additionally, the sidewall rubber is thicker to add higher durability and puncture resistance.
Both front and rear tires feature a distinctly higher land/sea ratio with about 60 percent land for greater street performance compared to the dirt-oriented D606 at 30 percent land ratio. Increased tread depth over the Trailsmart adds to Mission’s superior off-road performance. These comparisons illustrate how different the Mission is compared to other Dunlop adventure and off-road tires.
Trailmax Mission Construction
To meet the performance and mileage goals, bias construction was used, with the line featuring a mix of bias and bias-belted tires as needs dictated. Bias construction is generally better for off-road since tread and sidewall elements are designed as one component. Engineers used heavy-duty ply material such as nylon, polyester and/or fiberglass belts that are similar to those used in tough touring tires such as the American Elite® and Elite® 4. The result, says Dunlop, is a tire with great off-road performance that delivers the desired stability at higher speeds.
Tire Sizes, Price & Availability
Available in a wider size range than any of Dunlop’s adventure tires, the Mission fills a void in the line for ADV bikes, Scramblers and Crossovers that are ridden aggressively off-road.
The TrailMax Mission will be offered in a wide size range launched in 3 phases throughout the next few months. MSRP will range from $131.21 to $285.23 depending on sizes.
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Hello! Great article, the new Dunlops sound like a fantastic new option. Can they be run tubeless?
Hey Jacob, yes they can be run either tube or tubeless.
The tyres look and sound great! My question: I’m in need of a new front tyre and would love to try the new Mission tyre. Presently, I have a 50% worn Michelin Anakee Adventure on the rear. What’s Dunlop’s thoughts on having a radial tyre on the rear and a biased ply tyre on the front?
That historically hasn’t been a good mix. Two different brands that also are radial or both are bias ply is okay, but not one of each, as they behave quite differently from each other.
Dunno, the Motoz GPS is tough competition for this tires mileage claims. The rear looks 50/50 but the front more 70/30. I could see running the Mission rear but would pair it with a little more aggressive front. Looking forward to rider impressions as they come in over time.
Doesn’t look like it can beat out the TKC 80’s for off-road. I’m on my 3rd rear tire in less than 7k miles but the traction on and off-road is unbeatable. I don’t mind buying tires as long as they Stick to the road.
Hello, is it ok if i use Rear 130/80-17 as a front ? on Kawasaki Verseys. orginal front is 120/70-17 ?
Excellent article. Covered all the bases but one. This is a HEAVY tire, I think the rear is around 10 pounds, nearly twice the weight of some competitors. What affect will this have both on-road and off-road.