Hammer Tested: Metzeler MC 5

Metzeler MC 5 Intermediate Terrain Tire

Most of the miles I have put on the trails have been on two brands of tires, Bridgestone and Dunlop. So when our friends at Motorcycle-Superstore.com gave me the opportunity to test a rear Metzeler MC 5 I jumped at the chance. As most of us can attest to, new tires can make your tired motorcycle feel young and refreshed and the MC 5 was not an exception to that expectation.

The first thing I noticed about the MC 5 was the three-wide lug pattern that repeated around the entire circumference of the tire with two outside lugs between on the outer edge, giving the impression of a paddle tire used in the sand dunes. I had never ridden on this type of tread pattern but thought, if nothing else it will throw quite a roost.

The performance of the MC 5 was a mix and greatly depended on the terrain. On hard-packed red clay the MC 5 stepped out under hard acceleration out of corners at moderate speeds before hooking up to push my YZ down the trail and was quick to slide under moderate braking. I don’t mind letting the rear come around a little in certain settings, but on tighter trails I prefer not needing to factor that into my approach and exit of every corner. On moderately loose dirt, mixed with crushed shale, the MC 5 hooked up going in and coming out of every corner stable and predictable.

Durability is where the MC 5 shined. After 2 days on a variety of trails the lugs showed little sign of wear on the leading edge and no wear on the trailing edge. Even after sliding through countless hard-packed corners the MC 5 has plenty of life left to support my YZ for many more fun-filled days in the dirt. And with a price point of $69.95, the MC 5 will not only get the job done, it will do the job for a long time.

Key Features:

Great braking performance for late and hard braking entering into corner with high stability
Strongly reinforced half shoulder blocks: maximised traction on different terrains ensuring effective acceleration even at full lean
Great control when sliding into corners thanks to progressive contact feeling

Sizes:

Front