I have a whine or roar from my rear E3, or at least I think it's coming from the tire--maybe the belt, but is hard to diagnose. Started when I replaced the tire in May '08 and hasn't gotten any worse. It diminishes in hard left turns, not so much on right turns. Replaced the front about 5k ago and haven't noticed any noise from it yet.

I also returned from a trip in the Smokies through NC, VA, WV, KY, MD, TN, etc. and quickly gained confidence in these tires in dry and wet conditions on the mountain roads. We were aggressively attacking the twisties, too. After 15k on the rear and considerable tread remaining I'm very impressed.

As good as these tires are for handling and durability that slight whine isn't going to make me change! I'll just turn the stereo up.

 

I agree iclick, a plugged tire is fine when done correctly. I have done it in the past as well with no problems. I bought a good plug kit as soon as I left the stealership. The pump is on it's way.

I should have replaced the kit I lost before this trip, but didn't and paid the price for it. My own fault. It won't happen again........at least not from a simple puncture.

 

weird... on my bike. the belt guard is no issue (I took it off a long time ago), but there are some wires running inside the fender on the left side that will cause all kinds of clearance issues with a wider tire. when I pull the wheel off I may see if there is any way to reroute them for more fender/sidewall clearance.

 

Next time you hear the whine pull in your clutch and see if it goes away. If it does, with the clutch still in give the motor a little gas and see if the whine returns. Mine does this and I've determined that it's from the primary, probably the auto tensioner.
Didn't always do it. 07 Ultra 14,000 miles.

 

I want to bring this post back on top as I also run E 3's on my 06 EGC and am really impressed over the stock Dunlop tires. I run the MU90B16 on the rear and my only concern is the clearance at the rear of the fender. My rear fender is shifted off to the curb side and I can't slip my finger in between the tire and bracket without pushing it in there. The clearance is greater than the thickness my index finger on the other side. Maybe I need to do some tweakin' this winter but all in all I will be replacing the rear soon as I removed a small nail and I already tubed this one from an early puncture... I thought I read somewhere that the E 3's were manufactured in 2 plants. I thought one was outside of the US and one was in the US. Does anyone have impute on this?
Because of my clearance issue think I should stay away from the 160 unless I can tweak the rear fender.
Any ideas?

 

So is your concern whether or not the 160's will fit? They apparently will based on testimonials here, but I will stick with the MU90's because they cost $40 less and are designed for the 3.0" stock rims. The 160's need 3.5" rims according to Dunlop specs.

I have three E3's here, two on the bike and one new one mounted on my spare rear wheel, and all are made in USA.

 

i'm using the mu90-16 on the rear of my 08 sg, and it fits and performs great. when the front needs replacing it will be a mt 90-16. best change i made with the bike so far. no more feeling like it's got a low tire in the rear when riding on rain grooves.

 

In a way I am concerned about clearance but the rear fender being tweaked to the right makes it even worse. I guess I'll stick with the MU90 as that's what is on it now. I have had a lot of bad luck picking up stuff in my back tire, but really like the performance of the E 3. I just came back from the Rt 800 and 555 and I was getting into the corners like I was on a sport bike (or at least it seemed like it). I also have a stabilizer on my EG and like the twisties. I have read all of this post and agree that the design of the E 3 is a great improvement over the 402 that I believe were on it originally. I do have concerns about mounting the 160 on the 3" rim and have seen pre-mature tire wear on my truck tires when I went to the largest tires possible for my size rims. So I'll stick with the MU90 again this time.
I seen some post about tire problems on this site and thought I read somewhere that the E 3's were produced in 2 different plants. Here is one such site about Dunlop tire issues.
http://www.prweb.com/releases/2009/06/prweb2573444.htm

 

Many here feel that this involves little more than the machinations of an over-zealous lawyer, as there are few documented cases. We don't know under what conditions these tires failed or much of any other info. Anyway, the E3 isn't mentioned.

 

That is good to hear: I haven't seen anything that specifically spoke of the Elite 3's having this issue. I have read many of your post on the E 3's and it seems you have done your home work. I have found 2 crack like openings on my rear E and I can't determine if they are tire issues or if they are caused by road debris. I have already tubed it so its definitely time for a new one. One of the cracks is on the main surface and the other goes thru a rain grove. I had a couple of friends go down last month in California after loosing a rear tire and I know its a serious issue; weather it is a defect in the tire or a case of the owners not maintaining proper tire pressure I am not sure. What I am sure of is that the performance of the Elite 3's are much better that the stock 402 in MHO...