Avon Tyres has announced the Storm ST, a new sport-touring tire range, designed to replace its highly popular Azaro-ST product.

the Storm ST has already been tested and approved for fitment to all major motorcycles in conjunction with the well-respected German TUV agency.

The Storm ST has been launched (Fall 2006) and it's available in 15 sizes:

Front Tire AV55: 110/70ZR17, 110/80ZR18, 120/60ZR17, 120/70ZR17, 120/70ZR18, 130/70ZR17

Rear Tire AV56: 150/70ZR17, 150/70ZR18, 160/60ZR17, 160/70ZR17, 160/60ZR18, 170/60ZR17, 180/55ZR17, 190/50ZR17, 200/50ZR17.

The Storm ST is the first tire to include Avon’s new "Reactive Footprint" technology.  This technology marries Avon’s unique variable belt density carcass with Lifetime Profile Engineering to produce a footprint which changes size and shape, depending on the bike’s lean angle, for the full life of the tire.

The result is a contact patch that grows as the bike leans, giving more grip in corners while minimizing wear rates when traveling in a straight line.

This technological breakthrough could eliminate the need to use dual compounds and would help solve the uneven wear problems associated with them.  Pete McNally, Avon’s Motorcycle Product Manager explained, “These new technologies combine to make a tire that doesn’t just handle well when new but also in the last 25% of its life.”

He continued, “With Storm ST it’s not just the compound that’s harder in the center and softer at the edges, it’s the whole tire.  We believe we are the first manufacturer to produce a reactive footprint tire for motorcycles.”

In addition to Reactive Footprint technology and Lifetime Profile Engineering, the Storm ST is bristling with an impressive array of advanced features, including a new Super-Rich Silica compound delivers sure-footed grip in both wet and dry conditions and allows the tire to quickly warm up to reach optimum working temperatures.

"Inverted Front Grooves" on the front tire, a system pioneered by Avon in the late eighties and only now being adopted by the competition, resists "stepped-wear" and cupping to deliver smooth handling throughout the life of the tire.  A further advantage of the Inverted Front Groove configuration is improved wet braking and shorter stopping distances.

The Storm ST rear benefits from Avon’s Enhanced Aqua Flow pattern, first used in sportbike tires, which rapidly clears away surface water to further increase confidence in the wet.

Also developed for sportbike tires and now built into Storm ST is Avon’s Advanced Tread Arc Combination profile, which varies the tread profile across the tire for the ultimate in handling and stability, whatever the lean angle.  The ATAC profile results in neutral contours, ensuring smoother transition on lean angle changes, and noticeably increases stability, especially under heavy braking

Finally, all components are fine-tuned by Avon’s Enhanced Stability System to deliver a tire in which the carcass, sidewalls and tread pattern work together to reduce localized flexing within the tire structure to optimize grip, durability and warm-up capabilities.

For more information, contact Avon Tyres North America or have your local motorcycle dealer contact their distributor.