A tyre 1 for a motorcycle comprises a tread portion 2 and a pair of sidewall portions 3 connected with both ends of the tread portion 2 and extending inwardly in a tyre radial direction. A connecting portion 9 of the tread portion 2 and at least one of the pair of the sidewall portions 3 is provided with a plurality of protruding portions 10 each protruding outwardly in a tyre axial direction. The plurality of the protruding portions 10 is arranged in a tyre circumferential direction with a space 11 between each other.

A tread 4 of a tire 2 includes a center region Ta, in an axial direction, including an equator plane, and a pair of shoulder regions Tb located outward of the center region Ta in the axial direction. Each shoulder region Tb includes a base layer 20, a middle layer 22 layered outward of the base layer 20 in a radial direction, and a top layer 24 layered outward of the middle layer 22 in the radial direction. A loss compliance LCt of the top layer 24 is set to be higher than a loss compliance LCm of the middle layer 22. The loss compliance LCm of the middle layer 22 is set to be higher than a loss compliance LCb of the base layer. A breaking energy Et of the top layer 24 is set to be less than a breaking energy Em of the middle layer 22.

A bias-ply motorcycle tire comprises a tread portion provided with main grooves and sipes. The main grooves extend from a tread crown region into tread shoulder regions. The sipes are provided only within the tread shoulder regions.

A motorcycle tire includes a tread portion between a pair of tread edges, a pair of sidewall portions, a pair of bead portions, and a carcass having a bias structure and extending between the bead portions. The tread portion, when a tread development width between the pair of tread edges is equally divided into five regions, includes a crown region, a pair of shoulder regions and a pair of middle regions located between the crown region and each of the shoulder regions. The carcass includes a plurality of carcass cords, and an angle θs with respect to a tire circumferential direction of at least one of the plurality of carcass cords in the shoulder regions is greater than an angle θc with respect to the tire circumferential direction of at least one of the plurality of carcass cords in the crown region.

In a tire 2, each of sidewalls 6 includes a first layer 36 disposed axially outward of a corresponding one of beads 8, and a second layer 38 extending outward from the first layer 36 in a radial direction. When Pc represents a position of an axially outer end of an interface between a carcass 10 and the sidewall 6, an outer end 40 of the first layer 36 is disposed radially inward of the position Pc. A hardness H1 of the first layer 36 is greater than a hardness H2 of the second layer 38. A ratio (H2/H1) of the hardness H2 to the hardness H1 is preferably not less than 0.70 and preferably not greater than 0.95.

A tyre includes a tread portion provided with blocks each protruding toward a ground contact surface thereof from a tread bottom surface, and axially spaced side portions each extending from the tread portion to a respective bead portion. The blocks include shoulder blocks spaced. The shoulder blocks each include an overhanging portion located axially outside the corresponding side portion. The overhanging portion includes a pair of first walls extending in substantially parallel with a tyre meridian cross-section. The shoulder blocks have shoulder block lengths which are lengths in the tyre circumferential direction measured between the pair of first walls along the ground contact surface, wherein the shoulder block lengths are shorter than gap lengths which are lengths in the tyre circumferential direction measured on the tread bottom surface between adjacent shoulder blocks.

A motorcycle tyre has a tread band including a central portion and two shoulder portions arranged at axially opposite sides of the central portion. The central portion includes a first plurality of grooves extended according to a substantially longitudinal direction and alternatively arranged at opposite sides of the equatorial plane of the tyre. Each groove of the first plurality of grooves has a substantially curvilinear course such as to form a concavity. The central portion further includes a sub-portion substantially free of grooves placed astride the equatorial plane of the tyre. Each of the shoulder portions includes a second plurality of grooves arranged obliquely relative to the equatorial plane of the tyre.

A wind-diverting apparatus for minimally shielding only the faster-moving drag-sensitive uppermost wheel surfaces from headwinds reduces overall vehicle drag. The apparatus includes various upper wheel fairings of FIGS. 1-6. Each fairing shields a primary vehicle-drag-inducing upper wheel surface from headwinds otherwise impinging directly thereon.

A motorcycle tire comprises a carcass and a tread reinforcing layer disposed radially outside the carcass. The tread reinforcing layer includes a belt layer and a band layer. The belt layer is compose of a radially inner belt ply of belt cords arranged at a first angle, and a radially outer belt ply of belt cords arranged at a second angle different from the first angle, each with respect to the tire circumferential direction. The band layer is composed of at least one band ply, and disposed between the radially inner belt ply and the radially outer belt ply, adjacently to both of the radially inner and belt plies.

A motorcycle tire set includes a front-wheel tire and a rear-wheel tire. Each of the front and rear-wheel tires includes a carcass, a band layer arranged radially outwardly of the carcass in the tread portion, and a tread rubber arranged radially outwardly of the band layer. The carcass includes a carcass ply including carcass cords. The band layer includes a jointless band ply in which a band cord is circumferentially wound spirally at an angle equal to or less than 5 degrees. The tread rubber includes a crown rubber portion. An angle θ1 of the carcass cords of the front-wheel tire is 65 degrees or more with respect to the tire circumferential direction. A rubber hardness of the crown rubber portion of the rear-wheel tire is greater than a rubber hardness of the crown rubber portion of the front-wheel tire.