Metzeler Karoo 3 Front Tire Item # 136930
Description
The Metzeler Karoo 3 tires are a new concept of Adventure and Enduro On/Off tires dedicated to off-road expeditions and featuring both off-road traction and on-road stability with excellent mileage. Specifically engineered for medium to large displacement bikes that spend time both on and off road.
New Karoo 3 improvements:
- Improved Off -Road traction and handling
- 30% more mileage than its predecessor
- Cutting edge tread design lends to improved performance
- Suitable for both light and heavy Enduro bikes
- New tread compounds capable of obtaining a more uniform mix which in turn provides mechanical resistance to lacerations while still maintaining high dampening capability
- Trapezoidal tread pattern has an innovative geometry which ensures progressive off road traction at various lean angles
Features:
- Differentiated spacing and larger tread
- Footprint area is more uniform and constant
- Increased mileage On Road and Off Road
- Increased stability and reduced vibration
- 0° steel radial technology
- MAW (Metzeler Advanced Winding) technology
Part Numbers for Metzeler Karoo 3 Front Tire
Reviews
Rated 4 out of
5
by
JunkToolsSuck from
Great 50/50 tire.
All dual sport tires are a compromise and these are no different. For my everyday local riding (about 60% Street and 40% gravel / light trails), these strike the perfect balance.
Pavement manners are exceptional for a 50/50 tire. Handling, wet traction and cornering grip are as good as one could expect and much better than other 50/50 tires I have used. I describe my street riding style as "spirited"
Dirt road gives up a little, but not as much as you would think. They have some lateral movement, but give plenty of warning before letting go. They do not like reduced pressures. We often travel two-up on gravel roads with about 10 pounds in each pannier with no issues.
The downside is tread life, they will likely out last the TKC80, but that's not saying much. To be fair, I am a meathead and someone with a less exuberant right hand will get better life out of them. Some do not like the sound they make, but I actually like it. Call me weird.
For different purposes, there are better choices, different compromise. But for an all around, everyday tire that I have confidence in, I like the Karoo 3. I don't mind spooning on an second rear to get that confidence.
Date published: 2016-06-19
Rated 3 out of
5
by
motozingaro from
Not as good as the rear Karoo 3
I got a set of the Karoo 3s for my DR650 to replace the OEM Bridgestone Trail Wings. I've got 7,500 kms on them now so I feel comfortable giving a review. As this is about the front, I'll focus on that. The tire is showing wear at this point with the central sipes fading away. I'd say I have about 50-55% tread left. I ride mainly twisty highways in BC to get to the dirt along with a little bit of commuting in Vancouver. I would say I'm a true 50/50 rider. On pavement the front is civilized, turns well, leans well and good with front brakes on dry pavement. You can treat these tires like a street tire and reel in the sportbikes through the twisties only to watch them disappear again in the straights. The front and rear work well in wet conditions on tarmac. It's easy to lock up the rear going downhill in both wet and dry conditions and I don't have ABS so be aware of that.
I ride a lot of forest service roads and they are excellent on hard pack with light sand. Once the gravel starts to get larger the front tire becomes scary as it hunts and pecks like a drunk with at 3am making his way home via the reptilian side of his brain. There's no straight line in this stuff. Cornering in these conditions is a sphincter-tightening experience. Also, I'm not the most experienced rider with only a year under my belt, but that year has close to 20,000 kms of which half is offroad and I'm learning quickly on my own. In wet offroad conditions the front is not much better. On slick shiny wet dirt the front just won't give me any confidence at all, in wet sand it's no better. We have massive mountains here, so I will take those little tracks from forest service roads that weave and wind up the mountains to the snow line which means loose scree, loose jagged and rounded rocks of varying sizes and sandy gravel. The rear makes up for the front's shortcoming by chugging up the mountain like a champ. Going up is always way easier than coming down. The descent relies on the front to give grip which it does sort of, but not a confident one. As you can probably tell by now, I can't wait to get this bloody tire off my DR. The rear on the other hand is sure-footed and fabulous in just about every scenario I've put it through. I wouldn't hesitate to put another rear on my bike. I've done some of the toughest riding of my life with people on full knobbies that couldn't believe a 70/30 rear was taking on the terrain that they found challenging. It is showing a little more wear than the front, but not as much as I'd expect. The rear will initiate a slide offroad if you are throttle heavy out of the corners. I've gotten used to it now and it's fun to play with, but in the beginning it was a little disconcerting. It will slide on off camber roads if you're trying to follow truck tire lines through gravel or hard pack. I've also got used to this and it's predictable.
As it takes me anywhere from 20, 30, 40 minutes to 2-3 hours to get to some of my favourite dirt playgrounds I need tires that will get me there and back. The Pacific Northwest can get wet for days, weeks and months on end, so any tire I choose MUST be able to handle wet conditions reliably. These do on pavement, but the front really has major weaknesses in the dirt in my experience. I'm planning on replacing it with a Metzeler MC 360 and see how that fares. I'll be giving up some tarmac performance for better dirt performance. I'm not overly concerned about wear as these tires look like they'll give me another 5-6000 km. As I paid $250 for the set, I'd say that's pretty good. The front is coming off this month as I have 3 offroad multi-day rides planned including the WABDR and I'm not going to tolerate this mediocre front any longer.
Date published: 2019-07-10
Rated 5 out of
5
by
Flubmaster2000 from
Aggressive yet smooth.
Installed the Karoo 3 on my KTM 450 EXC to have a tire that I could use for mainly road use with the occasional off road. Used them on some fairly gnarly trails with loose rocks and sand and they preformed well. Just had some minor issues with rear tire loosing side traction on camber with loose gravel. Smooth on road and handles the twistes well. Haven't used on mud or wet roads yet.
Date published: 2015-08-09
Rated 4 out of
5
by
DonR from
Awesome 50/50 tire
Used these for a little bit of everything done about 1500km so far seem to be wearing well, the back looks like 90% the front looks almost new still. Awesome on hardpacked dirt roads gravel and soft dirt, not bad in the mud. On the road you forget you've got 50/50 tires on, you can feel the knobs vibrating at a walking pace but on the highway and even leaned over in the twisties they feel really good, not quite on par with the trail attacks i had on before but pretty close. Wet grip on tarmac is not awesome and the back spins up easily on corner exits but otherwise one of the best all round tires I have found.
Date published: 2015-07-04
Rated 4 out of
5
by
GMDD1 from
Great dual sport tire!
Replaced a Metzler Scout 60 front with the Karoo 3.
Quieter on the highway, much better directionality in gravel and rock.
Better in the mud too.
Date published: 2017-06-26
Rated 5 out of
5
by
IHOP from
My 3rd one about to go on
I am just about to mount up the 3rd one of these tires and as long as the price stays down I will continue to run Karoo 3s... They strike about the perfect balance in an Adventure bike tire... Long life: I get 7000 - 8000 KM per as to where other brands I
have run give an average of 5000 KM..
Traction: They work much better than the tread pattern would indicate, I use them on gravel& dirt tracks which are often wet and muddy and on steep shot rock mountain roads as well... On pavement they run along quietly compared to some other tires and give decent traction...
Date published: 2015-05-06
Rated 4 out of
5
by
motozingaro from
Love the rear tire, the front sucks
I've got 7,000 km on these tires and the rear is showing some wear. The sipes are almost gone but there's plenty of tread left on the rear. These tires are fantastic on tarmac through twisties, I can push the bush pig to it's limit without fear of breaking loose. On forest service roads they are decent, although the front doesn't give me much confidence at all. It struggles to grip on loose gravel, sand, light trails. The rear on the other hand will take on just about anything. It clears deep mud quickly. Uphill on loose rocks, no problem. Yes, it will break loose in corners under heavy throttle off road, but I've got used to that and it will slip on cambered roads, again not a problem. I would happily recommend the rear, but I'll never use the front again.
Date published: 2019-07-05
Rated 4 out of
5
by
Mike from
A Solid All-Round Dual Purpose Tire
This tire does not shine in any one area but does all things competently. After 8000kms on my BMW 850 GSA it is close to needing a change on the rear. On wet pavement it keeps traction well when ridden moderately. On dry pavement it performs well and doesn’t let go. Off road it has decent traction with some lateral movement on looser gravel. However it has not failed to grip off road yet. I can’t comment on its performance in mud as I haven’t done much riding on it in those conditions. Tire noise is there but tolerable. Definitely one of the better dual purpose tires out there with the usual trade off on longevity, on-road and off road performance. I’m hoping for better off-road performance in my next tire. However this tire does strike a good balance in performance and durability. I’d recommend it.
Date published: 2021-06-30
Questions
what is the speed rating?
You may find the speed rating per size below :
130/80 - 17 M/C 65R
140/80 - 17 M/C 69R
150/70 - 17 M/C 69R
170/60 - 17 M/C 72T
140/80 - 18 M/C 70R
150/70 - 18 M/C 70R
Date published: 2016-02-24
Metzler Karoo dual purpose, can the be used tube or tubless.
I have used it tubeless on F650GS (twin) and R1200GS. For off road in deep sand and on upward hills "paved" with large surface, smoothed-out rocks I would have liked to have a slightly more aggressive thread, especially with the much heavier R1200GS. Other than these more extreme conditions, I am happy with them both on (including rain) and off road. I haven't experienced though too much deep mud off road.
Date published: 2018-06-12