Review: Road.cc - Michelin Power Protection Tyre

Off-Road.cc has reviewed the Michelin Power Protection TLR tyre. Here is what they had to say:

The Michelin Power Protection TLR tyres are durable, grippy, and – unless I've just jinxed it – very puncture proof. They're ideal for anyone who wants a hardwearing but grippy tyre for day-to-day training and general riding – especially if you can find them for less than their RRP.

When I first got the tyres out of the box – which I was pleased to see was fully recyclable cardboard packaging – I found them really easy to install and set up tubeless. The 30mm tyres slipped onto some 21mm-wide Reynolds rims without the need for tyre levers, and held air without sealant, only needing a regular track pump.

We've probably all had horrible experiences setting up tubeless tyres at home, so I was really pleased that these were so straightforward.

Once the tyres were fitted and had sealant installed, they lost just a few PSI overnight, so I was confident there weren't going to be any issues with air leaking.

I opted for about 60psi front and rear for the first few rides, but the tyres felt ever so slightly wooden on really rough roads. By dropping down to 55psi at the rear and 50 at the front, they became much more smooth, and ate up road vibrations for the remainder of the review period.

The sidewall is a little stiffer than some because of the bead-to-bead puncture protection, but I can't say this is something I noticed when riding.

Being more training-focused rubber than race, the Power Protections do feel a little draggy on steep, slow climbs, and accelerating from high speed in a sprint or when coming through on a chain gang felt a little harder work than normal – if no more so than other tyres in this class I've used, like the Pirelli PZero 4s.

Making the tyre lighter and more responsive would come at the cost of durability or puncture protection, which is what this tyre is truly designed for, so I was happy enough to put out a bit more effort.

Grip

Sometimes when you lean a tyre over into a corner for the first time, you can tense up a little bit and ease right off – not wanting to push the tyres too far until you're really confident with them. But the Michelin Power Protections filled me with confidence in their grip immediately – I took the first corner at the end of my street at about 30kph, on some broken up and rough tarmac, and I could almost hear the tyres adhering to the road. The Magi-X compound is really impressive, definitely up there with some race tyres I've ridden.

Durability

Usually, grip can come at the expense of durability, owing to a softer compound that allows the tyre to deform more to the road. In the case of the Power Protections, durability is first class: after just over 1,000km on my regular roads of chipped and broken tarmac, loose fine gravel, and some cobbles in Bristol's city centre, the tyres are still going strong. The moulding line around the circumference of the tyre is still there at the front, and is just starting to wear down on the rear – owing to the increased weight over the back end of the bike.

There are no cuts or slashes in the tyre, and I'm fairly sure the tubeless sealant hasn't had to plug any holes yet.

Maybe I've just got lucky, it being summer, but I've been really impressed with the longevity of the tyres so far and, although 1,000km should be well within a tyre of this type's capability, I expect there are several thousand more to go before they'd need replacing.