TESTED: Michelin Wild XC

Words and photos: Mike Blewitt

Michelin are synonymous with tyres, and have lead the charge with cycling tyre technology. In recent years, their Enduro and Downhill tyres have won global acclaim. Their gravity rubber has been built to meet the standards of global athletes with class-leading strength and performance. However Michelin’s cross-country and light trail tyres were in need of a revamp – enter the XC2 series, with the new Wild XC and redesigned Force and Jet. All the tyres come in 29” only, and they now come on easily recyclable cardboard packaging, with minimal ink use.

Casing and rubber

A good tyre starts with the casing and the rubber used, and Michelin’s Racing Line XC tyres use two layers of 150tpi (threads per inch) material over the body of the tyre. This is doubled up above the bead for extra pinch protection. For puncture protection, Michelin add a high density fibre to the casing from bead to bead. The result is a fairly supple feeling casing, that still feels like it has some strength to it for the demands of a modern cross-country tyre.

Michelin also have Performance line models, which use 3 layers of 60tpi material and the high density puncture protection. This will create a stiffer and stronger casing, that won’t be as supple for the higher levels of traction and reduced rolling resistance.

The rubber is the same across all new Michelin XC2 tyres, with a single compound Gum-X compound. It’s said to be the balance of rolling speed, grip and durability that Michelin wanted. As it’s a single compound, you should find the chemical grip of the rubber stays consistent as the mechanical grip (tread) wears. Both the Racing Line and Performance Line uses the same Gum-X rubber. It doesn’t feel as soft as their Enduro line, which makes sense given cross-country racers want fast rolling speeds and better tread wear.

The tyres were fitted to a pair of 30mm and 29mm internal rims. The bead is a tight fit, typical of Michelin, but there’s enough stretch that even though I thought I’d be reaching for many levers, one Pedro’s tyre lever fitted them up each time. I used Orange Seal Endurance sealant and they held pressure extremely well throughout the whole test, with no burps or punctures.

The Wild XC2 has open, square knobs, without any ramping or close centre tread like you would expect from many cross-country tyres. Coming in 2.25” and 2.35” models, the 2.35” (755g) on test inflated to a very generous 63mm on 30mm internal rims, and a little less on the 29mm internal. The edge knobs are tall for an XC tyre, and the tread just off the centre line has lengthways siping to help hold a lean on wet surfaces a little better. The transition knobs have the siping across the tyre to assist in a perpendicular direction. The edged knobs have a two out, one in pattern, with the outer knobs using a lengthways sipe and the inner on an angle. I’ve never really expected siping (the small lines in tread knobs) to do much but I really think it plays a big role on these tyres.

On the trail

My first ride was on tacky trails near home, and I never felt low on traction, and even the 15kms on road and gravel to the trails showed good rolling speed – although I did receive complaints that the tyres did throw up a lot of small rocks!

Most of the test riding I did was in Derby, riding about 350kms on wet to damp trails. From slabs of wet rock, wet roots, clay mud, sandy mud, patches of hero dirt to moist loam – the Wild XC were exceptional. The edge knob support was probably what I found the best, be it on off camber terrain or when navigating through ruts. I mostly ran slightly higher pressures than I would have otherwise, given the rocks that lurk at Derby, but I didn’t give up anything on traction with the Wild XC. I settled at 20/22psi front and rear.

I really think the siping on the tread blocks close to the centre helped grip on the wet rock and harder packed trails, as the rubber has been chosen to be fast rolling with good tread wear. I was certainly more confident on wet rocks, and even off camber root sections, compared to any other similar XC tyre.

The tread pattern is so open that across the variety of trail surfaces they didn’t clog, and they still rolled super fast for trail speed and pedal ups on the Cascade Dam Road or Long Shadows. While I ended up using the Wild XC on the front in Derby, it would have been perfect on the rear as well. Anytime you have looser or wetter conditions, these would be a go to.

RRP: $139 ($129 for Performance)
From: bikecorp.com.au

Hits:

• High performance casing, rubber and tread design
• Ok the sidewall logos look awesome!
• Good tread wear
• The Wild XC is a fast rolling, loose conditions tyre

Misses:

• 29” only
• Expensive

Gravity more your thing? Watch our review on the Michelin DH range!