The Michelin Wild Enduro Front Racing Line tyre offers ultimate levels of grip with a super-tough casing and excellent trail-dampening qualities. The super-sticky compound inspires confidence with predictable grip but does come at the cost of longevity and rolling resistance. The weight is also noticeable but as far as front grip goes, the predictability makes it one of the best mountain bike tyres around.
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Michelin Wild Enduro Front Racing Line – Technical details
The Wild Enduro Front Racing Line is Michelin’s offering for a maximum grip. It’s a tough front tyre to handle a wide range of conditions and terrains. The chunkier DH34 sits above it and the non-racing line version sits below it which uses a harder compound.
Because this tyre is built with racing in mind, maximum grip and reliability are top of the requirements list. Michelin has used the super-sticky Magic-X rubber found on their DH tyres along with the DH shield casing. The four-ply DH shield casing has puncture defence layers, reinforced pinch protection at the bead and wrap-around protection layers to fend off slices to the sidewalls.
This creates a tyre that grips well and is super resistant to pinches and punctures but does come at the cost of weight. A claimed weight of 1,400g is significant and very much in the DH tyre territory.
The Racing lines are easily identifiable with the yellow and blue markings. They’re only available in 29 x 2.40in size so if you’re running 27.5- or 26-inch you’ll need to look at the non-racing line versions.
Michelin Wild Enduro Front Racing Line – Performance
For testing, I mounted the tyre to a DT Swiss XM481 rim which has a 30mm internal width. Fitting was a simple process, no harder or easier than any other tyre I’ve tried – get the bead over the rim by hand and use the tyre lever for the last bit. I did find getting them to seat a little trickier even with my handy Airshot but once the tyre bead was sat onto the rim they aired up and sat correctly without any issues.
After some fettling, I settled at 24psi front and 26psi rear for riding rocky and high-speed bike park trails.
The construction and finishing on the tyre is excellent. It feels like a quality product, well made and once fitted it ran straight and true.
The rubber is an uber-sticky compound which has a squishy and mouldable feel to it. This translates into excellent grip on rock and roots which is super confidence-inspiring. It also provides a dampened feel which calms down trail chatter a little without the tyres feeling squirmy.
The tyre profile is a little squarer than I am used to – more squarer than a Maxxis Assegai counterpart for example. This does make the transition from the top of the tyre onto the side knobs more pronounced, however, the traction is pleasantly predictable and it takes a lot to get this tyre sliding. It does require a bit of bravery to really lean the tyre over but it’ll reward you with plenty of cornering traction. It hooks up well in loam, soft dirt and loose layers over hard-pack terrain, which makes for a great all-round tyre. In the wet, the braking traction is impressive with the large knobs working hard to find grip and clearing well in all but the stickiest mud.
The casing is thick, maybe not quite DH-casing thick but not far off. The support that it offers is excellent, particularly in big G berms. I actually lowered my usual tyre pressure slightly as the tyre didn’t deform over the trail as much as I’d liked. The weight of these tyres is certainly a negative point, it depends on what you’re used to running but my usual double-down/enduro casings are around 300g lighter so getting up to speed takes longer and requires more effort. Having said that, once you’re rolling I didn’t notice the extra weight.
That super grippy rubber does have some downsides as well. Longevity isn’t great although I’d argue this is less of an issue on the front tyre. The braking edge and side knobs are showing signs of wear a little quicker than I’d expect. However, it’s a trade-off I’m happy to make, especially on the front tyre. The photo below shows the wear after 27,000m of descending on a range of terrain, mostly dry with rocks and roots, hard pack and some mud.
The soft compound does create a lot of rolling resistance which is very noticeable. Again, being a front tyre it’s a compromise I’m happy with but pay attention to the rolling resistance of your rear tyre of choice to save pedalling being an absolute slog. I’d say that pairing this with the Wild Enduro Rear Racing Line would create a very draggy set-up.
Michelin Wild Enduro Front Racing Line – Verdict
Coming in at £73, it is right on the money compared to similar tyres in the market. The Maxxis Assegai is a firm front tyre favourite and comes in at a similar price. The Maxxgrip variant offers similar purchase levels but it doesn’t clear mud as well as the Wild Enduro. At the cheaper end of the market, WTB Verdict is a front-specific tyre that offers high levels of grip. The compound isn’t as soft, nor the casing as tough but it offers excellent grip levels and comes in at £55.
The Michelin Wild Enduro Front Racing Line is a no-compromise race tyre. Its super grippy compound, reliably thick casing and predictable traction make it an excellent choice to go fast on as long as you’re pointing down a hill. The weight, rolling resistance and longevity of the tyre come at the cost of all the grip. As a front tyre that will have your back no matter the terrain or conditions, this is a very confidence-inspiring choice.
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Lots of grip
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