Honda Shine tyre size for the front and back wheel of the Shine 125

Honda Shine tyre size front and rear by variant

Drum and disc bikes share the same rubber. The only thing the brake choice changes is the front hub, so a disc owner and a drum owner walk out of the shop with identical tyres. One spec listing shows the newer rear as 90/100-18, but the brochure and most listings give 90/90-18, so let the code on your bike's own rubber settle it.

What 80/100-18 and 90/90-18 tell you

Take the front code, 80/100-18. Eighty millimetres measures tread width. The 100 says the wall matches that width, leaving about 80 mm of cushion between rim and road. Eighteen inches is where the bead seats on the alloy. Those tall walls explain why a Shine rides over cratered village lanes and speed breakers more gently than many sporty 17 inch bikes.

At the back, 90/90-18 gives 90 mm of tread, and its wall rises around 81 mm. So the newer rear is 10 mm wider but stands only a touch taller than the old 80/100-18. The wider patch gives a little more grip on wet tar and more stability with a pillion, which is why Honda moved to it.

Honda Shine back tyre size on old and new bikes

Most questions we get about the Shine 125 rear tyre size come from owners of the earlier bike who see the fatter tyre on a friend's new Shine. Here is how the two compare in overall height:

The gap is only 2 mm, so the speedometer barely notices. What does change is width. Before fitting a 90 section tyre on the earlier bike, ask the mechanic to slide the wheel fully back on its chain adjusters and look for daylight between rubber, chain, swingarm and mudguard. If the clearance is tight, stay with 80/100-18.

Honda Shine 125 rear tyre size, tubeless

Every Shine on alloy wheels leaves the factory on tubeless tyres. Because the bead seals directly on the rim, a nail picked up on the way to work tends to hiss out gradually rather than flatten the bike mid traffic. Most roadside puncture walas can push a rubber plug into the tread without removing the wheel. Refuse a tube fitted into a tubeless Shine rear except as a last resort far from town; the tube heats up and throws away that gradual leak advantage. Our tubeless tyre guide covers repairs and what a plug can and cannot fix.

Going wider than the factory size

Now and then a Shine owner wants a 100/80-18 at the back to make the bike look beefier. Its overall height is 457.2 + 2 x 80 = 617.2 mm, the same as the earlier rear, so the speedo stays honest. The trouble is width. A 100 section tyre on a rim made for 80 or 90 section rubber gets a rounder profile, the bike feels slower to tip into turns, and chain rub is a real risk. A 90/100-18 is taller, at 637.2 mm, about 3 percent more than the current rear, and the speedo will under read.

When to replace a Shine tyre

• Tread wear indicators: look for little rubber ridges moulded across the grooves. On a daily commuter the rear reaches them first, often long before the front.
• Age: four digits on the Shine tyre wall give its week and year of making. The manufacturing date guide explains it. Old rubber hardens and slips on wet roads even with tread left.
• Cuts and bulges: a pothole hidden by rainwater can pinch the wall against the rim. Any swelling there means cords inside have snapped, so ride very gently onward and get a tyre man to look at it.
• Squared off rear: daily straight commutes on a flat bypass wear a flat band into the Shine's back tyre, and it starts to resist leaning into bends.

Pressure and the battery on the same bike

Tyre size and air go together. Riding solo, a cold Shine wants 25 psi front, 33 psi rear; two up, the front stays put while the rear goes to 41 psi, per the owner's manual. Ignore the much bigger figure printed on the tyre wall, which is a limit. Low air on a loaded Shine heats the rear and wears the shoulders fast. If the bike has been slow to crank on cold mornings, our Honda Shine battery size page lists the rating to ask for. For other commuters, compare with the Splendor tyre size or jump to our bike tyre size hub, where every motorcycle we cover sits in one long table.