Michelin Wild Enduro & E-Wild Tires - 5 New Tires for 2024!

Words by: Liam Woods

A New Update From The Oldest Bicycle Tire Brand

Michelin isn’t a new brand in the bicycle tire space. In fact, they are one of, if not the longest tire manufacturer of the modern bicycle tire. For 2024, Michelin is launching a handful of new and updated tire models in the Wild Enduro and E-Wild tire range. I was lucky enough to head out to a media event put on by Michelin in North Carolina to ride all 5 new tires, trying different combinations and testing tire pressures on the same set of trails to really get a good initial feel for the tires. 

Yes, 5 new tires are being launched. We have 3 tires in the Wild Enduro range, the Wild Enduro MS, Wild Enduro MH, and Wild Enduro Rear. Then for the e-mtb line, there is the E-Wild Front and E-Wild Rear, giving you lots of options that are all designed with the correct casing and rubber compound Michelin feels is best for each application. 

The latest Michelin Wild Enduro tire range has been meticulously crafted to deliver exceptional performance across various terrains. Offering options tailored for Mixed-Hard (MH) and Mixed-Soft (MS) landscapes, alongside a specialized Rear tread pattern to enhance rolling efficiency, the Michelin Wild Enduro Racing Line claims unparalleled grip and durability. Available in two color schemes - classic blue and yellow, or sleek dark - riders can effortlessly match their tire to their preferred riding style and terrain for an optimal experience.

Michelin E-Wild Racing Line range is the newest innovation in E-MTB tires. Drawing inspiration from the proven Enduro range, the Michelin E-Wild Front offers unmatched confidence and speed for downhill rides, while the Michelin E-Wild Rear tire is meticulously crafted to provide supreme traction for demanding climbs. 

Wild Enduro MS

The Wild Enduro MS is the brand's softer front tire made for mixed conditions with some soft soil. With what is becoming a popular knob pattern, the MS rocks a “2 x 3 x 2” knob pattern. The MS is available in a 2.4 casing and features the Magi-X rubber compound. All of Michelin's Racing product line features the Magi-X rubber technology, but it is specifically designed for each tire to offer the best grip to rolling resistance needed for the application. A new feature is the stealth logo graphic now offered in the Wild Enduro tires. If you want a more subtle logo than the classic yellow and blue Michelin, this is now an option and I'm sure it will get more riders on the tires and match more bikes. 

Specs:

• Model: Wild Enduro MS (Mixed-Soft)
• Sizes: 27.5 x 2.4, 29 x 2.4
• Weights: 1200g (27.5), 1290 (29)
• E-bike Compatible: Yes
• Casing: 2 x 55 TPI

Wild Enduro MH

The Wild Enduro MH features a more classic block knob pattern than the MS, and is aimed to excel in mixed hard packed conditions. Coming in a 2.5 width only, it's a large casing that can certainly take the hits from that hard packed rock and terrain you would find in the southwest of the United States. This MH also features Magi-X rubber compound that is slightly tweaked from the MS to handle the harder packed conditions this tire is aimed at. Also available with the classic yellow & blue logos, or the stealthy dark grey logos. 

Specs:

• Model: Wild Enduro MS=H (Mixed-Hard)
• Sizes: 27.5 x 2.5, 29 x 2.5
• Weights: 1300g (27.5), 1335 (29)
• E-bike Compatible: Yes
• Casing: 2 x 55 TPI

Wild Enduro Rear

The Wild Enduro Rear is exactly as the name suggests, aimed to be a rear only tire and offer the best rolling resistance out of the Wild Enduro line. As with many rear specific tires, this aims at striking a balance between rolling efficiency and braking control. The side knobs of the Rear tire are very close to being the same as the Wild Enduro MH tire, while the center knobs take on a unique knob pattern different from most tires on the market. As with the other Wild Enduro tires, this is also available in both the blue & yellow logos or the dark grey. 

Specs:

• Model: Wild Enduro Rear
• Sizes: 29 x 2.4
• Weights: 1225g
• E-bike Compatible: Yes
• Casing: 2 x 55 TPI

E-Wild Front

Moving to the E-bike designed tires, at first glance the new E-Wild Front looks almost identical to the Wild Enduro MS and that is on purpose. The two tires are looking to do about the same thing, give tons of control up front and confidence in all types of terrain. The casing, protection and rubber compound have all been designed around the use of an e-mtb. As the e-mtb market develops, there are some items branded as e-bike specific that are all marketing. With tires, I think that a specific e-mtb tire is one of the products that a rider can actually benefit from. Coming in two different casing sizes, a 2.4 and 2.6, riders can choose what feel they want. A more aggressive rider would probably find a 2.4 to their liking, while a more casual rider going over a ton of different terrain would enjoy the 2.6 a bit more. 

Specs:

• Model: E-Wild Front
• Sizes: 29 x 2.4, 29 x 2.6
• Weights: 1290g (2.4), 1325g (2.6)
• E-bike Compatible: Specific E-Bike Design
• Casing: 2 x 55 TPI

E-Wild Rear

As E-EDR racing grows in popularity, (E-bike Enduro Racing World Cups), the demands for specific tires grow as well. A stage in those events is the power stage, where racers are riding up downhill courses with steep hill climbs, and having a tire that can provide traction in those situations while also being good downhill is becoming not a want but a need. The E-Wild Rear is exactly that with a very unique knob pattern that takes lots of inspiration from a classic motocross tire, which Michelin has a ton of experience making as well. One interesting thing about the E-Wild Rear is that the only size option is 2.6. Michelin found that in all their testing on ebikes, the 2.6 was the winner and chosen by all their pro riders for racing. So you will see many of the pro E-EDR racers choosing to run a 2.4 front with a 2.6 rear on their e-mtb’s this year. 

Specs: 

• Model: E-Wild Rear
• Sizes: 27.5 x 2.6, 29 x 2.6
• Weights: 1245g (27.5), 1325g (29)
• E-bike Compatible: Specific E-Bike Design
• Casing:  2 x 55 TPI

Riding First Impressions:

As mentioned earlier, I was lucky enough to head out to the Michelin media event that was held in North Carolina between the two parks, Ride Rock Creek and Ride Kanuga, which offer a great place to test tires with a variety of trails from classic flow to black diamond DH trails. We rode for 3 days with the last day starting off with some rain, allowing us to get lots of riding in and even test the wet grip and mud shedding of the E-Wild tires. 

Wild Enduro MS (Front) Wild Enduro MH (Rear):

For the first day of riding, I got set up with a Wild Enduro MS on the front of my bike, and the Wild Enduro MH rear. From the looks of this combo, I had a good feeling about them. The two tires take on a classic look, similar to the Maxxis Assegai and Maxxis DHR2, or newer Continental Kryptotal Front and Rear. While many say it's a copycat, it's also a proven design that works well in 80% of conditions around the world. 

As we set out to ride, the Michelin product managers were telling us we could get away with lower pressures due to the higher support of the casing when comparing it to similar tires we would ride on these trails. I started with 23.5 psi up front and 26 psi out back, a pretty typical pressure I run my tires at for trail and enduro bikes, and I would add 1 psi if I were at a bike park as the supported berms and jumps tend to make the tire roll and squirm. After the first two runs we were asked what we thought about pressure, and I didn't feel any tire roll at those pressures and grip was solid and very predictable. I will preface that the dirt and conditions this day at Ride Rock Creek were pretty all time and many tires would have worked well on those first laps. I ended up dropping pressure for the next few runs to 22.5 psi and 24.5 psi, trying to see when the tires would roll. After a few more runs and jumping to some more natural trails that had a bit more dry dirt, rocks, and roots, I was starting to get a feel for the tires. The front and rear combo was very predictable and as noted by Michelin, the casing was very supportive. While I started to get some x’s on my rear tire, I never felt the casing roll too much at these pressures. It was at lunch when I realized that the combo of tires I was running was a 2.4 front and a 2.5 rear, I was a bit shocked, to be honest. If I were to choose a tire setup, I always choose matching front and rear sizes or larger in the front and smaller in the back. The fact that I was running a larger width in the rear had me questioning lots of things, but when explained it made a lot of sense. The narrower tire helps cut through the dirt and provides a more precise feel without hitting stuff on the trails you don't want to. The rear at 2.5 has a larger width to help grip for braking as well as offering some protection for the hard packed terrain, after all this tire is made for a front or rear and aimed at hard packed, while it works amazing as a rear only tire, it has more versatility than just a rear. 

Photos by: Callie Horwath

After lunch, we got in some more laps, and I wanted to keep pushing the pressure lower and lower. I got down to 21.5 psi front and 23.5 psi rear, after a few laps this pressure I think was the tipping point. If I was only riding raw and natural trails, this would be a great pressure to run as I had a ton of grip without smashing my rims. But on the berms and more bike park trails I was starting to roll the tires and did have a few tire burps on the rear, nothing bad but had a little sealant sneak out a few times, letting me know that was too low for that type of trail. However, after going up just 1 psi I didn't have that feeling and both tires provided an amazing amount of support, traction, and overall confidence. 

Photos by: Callie Horwath

I was able to get in two rides back home on these tires, as perfectly built trails and dirt conditions are not always the best to fully test some tires. I started with 22.5 psi front and 24.5 psi rear for these rides and felt that was a sweet spot for my weight of 150ish lbs and the terrain I was riding: a mix of natural and super rough trails with some really supportive berms and jumps. I was happy to find the same feeling on home trails as I did in North Carolina; the Wild Enduro MS up front had a great feel and tracked very predictably while the Wild Enduro MH out back led to great drifts and on the steep trails I was able to get on the brakes hard and shut it down to regulate speed when needed. I have a Wild Enduro Rear on the way to get some time riding that on the home trails as well, a combo I am excited to try as much of my riding includes some 4-6k feet of elevation up and down. 

E-Wild Front, E-Wild Rear:

On day 2 and 3 of the media camp, we swapped to demo e-bikes that were outfitted with the E-Wild Front and E-Wild Rear, of course in the correct orientation to the name. My test bike had a 2.6 front and rear, while normally larger than what I ride, I was curious to try the larger size from my experience riding the day before, I figured just try what the experts are setting you up with. 

I started with my typical tire pressures for e-bikes with a proper thick casing at 24 psi front and 27 psi rear. With a few laps at Ride Kanuga to get a feel for the tires, the wider casing was a bit odd at first. I really felt it had a ton of grip but almost too much grip, and hard to put where I wanted on the trail. It took awhile to get rid of the vague feeling on the wider casing. The rear tire was similar - the 2.6 E-Wild Rear has so much traction, you actually don't realize that most tires have some drift to them as the rear was hooking up like crazy. When I would expect it to slide it would grip. To test the climbing of the tire, we took it up a section of a black DH trail, and the tread pattern really does what it's designed to do there. The traction was great and the wider casing really helped get the most grip with the higher torque of the e-mtb. Overall the E-Wild tires worked great for what they were designed to do, and I feel that if I had the 2.4 to ride the front would feel exactly like the Wild Enduro MS which I really got along with. 

Worldwide’s Final Thoughts:

With 5 new tires, Michelin is making a strong grab at the mountain bike market. I had a really good first impression on the Wild Enduro MS and Wild Enduro MH tires, as well as riding and giving the stamp of approval on the E-Wild Front and Rear tires. I would say the MS front and MH rear combination is the real winner of my time trying out 4 of the 5 tires. It's very predictable and I could see myself riding these in 80% or more of my typical rides. It's great to see more development and dedication from Michelin to the mountain bike market. For years they have had really solid options and Sam Hill has piloted these Michelin tires to EWS wins and overall titles more than once. There has also been some improvements on distribution and Worldwide Cyclery will have all the new tires in stock and will for the foreseeable future. 

This article was written / authored by Liam Woods. Liam has been in the bicycle industry for over 10 years as a racer, professional mechanic, service manager and as of late, media and content creator. Liam has ridden thousands of different bikes, ridden countless components, tested endless MTB apparel of all kinds and written reviews on it all. He's a key piece to the Worldwide Cyclery "All Things MTB" content creation puzzle. He also makes consistent appearances on the Worldwide Cyclery YouTube channel and Instagram.