I guess that comically oversized wheels on trailers isn't a thing yet.
Why do they put such tiny tires on travel trailers
- Thread starter The motor guy
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Originally Posted By: fsskier
Underinflation and speed may contribute to blowouts but the real problem for many of us is bad, often Chinese made tires.
I tow boats 4 days a week for our watershow operation, on a road trip we may have as many as 8 trailers.
This will be my 40th year of doing so.
Example 1: One of our smaller single rigs (only one motor) still had the original tires on it after 15 years, deep cracks, worn out, General brand and still no failures. We purchased new tires from Tires Plus, Nanco brand, highly recommended by the seller. 3 of the 4 blew on the first road trip of about 300 miles. Yes fully inflated and towed on 2 lane roads at lower speeds. Tires Plus did not stand behind them, claiming the same as some writers on here. They talked our treasurer into buying 6 ply rated tires, same brand, 75 lb tires......same results, just a louder bang when they blow!
Remember the original Generals never gave trouble and were only 4 ply, 50 lb tires.
Example 2: A new triple rig we purchased, $80,000 invested, also a tandem axle. 7,000 lbs of capacity, actual weight of 5,000 lbs. Within 2 years all 4 had blown out. One blew about 1 mile from our hotel (road trip) after I had gotten up early, walked around carefully checking tire pressure, etc. Could still see the hotel from the interstate on ramp....blew completely apart throwing the entire center out. Radial Trail CRT was the brand on the sidewall, made in China.
The next 8 years - till now---have been on Goodyears and have had no failures.
I could give more examples...but here is my takeaway. We replace with Goodyear Marathons and have no further problems. Likely other major brands are good also. Car tires are always good on our boat trailers and we often use them when the capacity ratings are adequate. One of our twin rigs weighed 4,400 lbs and was towed for many years with car tires only rated to hold up 3400 lbs total and they ran until worn out.
Incidentally, I contacted DOT about the 100% failure rate brands and learned that they do not test trailer tires.....only car tires for the DOT certification. Many of you older car buffs may remember when they began testing car tires, lots of them blew out when tested at their rated capacity and tire quality was forced to greatly improve at that time. Hopefully the current deregulation trend will not return us to the 1950's and 60's when blowouts were a standard part of driving.
Titan, who makes large equipment tires and we thought had a good reputation bought a Firestone Factory, fired all the help and brought in replacement workers. Yeah we live nearby....got some of their tires, 100 percent failures, although they usually threw part of the tread off before blowing, you might get 5 miles of warning and find a safe place to pull over.
I could go on, but I know that none of our blowouts were the users fault!
fsskier
On the RV Forums, people often complain about blowouts with damage when using Goodyear tires. Often, those people switch to Sailun tires (which are a Chinese brand) and have no further problems.
My 5th wheel toy hauler came with Goodyear G114 Load Range H tires. Due to the numerous complaints of blowouts of those Goodyears from other owners, I preemptively swapped mine out.
Underinflation and speed may contribute to blowouts but the real problem for many of us is bad, often Chinese made tires.
I tow boats 4 days a week for our watershow operation, on a road trip we may have as many as 8 trailers.
This will be my 40th year of doing so.
Example 1: One of our smaller single rigs (only one motor) still had the original tires on it after 15 years, deep cracks, worn out, General brand and still no failures. We purchased new tires from Tires Plus, Nanco brand, highly recommended by the seller. 3 of the 4 blew on the first road trip of about 300 miles. Yes fully inflated and towed on 2 lane roads at lower speeds. Tires Plus did not stand behind them, claiming the same as some writers on here. They talked our treasurer into buying 6 ply rated tires, same brand, 75 lb tires......same results, just a louder bang when they blow!
Remember the original Generals never gave trouble and were only 4 ply, 50 lb tires.
Example 2: A new triple rig we purchased, $80,000 invested, also a tandem axle. 7,000 lbs of capacity, actual weight of 5,000 lbs. Within 2 years all 4 had blown out. One blew about 1 mile from our hotel (road trip) after I had gotten up early, walked around carefully checking tire pressure, etc. Could still see the hotel from the interstate on ramp....blew completely apart throwing the entire center out. Radial Trail CRT was the brand on the sidewall, made in China.
The next 8 years - till now---have been on Goodyears and have had no failures.
I could give more examples...but here is my takeaway. We replace with Goodyear Marathons and have no further problems. Likely other major brands are good also. Car tires are always good on our boat trailers and we often use them when the capacity ratings are adequate. One of our twin rigs weighed 4,400 lbs and was towed for many years with car tires only rated to hold up 3400 lbs total and they ran until worn out.
Incidentally, I contacted DOT about the 100% failure rate brands and learned that they do not test trailer tires.....only car tires for the DOT certification. Many of you older car buffs may remember when they began testing car tires, lots of them blew out when tested at their rated capacity and tire quality was forced to greatly improve at that time. Hopefully the current deregulation trend will not return us to the 1950's and 60's when blowouts were a standard part of driving.
Titan, who makes large equipment tires and we thought had a good reputation bought a Firestone Factory, fired all the help and brought in replacement workers. Yeah we live nearby....got some of their tires, 100 percent failures, although they usually threw part of the tread off before blowing, you might get 5 miles of warning and find a safe place to pull over.
I could go on, but I know that none of our blowouts were the users fault!
fsskier
On the RV Forums, people often complain about blowouts with damage when using Goodyear tires. Often, those people switch to Sailun tires (which are a Chinese brand) and have no further problems.
My 5th wheel toy hauler came with Goodyear G114 Load Range H tires. Due to the numerous complaints of blowouts of those Goodyears from other owners, I preemptively swapped mine out.
4WD
$50 site donor 2024
Not me … used Marathons for 20 years and no issues …
Originally Posted By: madRiver
Tire Blowout mostly happen to irresponsible owners:
1) outdated old tires, they expire/crack/loss integrity despite how few miles you run them
2) running tires low on air overheating them leading to blow outs
3) overloading tires
4) speeding with tires which overheats them
5) damaging tires by 2,3,4 of combination thereof
6) parking tires long term on less then optimal conditions (dirt, grass, gravel etc) instead of a 2x8
Absolutely! THIS^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Tire Blowout mostly happen to irresponsible owners:
1) outdated old tires, they expire/crack/loss integrity despite how few miles you run them
2) running tires low on air overheating them leading to blow outs
3) overloading tires
4) speeding with tires which overheats them
5) damaging tires by 2,3,4 of combination thereof
6) parking tires long term on less then optimal conditions (dirt, grass, gravel etc) instead of a 2x8
Absolutely! THIS^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
4WD
$50 site donor 2024
7) not getting their tail off the driver seat once and a while to feel the sidewalls and bearings
To answer the original question. Small tires are cheaper than larger tires. Ed
I feel compelled to add another item to this discussion. I notice several posters claiming that its the owners fault for driving too fast without enough air, or not parking on 2 x 8's at night!
These seem to just be opinions, not data driven information. Perhaps they can inform us what pressure they were using when their tires blew....not just looking at blowouts while driving by on the interstate.
I offered data-driven information on my previous post but would like to add the following. My last two tow vehicles (Lumina APV and a Toyota Sienna) have so far rolled up 400,000 miles without a blowout. Often towing something with a lot of hitch weight and often towing at the rated maximum of the tires. Let me say it again, no blowouts.
12 or more trailer tire blowouts occurred behind these vehicles, all towing well under their rated capacity limits. Usually trailers weighing about the same as the tow vehicle.
Several brands we used have had no blowouts. The Car tires we often put on trailers have had no blowouts. The unknown brands with Chinese Manufacturing have blown out with some reaching 100 percent failure rate.
Buy carefully. When the tire store says you used them wrong, ask them how they know what the pressure was just before they blew? Then take your business elsewhere!! We never did get any warranty money from Tires Plus. The money lost on the tires is insignificant when you consider laying on the interstate shoulder changing tires and vehicles hurdling by inches from your heels!
These seem to just be opinions, not data driven information. Perhaps they can inform us what pressure they were using when their tires blew....not just looking at blowouts while driving by on the interstate.
I offered data-driven information on my previous post but would like to add the following. My last two tow vehicles (Lumina APV and a Toyota Sienna) have so far rolled up 400,000 miles without a blowout. Often towing something with a lot of hitch weight and often towing at the rated maximum of the tires. Let me say it again, no blowouts.
12 or more trailer tire blowouts occurred behind these vehicles, all towing well under their rated capacity limits. Usually trailers weighing about the same as the tow vehicle.
Several brands we used have had no blowouts. The Car tires we often put on trailers have had no blowouts. The unknown brands with Chinese Manufacturing have blown out with some reaching 100 percent failure rate.
Buy carefully. When the tire store says you used them wrong, ask them how they know what the pressure was just before they blew? Then take your business elsewhere!! We never did get any warranty money from Tires Plus. The money lost on the tires is insignificant when you consider laying on the interstate shoulder changing tires and vehicles hurdling by inches from your heels!
Gotta remember to change the summer air out for winter air and that should help.
Our TT came with the Chinese maypops. I brought it home and immediately changed them out for Maxxis E rated tires. I would have gone Michelin but the trailer came with 15" wheels and Michelin didn't make a trailer tire for a 15 inch wheel. % years and not one problem with the Maxxis tires, keep the tires covered from the Sun if your camper lives outside.
Originally Posted By: thastinger
Our TT came with the Chinese maypops. I brought it home and immediately changed them out for Maxxis E rated tires. I would have gone Michelin but the trailer came with 15" wheels and Michelin didn't make a trailer tire for a 15 inch wheel. % years and not one problem with the Maxxis tires, keep the tires covered from the Sun if your camper lives outside.
Maxxis are Chinese tires.
Our TT came with the Chinese maypops. I brought it home and immediately changed them out for Maxxis E rated tires. I would have gone Michelin but the trailer came with 15" wheels and Michelin didn't make a trailer tire for a 15 inch wheel. % years and not one problem with the Maxxis tires, keep the tires covered from the Sun if your camper lives outside.
Maxxis are Chinese tires.
Originally Posted By: fsskier
I feel compelled to add another item to this discussion. I notice several posters claiming that its the owners fault for driving too fast without enough air, or not parking on 2 x 8's at night!
These seem to just be opinions, not data driven information. Perhaps they can inform us what pressure they were using when their tires blew....not just looking at blowouts while driving by on the interstate.
I offered data-driven information on my previous post but would like to add the following. My last two tow vehicles (Lumina APV and a Toyota Sienna) have so far rolled up 400,000 miles without a blowout. Often towing something with a lot of hitch weight and often towing at the rated maximum of the tires. Let me say it again, no blowouts.
12 or more trailer tire blowouts occurred behind these vehicles, all towing well under their rated capacity limits. Usually trailers weighing about the same as the tow vehicle.
Several brands we used have had no blowouts. The Car tires we often put on trailers have had no blowouts. The unknown brands with Chinese Manufacturing have blown out with some reaching 100 percent failure rate.
Buy carefully. When the tire store says you used them wrong, ask them how they know what the pressure was just before they blew? Then take your business elsewhere!! We never did get any warranty money from Tires Plus. The money lost on the tires is insignificant when you consider laying on the interstate shoulder changing tires and vehicles hurdling by inches from your heels!
With all due respect. Your towing any weight with the tow vehicles you mention. Once your move up to a 30 foot-5,000 pound (or more) travel trailer, 5th wheel, or tow hauler it's an entirely different ballgame.
I feel compelled to add another item to this discussion. I notice several posters claiming that its the owners fault for driving too fast without enough air, or not parking on 2 x 8's at night!
These seem to just be opinions, not data driven information. Perhaps they can inform us what pressure they were using when their tires blew....not just looking at blowouts while driving by on the interstate.
I offered data-driven information on my previous post but would like to add the following. My last two tow vehicles (Lumina APV and a Toyota Sienna) have so far rolled up 400,000 miles without a blowout. Often towing something with a lot of hitch weight and often towing at the rated maximum of the tires. Let me say it again, no blowouts.
12 or more trailer tire blowouts occurred behind these vehicles, all towing well under their rated capacity limits. Usually trailers weighing about the same as the tow vehicle.
Several brands we used have had no blowouts. The Car tires we often put on trailers have had no blowouts. The unknown brands with Chinese Manufacturing have blown out with some reaching 100 percent failure rate.
Buy carefully. When the tire store says you used them wrong, ask them how they know what the pressure was just before they blew? Then take your business elsewhere!! We never did get any warranty money from Tires Plus. The money lost on the tires is insignificant when you consider laying on the interstate shoulder changing tires and vehicles hurdling by inches from your heels!
With all due respect. Your towing any weight with the tow vehicles you mention. Once your move up to a 30 foot-5,000 pound (or more) travel trailer, 5th wheel, or tow hauler it's an entirely different ballgame.
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[/quote]
With all due respect. Your towing any weight with the tow vehicles you mention. Once your move up to a 30 foot-5,000 pound (or more) travel trailer, 5th wheel, or tow hauler it's an entirely different ballgame.[/quote]
?? Not sure what you are suggesting here, I noted that these are boats ranging in weights from 2,000 to 5,000 lbs. And just tire experiences.
With all due respect. Your towing any weight with the tow vehicles you mention. Once your move up to a 30 foot-5,000 pound (or more) travel trailer, 5th wheel, or tow hauler it's an entirely different ballgame.[/quote]
?? Not sure what you are suggesting here, I noted that these are boats ranging in weights from 2,000 to 5,000 lbs. And just tire experiences.
Originally Posted By: 02SE
Originally Posted By: fsskier
Underinflation and speed may contribute to blowouts but the real problem for many of us is bad, often Chinese made tires.
I tow boats 4 days a week for our watershow operation, on a road trip we may have as many as 8 trailers.
This will be my 40th year of doing so.
Example 1: One of our smaller single rigs (only one motor) still had the original tires on it after 15 years, deep cracks, worn out, General brand and still no failures. We purchased new tires from Tires Plus, Nanco brand, highly recommended by the seller. 3 of the 4 blew on the first road trip of about 300 miles. Yes fully inflated and towed on 2 lane roads at lower speeds. Tires Plus did not stand behind them, claiming the same as some writers on here. They talked our treasurer into buying 6 ply rated tires, same brand, 75 lb tires......same results, just a louder bang when they blow!
Remember the original Generals never gave trouble and were only 4 ply, 50 lb tires.
Example 2: A new triple rig we purchased, $80,000 invested, also a tandem axle. 7,000 lbs of capacity, actual weight of 5,000 lbs. Within 2 years all 4 had blown out. One blew about 1 mile from our hotel (road trip) after I had gotten up early, walked around carefully checking tire pressure, etc. Could still see the hotel from the interstate on ramp....blew completely apart throwing the entire center out. Radial Trail CRT was the brand on the sidewall, made in China.
The next 8 years - till now---have been on Goodyears and have had no failures.
I could give more examples...but here is my takeaway. We replace with Goodyear Marathons and have no further problems. Likely other major brands are good also. Car tires are always good on our boat trailers and we often use them when the capacity ratings are adequate. One of our twin rigs weighed 4,400 lbs and was towed for many years with car tires only rated to hold up 3400 lbs total and they ran until worn out.
Incidentally, I contacted DOT about the 100% failure rate brands and learned that they do not test trailer tires.....only car tires for the DOT certification. Many of you older car buffs may remember when they began testing car tires, lots of them blew out when tested at their rated capacity and tire quality was forced to greatly improve at that time. Hopefully the current deregulation trend will not return us to the 1950's and 60's when blowouts were a standard part of driving.
Titan, who makes large equipment tires and we thought had a good reputation bought a Firestone Factory, fired all the help and brought in replacement workers. Yeah we live nearby....got some of their tires, 100 percent failures, although they usually threw part of the tread off before blowing, you might get 5 miles of warning and find a safe place to pull over.
I could go on, but I know that none of our blowouts were the users fault!
fsskier
On the RV Forums, people often complain about blowouts with damage when using Goodyear tires. Often, those people switch to Sailun tires (which are a Chinese brand) and have no further problems.
My 5th wheel toy hauler came with Goodyear G114 Load Range H tires. Due to the numerous complaints of blowouts of those Goodyears from other owners, I preemptively swapped mine out.
Full disclosure: My first 5th wheel came with Westlake tires, which are not highly regarded in the RV community. I swapped on the highly regarded Sailun's. Both are Chinese brands.
Then I sold that trailer and got a nicer trailer. The new 5th wheel toy hauler came with the aforementioned (but not highly regarded) Goodyear G114 Load range H tires. I swapped them immediately for Michelin XTA tires. It's only been a couple thousand miles, but so far no complaints from me, and good reviews from other users of the Michelin XTA on RV forums.
Of course with any trailer/tire, it's important to properly inflate them, and check axle bearings periodically. Every stop I check the bearing/tire temps with an infrared temp gun. If anything is amiss, I check more in depth.
Originally Posted By: fsskier
Underinflation and speed may contribute to blowouts but the real problem for many of us is bad, often Chinese made tires.
I tow boats 4 days a week for our watershow operation, on a road trip we may have as many as 8 trailers.
This will be my 40th year of doing so.
Example 1: One of our smaller single rigs (only one motor) still had the original tires on it after 15 years, deep cracks, worn out, General brand and still no failures. We purchased new tires from Tires Plus, Nanco brand, highly recommended by the seller. 3 of the 4 blew on the first road trip of about 300 miles. Yes fully inflated and towed on 2 lane roads at lower speeds. Tires Plus did not stand behind them, claiming the same as some writers on here. They talked our treasurer into buying 6 ply rated tires, same brand, 75 lb tires......same results, just a louder bang when they blow!
Remember the original Generals never gave trouble and were only 4 ply, 50 lb tires.
Example 2: A new triple rig we purchased, $80,000 invested, also a tandem axle. 7,000 lbs of capacity, actual weight of 5,000 lbs. Within 2 years all 4 had blown out. One blew about 1 mile from our hotel (road trip) after I had gotten up early, walked around carefully checking tire pressure, etc. Could still see the hotel from the interstate on ramp....blew completely apart throwing the entire center out. Radial Trail CRT was the brand on the sidewall, made in China.
The next 8 years - till now---have been on Goodyears and have had no failures.
I could give more examples...but here is my takeaway. We replace with Goodyear Marathons and have no further problems. Likely other major brands are good also. Car tires are always good on our boat trailers and we often use them when the capacity ratings are adequate. One of our twin rigs weighed 4,400 lbs and was towed for many years with car tires only rated to hold up 3400 lbs total and they ran until worn out.
Incidentally, I contacted DOT about the 100% failure rate brands and learned that they do not test trailer tires.....only car tires for the DOT certification. Many of you older car buffs may remember when they began testing car tires, lots of them blew out when tested at their rated capacity and tire quality was forced to greatly improve at that time. Hopefully the current deregulation trend will not return us to the 1950's and 60's when blowouts were a standard part of driving.
Titan, who makes large equipment tires and we thought had a good reputation bought a Firestone Factory, fired all the help and brought in replacement workers. Yeah we live nearby....got some of their tires, 100 percent failures, although they usually threw part of the tread off before blowing, you might get 5 miles of warning and find a safe place to pull over.
I could go on, but I know that none of our blowouts were the users fault!
fsskier
On the RV Forums, people often complain about blowouts with damage when using Goodyear tires. Often, those people switch to Sailun tires (which are a Chinese brand) and have no further problems.
My 5th wheel toy hauler came with Goodyear G114 Load Range H tires. Due to the numerous complaints of blowouts of those Goodyears from other owners, I preemptively swapped mine out.
Full disclosure: My first 5th wheel came with Westlake tires, which are not highly regarded in the RV community. I swapped on the highly regarded Sailun's. Both are Chinese brands.
Then I sold that trailer and got a nicer trailer. The new 5th wheel toy hauler came with the aforementioned (but not highly regarded) Goodyear G114 Load range H tires. I swapped them immediately for Michelin XTA tires. It's only been a couple thousand miles, but so far no complaints from me, and good reviews from other users of the Michelin XTA on RV forums.
Of course with any trailer/tire, it's important to properly inflate them, and check axle bearings periodically. Every stop I check the bearing/tire temps with an infrared temp gun. If anything is amiss, I check more in depth.
Originally Posted By: fsskier
With all due respect. Your towing any weight with the tow vehicles you mention. Once your move up to a 30 foot-5,000 pound (or more) travel trailer, 5th wheel, or tow hauler it's an entirely different ballgame.[/quote]
?? Not sure what you are suggesting here, I noted that these are boats ranging in weights from 2,000 to 5,000 lbs. And just tire experiences. [/quote]
Your not towing 5,000 pounds with your Toyota Van -or Lumina van.
With all due respect. Your towing any weight with the tow vehicles you mention. Once your move up to a 30 foot-5,000 pound (or more) travel trailer, 5th wheel, or tow hauler it's an entirely different ballgame.[/quote]
?? Not sure what you are suggesting here, I noted that these are boats ranging in weights from 2,000 to 5,000 lbs. And just tire experiences. [/quote]
Your not towing 5,000 pounds with your Toyota Van -or Lumina van.
Originally Posted By: 02SE
Originally Posted By: 02SE
Originally Posted By: fsskier
Underinflation and speed may contribute to blowouts but the real problem for many of us is bad, often Chinese made tires.
I tow boats 4 days a week for our watershow operation, on a road trip we may have as many as 8 trailers.
This will be my 40th year of doing so.
Example 1: One of our smaller single rigs (only one motor) still had the original tires on it after 15 years, deep cracks, worn out, General brand and still no failures. We purchased new tires from Tires Plus, Nanco brand, highly recommended by the seller. 3 of the 4 blew on the first road trip of about 300 miles. Yes fully inflated and towed on 2 lane roads at lower speeds. Tires Plus did not stand behind them, claiming the same as some writers on here. They talked our treasurer into buying 6 ply rated tires, same brand, 75 lb tires......same results, just a louder bang when they blow!
Remember the original Generals never gave trouble and were only 4 ply, 50 lb tires.
Example 2: A new triple rig we purchased, $80,000 invested, also a tandem axle. 7,000 lbs of capacity, actual weight of 5,000 lbs. Within 2 years all 4 had blown out. One blew about 1 mile from our hotel (road trip) after I had gotten up early, walked around carefully checking tire pressure, etc. Could still see the hotel from the interstate on ramp....blew completely apart throwing the entire center out. Radial Trail CRT was the brand on the sidewall, made in China.
The next 8 years - till now---have been on Goodyears and have had no failures.
I could give more examples...but here is my takeaway. We replace with Goodyear Marathons and have no further problems. Likely other major brands are good also. Car tires are always good on our boat trailers and we often use them when the capacity ratings are adequate. One of our twin rigs weighed 4,400 lbs and was towed for many years with car tires only rated to hold up 3400 lbs total and they ran until worn out.
Incidentally, I contacted DOT about the 100% failure rate brands and learned that they do not test trailer tires.....only car tires for the DOT certification. Many of you older car buffs may remember when they began testing car tires, lots of them blew out when tested at their rated capacity and tire quality was forced to greatly improve at that time. Hopefully the current deregulation trend will not return us to the 1950's and 60's when blowouts were a standard part of driving.
Titan, who makes large equipment tires and we thought had a good reputation bought a Firestone Factory, fired all the help and brought in replacement workers. Yeah we live nearby....got some of their tires, 100 percent failures, although they usually threw part of the tread off before blowing, you might get 5 miles of warning and find a safe place to pull over.
I could go on, but I know that none of our blowouts were the users fault!
fsskier
On the RV Forums, people often complain about blowouts with damage when using Goodyear tires. Often, those people switch to Sailun tires (which are a Chinese brand) and have no further problems.
My 5th wheel toy hauler came with Goodyear G114 Load Range H tires. Due to the numerous complaints of blowouts of those Goodyears from other owners, I preemptively swapped mine out.
Full disclosure: My first 5th wheel came with Westlake tires, which are not highly regarded in the RV community. I swapped on the highly regarded Sailun's. Both are Chinese brands.
Then I sold that trailer and got a nicer trailer. The new 5th wheel toy hauler came with the aforementioned (but not highly regarded) Goodyear G114 Load range H tires. I swapped them immediately for Michelin XTA tires. It's only been a couple thousand miles, but so far no complaints from me, and good reviews from other users of the Michelin XTA on RV forums.
Of course with any trailer/tire, it's important to properly inflate them, and check axle bearings periodically. Every stop I check the bearing/tire temps with an infrared temp gun. If anything is amiss, I check more in depth.
Here is where there is confusion. The Westlake tire that had blow outs-were those before they instituted the Nylon cap.
You can get many complaints on Westlake and Carlisle tires- and THEY ARE NOT the same product that was manufactured several years ago.
Both tires now have the Nylon cap under the tread.
Originally Posted By: 02SE
Originally Posted By: fsskier
Underinflation and speed may contribute to blowouts but the real problem for many of us is bad, often Chinese made tires.
I tow boats 4 days a week for our watershow operation, on a road trip we may have as many as 8 trailers.
This will be my 40th year of doing so.
Example 1: One of our smaller single rigs (only one motor) still had the original tires on it after 15 years, deep cracks, worn out, General brand and still no failures. We purchased new tires from Tires Plus, Nanco brand, highly recommended by the seller. 3 of the 4 blew on the first road trip of about 300 miles. Yes fully inflated and towed on 2 lane roads at lower speeds. Tires Plus did not stand behind them, claiming the same as some writers on here. They talked our treasurer into buying 6 ply rated tires, same brand, 75 lb tires......same results, just a louder bang when they blow!
Remember the original Generals never gave trouble and were only 4 ply, 50 lb tires.
Example 2: A new triple rig we purchased, $80,000 invested, also a tandem axle. 7,000 lbs of capacity, actual weight of 5,000 lbs. Within 2 years all 4 had blown out. One blew about 1 mile from our hotel (road trip) after I had gotten up early, walked around carefully checking tire pressure, etc. Could still see the hotel from the interstate on ramp....blew completely apart throwing the entire center out. Radial Trail CRT was the brand on the sidewall, made in China.
The next 8 years - till now---have been on Goodyears and have had no failures.
I could give more examples...but here is my takeaway. We replace with Goodyear Marathons and have no further problems. Likely other major brands are good also. Car tires are always good on our boat trailers and we often use them when the capacity ratings are adequate. One of our twin rigs weighed 4,400 lbs and was towed for many years with car tires only rated to hold up 3400 lbs total and they ran until worn out.
Incidentally, I contacted DOT about the 100% failure rate brands and learned that they do not test trailer tires.....only car tires for the DOT certification. Many of you older car buffs may remember when they began testing car tires, lots of them blew out when tested at their rated capacity and tire quality was forced to greatly improve at that time. Hopefully the current deregulation trend will not return us to the 1950's and 60's when blowouts were a standard part of driving.
Titan, who makes large equipment tires and we thought had a good reputation bought a Firestone Factory, fired all the help and brought in replacement workers. Yeah we live nearby....got some of their tires, 100 percent failures, although they usually threw part of the tread off before blowing, you might get 5 miles of warning and find a safe place to pull over.
I could go on, but I know that none of our blowouts were the users fault!
fsskier
On the RV Forums, people often complain about blowouts with damage when using Goodyear tires. Often, those people switch to Sailun tires (which are a Chinese brand) and have no further problems.
My 5th wheel toy hauler came with Goodyear G114 Load Range H tires. Due to the numerous complaints of blowouts of those Goodyears from other owners, I preemptively swapped mine out.
Full disclosure: My first 5th wheel came with Westlake tires, which are not highly regarded in the RV community. I swapped on the highly regarded Sailun's. Both are Chinese brands.
Then I sold that trailer and got a nicer trailer. The new 5th wheel toy hauler came with the aforementioned (but not highly regarded) Goodyear G114 Load range H tires. I swapped them immediately for Michelin XTA tires. It's only been a couple thousand miles, but so far no complaints from me, and good reviews from other users of the Michelin XTA on RV forums.
Of course with any trailer/tire, it's important to properly inflate them, and check axle bearings periodically. Every stop I check the bearing/tire temps with an infrared temp gun. If anything is amiss, I check more in depth.
Here is where there is confusion. The Westlake tire that had blow outs-were those before they instituted the Nylon cap.
You can get many complaints on Westlake and Carlisle tires- and THEY ARE NOT the same product that was manufactured several years ago.
Both tires now have the Nylon cap under the tread.
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I suspect that the Michelin trailer tires are among the best! And I am sure that Chinese tires built with oversight from their retailers can also be good...that was the whole point of my comments. Customers need to report on those that work and those that do not.
I would also like to hear from those using the newest Goodyear trailer tires, they have apparently spent a lot of research and development time on them. I suspect very popular brands often get some bad reviews due to their large production volumes.
Interestingly, I also often use an infrared gun to measure tire and bearing temperatures at rest stops, sometimes we have as many as 10 trailers, perhaps 40 wheels total. Have you noticed that the axle with brakes on it is often warmer than the ones without brakes....sometimes almost hot if the driver is a tailgater...and late braker that never looks ahead and slows down without the brakes.
Sort of a test of who the dangerous drivers are!!
I would also like to hear from those using the newest Goodyear trailer tires, they have apparently spent a lot of research and development time on them. I suspect very popular brands often get some bad reviews due to their large production volumes.
Interestingly, I also often use an infrared gun to measure tire and bearing temperatures at rest stops, sometimes we have as many as 10 trailers, perhaps 40 wheels total. Have you noticed that the axle with brakes on it is often warmer than the ones without brakes....sometimes almost hot if the driver is a tailgater...and late braker that never looks ahead and slows down without the brakes.
Sort of a test of who the dangerous drivers are!!
Originally Posted By: fsskier
I suspect that the Michelin trailer tires are among the best! And I am sure that Chinese tires built with oversight from their retailers can also be good...that was the whole point of my comments. Customers need to report on those that work and those that do not.
I would also like to hear from those using the newest Goodyear trailer tires, they have apparently spent a lot of research and development time on them. I suspect very popular brands often get some bad reviews due to their large production volumes.
Interestingly, I also often use an infrared gun to measure tire and bearing temperatures at rest stops, sometimes we have as many as 10 trailers, perhaps 40 wheels total. Have you noticed that the axle with brakes on it is often warmer than the ones without brakes....sometimes almost hot if the driver is a tailgater...and late braker that never looks ahead and slows down without the brakes.
Sort of a test of who the dangerous drivers are!!
The axles that are on the "sunny side" of the trailer are warmer as well. FYI.
I suspect that the Michelin trailer tires are among the best! And I am sure that Chinese tires built with oversight from their retailers can also be good...that was the whole point of my comments. Customers need to report on those that work and those that do not.
I would also like to hear from those using the newest Goodyear trailer tires, they have apparently spent a lot of research and development time on them. I suspect very popular brands often get some bad reviews due to their large production volumes.
Interestingly, I also often use an infrared gun to measure tire and bearing temperatures at rest stops, sometimes we have as many as 10 trailers, perhaps 40 wheels total. Have you noticed that the axle with brakes on it is often warmer than the ones without brakes....sometimes almost hot if the driver is a tailgater...and late braker that never looks ahead and slows down without the brakes.
Sort of a test of who the dangerous drivers are!!
The axles that are on the "sunny side" of the trailer are warmer as well. FYI.
Plus the temperature outside makes a big difference as well. The psi can really get up there in the summer.
Do most trailer tires even have a temp rating? I'm guessing not.
Do most trailer tires even have a temp rating? I'm guessing not.
Originally Posted By: CKN
Your not towing 5,000 pounds with your Toyota Van -or Lumina van.
AGREE! I would have to see it happen before I believe that.
I pull around a Branson 3520H tractor with a loader and 5' shredder. That's almost 5,000 lbs and I would NEVER in a million years consider pulling it with a Chevy Lumina APV or Toyota Sienna. NEVER.
Your not towing 5,000 pounds with your Toyota Van -or Lumina van.
AGREE! I would have to see it happen before I believe that.
I pull around a Branson 3520H tractor with a loader and 5' shredder. That's almost 5,000 lbs and I would NEVER in a million years consider pulling it with a Chevy Lumina APV or Toyota Sienna. NEVER.
Your not towing 5,000 pounds with your Toyota Van -or Lumina van.
Yes, let me make it clear, I AM towing 5,000 lbs with my Sienna. Most hitch manufacturers sell a 5,000 lb hitch for that vehicle. We have lots of options of what our boats can be towed with. Triple engine towboats are very low profile, have 1500 lbs of motors hanging off the back and about 500 lbs of lead in the tip of the nose..from an engineering point of view it has lots of polar inertia. That seems to greatly trouble vehicles like Yukons, pickups and similar vehicles that have a high center of gravity and a long distance from the back axle to the hitch. I do not like driving unstable tail-wagging vehicles on long trips when the Sienna is so much more stable at high speeds. I suspect that the pickups would be better if a 5th wheel gooseneck was used to compensate for the high polar inertia of the boat,,but that trailer would be 10 feet longer than the boat and none of our other vehicles could pull it.
These trailers have brakes of course, so that is not an issue. Incidentally the Sienna became my primary tow vehicle in its first week of life and now at 150,000 miles remains trouble free and still no repairs except for 2 recalls. Perhaps a 4wd Sienna would have been a better choice for very bad or steep muddy boat ramps....but seldom do we find one that bad. When we do, a quick tap of the boat throttles and the van, boat and trailer are coming out of the water no matter what!
But this is off topic, with lots of boats, trailers, equipment trailers we have lots of tow stuff we could talk about....but we now have tires on our trailers that meet our needs and are always trying to learn from others what brands work and those that do not.
Yes, let me make it clear, I AM towing 5,000 lbs with my Sienna. Most hitch manufacturers sell a 5,000 lb hitch for that vehicle. We have lots of options of what our boats can be towed with. Triple engine towboats are very low profile, have 1500 lbs of motors hanging off the back and about 500 lbs of lead in the tip of the nose..from an engineering point of view it has lots of polar inertia. That seems to greatly trouble vehicles like Yukons, pickups and similar vehicles that have a high center of gravity and a long distance from the back axle to the hitch. I do not like driving unstable tail-wagging vehicles on long trips when the Sienna is so much more stable at high speeds. I suspect that the pickups would be better if a 5th wheel gooseneck was used to compensate for the high polar inertia of the boat,,but that trailer would be 10 feet longer than the boat and none of our other vehicles could pull it.
These trailers have brakes of course, so that is not an issue. Incidentally the Sienna became my primary tow vehicle in its first week of life and now at 150,000 miles remains trouble free and still no repairs except for 2 recalls. Perhaps a 4wd Sienna would have been a better choice for very bad or steep muddy boat ramps....but seldom do we find one that bad. When we do, a quick tap of the boat throttles and the van, boat and trailer are coming out of the water no matter what!
But this is off topic, with lots of boats, trailers, equipment trailers we have lots of tow stuff we could talk about....but we now have tires on our trailers that meet our needs and are always trying to learn from others what brands work and those that do not.
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