Forest River owners beware

RECONUSMC · 03-27-2018, 02:26 PM

I recently bought a new 2018 Artic Wolf 5th wheel loaded and read about the "CHINESE BOMB TIRES"that came on my model too. So today, with one trip from dealer on the unit I took the tires/wheels to a tire shop and put on a new set of Goodyear Endurance 225/75-15 I was called back into the shop and told that only one of the steel rims was actually true and balanced out perfect. The other "BRAND NEW RIMS" were out and had a visible minor wobble. Guess what guys, the rim was also stamped made in china with bad weld spots. COME ON FORREST RIVER what is going on here. So now right out of the box anyone who really cares about their set up has to spend an additional $1000.00 so you can feel safe about rolling your investment down the road. Everyone please check your rims for being true so you don't end up damaging your rigs when the heat from a wobble/no factory wheel balance causes the chinese Bombs to take you out !!! Very disappointed new owner

67L48 · 03-27-2018, 02:30 PM

Sorry to hear about your experience. If your factory wheels were bad, it should be covered under warranty.

Presumably, you bought some new RV wheels for your trailer. Where were those manufactured? Can you even get an RV wheel that wasn't manufactured in China?

RECONUSMC · 03-27-2018, 02:35 PM

Got the new tires installed on old rims and as you can see from PIcs, they took a lot of weights to try and correct the problems. I'm currently looking for rims and as far as the factory warranty goes, It is not worth the time and problems dealing with them to get another set of crappy wheels. Just my opinion

rsdata · 03-27-2018, 02:41 PM

thanks for the heads up...

sorry for your experience

**ependydad** · 03-28-2018, 12:55 AM

Is this the sort of thing that should be reported to the govt? I assume if there are enough reports, action will be taken and change will be forced.

AURORASTEVE · 03-28-2018, 12:08 PM

If your tire shop used a spin balance machine without the proper hub adapter to center the wheel based on the lugs and not the center hole that could be the issue. A typical spin balance machine will center the wheel by tightening the wheel down on the hub. Trailer wheels have a larger hub center hole than a typical truck tire wheel so if they don't use the adapter they add tons of weights to "balance" the tire. I would bet if they put them on an old bubble balance machine they would find the tires with all the weights way out of balance.

RECONUSMC · 03-28-2018, 12:35 PM

Actually had them Road force balanced and the shop is fully aware of how to balance RV tires & Rims. Just wish Forrest River would not scrimp on the most important factor getting us down the road. Putting True wheels and top notch Tires would be worth it to the customers. Just wondering how many new owners to the RV life just head out without really checking into their rigs and set up. Up and Down 95 here in Forida and the turnpike I see this happening quite often where RV's are having tire & axle issues. Again mine came fresh from factory with no tire balance and It was so out that you could see it on the road force machine hopping.....

JimMorrell · 03-28-2018, 12:39 PM

I changed out the tires on my Wildwood at about 1,200 miles because of an unexplained blowout that resulted in over $7,000 damage. Following that, I found one tire leaked at the wheel weld. I went to have it rewelded and was told that would cost more than buying a new wheel, so a new wheel I bought. Later, after a misaligned axle caused a blowout, the tire shop told me one wheel was so out of ballance that they couldn't balance the tire/wheel combo without a whole lot of weights. So I bought another wheel. Not a good score...2 out of 5 wheels!

Letsdothis · 03-28-2018, 12:42 PM

I haven't picked up my new mini lite, but when I do; what problem am I looking for with the tires when I inspect? Is it something that can be addressed before I take possession? Im getting a tire warranty but do I have to wait for something to go wrong or will the problem be apparent. So many possible problems before you even get started. thanks. I feel a little overwhelmed because i never had an RV. thanks

JimMorrell · 03-28-2018, 12:57 PM

If I were to buy a new tandem axle trailer today, the first thing I would do is have the axle alignment checked by a reputable company that does that type work for a living. If they are out of alignment, I would contact Forest River and insist on reimbursement for aligning them. My lengthy experiences seem to indicate axle alignment as the number one cause of nearly $10,000 in repairs over the past 3 years.

Iwannacamp · 03-28-2018, 12:58 PM

I too am sorry for the news. I assume Lionshead made the wheels? That is kinda standard I think. I would contact them and the dealer...maybe on the same e-mail. I did contact them once and they responded pretty quickly. If you have problem then I would think they would want to know. Maybe the pallet of wheels got dropped and bent some of them. They aren't made with lots of extra material. I hope you get it resolved quickly. Let's also hope the didn't have rookie on the tire machine and bend your wheels. YMMV

Aggie Dad · 03-28-2018, 01:02 PM

I noticed the tires you bought were load range E. The China bomb tires on my trailer currently are load range C. At Discount Tire close to me say they have Goodyear Endurance load range D. I’m guess I’m stupid, but really don’t know which is better, D or E. I have a 10,000 lb trailer.

HangDiver · 03-28-2018, 01:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RECONUSMC

Got the new tires installed on old rims and as you can see from PIcs, they took a lot of weights to try and correct the problems. I'm currently looking for rims and as far as the factory warranty goes, It is not worth the time and problems dealing with them to get another set of crappy wheels. Just my opinion

Sorry you're going through this. Short note: when I purchased my Micro-Lite I changed out the tires (thats another thread) and the wheels to higher load rating steel wheel from etrailer. I wouldn't know a high-quality wheel from a cheap one just by looking at them, but the new steel wheel/tire combo took very little weight to balance. That was 10,000 miles ago.

Mad Cow · 03-28-2018, 01:24 PM

One could also address the balancing issue with CounterAct Balancing Beads. A bag of 4oz would do great in a trailer tire. Haven’t had a need to do so in a trailer tire, but I have used the stuff for many years in commercial vehicles with very good results.

Springerdad · 03-28-2018, 01:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Aggie Dad

I noticed the tires you bought were load range E. The China bomb tires on my trailer currently are load range C. At Discount Tire close to me say they have Goodyear Endurance load range D. I’m guess I’m stupid, but really don’t know which is better, D or E. I have a 10,000 lb trailer.

Go with E if you can. If you weigh your rig, you'll be shocked at heavy it really is. Ignore the weights shown on the yellow sticker,,,,,,

Stovebolt · 03-28-2018, 01:35 PM

Hey Recon! What was the brand of tires that came on your unit. Curious.

dustman_stx · 03-28-2018, 01:51 PM

I upgraded the wheels and tires on my new Wildwood XLite from 205/75-14LRC to 225/75-15 LRE. I bought the wheels from etrailer and they were made in America. Basic white wheels and they were very inexpensive. My BIL owns a tire shop and I bought the tires from him- PowerKing TowMax. They are Chinese made tires, but he's sold many of them and had good luck with them. The key is to NOT buy a tire that will be running at max capacity all the time. At the pressures I run the LRE, I have an additional 500 pounds capacity and have the added thickness for puncture resistance. No noticeable difference in ride- things don't seem to move around any more. Oh, and he always balances all of my trailer tires- no issues at all balancing these.

dustman_stx · 03-28-2018, 01:53 PM

These are the wheels I bought:

https://www.etrailer.com/Tires-and-W...r/AM20443.html

RECONUSMC · 03-28-2018, 01:59 PM

The original tires were Castle Rock ST units made in China or China Bombs as they are called. Threw them in the shed to use on my ATV Tandem trailer when needed. Not on my RV !!!!!!!!

CaptnJohn · 03-28-2018, 02:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dustman_stx

I upgraded the wheels and tires on my new Wildwood XLite from 205/75-14LRC to 225/75-15 LRE. I bought the wheels from etrailer and they were made in America. Basic white wheels and they were very inexpensive. My BIL owns a tire shop and I bought the tires from him- PowerKing TowMax. They are Chinese made tires, but he's sold many of them and had good luck with them. The key is to NOT buy a tire that will be running at max capacity all the time. At the pressures I run the LRE, I have an additional 500 pounds capacity and have the added thickness for puncture resistance. No noticeable difference in ride- things don't seem to move around any more. Oh, and he always balances all of my trailer tires- no issues at all balancing these.

I have popcorn in the microwave,,,,,

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