My experience with Trail Express RV tires.

[B47]

OK - I am a member of this forum and recently returned from a 3,947 mile trip from Fort Worth, Texas to Ventura County, California round trip pulling my 2012 Silverback 29 rk FW. We went though TX, NM,AZ, and CA going and came back though CA,NV,UT,CO,OK and TX.

We saw outside air temperatures up to 113 degrees F and tire temperatures as read on my Tire Traker TPMS monitor up to 131 degrees F. Our speed as always never exceeded 60 mph and the tires were kept at 80 psi cold.

I keep a mileage log of my Trail Express ST 235/80R16 Load Range E tires.

On our return coming though Lamar, CO I received the dreaded "pull over your tire (s) are coming apart" signal from a motorist. We pulled over and the right rear TE tire was in shreds - no damage to the wheel well. I received assistance from two very nice CO State Troopers in changing out the tire which saved me a Road Side Assistance call.

The RR tire had a total of 8,868 miles on it at the time of failure and the outside air temperature was 88 degrees F at the time.

We continued our trip and arrived home without further incident.

The remaining three tires have a total of 9,203 miles on them when I put it in our storage facility.

So in summary, I got a total of 8,868 miles on one TE tire and 9,203 miles on the other three tires.

I mentioned I am a member of this forum and as such, I have read, started and responsed to quite a few threads regarding these tires.

This is my experience with them. I will be replacing the remaining three TE tires with an as yet undecided US made RV tire.

Was I lucky, unlucky, stupid for running them that long or something else?

[Fire Instructor]

How did the motorist see that your tire had shredded, yet you TPMS hadn't told you? Am I overly dependant on my TPMS to "watch" my tires while going down the road?

[Wumba]

Good luck on finding a rv tire made in the USA. Best bet are Maxxis.

[punkaccountant]

Originally Posted by Fire Instructor

How did the motorist see that your tire had shredded, yet you TPMS hadn't told you? Am I overly dependant on my TPMS to "watch" my tires while going down the road?

x2!?

[donn]

Originally Posted by Wumba

Good luck on finding a rv tire made in the USA. Best bet are Maxxis.

TOTALLY UNTRUE! Unless of course you are speaking strictly about ST tires. Which I would never consider under a heavy trailer. There are many many different brands of LT tires made in the USA that will be more than adequate as replacements on trailers with axles up to and including 6000 rating.

[Vern]

but I appreciate your sharing that information.

I will only now be crossing the 1,000 mile threshhold with my TT's original Trail Express tires on our next trip. I don't have a tire monitoring system and am just managing the tires the old fashioned way, driving 60 or under and with caution, refusing to push the envelope. Don't know whether I'm stupid or just old school, probably both. I guess eventually I'll have an opinion on the tires. So far, I've not had problems.

There are plenty of voices on here which would be happy to weigh in, as these tires may be the most criticized component of FR products on this forum. I've read a book full of horror stories. From that, it is clear they are not perfect, maybe not even decent (but then I don't know how much of a leap to make based on the forum complaints, as all aspects of FR quality are similarly lambasted on here on a regular basis).

Sometimes I think people expect the same service out of TT tires as they get from the tires on their cars. I know NOTHING about tires, but I suspect that is an unreasonable expectation. Couple that with the tendency for some forum members to engage in hyperbolic tyrades over every flaw encountered and I suspect that, despite the fact we rarely hear about it, there are probably folks who, like you, have got some good service out of the TE tires before retiring them, and I hope to be one of them.

[B47]

Originally Posted by Fire Instructor

How did the motorist see that your tire had shredded, yet you TPMS hadn't told you? Am I overly dependant on my TPMS to "watch" my tires while going down the road?

Good question - I contacted Daryl at Tire Traker and asked him the same question. He said that I appartently had a sudden blowout (which i am not sure I did or didn't) and no TPMS can alert you to a sudden blowout. Nothing in the TT manual speaks to a "suden blowout" but rather how the TPMS will alert you to a change in pressure or temperature.

The sensor on the blowout tire was reading 59 degrees F when we started the trip and when I checked the monitor every 50 miles it didn't changed fron that reading - so Daryl is assuming I had a bad sensor. I did install that same sensor on the spare the next morning and it seemed to work in agreement with the other three sensors. I also did get a Pressure signal on the monitor about 5 minutes after the blowout.

I noticed that the sensor readings for the tires on the sunny side of the FW were higher that the ones on the more shaded side. So I have some faith in them.

My lesson learned is to still watch the condition of your tires and to watch your monitor readings more closely.

As we all know - no system is always entirely accurate all the time and that no TPMS will alert you to a sudden blowout, only a change (+ or -) in temerature and/or pressure.

I tried to get the build date on the tires, but couldn't locate it.

[B47]

Originally Posted by Vern

but I appreciate your sharing that information.

I will only now be crossing the 1,000 mile threshhold with my TT's original Trail Express tires on our next trip. I don't have a tire monitoring system and am just managing the tires the old fashioned way, driving 60 or under and with caution, refusing to push the envelope. Don't know whether I'm stupid or just old school, probably both. I guess eventually I'll have an opinion on the tires. So far, I've not had problems.

There are plenty of voices on here which would be happy to weigh in, as these tires may be the most criticized component of FR products on this forum. I've read a book full of horror stories. From that, it is clear they are not perfect, maybe not even decent (but then I don't know how much of a leap to make based on the forum complaints, as all aspects of FR quality are similarly lambasted on here on a regular basis).

Sometimes I think people expect the same service out of TT tires as they get from the tires on their cars. I know NOTHING about tires, but I suspect that is an unreasonable expectation. Couple that with the tendency for some forum members to engage in hyperbolic tyrades over every flaw encountered and I suspect that, despite the fact we rarely hear about it, there are probably folks who, like you, have got some good service out of the TE tires before retiring them, and I hope to be one of them.

Vern - good post. I have heard that 2 years or 10,000 miles is what you should expect from any RV tire. I had planned to replace mine wnen we got back from this trip and almost made it.

[wyo700]

I have the trail America tires and they are wearing poorly. The wear is even but fast and I have never overloaded my trailer, not even close the tires are junk. I am sure I will need new ones next year.

[B47]

Originally Posted by wyo700

I have the trail America tires and they are wearing poorly. The wear is even but fast and I have never overloaded my trailer, not even close the tires are junk. I am sure I will need new ones next year.

How many miles on them?
I hope I have not started another thread on Trail Express and other RV tires as there are many already.

I did not observe any RV's of any class pulled over with bad tires that i could tell - I did see one motorcycle hauling trailer pass me at a high speed and saw the same trailer pulled over looking at his tire shreds about 4 miles down the road after passing me.

[Timex]

On my previous TT, a 1999 Dutchmen, I changed out the original tires in 2011. Don't remember the brand that came on it. All I can tell you is they were black.
Never rotated or balanced them from day 1. Still had decent tread left when I put the new set on.

From experience and I guess forced advice from my dad: Take care of your equipment and it will take care of you. For the most part, I spend more $$ on preventive maintenance then I do repairs.

The side of a highway is a lonely place at night!

And you fellars stop scaring me with all the horror stories about Trail Express tires. I'm going to keep them until I have problems with them. If they last another 15 years that will be even better!

[youroo]

Let me see here,80+ PSI to O PSI and it took 5 min.to register on your TPMS! I will put this unit in the same list as Orange TPMS. Youroo!!

[B47]

Originally Posted by youroo

Let me see here,80+ PSI to O PSI and it took 5 min.to register on your TPMS! I will put this unit in the same list as Orange TPMS. Youroo!!

I am in no way defending the Tire Traker TPMS, but what Daryl said about a sudden blowout being undectable by a TPMS makes some sense to me.

Does any TPMS manual say anything about their system alerting you to a sudden blowout of a tire? The TT manual states that the system will not prevent a blowout - it simply says that the system will alert you to a change in either tire pressure and/or temperature. The alert level is based upon your baseline tire psi is. To me a tire that is about to have a sudden blowout will have the same pressure and temperature readings just before the blowout occurs, thus causing that wheel sensor to not alert.

Think about it - what would you expect if all of the TPMS readings were normal and all of a sudden, a tire hits a nail and blows out. Would you expect your TPMS to alert just before the nail went into the tire?
I wouldn't. And as I stated before, the sensor did alert after the blowout occurred.

I am rethinking all I have read about any and all TPMS and still haven't found any that will alert before a sudden blowout.

[Fire Instructor]

Originally Posted by B47

Think about it - what would you expect if all of the TPMS readings were normal and all of a sudden, a tire hits a nail and blows out. Would you expect your TPMS to alert just before the nail went into the tire?

True, but isn't it the usual claim of the tire manufacturers and the forum's on-line tire "experts" that most non-debris caused blow-outs are cause by running at too low a pressure, building-up friction (heat) and then the sidewall failing?

[youroo]

Originally Posted by B47

I am in no way defending the Tire Traker TPMS, but what Daryl said about a sudden blowout being undectable by a TPMS makes some sense to me.

Does any TPMS manual say anything about their system alerting you to a sudden blowout of a tire? The TT manual states that the system will not prevent a blowout - it simply says that the system will alert you to a change in either tire pressure and/or temperature. The alert level is based upon your baseline tire psi is. To me a tire that is about to have a sudden blowout will have the same pressure and temperature readings just before the blowout occurs, thus causing that wheel sensor to not alert.

Think about it - what would you expect if all of the TPMS readings were normal and all of a sudden, a tire hits a nail and blows out. Would you expect your TPMS to alert just before the nail went into the tire?
I wouldn't. And as I stated before, the sensor did alert after the blowout occurred.

I am rethinking all I have read about any and all TPMS and still haven't found any that will alert before a sudden blowout.

Yes I am thinking about it,I would get a Rabbits Foot for LUCK before I would buy one like you are saying! Youroo!!

[B47]

Originally Posted by Fire Instructor

True, but isn't it the usual claim of the tire manufacturers and the forum's on-line tire "experts" that most non-debris caused blow-outs are cause by running at too low a pressure, building-up friction (heat) and then the sidewall failing?

You are correct - and once again I have to say that a good TPMS should alert you to a low pressure level. As stated earlier, that one sensor was appartently not reading right at 59 degrees F and I should have investigated why earlier.

But once again, show me a TPMS that will alert you to a sudden blowout before it occurs and I will buy it.

[B47]

Originally Posted by youroo

Yes I am thinking about it,I would get a Rabbits Foot for LUCK before I would buy one like you are saying! Youroo!!

That is one way. I like my TT system for letting me check my tire pressure without having to use a guage. I did top off two of my tires before this trip - one was reading 77.4 and the other was reading 78.6 cold and the TT gave me the accurate pressure reading after the popping off of such a small amount.

[youroo]

A good TPMS will detect low A/P,low A/P will produce Heat which will show up also on a good TPMS. That is (2) warning that there is a problem. Stop and check it. Now if you are running from the LAW and you run over a STOP STICK or the LAW shoots out your tires,the TPMS will NOT tell your before they take action! Have a Safe nite! Youroo!!

[punkaccountant]

Originally Posted by B47

Think about it - what would you expect if all of the TPMS readings were normal and all of a sudden, a tire hits a nail and blows out. Would you expect your TPMS to alert just before the nail went into the tire?
I wouldn't. And as I stated before, the sensor did alert after the blowout occurred.

I am rethinking all I have read about any and all TPMS and still haven't found any that will alert before a sudden blowout.

I'm a little confused by your posts. One of them stated that the TPMS took 5 minutes after the blowout before it alerted you. That's way too long. My Tireminder system alerts me right away. For example, if I remove a sensor to manually test the tire pressure, it starts going off right away that I had a blowout. It doesn't know I unscrewed it from the valve stem. Anyway, I would think it react the same in a blowout.

[wyo700]

Originally Posted by B47

How many miles on them?
I hope I have not started another thread on Trail Express and other RV tires as there are many already.

I did not observe any RV's of any class pulled over with bad tires that i could tell - I did see one motorcycle hauling trailer pass me at a high speed and saw the same trailer pulled over looking at his tire shreds about 4 miles down the road after passing me.

My tires have about 2000 miles on them. I have always kept the pressure right max of 50 psi and it seems they are low cause most of wear is on outside of tread.