Tire failures and a trip to the scales (CAT)

[Keystoner]

CARLISLE TIRE and Wheel stopped making tires in Carlisle in 2009. Prompted by a fire at their Georgia facility they merged Carlisle, Georgia, and some CHINA production to a new facility in Jackson, Tenn. Maybe they should be called Jackson tires. Anyway about 350 employees moved or lost their jobs. It was yet another blow to a largely industrial town.

[johnruff]

If you want to spend the money, this is the best tire made for trailers - Goodyear Unisteel G614 RST Radial Tire - 235/85R16

[spock123]

X2


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[Too Tall]

Originally Posted by johnruff

If you want to spend the money, this is the best tire made for trailers - Goodyear Unisteel G614 RST Radial Tire - 235/85R16

Thanks, it looks like it's only available in 16" which rules out my 14" wheels.

[hhabis]

Had an issue with 4 blow outs on my Coachman Freedon Express 298REDS, tires manufactured in China. Just purchased a set of 6 Carlisle ST225/75R15 117N E1 from Discount Tire Direct. Great set of tires and you can purchase tags for refund or replacement of a bad tire should you have any problems.
Good luck with your purchase and have a safe trip on your next time out.

[jdhreiss]

It looks like the LT tires are the way to go. I'll be getting psi sensors first, then LT's when my Westlake "Super ST's" 205/75R/14's wear down on my 2015 Mini Lite 2104S.

Good luck with it.

Joe R
SW Washington

[Rockwoodjoe]

I bought a used 2005 Sunvalley 24 ft TT and used it for four years. I rarely checked the tire pressure and hardly gave the tires a second thought. First tire failure was in 2013. When the tire shop showed me that the tires were nine years old I was shamed into replacing all tires before I traded the unit on a Rockwood 2703ws. I had two tires fail in 16 months on the Rockwood. (Westlakes) Wish I knew who made those tires on the Sunvalley.

[Too Tall]

Originally Posted by jdhreiss

It looks like the LT tires are the way to go. I'll be getting psi sensors first, then LT's when my Westlake "Super ST's" 205/75R/14's wear down on my 2015 Mini Lite 2104S.

Good luck with it.

Joe R
SW Washington

The Westlakes appear to be pretty good tires from previous research on the forum.

[johnruff]

First, find a tire dealer that handles trailers and knows something about trailer tires. Second, talk to the dealer about what you need. There is a certain type of tire construction you need for trailers that is different from an auto or LT tire.
Just get the info and weigh your options.

[k4lp]

The best trailer tire in the world is a Goodyear G614 14 ply and that also is a LT tire. So lets not fall for all this hype. before the non regulated ST designation we used LT bias ply and radial tires. The Goodyear is labeled LT 235-85-16 RST. I think some of the tire experts on the various RV websites are on a tire or RV manufactures side. Just my thought because they all sing the same tune and always seem to put the blame on the owners. They never cast a negative comment on the Chinese tire manufactures or the RV dealers. Guess we have another dirty little secret to contend with. Knock on wood but I have never had a LT 10 ply failure and I have run 8000 lb trucks on hot florida roads for more years than I care to count. 60,000 miles is not uncommon on a set of tires. Funny I cant keep a set of ST tires for 1000 miles or 18 months. No matter how you figure it it dose't add up. Just my 2 cents.

Trail master, Goodrides,Trailer King all junk,just my humble opinion!

[hicksie]

I can't agree more with you on the traer tires I have worked on trucks and trailers for over 45 years and don't recall ever getting as poor mileage on a set of trailer tires as I have with the ones on my current RV it seemed that trailer tires wod take all kinds of abuse scuffing from running into obstacles jackknife turns under I flation overloaded etc and just keep on going. I think I will be replacing my tires with the Goodyear 14 ply youention as mine fail which I am certain will happen sooner than I want them to.

[dragon-roo]

LT tires ARE rated for trailer service in the USA!

That is what was used for many years before the ST tires, and they are still rated for trailer service by not just the manufacturers, but are required to to meet trailer service standards by the DOT. If they don't meet those standards they can not be sold as LT tires, last I knew. Also, many LT tires have even stiffer sidewalls than these crummy ST tires.

Some of the manufacturers say that you can use their passenger tires on a trailer, but you must de-rate them anywhere from 10-20%. Personally I feel that passenger tires have too soft of a side wall for even an SUV. I would never think about putting them on a trailer! I would think that would be a sure recipe for sway.

YMMV

[k4lp]

ROGER THAT , I had conversations with Goodyear tech in Akron Ohio and they sort of confirmed all of that. They said the Wrangler HT was a good choice in the LT 245 10 ply. The HT does not have the off road aggressive tread design so it runs better on the highway.

[dragon-roo]

I haven't used, or mounted for someone else, a Wrangler HT in quite a few years, but they were a very nice tire back when I did have some experience with them.

Long wearing too.

[ependydad]

Originally Posted by k4lp

I think some of the tire experts on the various RV websites are on a tire or RV manufactures side. Just my thought because they all sing the same tune and always seem to put the blame on the owners. They never cast a negative comment on the Chinese tire manufactures or the RV dealers. Guess we have another dirty little secret to contend with.

Wow, you're just full of conspiracy theories?!

Originally Posted by k4lp

Trail master, Goodrides,Trailer King all junk,just my humble opinion!

HUMBLE??? LOL!

[k4lp]

very constructive!

[ependydad]

Originally Posted by k4lp

very constructive!

It's not a whole lot different than your posts. You've so far made wild claims that are wholly unsubstantiated. Earlier you claimed "The dirty little secret about ST tires is the NHTSA treats them as a wheel barrow tire." and offered up no proof. Now you've claimed that there's a conspiracy between RV websites and the tire manufacturers. With claims this absurd, it's hard to take you credible.


That all said- if you want constructive comments:

Personally, I feel like a vast majority of people ride on ST tires with no issues. Many RVs are sold without those owners coming to forums to say "yep, still riding on my tires; no issues." For me, I had about 15,000 miles on my ST tires with very few issues.

I ultimately upgraded away from ST tires, but it was because I was overloading the ST tires and had no options. Not the tire's fault.

AND, going with LT tires is not a guarantee of no issues. I can tell you stories of a few different friends who all had flats/blowouts with LT tires. It can and does happen.

[k4lp]

somebody needs a hug:

[KingFisher]

I spend some time on the road and have rv haulers both pass and meet me, going hell bent for leather. All that extra heat from them speeding however many miles to their destination can't be good for the tires. they may be damaged before the trailer is purchased.

[Tireman9]

Originally Posted by k4lp

The dirty little secret about ST tires is the NHTSA treats them as a wheel barrow tire. Because they don't carry passengers or act as drive or steer wheels they don't investigate the failures. The Chinese manufactures know this and make them as cheap as possible because our government will not hold them responsible for property damage. Thus RV manufactures get cheap tires and there hands are clean. Then the experts lecture us on how we don't treat the tires correctly or drive to fast.

What is also true is that RV owners seldom file actionable complaints with NHTSA because it's too inconvenient. Yes it is possible some distributors are playing games with the regulations by keeping the volume low enough to stay under the radar. Why else to we see so many "no-name" brand tires on TT?

One thing we could do is demand better warranty from the RV industry but as long as we keep buying the "Bling" , lights and mirrors the RV dealers will continue selling the hype rather than quality product.

But hey I guess I have to accept the blame for the fact that over half of all RVs that have been weighed have a tire in overload or the fact that a good portion of TT are driven faster than the tire rating simply because I try and educate owners on the proper care of their tires.