tires on FR trailers

[DonG]

B47, my fifth came with 'C' range tires, and they are barely adequate for the load. I feel uncomfortable running tires loaded to their maximum rating, and am not impressed that FR would scrimp on something so important to safety. What would it have cost them to put on D-rated tires?

[B47]

Originally Posted by DonG

B47, my fifth came with 'C' range tires, and they are barely adequate for the load. I feel uncomfortable running tires loaded to their maximum rating, and am not impressed that FR would scrimp on something so important to safety. What would it have cost them to put on D-rated tires?

DG - since i haven't shopped for RV tires, I couldn't give you a cost estimate.

However for your peace of mind, I would suggest installing a Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS). It would help you check your tire pressure all the time and would give you warning if one or more of your tires was losing air pressure. I intend to install one after I decide on which brand to buy.

You say the "C" range tires are "barely adequate for the load." Have you checked to see what the load range is for your unit? The ranges and codes are on the internet.

Perhaps the "C" range is adequate for your unit and you were like me in first thinking perhaps they were not.

As always - don't overload your unit, keep the tires properly inflated and stay within the tire speed limit.

[B47]

Originally Posted by dunnnc

I will make a wild statement here and say that it is my opinion that a vast majority of all tire failures are from underinflated tires that get hot and explode. Sure there are those that are caused by road hazards, being curbed, etc. but that also happens to vehicle tires. In my 36+ yrs of camping all over the US, I have seen very, very few people check the tires of their mh, 5ers or tt either the night before or the morning they leave. I was guilty of the same thing until 2 yrs ago as I had checked tire pressures when we left Concord, NC and never checked them again UNTIL after we had one explode, taking off the fender and causing about $1800 damage 3 weeks later. Stopped the next day and had 4 new LR D GY Marathons put on and joined the crowd of Chinese bashing when it was either a low tire or a road hazard that caused my problem. DW & I have now "bit the bullet" and invested $259 in the TST tire monitoring system. Will I have another blowout, I hope not, but it will not be because the pressure is not at the max allowed for my tires.

X2

[rkswyo]

Originally Posted by DonG

B47, my fifth came with 'C' range tires, and they are barely adequate for the load. I feel uncomfortable running tires loaded to their maximum rating, and am not impressed that FR would scrimp on something so important to safety. What would it have cost them to put on D-rated tires?

I agree. It seems like most manufactuers all put the bare minimum for tires. I upgraded mine a week after I brought it home.

[OldCoot]

Originally Posted by B47

DG - since i haven't shopped for RV tires, I couldn't give you a cost estimate.

However for your peace of mind, I would suggest installing a Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS). It would help you check your tire pressure all the time and would give you warning if one or more of your tires was losing air pressure. I intend to install one after I decide on which brand to buy.

You say the "C" range tires are "barely adequate for the load." Have you checked to see what the load range is for your unit? The ranges and codes are on the internet.

Perhaps the "C" range is adequate for your unit and you were like me in first thinking perhaps they were not.

As always - don't overload your unit, keep the tires properly inflated and stay within the tire speed limit.

TST @ $259 for monitor and 4 sensors has a very good rep.
4 Tire Pressure Monitoring System-$259 - Truck System Technologies, Inc.

[great white]

Well, I dunno about the OEM tire being "total crap".

Mine are (iirc) duro tires on my 2011 831RLBSS.

They survived a trip from elkhart Indiana to Comox British Columbia, after which I subjected them to this trip:



Not one peep, squeak or complaint.

They're two years old now and look fine. Yes, I know what to "look" for in a tire to know if it's "good". Condition, appearance, wear, life cycle (age), etc. It's part of what I do for a living and I'm very good at my job.

But I'm also very fastidious with tire pressure, never overload the GTWR and hang around 100 kph ( approx 62-ish mph). I get passed by guys doing 75mph or better pulling huge trailers with newer diesels all the time. I just shake my head, chuckle to myself and watch 'em disappear over the horizon knowing full well those trailer tires are well above thier rated speed....

Now, does the OEM put the lowest price unit they can on thier trailers?

I have no doubt they do. They're out to make a profit after all. But if the tire is rated for the weight, they're not really doing anything wrong. OEM car manufacturers do the same thing.

I've often wondered if OEM tires on trailers are doomed from the get go from the method of delivery. Ie: the independent trailer hauler guys.

I can't count how often I've seen these guys on under inflated tires, well above the speed limit and/or trailer so out of balance to get it on thier particular tow vehicle it's not funny. They also are typically very long hauls in these conditions to reach all four corners of the continent.

Time is money for these dudes, stopping to frig with tire pressures or going the tires rated speed cuts into thier bottom line. They'll do it until they don't get away with it (ie: blowout) and it starts costing them money.

Thousands of miles in an overheated condition will take years and thousands of miles of life off the tires before you even get them.

I'd say the real reason these tires die an early death is, like everything else in life, a multitude of reasons. Abuse, overloading, under inflation, overspeed, road hazards, min spec to begin with, etc.

I'm not saying the Chinese tires are the greatest, but maybe early failures are not always a design/manufacturing fault....

[Rsgtivr6]

Originally Posted by great white

They survived a trip from elkhart Indiana to Comox British Columbia.

Did you pick it up from the factory or was it shipped via a third party. I was told they trailer them to dealers.

[capucine]

My trailer was sent twice to Middlebury, Indianna fron Ontario Canada and both trip were on its wheels to the factory and back to Canada. This is 1100 kilometers each way times 4 and theyare Triangle made in China .For the second trip my tires would end up almost ready to replace since the temperatures was in the over 90 degres. I would have hoped that the trailer would have been shipped on a float but since there is over a delay of 5 weeks for shipping it was done through an independent shipper on its wheels. When I went to pick up the trailer at my dealer I lookedl my tires and they were still looking like new. I think the big mistake all the trailer manufacturers is that all or almost all trailers comes with tires unballanced. Can you imagine how if our cars and trucks would come with tires unballanced. Most of the tires are wrecked with unballanced tires and underinflation. Overloading is another cause. I have Duro tires on my boat trailer and they are the best tires I went through with no sidewall cracks Even my bicycle has Duro tires for over 10 years and still going strong.

[great white]

Originally Posted by Rsgtivr6

Did you pick it up from the factory or was it shipped via a third party. I was told they trailer them to dealers.

Third party delivery. I didn't order mine, I bought it off the lot.

But, I was there when it was delivered. Came in behind a new ford dually crew cab with a cdl license and company name plastered on the side. Two other trailers came in with it the same way.

Local dealer where I live now gets them in the same way, private cdl delivery. I see them coming up the highway all the time. Usually a 1 ton dually of some sort with the trailer way out of balance (nose high or low) and only 1 "big fat bearded guy" in the cab. If that isnt enough of a hint thats its a "privateer" deliverer...cdl numbers on the side is the dead give away.

When I was in Elkhart on my big trip across the continent, all I saw was 1 ton trucks hauling trailers out of town.

I've never seen a travel trailer on a trailer.

Im not saying they aren't delivered that way, but I've never seen it and it sounds pretty unusual.

By rail makes more sense, but I've never seen that either.

It probably comes down to cost; the dealer has to pay to have his stock shipped to his lot and I'm betting the private haulers are the cheapest way. Not to mention, it's "door to door" for them.

Here's another nice thought:

If the factory didn't grease the wheel bearings before it left, they probably were abused to within an inch of thier life by these guys hauling it to the dealer. You know they don't grease them before they leave or stop halfway through to give 'em a couple shots on a long haul....through in higher towing speeds than normal and they're taking years of life off the assembly.

[capucine]

Just the trailers under 20 feets are shipped on float. All the rest are shipped from private party one ton diesel trucks with rear mudflaps mandatory.

[Witch Doctor]

I have driven over 3500 miles on trail express made in China, NOT ALL CHINA TIRES are bad, mostly user error being over inflated, under inflated or overloaded. I also check the tire temps and hub temps every time I stop. No Problem yet, but still have to travel another 3000 miles to get back home. FR sells thousands of trailers a year, do you really think they would put crap on? Well I do not. Most US tires are made over seas.

[myredracer]

I have found that some freeways are very hard on tires. The I-5 in the northern portion of Calif. is bad. It is concrete and the adjoining sections have settled in some of it causing a jolting "thump, thump" as you drive along. Broke the cords in a Toyota truck we had once and had to put the spare on. When we got home, we found the cords were damaged in the other tires so we ended up replacing them all. Then we learned that Toyota allegedly was putting on el-cheapo version tires (Michelin IIRC) while tire shops were selling the "good" ones. On another trip, we lost TWO tires on the I-5 in Norcal.

I wonder if it would be prudent to slow down on freeways/highways like this when pulling a camper?

I also have to wonder how long it takes for tires sitting out in the sun to get damaged by UV rays? I have my car trailer sitting outside exposed to the elements. One year, a tire exploded while it was just sitting out in the yard. Perhaps tire covers would be a good idea when the RV is not in use?

The tires that came on our trailer are rated for max. 50 psi. We have a smaller trailer though. Sure wouldn't want to travel with these ones over 50 psi. I think our dealer said to keep them at 35.

[wayne anthony]

My 2011 5th wheel (bought in 2010) has Duro tires, made in China. So far close to 10,000 miles and no problems.

[mike06081969]

Don't think the name Good Year automatically means made in the U.S.A. My trailer came from the factory with a set of Good Years. I had already pulled it from Tennessee to Pennsylvania and back, plus four more trips that were 4 to 6 hours one way when I read a thread here about Chinese tires. I thought, "I don't have that problem. Mine are Good Years." Well, I noticed the other day when I was washing the camper that all too familiar phrase stamped right on the sidewalls of my Good Year tires: "Made in China".

[caper]

The only trailers that can pull a full size 5er or a longer TT is a low rider trailer. This is the same trailer used to move large construction machines. So if you have a bearing go while on the highway the only way to move your trailer is with a low rider.

[Herk7769]

Originally Posted by mike06081969

Don't think the name Good Year automatically means made in the U.S.A. My trailer came from the factory with a set of Good Years. I had already pulled it from Tennessee to Pennsylvania and back, plus four more trips that were 4 to 6 hours one way when I read a thread here about Chinese tires. I thought, "I don't have that problem. Mine are Good Years." Well, I noticed the other day when I was washing the camper that all too familiar phrase stamped right on the sidewalls of my Good Year tires: "Made in China".

I don't think anyone said that. I only mentioned that my Goodyear Marathons were made in Gadsden, Alabama (USA).

[capucine]

Loue: I was just given a R-Pod year 2010 as a loaner while I was waiting for my Mini Lite and the Pod had tires good Year Marathon size 205 75r 14 that were made in U.S.A.