Powerking Towmax ST235/80R16

rbowen1063 wrote:
I purchased a "new" 2012 Keystone Alpine 3650RL in June 2013 from Camping World Bartow. It came with 4 Powerking Towmax tires dated 3811, meaning manufactured the 38th month, 2011. In April 2014, we experienced 3 separate blowouts within 50 miles, good highway conditions. The tires had less than 4,000 miles. The tire pressures were checked at 80 psi before departure. The first blowout, the tread separated from the tire and wrapped around the axle and did damage to the passenger side of the 5er. The other two blowouts did minimal damage. After the 1st and 2nd blowouts, we stopped at Camping World Ft Myers for repair of a severed hydraulic line. After camping there overnight we proceeded to the campground less than 15 miles. Enroute we had the 3rd blowout. We ended up changing all 4 tires. We dropped the 5er off at CW for the repairs on return. We contacted USAA with the claim. They, in turn, assigned the claim to TBC Corp for validation and inspection. The claim was OK'ed and USAA paid the $3,700 damages less the $250 deductible. The manufacturer, Dynamic Tire Corp, Canada, was contacted because of the tire failure. They arranged for shipping to their location for inspection. After some time, their analysis, as suspected was "pilot error". Their analysis was an overload condition, improper tire inflation and extreme heat. No manufacturer descrepancies were found. However, they did offer a "goodwill gesture" of $375 for a general release of liability. Their analysis is wrong. The tires were checked before departure at 80 psi and the 5er was loaded to the less than the manual specifications. It's another case of poor Chinese quality that we hear time and again.
My analysis is poor Chinese quality, 5er was stored at CW Bartow for better than a year with minimal movement, Keystone put the optimum tire on a "luxury" rv for it's weight, the tires were "E" rated which technically is adequate. Discussion with experienced people indicate a "G" rated tire would be better(but cost more). I think the fault lies with the tire manufacturer, Keystone and Camping World Bartow, which was in a transition mode with the purchase of Dusty's RV. I think Camping World should take a look at their operation at Bartow. It's poor and not customer oriented. The Ft Myers operation is 100% better.

The CDN tire people probably did a fair analysis of the failed tires. They didn’t say you caused the conditions for the failures. They just said that those conditions contributed to the tires demise.

The facts - as you have presented them - show that the tires were somewhere around two years old when you started using them. The previous usage conditions are unknown to you. They could have a lot more mileage on them than you have any knowledge of. The fact that they failed so close together would indicate their damage was equally accumulated and distributed. So, you got the minimum life expectancy out of them, three years.

Your axles have moist likely been derated from 7000# to 6750# to allow for the fitment of the ST235/80R16E tires. IMO that’s not enough load capacity for your trailer. Any tires providing 3750# of load capacity or above would be much better. Does your owner’s manual have options for LRG tires? You don’t really need it as long as the LRG tires are certified for trailer axle fitments.

FastEagle