Tire Thoughts

Me Again wrote:

JIMNLIN wrote:

Chris wrote:
Problem now with the Commercial TA, is that BFG only list a 215 and 265 size. The 225, 235 and 245 are gone from their web site! The twin Uniroyal Laredo HD/H still list all the sizes. Chris

Hmmm.....just looked at BFG website and what you say is true.

BFG is going with a BFG Commercial T/A AS 2 tire per a email I received from them dated 8-5-'14. I saw the "2" part behind the T/A and thought it a typo. The email stated in part;

"If the requested tire meets or exceeds the load capacity for your trailer it would be a good fitment and fully warranted.

The BFG Commercial T/A 2 LT235/85 R16/E tires carry 3042 lbs at a max of 80 psi per tire.
If you have other questions or concerns feel free to give us a call at the number listed below.

We appreciate your business and thank you for choosing BFGoodrich.

It is our goal to ensure that your issue has been resolved or your question answered to your satisfaction. If we can assist you further, please respond to this email or call us at 1-877-788-8899 (toll free) between 8:00AM and 8:00PM Eastern Time Monday through Friday or between 8:30AM and 4:30PM Eastern Time on Saturday."

Just guessing here but it looks like BFG changed their ETEC system in the new 2 tire. Dang I didn't see my favorite LT215/85-16 E in the new line up.

Goodyear did much the same with the Wrangler LT HT in the early '00 era and the G614 in the late '00 era. Ditto with the Firestone Transport HT in the late '90s. They kept the line up name but improved the tire.

And in the 235's they are three pounds lighter, and now weigh in similar to the FS Transforce. Chris

Wonder who is on first??? I have initiated 2 phone calls and several emails with BF Goodrich and they have called me once.. Each email was from a different person. One email from me asked if BFGoodrich would warrant their T/A's on my trailer and their email response was: BFGoodrich Commercial T'/A tires are warranted for 6 years from the date of purchase for workmanship and material conditions." I felt that that response was not specific enough of an answer for my question. When I asked:" Thank you for your response but I am asking specifically about warranty of the 225/75R16 LT T/A for RV service. their response was:

"On Thursday, August 7, 2014 7:42 AM, BF Goodrich wrote:

Hello XXXX

Thank you for your email. We welcome the opportunity to serve you.


In regards to the email you sent asking about BFG Commercial T/A'S in trailer use:

ST (Special Trailer) tires are constructed with heavier materials in the casing as compared to passenger rated tires giving the ST tires more strength and load carrying capacity. ST tires also have a stiffer sidewall and flex less making them more compatible with the trailer’s suspension system.

We're sorry but we do not recommend using passenger tires on trailers that specify ST tires. If the trailer manufacturer calls for ST tires, it is important to replace with ST tires in order to maintain the load requirement.

We apologize for the inconvenience.


We appreciate your business and thank you for choosing BFGoodrich.

It is our goal to ensure that your issue has been resolved or your question answered to your satisfaction. If we can assist you further, please respond to this email or call us at 1-877-788-8899 (toll free) between 8:00AM and 8:00PM Eastern Time Monday through Friday or between 8:30AM and 4:30PM Eastern Time on Saturday.

Sincerely,

John
Consumer Care Department
Certified BFGoodrich Product Expert


PS: It's important that you get all the safety-related materials that come with the purchase of new B F Goodrich passenger and light truck tires. If you did not receive a warranty book, you can download one at www.bfgoodrichtires.com/bfg/tireWarranty.do. If you did not register your tires, please take a moment to do so at www.bfgoodrichtires.com. Registering your tires is easy and takes just a minute."

I then received a phone call from this same "John" who said that there would be no warranty on their LT tire used in trailer service. I am well aware of and appreciate Jim's expertise and have used it via P.M.'s for assistance in selecting tires but it appears to me that depending on who you speak to there are different answers. I was always polite in my conversations and BFG, including a supervisor, was very firm in telling me about not providing a warranty in trailer service. I am also aware that there has been a number of posters on this forum who said they received warranty help and in some cases repairs to their units.

Hopefully my new Transforce will serve me better.

Me Again wrote:
Problem now with the Commercial TA, is that BFG only list a 215 and 265 size. The 225, 235 and 245 are gone from their web site! The twin Uniroyal Laredo HD/H still list all the sizes. Chris

Interesting: The 235 and the 245 in 16" was on the recall 2 years ago. I had the failures on 225/75R16" LT's. I believe the 225 were probably the most popular size for RV's because they allowed you to go to 16"LT's from 15" ST's. I have found several postings on the NTHSA web site about failures of all three sizes

I never posted my 5th wheel weights on my previous post about three 225/75R16 LT BFG Commercial T/A's that BFG refused to even consider warranty. Combined weights on both 5200 # axles are 8960 #'s loaded for travel.

JIMNLIN wrote:

Chris wrote:
Problem now with the Commercial TA, is that BFG only list a 215 and 265 size. The 225, 235 and 245 are gone from their web site! The twin Uniroyal Laredo HD/H still list all the sizes. Chris

Hmmm.....just looked at BFG website and what you say is true.

BFG is going with a BFG Commercial T/A AS 2 tire per a email I received from them dated 8-5-'14. I saw the "2" part behind the T/A and thought it a typo. The email stated in part;

"If the requested tire meets or exceeds the load capacity for your trailer it would be a good fitment and fully warranted.

The BFG Commercial T/A 2 LT235/85 R16/E tires carry 3042 lbs at a max of 80 psi per tire.
If you have other questions or concerns feel free to give us a call at the number listed below.

We appreciate your business and thank you for choosing BFGoodrich.

It is our goal to ensure that your issue has been resolved or your question answered to your satisfaction. If we can assist you further, please respond to this email or call us at 1-877-788-8899 (toll free) between 8:00AM and 8:00PM Eastern Time Monday through Friday or between 8:30AM and 4:30PM Eastern Time on Saturday."

Just guessing here but it looks like BFG changed their ETEC system in the new 2 tire. Dang I didn't see my favorite LT215/85-16 E in the new line up.

Goodyear did much the same with the Wrangler LT HT in the early '00 era and the G614 in the late '00 era. Ditto with the Firestone Transport HT in the late '90s. They kept the line up name but improved the tire.

And in the 235's they are three pounds lighter, and now weigh in similar to the FS Transforce. Chris

Chris wrote:
Problem now with the Commercial TA, is that BFG only list a 215 and 265 size. The 225, 235 and 245 are gone from their web site! The twin Uniroyal Laredo HD/H still list all the sizes. Chris

Hmmm.....just looked at BFG website and what you say is true.

BFG is going with a BFG Commercial T/A AS 2 tire per a email I received from them dated 8-5-'14. I saw the "2" part behind the T/A and thought it a typo. The email stated in part;

"If the requested tire meets or exceeds the load capacity for your trailer it would be a good fitment and fully warranted.

The BFG Commercial T/A 2 LT235/85 R16/E tires carry 3042 lbs at a max of 80 psi per tire.
If you have other questions or concerns feel free to give us a call at the number listed below.

We appreciate your business and thank you for choosing BFGoodrich.

It is our goal to ensure that your issue has been resolved or your question answered to your satisfaction. If we can assist you further, please respond to this email or call us at 1-877-788-8899 (toll free) between 8:00AM and 8:00PM Eastern Time Monday through Friday or between 8:30AM and 4:30PM Eastern Time on Saturday."

Just guessing here but it looks like BFG changed their ETEC system in the new 2 tire. Dang I didn't see my favorite LT215/85-16 E in the new line up.

Goodyear did much the same with the Wrangler LT HT in the early '00 era and the G614 in the late '00 era. Ditto with the Firestone Transport HT in the late '90s. They kept the line up name but improved the tire.

dryfly wrote:

JIMNLIN wrote:
AS most folks I've ran LT tires at the max load on 6k axle with no issues.
I've ran them on my commercial equipment/enclosed trailers with 6k axles and the last three 5th wheel RV trailers with 5.2k and 6k axles.

In commerce our trailers axles/tires are equal to or greater to the trailer GVWR. So myself and lots of haulers have no issue with say the LT235/85-16 E at 3042 lbs capacity on 6k axles all day long for 50k-60k miles.

Now granted most RV trailers sit most of their life which is hard on a tire vs that same tire on a trailer in commercial service that are on the road daily. When I ran my equipment trailers in commerce it was just about one set a year on each of the five trailers that myself and four other employees pulled. Those LT tires actually wore out before they had time to get old.

My RV trailers had nothing but LT tires on them and sit most of the time. The last two sets were BFG Commercial before the recall dates. Both sets ran around 55k miles and 7 years. Now if someone has those BFG Commercials around the recall dates then sure the few folks had issues with them on their trucks and trailers as expected.

Some types of tire are better at sitting or carrying loads for years and 50k + miles. Other types ........ not so good.

I find it strange that a tire manufacturer would change something intentionally in their processing that would create a recall situation. BFG had been successful with the Commercial line so why change anything that would jeopardize that good reputation? Maybe this is just something we must get used to, OR, maybe they made a one time mistake and corrected it.

It is incredible how today many formerly good items are just made cheaper rather than increasing the price. There are apparently more folks wanting lower cost than higher quality, not just in tires but in all consumer goods. My son in law runs a tire business and most customers walk in the door wanting to know the cheapest price, not the best performance.

Problem now with the Commercial TA, is that BFG only list a 215 and 265 size. The 225, 235 and 245 are gone from their web site! The twin Uniroyal Laredo HD/H still list all the sizes. Chris

From My experince screw the chinese tires they are terrible, Go with American Made .The statement you get what you pay for goes a long way:) , Good Luck

The Goodyear Marathon tire is rated max. 3450lbs. If you have a 5er like mine with GVWR of 16000 minus the 2200 lbs. thong weight you are maxing out the tire load cap. The manufacturer are equipping their trailers with this tires because they are just in the load limit. In reality this tires will not last with that load. It is advisable to upgrade to a rang E tire for your peace of mind

JIMNLIN wrote:
AS most folks I've ran LT tires at the max load on 6k axle with no issues.
I've ran them on my commercial equipment/enclosed trailers with 6k axles and the last three 5th wheel RV trailers with 5.2k and 6k axles.

In commerce our trailers axles/tires are equal to or greater to the trailer GVWR. So myself and lots of haulers have no issue with say the LT235/85-16 E at 3042 lbs capacity on 6k axles all day long for 50k-60k miles.

Now granted most RV trailers sit most of their life which is hard on a tire vs that same tire on a trailer in commercial service that are on the road daily. When I ran my equipment trailers in commerce it was just about one set a year on each of the five trailers that myself and four other employees pulled. Those LT tires actually wore out before they had time to get old.

My RV trailers had nothing but LT tires on them and sit most of the time. The last two sets were BFG Commercial before the recall dates. Both sets ran around 55k miles and 7 years. Now if someone has those BFG Commercials around the recall dates then sure the few folks had issues with them on their trucks and trailers as expected.

Some types of tire are better at sitting or carrying loads for years and 50k + miles. Other types ........ not so good.

I find it strange that a tire manufacturer would change something intentionally in their processing that would create a recall situation. BFG had been successful with the Commercial line so why change anything that would jeopardize that good reputation? Maybe this is just something we must get used to, OR, maybe they made a one time mistake and corrected it.

It is incredible how today many formerly good items are just made cheaper rather than increasing the price. There are apparently more folks wanting lower cost than higher quality, not just in tires but in all consumer goods. My son in law runs a tire business and most customers walk in the door wanting to know the cheapest price, not the best performance.

ckuki wrote:
Guys, thanks for the discussion that you all had. I'm in need of replacing the tires on my 10K GVRW Dutchmen Colorado (2003used). Since it has 15" rims I am limited on tire selection. I don't think (I'll check) I have the room for 16" tires in the wheel wells. I've read up on Maxxis before. And I like what I've seen. Thanks again.
Chet

Our new rig came with 15" st wheels. Before I towed it an inch I replaced with 16" lt r250s. 1" total diameter change. Work great. Have towed 2500 miles since March and have not had to add a single psi of air. Make sure to get steel valve stems and have them balanced.

AS most folks I've ran LT tires at the max load on 6k axle with no issues.
I've ran them on my commercial equipment/enclosed trailers with 6k axles and the last three 5th wheel RV trailers with 5.2k and 6k axles.

In commerce our trailers axles/tires are equal to or greater to the trailer GVWR. So myself and lots of haulers have no issue with say the LT235/85-16 E at 3042 lbs capacity on 6k axles all day long for 50k-60k miles.

Now granted most RV trailers sit most of their life which is hard on a tire vs that same tire on a trailer in commercial service that are on the road daily. When I ran my equipment trailers in commerce it was just about one set a year on each of the five trailers that myself and four other employees pulled. Those LT tires actually wore out before they had time to get old.

My RV trailers had nothing but LT tires on them and sit most of the time. The last two sets were BFG Commercial before the recall dates. Both sets ran around 55k miles and 7 years. Now if someone has those BFG Commercials around the recall dates then sure the few folks had issues with them on their trucks and trailers as expected.

Some types of tire are better at sitting or carrying loads for years and 50k + miles. Other types ........ not so good.