West Lake tires on a Grand Design

We just picked up a 2019 Solitude 310 GK with Westlake ST 235/80 R16's load range G. The dealer suggested we run them at 100 psi instead of the max 110. So far we only have 250 miles getting it home. I monitored the tire and spindle heat at every stop. They were all within 4 degrees of each other. I think I will increase the cold pressure to 110 to minimize side wall flex

The GD Owner's forum has discussed this a lot. Overall, they appear to be a pretty dependable tire with limited accounts of failure. Of course, when they do fail, one of the first reactions of the modern camper is to post a negative review on an internet forum LOL

One nice thing that GD did on our new unit is that they installed Load Range "E" tires, which in our case exceed even the max load ratings of the camper itself. Other RV manufacturers (not all, but certainly others) would have installed a Load Range "D" tire on a rig with weight characteristics like ours.

Wow, I didn't know that the WL had a decent reputation. Was under the impression that they were part of the China bomb group. I really, REALLY appreciate the info and will pass it on. Thanks again!!!

Over on the Grand Design forum there have been a few instances of issues documented but, by and large, they are a decent tire. We lost one to wear from a bent spindle and another to a piece of rebar. The replacements (all they way around) are Sailun ST load range Gs. Grand Design is very good about warranties and works with Lions Head (the company that distributes the WestLake tires and the wheels they're mounted on) to take care of any issues customers may have.

Rob

I have Westlake tires on my GD - they are 235/80R16. First trip out, they were already at max cold pressure which is 80 lbs. On our second trip, after sitting for a month, they were still at 80 psi. They have a speed rating of L which is 75, but I still keep it at 65. I'm on the fence as to how long to go with them before replacement.

We have West Lake on ours as well. They are G rated and I run them at 110 psi. The fiver is loaded fairly heavy so rather than risk being under inflated I keep them at max. We have about 2500 miles on ours and they are doing great.

We bought a new Grand Design Reflection in the Fall of 2016 and so far have put about 6000 miles on it. Last June a trip to southwest Utah in hot weather was the hardest run yet. At this writing we have not had any problems with the Westlake tires. I keep a close eye on tire pressure because this is a very big contributor to tire failure. When you fail to keep the pressure up to specs tires can run very hot and fail. I also believe running tires over five years is a problem. Goodyear Endurance tires will go on next!!

ACZL wrote:
Buddy of mine recently bought a new GD Reflection(?) BH model and it came w/ West Lake tires. Am not too sure if I read/saw good/bad w/ these tires. I typed in that name into TL search bar and really didn't get anything. Mind you, I didn't google search it either. Are they on same page as other China bomb tires? I told him I'd get back to him. I do not know the size or if ST or LT tires. He did say the sidewall felt a whole lot stiffer on this coach than what he got rid of, so that leads me to believe they are of ST grade. He also said that West Lake makes a heavy duty tire (semis?).

What's the consensus?

I have had Westlake brand tires on the current and a previous trailer, as well as a couple of equipment trailers. As long as Grand Design did not put load range ones on that are borderline overloaded I would run them. Never had a problem with Westlakes and have run them until the tread was worn out.

Now prepared to be bombarded with everything from he needs to run out and buy Goodyear Endurance, or Sailuns or something, to he's going to summon the antichrist by running them.

Fact is those Westlakes are on thousands upon thousands of trailers as OEM tires and have been for years, go to NHTSA and see how many complaints or recalls you find, not many if any. Most owners have never visited an RV forum where it's common that unless you're running what what I'm running, it's often the end of the world.

Westlakes are distributed by Lionshead distributing in Elkhart IN, the same as the wheels they are mounted on most likely, and manufactured by the Hangzhou Zhongce Rubber Co. Ltd, one of the largest tire manufacturers in the world.

I have a grand design with West lake ST tires. We have had it since 15 and they still look good. Now, I haven't taken any really long trips with them but have done 200-300 mile ones. No issues so far.