What did you do to your Class C MH today???
This is always a fun thread to watch in other forums, so I thought I'd start one here.
Forum Discussion
Got the Class "c" prepped and ready for our annual summer trip from Florida to Michigan. Left at approx 9AM. Got on the freeway and up to speed. Everything good for the first hour. Then it began. BANG and THUMP, THUMP, THUMP. My right rear tag axle tire blew. Got out of the traffic lane and on to the shoulder and went back to look. Minimal body damage but not much tire left. Problem is it took out my propane line from the onboard tank and broke the tail pipe extension off. Now,unless we keep the rear vent open and crack the rear side windows, the CO alarm goes off. (Not good at all) Wired the line up so it wasn't dragging, found a local tire store on the gps. Fortunately, not much traffic and was able to limp the two miles to get there after dumping the air in the tag axle suspension. Had to settle for a Cooper tire for $200.00 and an hour later we have had lunch and were back on the road. I barely got to 50mph and the tag axle started bouncing up and down. Before I got my foot off the gas,another BANG, THUMP...............AND MORE BANGS. The left tag tire blew. On the shoulder again and go back and look. Not much tire left but lots more body damage. Call Coach Net.... While on the phone a tire service truck shows up. He said he saw the debris field I had left on the road and new I would be waiting for him. He was a Coach Net contractor so they approved him to do the work. He put my spare on which was not in the best of shape so I decided to limp to Discount tire in Ormond Beach Florida. They had Michelins in stock so I gave him the go ahead to put them on. So there we were within the first hour of the trip sitting in the tire store.
I had checked the tires (Michelins) previously and read the codes and felt that I had one more trip left in them. Very little cracking (almost none) and they looked good. Upon taking them off, they told me that the date code (which I interpreted to read SIX years old was actually FIFTEEN years old.What an embarrassment. If I had even thought they were near that old, they would have been history.
My advice to anyone who thinks of tires, get them checked by a professional. Don't try to interpret the codes yourself unless you take them to a dealer and verify. Don't try to stretch the tires for "One more trip". Remember, you most likely will not wear the new ones out before you decide to get a new RV. Why let the new owner benefit from the new tires. Get them now and enjoy the safety, security and peace of mind you will have. Think about it. It makes sense.
Well, we are back on the road and enjoying the new tires. She rides so much smoother and quieter. We will be in Michigan tomorrow and then I can look forward to repairing the exhaust, repairing the propane line, and repairing the sewer compartment enough to be able to open it to dump. Then when I get home I can repair the body damage before the next trip.
Somehow, I don't think I came out ahead stretching the tires for "ONE MORE TRIP". It was a hard lesson learned. Believe me, $2500.00 and 9 tires later...... I LEARNED.
PS: I must hold the record for the longest use of a set of Michelins.
I had checked the tires (Michelins) previously and read the codes and felt that I had one more trip left in them. Very little cracking (almost none) and they looked good. Upon taking them off, they told me that the date code (which I interpreted to read SIX years old was actually FIFTEEN years old.What an embarrassment. If I had even thought they were near that old, they would have been history.
My advice to anyone who thinks of tires, get them checked by a professional. Don't try to interpret the codes yourself unless you take them to a dealer and verify. Don't try to stretch the tires for "One more trip". Remember, you most likely will not wear the new ones out before you decide to get a new RV. Why let the new owner benefit from the new tires. Get them now and enjoy the safety, security and peace of mind you will have. Think about it. It makes sense.
Well, we are back on the road and enjoying the new tires. She rides so much smoother and quieter. We will be in Michigan tomorrow and then I can look forward to repairing the exhaust, repairing the propane line, and repairing the sewer compartment enough to be able to open it to dump. Then when I get home I can repair the body damage before the next trip.
Somehow, I don't think I came out ahead stretching the tires for "ONE MORE TRIP". It was a hard lesson learned. Believe me, $2500.00 and 9 tires later...... I LEARNED.
PS: I must hold the record for the longest use of a set of Michelins.
