Another damn tire question

I just changed my P tires on my 2013 F150 Ecoboost to Falken Rocky Mountain load range E tires. I said to put in 50psi in the front and 60psi in the rear. Tech said that it would ride too hard empty and I told him it's a truck for god's sake. I have a car for a soft ride! Next, overload springs to haul my TT with. My $$$, my decision. JMHO

OK, I am probably one of those tire experts that is being referred to above.

First: "Class C" refers to vehicles, not tires. There is more or less a correlation between the 2, but it is possible for a Class C RV to have smallish medium truck tires instead of LT (light Truck) tires.

To my knowledge, no one makes an LT tire specifically geared to RV usage. There are some LT tires that are marketed as "Commercial", and what they mean is they wear pretty well, but at the expense of traction and soft ride.

And while I am not a rubber chemist, I really doubt that so called RV tires are really much different than regular medium truck tires as far as rubber compounding is concerned. The things that can be done to improve the life of rubber (as in how long before the rubber degrades) are expensive and suffer from the law of diminishing returns - that is: a little is good, a lot is only a little better than that.

jk31668 wrote:
i was informed by a knowledgeable longtime rver that most class c tires are made and labeled as LT (light truck i guess) even tho they may have a load range of D or E and that there is a better tire made for RVs that is not marked LT. it has something to do with the rubber composition/ingredients according to him.

if so, anyone know of such a tire and what they are called?

supposedly, these rv tires do not breakdown or get weather cracks, etc. anyone?

Nirvanas..:W

~

I found out the hard way that there IS a tire made for the RV.

It has to do with the "tread" of the tire. Similar to why the tires on semi's that actually have a bald outer tread to PREVENT it from wobbling/tire roll on heavier vehicles. I.E. same as our RV's.

I bought the top of the line Michelin's. The tread was too aggressive and I lost the great handling I HAD on my RV. Because the outer tread flexes.

Brought my RV in for new leaf springs after putting on the new tires and the frame shop pointed that out to me too late. He took 2 fingers and moved the outer tread back and forth with no effort.:(

Which means that tread is flexing all the time going straight down the road under the heavy weight of the MH.

He than told me Michelin makes an RV tire to address that issue. News a little too late for me. I am sure other companies make them also.

IMHO and from my experience I think 99% of the posts we see about handling and all the after market stuff people slap on to improve steering/handling.......would be rectified by buying less aggressive tread on the tires that are bought for RV's.

The Texan wrote:
Ask your "knowledgeable" friend to finish the rest of his story.....The people in the know, the commercial tire experts, will tell you that 99% of what he said is pure sales propaganda, nothing but hype.

Are they LT, yep and that is what you should be running. Are there RV tires in your size, nope. Do so called RV tires have anything different in the compound that truck tires don't have, nope, pure myth....Of course the folks on the street that have absolutely NO knowledge about how tires are built will mouth the sales hype and perpetuate the myths. There are several actual tire experts on this forum that tried many times to give people the truth and facts, but finally gave up, as the typical RVer knew more than they did.

I agree totally with the last sentence , as well .
I am amazed weekly at the myths that continue to be perpetuated in spite of the previous discussions available through the " search function " that dispel those myths .

LT tires are rated on a tougher scale than either ST rated tires or P rated tires .
The best solution is to use a tire with an LT rating that has the highest weight rating in pounds as listed on the sidewall .
That weight rating is more important than brand .
An ST rated tire is not rated for motorhome usage .
The ST placard says " For Trailer Usage Only "
Many have upgraded to an "E " tire which requires 80 psi .
Many have upgraded a size or two such as from a 245/75R16E to a 265/75R16E .
Both options increase tire reserve capacity .

Ask your "knowledgeable" friend to finish the rest of his story.....The people in the know, the commercial tire experts, will tell you that 99% of what he said is pure sales propaganda, nothing but hype.

Are they LT, yep and that is what you should be running. Are there RV tires in your size, nope. Do so called RV tires have anything different in the compound that truck tires don't have, nope, pure myth....Of course the folks on the street that have absolutely NO knowledge about how tires are built will mouth the sales hype and perpetuate the myths. There are several actual tire experts on this forum that tried many times to give people the truth and facts, but finally gave up, as the typical RVer knew more than they did.

Smart? Really?........Sad.

I wonder if he's talking about RV motor home tires that are marketed to RV owners.
Or he's confused.
Or full of it. ;)

Never heard of that.