Good explanation about trailer tires vs LT

azdryheat wrote:
Why is it that ST tires are so temperamental? You gotta treat them a certain way, care for them a certain way, blah, blah blah. They are what they are - cheaply made junk tires that aren't worth buying. There's a reason the ST tires are stamped with "Not for passenger car use", or words to that effect, because they are not safe. I'll stick with my Michelin XPS Rib commercial truck tires on my 5th wheels. Been using Michelin LT's for the past 9 years and have yet to have a tire issue. And I don't have to baby them, they're made for trucks, after all.

Nonsense. ST tires are not rated to provide TRACTION for steering or driving, that's why they say not to put them on passenger cars. Good ST tires work just fine. Mine even work better; they're rated for more weight than a similar LT tire.

That's not to say that LT tires aren't good, commercial rib tires are a great choice for trailers. I, too, used them for years until I found GOOD, American made ST tires. In theory, ST tires are better in some ways, as they are made for trailer service. The sidewalls on the ST tires I'm running were noticably stiffer than the LT tires they replaced when I was mounting them (by hand).

I found a great deal on the Goodyear Endurance tires and so I'm running them. At full price, the XPS Rib was similar in cost and I considered that. I ended up paying slightly over $500 for four Goodyear Endurance tires with the rebate and they are rated for more than I needed, so I ran with them. If not for the rebates, I would have probably bought the XPS ribs.

LT tires in 16" are rated for more speed and good ST tires for more weight. I thought it more likely I could use the latter and the tires I use are rated for 87 MPH, which is faster than my pocketbook allows me to pull 10k+ lbs. Truck tires are rated for 112+ MPH, which might be great on an empty pickup truck but is useless for a 5th wheel.

YMMV.