Trailer tires vs regular tires

My 5er came from the factory with LT m/s tires. Need to change them in the next 6 weeks before a big trip west.

Over all (all things equal)...a bias ply is stronger than a radial

The reason radials are 'better' for cars and trucks has to do with several
attributes. Rolling resistance is better, side wall strength is better and
ride quality is better

None of that is of much for trailers, other than roll resistance...that is a
good thing for all vehicles

Going wider and lower profile will have the radial do better than any bias ply and
even belted bias ply, which is a hybrid of both radial and bias ply (you won't see
many of these, as the architecture fights each other)

CHD Dad wrote:

coolbreeze01 wrote:
I wonder what tires U-Haul specs on their trailers? Seems like they hold up pretty well......

Goodyear HMG-2020 is the U-Haul tire. Its a bias ply tire that is very sturdy. I almost bought a set as you can get 14" in a D load rating. Any Goodyear store can order them and some even have the U-Haul stamp on the sidewall.

I ended up with Maxxis and have been very happy. I didnt want to deal with flat spots with the bias ply (plus I heard they run warmer) as my TT sits all winter and it also gets quite hot here in the summer.

Thanks. I see there is a lot of discussion about them on other forums.

coolbreeze01 wrote:
I wonder what tires U-Haul specs on their trailers? Seems like they hold up pretty well......

Goodyear HMG-2020 is the U-Haul tire. Its a bias ply tire that is very sturdy. I almost bought a set as you can get 14" in a D load rating. Any Goodyear store can order them and some even have the U-Haul stamp on the sidewall.

I ended up with Maxxis and have been very happy. I didnt want to deal with flat spots with the bias ply (plus I heard they run warmer) as my TT sits all winter and it also gets quite hot here in the summer.

Many smaller lightweight tandem and single axle trailers of all types come OEM with P tires and of course LT tires.

In fact before we had ST tires all the trailer industry (all types) gave us was passenger tires on our lighter weight trailers and truck tires on the heavier units.

The problem with P tires back then and with some now is their max 32 psi rating. This had lead to many tires popping the bead as its side scrubs around a corner. The tire simply rolled off the rim or just one side. The newer P series with the 44-51 psi fixed that issue.

This is a paste and copy from a thread on another RV website.
The '08 Carriage Domani 5th wheel with a 11500 GVWR with 6k axles came with P285/50-20" Goodyear Fortena tires and a special chrome mag wheel from American Racing (8 lug 20 X 10" rim) option.
Trailers come OEM with P/ST and LT tires.

Add that 'ST' class tires are speed rated for a MAX of 65MPH

powderman426 wrote:
I can't understand why you would want passenger tires on a trailer. Just get a set of Maxxis tires along with a TPMS and enjoy life.

The issue is the size one might need. If you get 165, 175, or 185 13 tires, they only come in a P series, altho you can get C rated tires at 45 lbs. They are NOT ST rated for trailers, but are common trailer tires for smaller trailers. I saw a SMALL boat trailer with 4.80x12 tires in an B load rating. These granted are made for trailers, but still only hold 30-32 lbs of air. I would not be surprised if the trailer axel had more than 300-400 lbs on it! One does not need high capacity tires for this load.

It will come down to a how you use the trailer, how much load etc. I would have no issue throwing an appropriate p metric to get me to a tire shop. Really no different than using some of the really small spare tires that come with some rigs. Emergency use only!

Marty

I wonder what tires U-Haul specs on their trailers? Seems like they hold up pretty well......

Using steel rv wheels the inflation pressure is not an issue .
Many of the aluminum wheels are stamped for load rating in pounds .
Some aluminum wheels are stamped for maximum psi .
More aluminum wheels are stamped for a load rating in pounds at a certain psi .
When aluminum wheels fail they generally do not have catastrophic failure .
The aluminum wheels develop a hairline crack and will fail to hold air pressure . This occurs prior to a more serious break .

It's my understanding that one must make sure the rim is also rated for 65 psi also, before using a D rated tire.

Unfortunately the aluminum rims that came with my TT are rated for 60psi max.

PartyMarty wrote:
As has been said : As a general rule P or passenger car tires are not a good substitute.
The load rating (in pounds ) posted on the sidewall of "P " tires must be derated by 9 % .
What sometimes happens is somebody has a " take off " tire from their pickup that has P rated tires and they mount them on their RV because their RV tires are "cracked " from the sun and ozone .
Then the P tires fail because they do not have adequate load reserve capacity , either .
As others have said an ST or LT tire with additional weight capacity in pounds is the cheapest way to prevent tire failure .
Presuming that you have load range "C" tires max 50 psi, now :
If you buy a load range D tire you can pick up 10- 20 % in load rating in the same size tire . If you inflate to 65 psi as shown on the sidewall you pick up reserve capacity .
Further , even if you miss an inflation check and your tires deflate from 65 psi to 50 psi you still have the same load rating as the C tire at 50 psi.