Didn't Believe about the Chinese Tires

phillyg wrote:

Gr8life wrote:
.........As hard as it is to do, RV tires should be replaced after five years, no matter where they were manufactured.

Nay, nay, sez me. ST tires may last three years. See my recent post entitled "Tires and Bugs." If you can get five years out of them you are fortunate indeed.

My Goodyear Marathon ST load range B were 10 years old when I replaced them. I only replaced them because when the trailer was fully loaded, it weighed more then the four tires maximum rating combined. The manufacturer was subtracting the tongue weight in order to put the lowest rated tire on the rig (cheapest cost). Essentially they gave me no safety margin, and in theory every bounce caused the weight rating to be far exceeded.

I replaced with Goodyear Marathon ST load range C tires, now I have a safety margin.

I follow these tire posts with great interest. Guess I have entirely too much time on my hands and I feel the urge to comment on some of your posts, so I will. Some may notice I always use "anecdotal" to express myself WRT tires, since neither I nor others can state too many facts when it comes to tires. And we all know that anecdotal means, for these purposes, "based on personal observation, case study reports, or random investigations rather than systematic scientific evaluation," right? Also, perhaps the "urban legend" comment from one poster comes from the anecdotal evidence posted over several years. Let me also state that I don't think it's "acceptable" to have to buy ST tires every three-four years, but it seems necessary.

Good for JIMNLIN who came up with the Carlisle info that I could not find but vaguely remembered: "Carlisle website on page 93 under Trailer Tires: Tips & Best Practices; (in part), Time and the elements weaken a trailer tire.

– 3 to 5 years is the average life expectancy of a trailer tire, regardless of mileage.
– It is estimated that in approximately three years, roughly one-third of a tire's strength is gone
– After three years, depending upon storage and conditions of usage, consider replacing trailer tires even if they have tread depth remaining.

– After five years, trailer tires should be replaced in all cases." Let me add that Carlisle gets my appreciation for being stating the apparent truth about ST tires, so the foregoing is factual rather than anecdotal.

I don't have a bone to pick with China; it's just that Chinese tires have flooded the American market and it's very difficult to buy American-made tires so most of the complaints are about Chinese tires.

So, most ST tires, anecdotally, should last at least three years. One of mine recently tread separated at four years and aired down slowly; guess that's still called a blowout. Tread looked great, aired properly, not driven above 65mph (per warning on tire), etc. I used to have a Class A with Michelins. Guess what, I had one blow at six years. Why? Same thing as ST tires, except (anecdotally) Class A tires usually last about six years before suffering the same fate.

So, to everyone that says their tires lasted more than three years or six years or ten years, goody for you and I'm happy for you! Anecdotally, however, it appears you are the exception rather than the norm.

Marbles article is a good start. I read that its recommend to spin/rotate the tire on the axle by jacking up each tire on a towable, when it is going to sit for an extended period of time by 50%, to avoid flat spotting, and the extra stress placed on the side walls. Also tires will last a lot longer if the rig is used more often and the tires are brought up to operating temperatures to keep the rubber compounds flexible and happy. And an other thing I read, it is recommended to over in-flate the tires 10# over cold inflation spec. to help fight the flat spotting thing, when its going to sit for a period of time. Or just remove the tires completely and block up the rig.

For an expert opinion on all issues regarding RV tires - check out this link on RV Tire Safety with Roger Marble. You can contact him directly with any questions you may have and he is extremely helpful and very responsive.

neil57 wrote:
Funny thing that nobody promotes changing TV tires after 5 years and posts blown tire stories;most TV tires do more miles than TT tires do. Could it be a double standard? I would be quite angry if my TV tires only lasted a few thosand miles or years. Seems like the tire sales people have a good profit center going.Just my grass roots opinion and yes I have LT tires on my TT.

Different issues. TV tires generally don't sit for long periods of time, yet RV tires do. TV tires do require replacement based on mileage so based on what your average annual mileage is, you may be replacing sooner than 5 - 7 years.

My OE tires failed after 3 years and 1500 miles. A belt shifted in one. I replaced them with Carlisle's and the replacements lasted 5 years and almost 10k miles before I found a shifted belt. I replaced them with the same brand this year and I expect another 5 years out of these.

So yes 5 years should be max for a trailer tire. it is good insurance for your safety and possibly those around you on the HWY. along with limiting damage to your trailer

The reason trailer tires need to be replaced more often than car tires is that trailer tires see side loading that car tires don`t and trailer tires sit long enough to flat spot which stresses the belts in it. and I`ve seen car tires that last no more than 5 years!

Motorhome tires can and do last longer than ST trailer tires. so those can`t be compared to trailer tires.

Bird Freak wrote:
I'm just curious here and not trying to start a China tire war. Where did this age old wisdom of a tire must be replaced after 5 years come from? Was it a tire manufacturer or just some people decided you should buy new ones? There are a bunch of tires out there that run a lot more years than that. Where was something credible in print?

Best source is a forum of experienced trailer users that have been there and done all of it for 30-40 years on the road.
We can tell you what has worked the best for years and what has never worked very good.
But you have to remember your getting input from lots of new folks that their only trailering experience is pulling their RV a few times a year vs folks that are on the road 5 days a week and rack up 50k-75k miles a year.
Years ago when all ST tires were made in the USA we blamed the tire mfg and the trailer mfg for using them. New folks today blame china for the same tire ...with the same issues.
Anyhow Carlisle website on page 93 under Trailer Tires:Tips & Best Practices; (in part)

Time and the elements weaken a trailer tire.
– 3 to 5 years is the average life expectancy of a trailer tire,regardless of mileage.
– It is estimated that in approximately three years, roughly one-third of a tire's strength is gone
– After three years, depending upon storage and conditions of usage, consider replacing trailer tires even if they have tread depth remaining.

– After five years, trailer tires should be replaced in all cases
– If you experience a series of successive blowouts, something is wrong with your setup, it is not a tire problem.

I have been pulling a trailer since 1976 and never had a tire problem until this September. I have been coast to coast from WI without a problem.

On our trip we had two (2) blowouts, both on the right side of the trailer. The first was on the right rear and the second was on the right front.

I always check tire pressures before a trip and at every stop check the temperature of each tire.

I believe what started this was the right rear had picked up a nail and had a slow leak. I had no way of knowing this from the truck. AS the pressure went down the temperature went up. Eventually as the temperature went up the tire just came apart with a bang.

As the right rear went down in pressure the right front had to carry more of the load and its temperature went up to the point of weakening the internal structure of the tire. Other than the tire feeling hot it looked fine. About 500 miles down the road it also blew out.

After the second blowout my wife and I felt like a NASCAR pit crew as we could change the tire in 15 minutes or less.

For the 2015 camping season I am going to purchase a tire pressure/temperature monitor. Maybe this will give me an early warning of pending doom. Changing a tire on the side of an interstate highway is not a safe thing to do.

pasusan wrote:

ReneeG wrote:

Lostincanada wrote:
I'm guessing they were original equipment? So 5 yr old tires grenade, don't think it had anything to do with them being Chinese.

Just my very humble opinion.

I agree.

You all who believe it is acceptable and normal for tires to "grenade" when they are 5 years old show your age... Or lack thereof.

Our 1974 travel trailer had the original tires on it in 2006 when we got rid of it. They had gone thousands of miles and lasted... 32 years. (They weren't Chinese.)

Well, I give up... What were they?

Funny thing that nobody promotes changing TV tires after 5 years and posts blown tire stories;most TV tires do more miles than TT tires do. Could it be a double standard? I would be quite angry if my TV tires only lasted a few thosand miles or years. Seems like the tire sales people have a good profit center going.Just my grass roots opinion and yes I have LT tires on my TT.