aftermath wrote:
Thermoguy wrote:
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Talking to the Goodyear guy today about LT vs ST - ST tires are designed to go straight. Never get much abuse and only designed for rolling resistance. AN LT tire will not roll as well so might increase fuel cost, but a way better built tire. Whenever I have asked a tire professional about LT vs ST they can't tell me why one should buy an ST tire. And, if you need the extra few pounds of added load range, then maybe you should step up a load range anyway.
From everything I have heard or read, this statement is in error. The advantage of an ST tire is in the strength of the sidewalls. They are designed to stand up to the lateral loads produced by sharp turns, like when you are backing into tight camping spots. There are many arguments why an LT tire might be better, but this isn't one of them. Remember, when you talk to a salesman about any product other than what he is selling, be prepared for a sales pitch. Sounds like he hit pay dirt.
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That is the marketing pitch for why you should buy ST tires, but have you checked the sidewall on them? I had a Marathon, Hercules, and GY Wrangler all side by side not mounted. The Wrangler was much tougher to the touch than either of the other 2. All E rated tires, you could flex the others very easily - the Hercules was bought to get me out of a bind, but very soft side wall. The "steel" belts in an LT tire run crisscross to each other, where the ST tire runs around the tire. The side wall on the LT tire is much stronger and the overall tire weight is more - don't you think taking a truck off road and over rocks is harder on a tire than straight down the highway?
With that said, I have a heavy horse trailer, gooseneck, that has has LT tires on it from new. I jack knife the trailer all the time to park next to my barn, have never had an issue. That trailer gets way more abuse as far a driving circumstances than the RV due to the nature of the use. My first set of original tires went 10 years (I didn't know as much about tires as I do now). I replaced due to dry rot... The GY Wranglers on them now have almost 5 years and look new.
