LT tires on TT
I was telling a buddy of mine how I upgraded my TT tires from ST's to LT's (Michelin RIBS) and he would like to upgrade to LT's also. He asked if he could go to any LT tire as long as they had the cor...
Forum Discussion
Reading this thread is like watching girls fight...LOL....
I'll throw in another dimension...when my Terry TT (GVWR 10,000 lbs) was new, it came with Duro BIAS PLY ST tires. Do you think that the bias ply tire is better for this application that a radial tire? Or did Fleetwood spec that particular tire because it cost less???
I installed TowMaster ST radial tires in the same size when the TT was new. Did I void the warranty on the radial tires because I used them in an application where the mfr had spec'd bias play as OEM fitment?
Now I run LT tires on that trailer...am I a risk to public safety???
While I appreciate that folks are digging to find what is "approved" from a perceived higher authority like a tire manufacturer, sometimes we as consumers get to make decisions for ourselves using what used to be called "common sense" (I say used to because it is far from common anymore.)
Why does an ST tire have a higher load rating than the same size LT tire? because it has a lower safety margin in its design...it can't be a stronger tire if it weighs less, unless they used some space-age materials to make it...but if that were true it wouldn't cost less too...
Let's face it, tire mfrs deal with OEMs not consumers. No tire mfr is going to advise anyone, much less in writing, to use tire type A in place of type B. Even though A may be functionally equivalent or even superior to B, the mfr knows that after you hit 25 curbs, exceed the speed limit, and run underinflated, when it blows you will return with that email saying "See? You said it was OK to run type A and it blew."
You have to consider how long you guys have been discussing this...usually indicates that in the absence of irrefutable proof by either side that what this boils down to is a difference of opinion...and it's not about tires.
What this discussion amounts to are those that trust their ability to look at the available data and make a decision about what tire they want to run on their trailer, and those that are afraid to do anything that has not been expressly authorized by someone who they perceive to have the authority to do so.
I put myself in the former camp and run LT tires on a TT that was spec'd by the OEM for bias ply ST tires, as do several others here. Good luck to the rest of you.
I'll throw in another dimension...when my Terry TT (GVWR 10,000 lbs) was new, it came with Duro BIAS PLY ST tires. Do you think that the bias ply tire is better for this application that a radial tire? Or did Fleetwood spec that particular tire because it cost less???
I installed TowMaster ST radial tires in the same size when the TT was new. Did I void the warranty on the radial tires because I used them in an application where the mfr had spec'd bias play as OEM fitment?
Now I run LT tires on that trailer...am I a risk to public safety???
While I appreciate that folks are digging to find what is "approved" from a perceived higher authority like a tire manufacturer, sometimes we as consumers get to make decisions for ourselves using what used to be called "common sense" (I say used to because it is far from common anymore.)
Why does an ST tire have a higher load rating than the same size LT tire? because it has a lower safety margin in its design...it can't be a stronger tire if it weighs less, unless they used some space-age materials to make it...but if that were true it wouldn't cost less too...
Let's face it, tire mfrs deal with OEMs not consumers. No tire mfr is going to advise anyone, much less in writing, to use tire type A in place of type B. Even though A may be functionally equivalent or even superior to B, the mfr knows that after you hit 25 curbs, exceed the speed limit, and run underinflated, when it blows you will return with that email saying "See? You said it was OK to run type A and it blew."
You have to consider how long you guys have been discussing this...usually indicates that in the absence of irrefutable proof by either side that what this boils down to is a difference of opinion...and it's not about tires.
What this discussion amounts to are those that trust their ability to look at the available data and make a decision about what tire they want to run on their trailer, and those that are afraid to do anything that has not been expressly authorized by someone who they perceive to have the authority to do so.
I put myself in the former camp and run LT tires on a TT that was spec'd by the OEM for bias ply ST tires, as do several others here. Good luck to the rest of you.
