Anyone have any updates on their Carlisle Radial Trail HD's?

This year I replaced the original Goodyear Marathons that the factory installed on the trailer in my sig. 13 years, and thousands of miles.

Well I got back from my trip to Topsail State Park. First trip with the new HD's and a little under 1,000 miles round trip. Did 65mph on cruise all the way there. tried 69mpg on the second half of the return trip. Temps stayed pretty much the same on both runs in the Florida Sun.

Compared to my stock tire, that had an almost cheap sports car looking tread on them, these were not nearly as affected by the lines in the road. Stayed straighter running for me. I think some more stability and held straighter in general with passing cars and wind gusts. Did great in the rain, which was probably half of the running time. Also seem to be holding pressure well as my RH's have on the boat trailer. Still need to add now and then, but don't lose nearly as much as the stock tires did.

Very happy with the purchase, and nice to be able to run a bit faster when on open interstates, without any wind or traffic. Also nice to not worry about cheap tires back there!!

What JIMNLIN said, especially as related to trailer tires.

The praises some folks sing about LT tires are unwarranted, in my opinion because those tires will not carry the same load in 15" wheels that ST tires will carry. ST tires should be replaced every 5 yrs regardless of miles. LT and P tires should be replaced at 6 years according to Discount (not the 10 yrs quoted elsewhere.)

Discount tires who doesn't make or manufacture tires nor do they have a enginering staff, has no say in how many years a LT makers recommends them before replacement. That info come's from each tire manufacture like Michelin who says this from their webpage;

michelin Q&A

"What is the expected service life of tires?
While most tires will need replacement before they achieve 10 years, it is recommended that any tires in service 10 years or more from the date of manufacture, including spare tires, be replaced with new tires as a simple precaution even if such tires appear serviceable and even if they have not reached the legal wear limit."

I don't believe the average tire owner knows more about tires than a reputable tire dealer such as Discount. Anecdotal information is not helpful when compared to the much larger experience-base of a large distributor such as they. IMO.

Discount tire is not a credible source for tire tech. They simple sell tires.
Lots of folks pulling trailers (rv and non rv) know much more than Discount tire as they were doing so before Discount tires ever sold a tire. We simply found out the hard way what works vs what a tire chain store says should have worked.

Your very lite weight single axle trailer does not have the side stress problems (ply shear) that a multiaxle trailer has. Discount tires wants to sell you a tire and can easily fill your trailer needs.

I just installed Carlisle HD's on my 4,000 lbs single axle Bambi and have only run it on one short trip. They rolled just fine.

However, The previous tires (Gremax load range E) dated 2012 shed the belt and lost air just as I pulled into home on the last trip, which is why I bought new tires.
Discount tire warranted the Gremax. (I bought the TT used and immediately took it to Discount and bought their road hazard/balance warranty) and ran it about 5K miles on the Gremax tires. Previous miles on them estimated by prev. owner to be about 3K miles. They looked fine and were stored covered.)

The praises some folks sing about LT tires are unwarranted, in my opinion because those tires will not carry the same load in 15" wheels that ST tires will carry. ST tires should be replaced every 5 yrs regardless of miles. LT and P tires should be replaced at 6 years according to Discount (not the 10 yrs quoted elsewhere.)

I don't believe the average tire owner knows more about tires than a reputable tire dealer such as Discount. Anecdotal information is not helpful when compared to the much larger experience-base of a large distributor such as they. IMO.

PS: I had them install metal-valve stems because of the higher/longer ratings. Rubber stems should not be on trailers, in my view.

DSteiner51 wrote:


My 5th wheel had Goodyear ST tires put on at the factory. Build date was August 1998 and I replaced those tires in June of 2010 to make a trip out west with three other rigs. I thot it a shame to trash good tires but my wife and another RV.net person very strongly felt it should be done. Never had a flat except the spare tire got to the point it wouldn't hold air so I left it at home. Sold the trailer in Jan of 2016 and the replacement Goodyear ST tires looked nearly new. I had TPMS in the tires and kept the cold pressures within 5lbs at all times. The new 5th has the Chinese tires on from the factory, build date is Feb 2015, bought new Feb 2016 and I've put 2000 miles on it. I installed TPMS and intend to operate it with cold pressures within 5 psi also so time will tell.... Ask me in ten more years...

I would expect new tech Carlisle tires to do at least as well.

The old Goodyears were awesome tires... too bad the new ones are terrible :( No way the new Marathons are going to last more than five years i bet. Mine lasted three months before i had one rip apart. My old overloaded equipment trailer i had in the 90's had Marathons on it and i never once had a flat or any problems with them.

DSteiner51 wrote:


...My 5th wheel had Goodyear ST tires put on at the factory. Build date was August 1998 and I replaced those tires in June of 2010 to make a trip out west with three other rigs...

Think I'd go buy a lottery ticket; you seem like a lucky man! :) Your time frames are definitely outliers for any tire discussions I've seen. Glad you've not had any problems.

CKNSLS wrote:

DSteiner51 wrote:

CKNSLS wrote:

msjdbman wrote:
Well, I sure hope that everyone has good luck with these new tires from Carlisle, but I'll never spend another dime on them. I spent extra money on a set of ST235/85/R16 Load range F tires just five years ago, hoping that the increased capacity would be beneficial. Tread still looks brand new, sidewalls like new, no weather checking at all, but internal belts let go on 3 of the 4 allowing the outer circumference to swell by over 2 additional inches. They have now all been replaced with LT tires. These were on my gooseneck, not my fiver, but I never overloaded them at all. So good luck to you all!

Those tires were on your trailer too long. Period. The weather doesn't matter. You get UV rays even when it's cloudy.

Sorry, very poor excuse. My tires on my fifth wheel were on for 12 years and approx 50k miles and only replaced before a 4K trip out west because my wife thot they should be changed because of excuses like this. Never covered and not weather checked and stored outside. I'll admit, after I purchased the trailer there were only three or four months in ten years that it didn't move somewhere to camp.

Your the only one who can make a claim like this towing a travel trailer. 12 years....unheard of.

I refuse to accept that a tires internal construction integrity is out the window at 5 years, especially on a trailer stored inside off from the concrete on wooden planks. If the tires become heavily weather checked, or tread compounds giving away due to heat and dry conditions, then that's what it is. As I mentioned earlier, tires of many different manufacturers hold up for years upon years here in Michigan. If folks experience differing outcomes in different parts of the country, then that's what it is.

My 5th wheel had Goodyear ST tires put on at the factory. Build date was August 1998 and I replaced those tires in June of 2010 to make a trip out west with three other rigs. I thot it a shame to trash good tires but my wife and another RV.net person very strongly felt it should be done. Never had a flat except the spare tire got to the point it wouldn't hold air so I left it at home. Sold the trailer in Jan of 2016 and the replacement Goodyear ST tires looked nearly new. I had TPMS in the tires and kept the cold pressures within 5lbs at all times. The new 5th has the Chinese tires on from the factory, build date is Feb 2015, bought new Feb 2016 and I've put 2000 miles on it. I installed TPMS and intend to operate it with cold pressures within 5 psi also so time will tell.... Ask me in ten more years...

I would expect new tech Carlisle tires to do at least as well.

msjdbman wrote:

CKNSLS wrote:

msjdbman wrote:
Well, I sure hope that everyone has good luck with these new tires from Carlisle, but I'll never spend another dime on them. I spent extra money on a set of ST235/85/R16 Load range F tires just five years ago, hoping that the increased capacity would be beneficial. Tread still looks brand new, sidewalls like new, no weather checking at all, but internal belts let go on 3 of the 4 allowing the outer circumference to swell by over 2 additional inches. They have now all been replaced with LT tires. These were on my gooseneck, not my fiver, but I never overloaded them at all. So good luck to you all!

Those tires were on your trailer too long. Period. The weather doesn't matter. You get UV rays even when it's cloudy.

I refuse to accept that a tires internal construction integrity is out the window at 5 years, especially on a trailer stored inside off from the concrete on wooden planks. If the tires become heavily weather checked, or tread compounds giving away due to heat and dry conditions, then that's what it is. As I mentioned earlier, tires of many different manufacturers hold up for years upon years here in Michigan. If folks experience differing outcomes in different parts of the country, then that's what it is.

You can leave them on for as long as you want then come on here and complain when they fall apart and take out you drains/fenders, whatever when they separate.

BTW-most tire manufacturers recommend leaving passenger/truck tires on for no longer than TEN YEARS.

5 years max on ST tires. It's because of how they are twisted when turning! The forces are extreme. LT's are a bit stronger so they last longer, but I would still say even those may go 7 years, although I have never used them on a trailer.

I told my buddy to replace his 5 year old tires this spring. Well he didn't and lost one on his trip, fortunately it didn't do any damage. And one of the others have a shifted belt that is ready to come apart. He has 14" LR C good years. I told him to go with Carlisles if he can. Maybe even step up to a 15" rim if he has the room!