Chinese RV tires... holding up!

[Yosemite_Sam1]

Got a new RV with factory installed Made in China tires with unknown brand.

I figure I'll have it replaced after a year.

But to my pleasant surprise, after a thousand miles and 5 months in deep winter storage, the air pressure on it has held up.

Well, maybe in another year or two?:B

[JimK-NY]

Moisture in the air did not damage my tire. In fact it spent 4 years under the camper. I probably should have checked and topped off the pressure but I didn't and it was still over about 50 psi when I pulled it down, pumped it up and went to use it.

Tires can be damaged by intense sun, but dry rot can occur for a tire that is never in the sun due to oxidation and the effects of ozone. Tires dry rot much faster when they are not used or not frequently used. Use including heat and flexing helps bring chemicals to the tire surface which are formulated to reduce ageing of tires. Water certainly rots wood and some other materials but tires are designed to live in a wet environment. They do not rot due to water.

[dedmiston]

fj12ryder wrote:
"Anybody who gets eight years out of their RV tires isn't camping enough."

Don't you mean aren't traveling enough? 🙂 We had 8 years and about 20,000 miles on our Sailun tires when we sold it. Never an issue, no cracks, no leaks, and still looked to have good tread life. But were due to be replaced if we hadn't sold it. We did advise the buyer to replace the tires due to their age. But I wasn't going to buy six tires, just to turn around and sell the thing.

FWIW I just bought 4 new Sailun tires and had them mounted and balanced for the car. 205/55-16, mounted and balanced cost me $279.00. Manufacture date was 1021.

But yes, we certainly didn't camp enough. 🙂

Yes.

[fj12ryder]

"Anybody who gets eight years out of their RV tires isn't camping enough."

Don't you mean aren't traveling enough? 🙂 We had 8 years and about 20,000 miles on our Sailun tires when we sold it. Never an issue, no cracks, no leaks, and still looked to have good tread life. But were due to be replaced if we hadn't sold it. We did advise the buyer to replace the tires due to their age. But I wasn't going to buy six tires, just to turn around and sell the thing.

FWIW I just bought 4 new Sailun tires and had them mounted and balanced for the car. 205/55-16, mounted and balanced cost me $279.00. Manufacture date was 1021.

But yes, we certainly didn't camp enough. 🙂

[dedmiston]

StirCrazy wrote:

JimK-NY wrote:
Finally, replace the tires at a minimum every 5 years!

I learned that tires will dry rot faster if they are not used or used infrequently. Replacing tires roughly every 5 years is part of the cost of ownership. Again, you can always take your chances and again old tires are fine until they aren't.

this is another wives tale, 8 years is the recomended change out due to age from a tire manufacture. but there are things that can shorten that. in your case the most likely cause was moisture in the air you used to top it off. Mositure inside the tire will cause it to fail prematurly and so many tire places are cheeping out now days and not putting dryers on there air. also people at home dont think about this and when they fill up at home they are putting moisture into the tire causing dry rot. this is where nitrogen in tires shine as it is dry, but thats not practicle for most. I went to the store and bought a desicant dryer for my air compressor for this purpose and to help extend the life of my air tools.

Steve

Anybody who gets eight years out of their RV tires isn't camping enough.

[StirCrazy]

JimK-NY wrote:
Cheap, worn, or old tires often seem to be Ok, until they aren't. A blowout can be a serious event that I want to avoid.
Buy the best quality tires. They will typically cost only a bit more.

a worn out tire will never look OK. it will look worn out. the problem is people dont inspect tires they glance at them as they walk by.

JimK-NY wrote:
Maintain the recommended tire pressure.
Keep the load within the load rating. A safety margin doesn't hurt.
Drive within the speed rating, especially when the weather is hot.
Periodically check tires for damage.

yup, but to many people ignore this then blame the results on "cheep tires"

JimK-NY wrote:
Finally, replace the tires at a minimum every 5 years!

I learned that tires will dry rot faster if they are not used or used infrequently. Replacing tires roughly every 5 years is part of the cost of ownership. Again, you can always take your chances and again old tires are fine until they aren't.

this is another wives tale, 8 years is the recomended change out due to age from a tire manufacture. but there are things that can shorten that. in your case the most likely cause was moisture in the air you used to top it off. Mositure inside the tire will cause it to fail prematurly and so many tire places are cheeping out now days and not putting dryers on there air. also people at home dont think about this and when they fill up at home they are putting moisture into the tire causing dry rot. this is where nitrogen in tires shine as it is dry, but thats not practicle for most. I went to the store and bought a desicant dryer for my air compressor for this purpose and to help extend the life of my air tools.

Steve

[JimK-NY]

Cheap, worn, or old tires often seem to be Ok, until they aren't. A blowout can be a serious event that I want to avoid.
Buy the best quality tires. They will typically cost only a bit more.
Maintain the recommended tire pressure.
Keep the load within the load rating. A safety margin doesn't hurt.
Drive within the speed rating, especially when the weather is hot.
Periodically check tires for damage.

Finally, replace the tires at a minimum every 5 years! I was lucky and learned the last rule just in time. I decided to buy a new tire for my truck and rotate the spare as matching tire. It had been stored under the truck bed for 4 years and looked new. I put the tire in use and within a few weeks noticed serious cracking all over the tire. It had dry rotted in 4 years without any sun exposure. I learned that tires will dry rot faster if they are not used or used infrequently. Replacing tires roughly every 5 years is part of the cost of ownership. Again, you can always take your chances and again old tires are fine until they aren't.

[StirCrazy]

Yosemite Sam1 wrote:

StirCrazy wrote:

Im still runing mine 5 years later only replaced one as I saw a sign of a broken belt last spring. my previous trailer I had 10 years and only changed one in that whole time, which in hind thought, I was probably gambling at that length of time. but realy if you check them out before each trip and keep on top of it, in most cases you will be fine, aside from road hazards which no tire is good against.

Steve

My timeline is more like 3 years -- or earlier once I see signs of losing tire pressure, bulges or scrapes and/or uneven wear.

ya Im about the same with out the time. I just go by condition of the tires and replace as nessasary. I guess if we hade the cheep prices like the US does on tires I wouldnt worry about changing out perfectly good tires, but at about 250 a tire to get close to a sailune and 300 to get into goodyear and such. I can just keep going by paying atention to what my tires are telling me.

Steve

[Yosemite_Sam1]

StirCrazy wrote:

Im still runing mine 5 years later only replaced one as I saw a sign of a broken belt last spring. my previous trailer I had 10 years and only changed one in that whole time, which in hind thought, I was probably gambling at that length of time. but realy if you check them out before each trip and keep on top of it, in most cases you will be fine, aside from road hazards which no tire is good against.

Steve

My timeline is more like 3 years -- or earlier once I see signs of losing tire pressure, bulges or scrapes and/or uneven wear.

[StirCrazy]

Cummins12V98 wrote:

Dtank wrote:

Cummins12V98 wrote:



My self and others I personally know have had their tires replaced by GY and no argument about damage, how bout you? What other Company will do the same?

Firestone..... they will all do it when the courts force them to..

Steve

[StirCrazy]

Yosemite Sam1 wrote:
Got a new RV with factory installed Made in China tires with unknown brand.

I figure I'll have it replaced after a year.

But to my pleasant surprise, after a thousand miles and 5 months in deep winter storage, the air pressure on it has held up.

Well, maybe in another year or two?:B

Im still runing mine 5 years later only replaced one as I saw a sign of a broken belt last spring. my previous trailer I had 10 years and only changed one in that whole time, which in hind thought, I was probably gambling at that length of time. but realy if you check them out before each trip and keep on top of it, in most cases you will be fine, aside from road hazards which no tire is good against.

Steve

[Cummins12V98]

WAM wrote:

Cummins12V98 wrote:

I am fairly sure they have a five year warranty and that means all made are under warranty.

You're right. Six years actually...Replacement 1 yr then prorate thru 2/32 depth. I'll call Tire Rack and ***** at them. But the tires are still gone, so I don't expect much.

That's a shame, did you take pics???

[Yosemite_Sam1]

scbwr wrote:

If I were purchasing a rig that had tires that weren't manufactured by a reputable well know brand, I would look to replace them just for my own peace of mind.

Exactly my thoughts when I checked the tire pressures after the long storage.

[WAM]

Cummins12V98 wrote:

I am fairly sure they have a five year warranty and that means all made are under warranty.

You're right. Six years actually...Replacement 1 yr then prorate thru 2/32 depth. I'll call Tire Rack and ***** at them. But the tires are still gone, so I don't expect much.

[scbwr]

Ahhhhhhhh.....as long as there are RVs, there will be tire debates.

Re Chinese "bombs": In 2013, we bought a Winnebago Minnie travel trailer and I kept the original Chinese tires on it for about a year (can't remember their product name). But, then we were about to take a long trip out west (Grand Tetons, Yellowstone, Glacier NP, Little Big Horn, Devil's Tower and SD Badlands), so for peace of mind, I replaced the tires with Maxxis tires. I had owned popups with Maxxis tires and they served us well.

If I were purchasing a rig that had tires that weren't manufactured by a reputable well know brand, I would look to replace them just for my own peace of mind.

Maxxis or Goodyear Endurance? With the Endurance tires being out for quite awhile, I don't think I would hesitate to go with them, but I would still consider Maxxis tires.

[Cummins12V98]

WAM wrote:

Cummins12V98 wrote:

Tire Rack is full of BS. You need to take the tires to a GY “OWNED” Store. Once you do so report back their response in writing please.

I probably wasn't clear. There is a warranty on the Endurance, just not my tires. TireRack looked them up and said the purchase was too long ago.

I might talk a GY store into doing something, but I'm remote/rural -- no GY store within 100 miles. Academic now -- they're in the local shop's landfill pile.

Will bolt these on the trailer tonite and will have four 2020-build tires on the ground with two older tires on the spare rack. Any more problems and I'm done with trailer tires. I found some 3200lb LT Cooper Commercials that will fit, but I'll need 16" rims.

I am fairly sure they have a five year warranty and that means all made are under warranty.