Strange tire problem - can't find info

[RobSpook]

Howdy y'all! We've been on the road since last February or so and have been pretty happy with the Towmax STR tires came on the camper. However, I recently noticed while installing my X-chocks that one of my tires has changed. Where the treads are usually flat across from the inside to the outside of the tire, one of the tires is now somewhat balloon shaped all the way around. This is NOT a tread ware problem, if you place a quarter in all the grooves, the tread ware is even... But the tire tread for this one tire appears round when viewed from the front or back. It has the effect of increasing the circumference about 1" around such that he X-chock is noticeably tighter on this side than the other.

I'm planning on taking it to a TowMax
Dealer today between Montgomery and Clarksville...

Which brings another question... Since the tires are a year old and have about 15,000 miles on them, should I replace only this one or both on the affected axle?

Thanks and safe travels!

[dapperdan]

myredracer wrote:
On tire separation from a tire engineer:

RVtiresafety.com

Wow, read the link, the ply sep is EXACTLY what happened to us last fall on our out west trip except we have GY Marathons. Noticed one of the tires wearing "funny". At first I thought it might be axel shift but it wasn't, the opposing side tire was in perfect condition. Put the spare on it and finished the trip as we were actually on our way back home at the time. By the time we made it back home I had another tire starting the same thing! Called a tire shop, told them my problem and before I could finish my statement he said "don't tell me, you have Marathons made in China right?" Then he went on to say he sees it all the time! So we replaced the tires. 😞

Dan

[Bedlam]

I got about 30K miles and over four years on my toy hauler tires before I replaced them due to sidewall cracks. The tread was still good, so regular inspection for other flaws is the key to determining when to replace them. Our toy hauler went on trips twice a month and the tires rarely sat for more than two weeks.

[RobSpook]

FYI - the person in the warranty department, when told the approximate mileage on the tires was 14,000 miles, said that was very high and that trailer tires should not be used over 10,000 regardless of how the tread appears.

This sounds crazy to me... If you're paying attention to them. I inspect them every time I install and remove the X-Chocks.

[coolbreeze01]

Glad to hear Tow Max stepped up. Thanks for the update.

[RobSpook]

Tow max is providing 80% of the non-retail value since the tire was OE. That's a check for $96 coming back to me :). I'm satisfied.

I thought these were American made tires, but a quick call to their customer relations verified that these are in fact Chinese tires...

[BurbMan]

Tow Master is but one brand of Chinese tires sold by Greenball Corp. They are sold mostly by independent repair shops and some national tire chains.

[RobSpook]

We'll, the bill for 3 brakes/mounts/balances and the new tire was $159
So I didn't press the warranty issue... But I will contact towmax on Moday.

[coolbreeze01]

Did they warrant the tire or did you just pay for a new one?

[Bedlam]

I also had issues with this brand. It was resolved by going up one load rating although the previous tires handled the same weight fine at the lower rating. I was within specification on all four wheel weights and had the documentation to show that OEM provided tires at the lower rating had lasted four years with 30K miles and no tire failures.

[shakyjay]

myredracer wrote:
On tire separation from a tire engineer:

RVtiresafety.com

That is excellent information.

Seperation is not that uncommon and can and does occur regardless of manufacturer or application. When towing however it is not always as obvious. On a car or truck seperation will often affect the way the vehicle handles. Because of this the problem can be more easily identified and remedied before it becomes more catastrophic. On a TT we don't get the same feel so often the problem goes unnoticed and results in a complete failure resulting in a blow out.

[RobSpook]

Got a new Towmax tire installed here in Warrior, Alabama. Put the (new) spare tire on the other side of the axle and made that old good tire the spare. Happy travels! Still feel confident with the Towmax tires, wearing well except for this obvious problem. I don't know my exact weight but I'm not even close to my max or the tires max as of the last weigh-in.

Thanks for the quick replies folks... In the end I decided I just didn't feel safe with the tread like that so stopped at closest Towmax dealer.

[myredracer]

On tire separation from a tire engineer:

RVtiresafety.com

[NHIrish]

I had them pay for all for tires after my tread separated.....take good pictures. Frankly, I was amazed to see the check....but they paid.

...and that sure isn't strange for a towmax!

[elkhorn98]

Hopefully you can get some money from the toxmax warranty and get some better tires so you can be truely be happy. What size are the tires? what loading rating for the tires and axles?