205s to 215a

[TBammer]

The trailer came with 205/75r14 tires load range C. I can get a deal on 215/75r14s load range D. Anybody see any issues?

[Ron3rd]

TBammer wrote:
The trailer came with 205/75r14 tires load range C. I can get a deal on 215/75r14s load range D. Anybody see any issues?

You're probably OK so long as you have enough clearance between the two tires, ie, some tandem setups are very close together.

[TBammer]

What are we talking about size wise for differences? 10mm wider and 7mm x2 (14 mm) taller? Or is that the other way around?

[TBammer]

Appreciate the feedback. The wheels are aluminum. My current Marathon's are original and while they were kept covered in sun when possible, they are showing some small sidewall cracks this year and got to go. The only reason I am considering 215 D range is that is what Costco carries (I did not see where they sell the 205 C range) and its a good price. They will ship the tires to the nearest store and will mount them for me.

[BFL13]

I am not into the " China-bomb" thing as to where the tires were made exactly. There are good tires and bad tires, wherever they are made for different companies.

My new trailer tires are "Carlisle" brand, but these are not the previous "Carlisle" tires that had a bad reputation.
These newer ones are actually just fine.

Anyway, after the war, Bull Halsey joined Carlisle Tire in New York City. Even though I am more of a Spruance fan, I figure if these tires are good enough for Bull Halsey, they are good enough for me.

( If you have no clue who these people were, you need to get clued in badly, to know how we got to where we are.)

[SoundGuy]

BFL13 wrote:
The OP said he was staying with 14", so I inferred he was keeping the same wheels with their rims all same.

Got it, but the better solution lay in a better tire, not simply increasing tire size. The OP never told us exactly which tires he's wanting to replace, only that they're LR C 205/75 R14, but bets are they're off shore that could easily be improved on with a set of LR D Endurance.

[time2roll]

+1 for 205 Endurance at 65 psi.

[BFL13]

SoundGuy wrote:

TBammer wrote:
The trailer came with 205/75r14 tires load range C. I can get a deal on 215/75r14s load range D. Anybody see any issues?

OldSmokey wrote:
why go up in width when D's are available in a 205 size ?

Exactly - why replace crappy off shore 14" tires with crappy off shore 15" tires? It would seem a lot more logical to me to improve on the tire itself, not simply increase the tire size. Some of us have invested in the new Made in the USA Goodyear Endurance which in your size is a D load range, 8 ply tire.

The OP said he was staying with 14", so I inferred he was keeping the same wheels with their rims all same.

I went through all this awhile back when I got nice shiny aluminum wheels instead of the issue powder coated white (but got rusty) steel wheels. I also looked into swapping out my 15" trailer wheels/tires for my used 16" truck tires, with new wheels, but that was a bust for several reasons, mostly clearance issues.

It got very complicated. Beware! I got the shimy new 15" wheels and eventually swapped to Ds vs Cs tires, but in the same size. The new fancy wheels could take the Ds vs the Cs.

You have to know the actual specs. This is not so easy, because the wheel specs can be where you can't see them unless the tire is off.

Eg, but not related here as such, people with our style Chev truck were swapping their 245s for 265s. Some claimed this was fine, but it is not so. You need wider wheels/rims for the 265s to be proper. it gets all complicated, and "good old boy" ideas don't cut it!

Do it right.

[SoundGuy]

TBammer wrote:
The trailer came with 205/75r14 tires load range C. I can get a deal on 215/75r14s load range D. Anybody see any issues?

OldSmokey wrote:
why go up in width when D's are available in a 205 size ?

Exactly - why replace crappy off shore 14" tires with crappy off shore 15" tires? It would seem a lot more logical to me to improve on the tire itself, not simply increase the tire size. Some of us have invested in the new Made in the USA Goodyear Endurance which in your size is a D load range, 8 ply tire.

[DrewE]

I would not expect any problems. The 215's will be a bit larger diameter as well as a bit wider, but it's not a big difference and I doubt clearance is so tight that it would cause problems.

If you are going to be using a higher pressure in the tires, it would be wise to double check what pressure your wheels are rated for.

[BFL13]

Yes.
A. Will the wider tire fit on the rims ok to hold the higher air pressure of a D compared with a C ?
B. will the wider tire rub against anything in the wheel well? On ours, there is a metal LP gas line going between the tire and frame on the driver's side of the trailer. Can't go fatter tire.
C. A taller tire might also not fit in the wheel well above it. 75 is the ratio so wider is also taller for the same 75.
D. Taller tires might rub together if the axles are close together.
E. Wheels have weight ratings at tire pressure too. Going from C to D might not be ok--depends what the existing wheel specs are.

[Lwiddis]

Well...they look better.

[OldSmokey]

TBammer wrote:
The trailer came with 205/75r14 tires load range C. I can get a deal on 215/75r14s load range D. Anybody see any issues?

why go up in width when D's are available in a 205 size ?

[Lwiddis]

They fit on my Winnie. Bought two with rims, installed. Bought three more.