Average life span for trailer tires?

[Kevin_O_]

I was just wondering when I should start thinking about new tires for my 2012 Outback? What is the average life span for these tires? Obviously they don't have a ton of miles but this summer will be our 5th season with the trailer. I inspected for dry rot but haven't found any yet.

Kevin

[Hannibal]

Five years max. Four at the most and three years ideal for me. The last tire we lost gave fair warning in the form of a bulging tread with no signs of dry rot. We just ordered a 2017 Jayco 82rls. Can't wait to see what kind of Chinese may-pops it arrives with.

[Terryallan]

Kevin O. wrote:
Thanks for all the replies! I will be looking into replacing them before this season begins. To be honest, I'm not even sure what I have for tires?? The trailer and tires are still in hibernation for the winter..

So now the big question is what brand tire should I be looking to get for replacements??

Kevin

Maxxis tires

[rbpru]

According to the date code, the tires on the used TT I bought were 7 years old and had the 15,000 miles I put on them plus whatever the previous owner accumulated.

Like vertually every TT you see on the road today, these were the original China bombs the manufacturer put on them at the factory.

The TT manual said to change after five years, so I figured they did not owe me anything. I kept them because they are still good enough to use on my utility trailers.

[Kevin_O_]

DutchmenSport wrote:
3 - 5 years depending upon exposure to sun. Cover the tires and take the camper on the road a few times in the winter months too, to keep the tires healthy, they'll last longer. Dry rot is the worst enemy. The more you can keep the tires rolling, the better they stay.

I hitch up about once a month in the winter months and go for a 20 - 30 mile drive. I think this has attributed to my tire longevity (6 years on my previous camper from the time I purchased it).

By the beginning of November my Outback is all bundled up for the winter. There is noway I'll be taking her out during the winter months..:B

[Kevin_O_]

Thanks for all the replies! I will be looking into replacing them before this season begins. To be honest, I'm not even sure what I have for tires?? The trailer and tires are still in hibernation for the winter..

So now the big question is what brand tire should I be looking to get for replacements??

Kevin

[Terryallan]

horton333 wrote:

Terryallan wrote:


My GY Marathons were junk in less than 4 full years, one exploded and put me on the side of the road. When we took the others off. They were so deformed, that they rolled crooked across the garage floor, you could see the tread moving across the tire. That will be my last GY ever.

Seems they would be loosing their shirts financially if this was the typical experience. A quick check showed their last fiscal quarter was their highest profit and sales ever, maybe they lose money on trailer tire warranties but .... of course individual experience will vary and maintenance can be important.

Most people are not all that smart. They buy the name with no questions. ( Oh look NASCAR uses them) I once did that. Ran GY only on my vehicles. Until in the 80s, I started noticing they didn't last too long. Never got more than 20K out of the promised 50K, or 75K. Found out that EVERY brand of tire I bought besides GY lasted longer. Especially BF GoodRich I have had my last GY. Had the 2004 TT not come with Marathons, They would have never been on it. Buying stuff just for the name is not all that smart

As for maintenance. I take VERY good care of my tires. The Goodyear that scattered itself all over the highway, was aired to the exact PSI stated on the sidewall. It was aired up not 60 min before it exploded.

BTW. Feel the same about Michelin. They crack after just a couple years, and don't last as long on my truck as do the Coopers.

[Huntindog]

Terryallan wrote:

horton333 wrote:
I don't recall which brand I had fine service out of for 10 years, they came with the trailer and were never a problem so didn't pay any attention to the brand.

I do tend to use Goodyear tires when buying tires, I have had very good service out of them on various vehicles and so they seem worth a few bucks extra. The engineer in me thought I would look at what a reputable manufacturer says to expect for lifetime of their product.

Goodyear warranty their RV tires for 5 years, and warranty against cracks (likely a larger issue on most moderate trailer usage setups) to 7 years. This would seem to indicate it is reasonable that 10 years was a very reasonable expectation given warranties tend to cover only the early life of a product. Everyone else seems to be posting they replace at like a third of that expectation, ..... maybe there should be a lot more Goodyears bought?

Goodyear info

My GY Marathons were junk in less than 4 full years, one exploded and put me on the side of the road. When we took the others off. They were so deformed, that they rolled crooked across the garage floor, you could see the tread moving across the tire. That will be my last GY ever.

This was my experience as well.
Good year warranty.. What warranty? THey blamed it on me... Funny thing though. My truck tires lasted just fine... It goes everywhere the TT does.
Sooo, I put truck tires on it (not no warranty Goodyears) and haven't had a failure since

[Huntindog]

Terryallan wrote:

Huntindog wrote:
I run Michelin XPS RIBS. I change them out at 5 years. They still look good, and I sell them fast on CL to help defray the cost of the new ones. Got 250.00 for the last set.
Since I am in Phoenix AZ, where the sun is brutal, I think that is as far as I want to push them. Probably only possible to get another year or so out of them before the dry rot starts appearing. At that point, they would be a hard sell.

You do tell the buyers that the tires are old, dried out, and no good don't you? You do tell them that the tires could pop any second?

Selling tires that you are scared of to an unsuspecting person is kind of well just (trying to be nice) a very wrong thing to do.

Don't get hysterical with the "scared" word. I would have driven those tires cross country at that point...
Has a tire dealer ever volunteered the date code to you? Why do you sell a car or truck when it hits a certain point in it's life? When you do, do you tell the buyer that it's a worthless heap? Or do you get what you can for it?
There is a market price for everything.

I recently sold a Honda EU 2000. I wanted a new one as I had put a lot of hours on it... Some say that they can go forever... Maybe so, But with what I sold it for, I got into a new one for 500.00

That said, the kid who bought the tires was very happy to have them. Said they were in a LOT better shape than what he was driving on presently. He could not afford new ones. So for him it was a good deal.

Now with all the talk on here about tires being good for 10 years.... Maybe they are right. Maybe the kid will get 5 more years out of them... In reality, the truck will likely be scrapped before the tires explode.

For every seller there is a buyer at the right price.
I believe that at a certain point in most of my possesions life, it is time to get the market price for it and move on to new... Wait too long antd it's worth little to nothing. This applies to most everything, not just tires

[valhalla360]

djsamuel wrote:
In addition to cheap tires, manufacturers often load tires right to the limit. I think that is the biggest factor in tire failure.

Beat me to it.

A lot of trailers that used to be triple axle units are running on two axles. Add in people overloading the trailer and a tire that would happily service a lighter load is going to be more likely to fail.

[djsamuel]

In addition to cheap tires, manufacturers often load tires right to the limit. I think that is the biggest factor in tire failure.

[guidry]

If you buy an Open Range trailer, the tires only last maybe one year, if you're lucky! They buy their tires from Lions Head Tires. Lions Head only warranties the tires for one year and you have to go through hoops before they refuse to honor it. Then if you push it, Open Range will step up IF you're inside their two year warranties period. Lions Head used Discount Tire's study website PDF document saying trailer tires only last one year to give any warranty requests. Cheap tires are unfortunately put on almost all RVs. Ask me how I know...But, to answer your question, typically 5-7 years with good tires.

[horton333]

Terryallan wrote:


My GY Marathons were junk in less than 4 full years, one exploded and put me on the side of the road. When we took the others off. They were so deformed, that they rolled crooked across the garage floor, you could see the tread moving across the tire. That will be my last GY ever.

Seems they would be loosing their shirts financially if this was the typical experience. A quick check showed their last fiscal quarter was their highest profit and sales ever, maybe they lose money on trailer tire warranties but .... of course individual experience will vary and maintenance can be important.

[Terryallan]

horton333 wrote:
I don't recall which brand I had fine service out of for 10 years, they came with the trailer and were never a problem so didn't pay any attention to the brand.

I do tend to use Goodyear tires when buying tires, I have had very good service out of them on various vehicles and so they seem worth a few bucks extra. The engineer in me thought I would look at what a reputable manufacturer says to expect for lifetime of their product.

Goodyear warranty their RV tires for 5 years, and warranty against cracks (likely a larger issue on most moderate trailer usage setups) to 7 years. This would seem to indicate it is reasonable that 10 years was a very reasonable expectation given warranties tend to cover only the early life of a product. Everyone else seems to be posting they replace at like a third of that expectation, ..... maybe there should be a lot more Goodyears bought?

Goodyear info

My GY Marathons were junk in less than 4 full years, one exploded and put me on the side of the road. When we took the others off. They were so deformed, that they rolled crooked across the garage floor, you could see the tread moving across the tire. That will be my last GY ever.

[Terryallan]

Huntindog wrote:
I run Michelin XPS RIBS. I change them out at 5 years. They still look good, and I sell them fast on CL to help defray the cost of the new ones. Got 250.00 for the last set.
Since I am in Phoenix AZ, where the sun is brutal, I think that is as far as I want to push them. Probably only possible to get another year or so out of them before the dry rot starts appearing. At that point, they would be a hard sell.

You do tell the buyers that the tires are old, dried out, and no good don't you? You do tell them that the tires could pop any second?

Selling tires that you are scared of to an unsuspecting person is kind of well just (trying to be nice) a very wrong thing to do.