2 blowouts TODAY - 2013 White Hawk

[dslee]

New tires working like a champ - 7 hours roadside Monday evening, and tire guy finished up approx 11pm. Long day, and learned something new (it's always the things we don't know we don't know...).

[dslee]

Originally Posted by dslee

The options were Carlisle or Goodride STZC, and went for the Goodride.

The tech actually talked me into the Carlisles - made in US and has 2 more plys than the Goodride (chinese made). Even gave me a break on the price (stuffed a $20 in his pocket before he came back with the mounted tires).


btw, the blown tires were on opposite sides on different axles.

[RedHorse1]

I’ve had one of those nights too. A couple of years ago 2 of my TowMax’s departed this life within 75 miles of each other, on a Sunday. I got 4 new G’year G614’s and they’ve been going strong. Long night!

[CampNow]

Brand, tire pressure, and age, can certainly be important factors in terms of a tire's longevity.

However, when discussions about tire failures come up, it's very rare anyone mentions the realworld load on their tires at the time of failure vs. the maximum load rating of the tire that failed. IMO, these are very important numbers to know.

The closer a tire is loaded/operated at its maximum load rating the more likely it is to fail early. It's an industry practice to install tires that barely meet the GVWR of a trailer. Throw in the fact many travel trailers have minimal cargo capacity, you end up with an ideal recipe for early tire failure.

[bdreinv]

We have been driving in the Mountains of northern Arizona for 15 years one blow out.Maybe suggest a higher weight tire maybe a #123 also speed rated! Attached is a tire we purchase at DT tire our camper weighs 10000 dry. The Hartland is speed rated at 87 mph.Thanks

[CampNow]

Originally Posted by bdreinv

We have been driving in the Mountains of northern Arizona for 15 years one blow out.Maybe suggest a higher weight tire maybe a #123 also speed rated! Attached is a tire we purchase at DT tire our camper weighs 10000 dry. The Hartland is speed rated at 87 mph.Thanks

Yup, a tire's speed rating is definitely another important factor to consider. Higher the better!

We installed Hartlands on our 5th wheel toy hauler. Good tires. Hartland is Discount/America's Tire's housebrand. I believe they're made by Gladiator. Are your Hartlands the all-steel versions (tread and sidewall)?

[Tinyhse]

My first add on....TPMS

[rockaw]

I've heard 3-5 years on a trailer tire, they start breaking down. I lost 2 about a week apart last month, they were only 2.5 years old and we got them on the new trailer at the 6 month after they were manufactured, but they were Ranier's. about 10,000 miles, I still had 1 original tire with 10,000 miles, 1 original with about 5,000 miles, I went the last 200 miles with mo spare keeping my fingers crossed. Then I put 4 new load range E tires (max my rims can take) and added a second spare. Next swap I'll be looking in 3-5 years and hoping to go up in the speed rating and load rating.

[cah2124]

We have a 2012 white hawk 28bh. We had a tire blow in 13 or 14. After we came to a stop, I saw the inside of the 4 tires were wearing down. We were told it was an issue with the Dexter axles. They were designed for the vertical load, not there horizontal - since the white hawk axles are spread wider, the axles bent. Dexter replaced our axles and tires. Might be worth a call.

[Yergin]

Run nitrogen in the tires. Keeps the temperature more stable hot or cold
Never run old tires

[bgelyhome]

Originally Posted by dslee

Here I sit Roadside waiting for Good Sam to come through with a tire and someone to bring it...

And I just used my spare an hour ago on the opposite side (front axle).

Likely due to overheating - record hot temps and maybe driving a little too fast. Certainly the tire was hot when I felt it after pulling to the side.

Questions as I ponder life roadside...

Are 5-year old tires more susceptible to heat failure?

Should I remove pressure from the tires on hot days? This second tire was 49 psi this morning before we left home.

Also traveled for 6 hours before the first blowout and the second happened an hour later.

I'm thinking 4 new tires may be in store...

Also did my brakes yesterday - all new drums and assemblies. The drums are also warm / hot, but not really out of what I would think is normal.

The tire also failed on the tread and not the sidewall (at least the 2nd one - the first too hard to tell.

Thanks all...

Dave

Interesting that you did not include in your post the RV year, make and model or the RV nameplate listing for the tire and tire pressure. Hard to answer your question without that basic info.

[Hollander Mutthaulers]

Originally Posted by CampNow

Brand, tire pressure, and age, can certainly be important factors in terms of a tire's longevity.

However, when discussions about tire failures come up, it's very rare anyone mentions the realworld load on their tires at the time of failure vs. the maximum load rating of the tire that failed. IMO, these are very important numbers to know.

The closer a tire is loaded/operated at its maximum load rating the more likely it is to fail early. It's an industry practice to install tires that barely meet the GVWR of a trailer. Throw in the fact many travel trailers have minimal cargo capacity, you end up with an ideal recipe for early tire failure.

Yes! The stock Chinese tires on my 2017 16XRB were rated for 40 pounds above gross vehicle weight. Not much leeway! Got rid of them right away. Have over 16,500 miles on Goodyear Endurance 215R75/14 (greater speed, higher load ratings) at 60 psi with no problems. Of course take care of them; they are necessary but fail so often with terrible consequences.

[jmj49]

I hear so much about tires and I really think there is a manufacturing issue. I keep my tires inflated at the exact reccomendec PSI. I never exceed the max speed yet I have had many blow outs. Changing 5 year tires are not necessarily the answer. My last Pull behind I hauled for 5 years with same tires and never an issue. They had good thread on them, but I followed advice and bought new ones. I had three blow outs within a couple of days. Importers refunded my money so you know it was their fault. In 2014 I bought a Jayco 275bhfs two blow out on first trip. Replaced them and had 2 more blow outs on next trip. And when the mechanic looked underneath he found bubbles on the inner side wall of the other 2. I called Jayco and the rep said tires were an issue and that I should look for a g rated tire. The following year I was prepping for our summer long trip and found bubbles on one of the new tires. I went to by dealer and had a larger wheel put on with g rating. I did not realize until after I got them that they were LT and not ST. I have run them for three years for a total of 28,000 miles with no issues. I do check and adjust at the beginning of the travel days. I put in recommended pressure and added tire pressure and heat monitors, and I run at a max speed of 65 Mph. This is my experience. Everybody has a different story.

[MikeInBaltimore]

Ditto what several are saying below - if you got 5 years out of your tires, they don't owe you a dime - the rule of thumb for any tire is 5 - 7 years. Don't go by what your sidewalls look like or your tread depth. That tells you nothing about what is going on inside your tires or how much the rubber has broken down chemically. Ditto also on the tire pressure - always run at the stated pressure marked on the side. Underinflating causes more heat buildup and wear. Get good 10 ply tires, personally - I like Maxxim, but research and decide on your own.

[REWahoo]

Originally Posted by MikeInBaltimore

Ditto what several are saying below - if you got 5 years out of your tires, they don't owe you a dime - the rule of thumb for any tire is 5 - 7 years. Don't go by what your sidewalls look like or your tread depth. That tells you nothing about what is going on inside your tires or how much the rubber has broken down chemically. Ditto also on the tire pressure - always run at the stated pressure marked on the side. Underinflating causes more heat buildup and wear. Get good 10 ply tires, personally - I like Maxxim, but research and decide on your own.

I think you meat Maxxis Tires. I agree they are a quality brand and also agree with the 5-7 year replacement time frame.

[RubyHauler]

DSLEE
Agree with Sean1980. Tires are a three to four year replacement item even if the tread is still within depth limits. And if you got that long out of the standard issue tires from Jayco, you are an exception. I just replaced the tires on my trailer with Goodyear Endurance. But, there are other good name brand tires available. These tires hold 60 psi vs the 50 psi from the stock tires. I have already felt the difference in pulling my trailer as it seems to pull easier.
Tire pressure -- In my working days, I was involved in a tire study on our equipment which was a major industrial equipment company. We found that keeping tires within 2% of max pressure to full pressure rendered the best result in life and greatly reduced tire failures. Tires running at 10% below tire max pressure will build up heat which is a great detriment to tire life. I have lived by these findings for 30 years and have not had a tire issue. Now, what I would recommend you do, is to look at the specs on tires you are considering and make your own decision as to what is best for you. Or, call one of the tire experts to get some answers. This may sound like a lot of work, but sitting on the side of the road waiting for Mr. Good Sam to show up or having to deal with the damage a blowout can cause, makes this one of the most important RV items to keep at high priority. All the best and good luck!

[Wireman]

Replaced my Ranier China bombs with Goodyear endurance. They were only 2 years old.

The reason was a 2 month planned trip.

Just got back, 8700 miles, 63 days and one of the best things I did. Went with the load range D instead of C , 205-75/14. Max inflation is 65lbs.


Just a better constructed and heavier duty tire. TT weighs 5600 lbs. loaded and I kept the inflation at 55 lbs. Seems to be the sweet spot for my weight.


With the stiffer sidewalls it helped stabilize the TT better in my opinion. I towed anywhere from 65-70 most of the time, depending on conditions.

Would the Ranier's have made it, maybe but I wasn't willing to take the chance.


On all my RV's I've used Aerospace 303 protectant on the tires and ALWAYS keep them covered when in storage.

[RubyHauler]

Thanks Wireman. Good information!

[Scott1956]

We have had a similar experience. We own a 2016 38 FLSA and I replaced all 5 tires this spring including the spare. The 4 tires that are under camper were all bad as there was bulges in the sidwalls due to cord failure. What we found out is that almost all trailer tires are made in China and it does not matter what the brand is. I suspect our tires came from the same production run and they have trouble with all of this run. We purchased truck tires 12ply TOYO which are made in the US. They are more expensive than the cheap trailer tires that came with the camper but these are far superior and do come with a free road hazard warranty also. So now our tire issue is solved and we are back camping. Now the hassle is with JAYCO to get compensation for the crappy tires that were originally on our camper.

[Micromagic]

Originally Posted by dslee

Here I sit Roadside waiting for Good Sam to come through with a tire and someone to bring it...

And I just used my spare an hour ago on the opposite side (front axle).

Likely due to overheating - record hot temps and maybe driving a little too fast. Certainly the tire was hot when I felt it after pulling to the side.

Questions as I ponder life roadside...

Are 5-year old tires more susceptible to heat failure?

Should I remove pressure from the tires on hot days? This second tire was 49 psi this morning before we left home.

Also traveled for 6 hours before the first blowout and the second happened an hour later.

I'm thinking 4 new tires may be in store...

Also did my brakes yesterday - all new drums and assemblies. The drums are also warm / hot, but not really out of what I would think is normal.

The tire also failed on the tread and not the sidewall (at least the 2nd one - the first too hard to tell.

Thanks all...

Dave

I have a 2012 Whitehawk bought new. I blew 4 tires are on the 2nd trip. Jayco confirmed the wrong axle size for the spread axle configuration. Dexter also confirmed with serial number. The whole axle assembly was replaced. People that use drive-thrus all the time would not have the problem. But if you Jack the trailer in to a back in the axles are actually bend then throwing wheels out of alignment and within a few hundred miles worn out tries. Since the change we have been from Georgia to the West Coast five times and also the Alaska highway to and to Mexico. No other problems existed with the axles or tires.