I tried to get 6 full years out of two of my trailer tires and played the price today. Going north on hwy 19 in Florida today my right rear trailer tire exploded taking out the top of my wheel well, wheel opening trim and the lower slide trim. It also beat the crap out of the front tire and wheel. So I now have 2 new GY 114 H tires for the cheap price of $795 and I'm guessing 2K worth of damage to the trailer. I just about replaced them last summer but thought they would go one more year WRONG. But in the tires defense yesterday our GPS took use on a road so narrow that I could hardly keep the right side tires on the road and they may have gotten damaged then.

Denny

 

I have lost more Goodyear tires (Marathon) on my trailers, I will never spend $.01 more on GY tires ever... None of them made it more than 2-3 years before they just exploded...

Sorry to hear of the damage you incurred.. Maybe your insurance will help cover the repairs from what may have been a road hazard that was struck?

 

Here's the last one...
Was right about 2 years old as I recall.. Tread was perfect. Never struck a curb or overloaded. Pressure always maintained..

 

The tire that blew was a Sumitomo, I didn't really want GY tires but they were in stock and 17.5 tires are hard to come by. They did have one other brand but they were Chinese junk.

Denny

 

I just picked up a 25ft TT on Sunday. One owner bought in 2000. Original Good Year tires!!!

Had to tow it 100 miles home and was worried the entire time.

Set of new tires is on the list before it moves again, but wow - fifteen year old tires.....

 

Trailer tires that fail most always have good tread. Bad construction and quality control takes its' toll. The RV forums have discussions AD NAUSEAM about the poor quality of trailer tires. Many go to LT tires which really lack the performance characteristics of a ST tire. Maxxis and Carlisle RH ST's yield the best comments. Goodyear Marathons made overseas have many complaints of premature failures. Probably unlikely you will see 15 years from a new set of Marathons.

 

I'm really curious what you feel are the performance characteristics missing from LT tires that ST tires happen to have?

I'll be looking into Sailun LT tires for my Toy Hauler this spring..
You could not give me a Goodyear tire any more... Regardless of where it was made.

More info
Sailun S637 LR-G tires
http://simpletire.com/sailun-s637-tire-reviews

 

From the Carlisle website:

The construction, design, materials and testing used in ST Special
Trailer tires meet the higher load requirements, duty cycles and
special demands of trailering.
– Polyester cords in an ST tire are bigger than in a comparable P or
LT tire.
– Steel cords used in ST tires have a larger diameter and greater
tensile strength to meet additional load requirements.
– ST tire rubber compounds contain chemicals to resist weather and
ozone cracking, particularly conditions resulting from extended
storage and the unusual duty cycles of trailer tires.
– The slightly shallower tread depth of a trailer tire reduces sway and
rides cooler, which adds to tire longevity.
– ST tires feature stiffer sidewalls, especially in the lower
section which:
– Reduces sidewall flexing causing the trailer to track straighter.
– Diminishes the risk of trailer sway.
– Lessens the risk of sidewall puncture and blowout.
– ST tires generally offer approximately 10% percent more load
capacity than a similar LT tire and nearly 40% more than a P
passenger tire.

The ST's exist for a reason. The LT vs ST decision is yours to decide. You have to determine if you need them or not. Just make sure the tires you buy can handle the load you carry.

 

I bought a used TT for the kids to use several years ago. It needed tires and I read all on the pros cons of st or lt. I looked at the rating for weight and air press etc. I had just taken some P metrics off my little pickup that were rated the same weight at 36PSI and were the same size as an st at 50 psi. Anyhow I mounted them and then the kids never used the trailer. Last weekend I sold to another guy and moved it about 150 miles away and all I did was fill the air up about 2-3 psi per tire. Trailer pulled well and no sway. When we got there did notice tread was cracked on one from age but that was it. The guy followed me and finally lead to destination and said he noted no sway even from when being passed by trucks/bus etc. Depending on how much you will tow it could be an option. The kids were only going to use locally and I could put 5-600 in tires to rot thus the use of the Pmetrics.

 

Good information... I can't help but wonder if this is relative to only Carlisle tires or if an industry standard...
Many trailers are now being delivered with LT tires from what I've read on RV.net and iRV2.... My trailer calls for LR-E tires and will be replaced with LR-G LT tires.. I want to be doggoned sure that they are operating well within their limits..

 

Not really just Carlisle, same thing here from Tire Rack: http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tirete...jsp?techid=219

 

Just to clear the air my my Sumitomo ST 727 load range H 17.5 tires are a all position commercial truck tire not LT or ST tires so are the GY114 I bought yesterday. Before the RV community started using them the main use was low boy traders because of their diameter.

Denny

 

Are the GY114 like the GY614's?


Is the only difference 17.5 inch versus 16 inch?

 

No the 614 G rated tire are a lot lighter tire than the 114 H rated tire and they are not a all position commercial tire like the H high rib tire . I had two sets of 614 on this trailer without much luck. If I remember right the G tires are rated at 3765 lbs and the H are 4805.

Denny

 

If Carlisle is posting that information on their website, they should be taken to task - hard. So much of it is pure lie and your good sense will tell you that.

- Better compounds - Carlisle, you ARE kidding. Trailer tires are rotted after 5-6 years. Truck tires will go many more.
- Less flexible sidewalls for less sway - wow!! Carlisle is, in effect, saying that truck tires are 'loose' and allow my truck to wobble down the road.
- Thinner tread to reduce sway - OMG what a crock. Run cooler - I doubt it amounts to much.
- And so on.

Then there is the fact that all ST's are limited to 65mph vs an LT which nominally has an 'R' speed rating of 106 mph. I don't know anyone who would drive at 106, but most if not all will do over 65 on a regular basis.
- Heavier steel cords (what they don't say is that there are fewer which negates the possible larger diameter)

Spend some time on any RV site and look at the Marathon, Tow Max, Carlisle, all Chinese made, tales of woe vs never a LT failure without an external problem like a piece of big trash or a hole with rebar exposed. I can 'curb' my trucks tires on a cut turn but the Tow Max on the Montana - that would be an invitation to a failure in the near future.

Are Sailun's a good tire? Don't know, but they are made by the same company that make Tow Max which might scare me off regardless of the high praise here and elsewhere. This spring, the Montana will get a better and proven LT tire as the Tow Max's were made in Jan 2013. If my ship arrives, maybe even Michelin rib - which are recommended for trailers

I wish I could find it quickly, but there is a very good comparison of ST vs LT tires on line and why the ST's are so poor.