New 14" tires for an Imagine 22MLE

[Robt225]

For those of you using a TPMS with the Westlake tires on the 22MLE, what do you set as the max/min pressures? I see the Max cold pressure listed on the side of the trailer is 65psi. Where do you set the high pressure warning at? 65psi, or higher? I set it at 70ps and it kept going off on our first trip. And a value for low pressure warning? I’ve searched for detailed specs for this tire and not found anything. Thanks

[Dadeo6472]

One could interpret your comment as possibly positive.

Westlake tires are seriously flawed, given my research on Chinese owned tire-makers. In fact, Westlake is owned by China-based Hangzhou Zhongce Rubber Company. They produce four of the most notorious branded tires on the market, one of which is Westlake.

https://www.carsdirect.com/car-repair/4-tire-companies-to-avoid
https://www.consumerreports.org/cro/news/2014/09/chinese-truck-tires-are-no-bargain/index.htm

If anyone wants to read more, just search Westlake; China Tires; etc, etc. Get a bottle of your favorite beverage or snack, and enjoy.

[bertschb]

A lot of people group all Westlake tires together and call them junk. That is unfortunate. If you go back and read the hundreds of posts about these tires across multiple RV forums you'll learn that the "E" rated Westlake tires are the ones that were susceptible to problems and even then it was usually because the tires were mismatched with a heavy RV. Grand Design used "E" rated Westlake tires on their heavy Momentum and Solitude models for a while and that was problematic.

The "G" rated Westlake tires have been very reliable even in heavy applications. They are not all junk!

[Lane Hog]

The other issue with the E's is they're only rated to 75mph. Drive over that and you get what you get...

Sent from my SM-G981U using Tapatalk

[bertschb]

The other issue with the E's is they're only rated to 75mph.

I wouldn't pull any trailer at 75mph so that's not a problem.

[Dadeo6472]

I would suggest that those who lump all Westlakes in the junk pile have VERY good reason to do so, and that the reputation of Chinese tire companies and Chinese owned tire brands deserves this treatment. It is not just putting underrated tires on heavy trailers. The reputation for junk Chinese tires extends to the automotive and trucking industry, and I fell victim to a set of 4 Chinese made tires for our Solara 5 years ago, 4 tires which were impossible to balance and out of round.

The problems with Chinese owned tire brands have been going on for decades. While good tires are made in China (by US, Japanese, Korean, and European owned/licensed factories), Chinese owned brands made by Chinese owned firms are highly problematic. Of considerable note is Hangzhou Zhongce Rubber Company, maker of Westlake. It is called out as a manufacturer to avoid by several publications.

Furthermore, when Consumer Reports tested several Chinese owned and branded automobile tires, the best that could be said was that they were better than worn out old tires. Not exactly a ringing endorsement, and why would anyone think that if these guys can't make a decent car tire that their trailer or truck tires are any better???

There is one exception. SAILUN. It appears that SAILUN has gained SOME respectability in the last few years.

But.... if you have some time and want to fully understand why my Westlakes are coming off before our next trip... take a look at these links:

https://mechanicbase.com/tires/tire-...id-purchasing/
https://www.tirereview.com/buyer-bew...uality-levels/
https://www.bigclassaction.com/lawsu...jury-death.php
https://abcnews.go.com/Business/story?id=3463197&page=1
https://www.consumerreports.org/cro/...gain/index.htm
https://www.carsdirect.com/car-repai...anies-to-avoid

And that is just to start. Do some Google searches comparing Non-Chinese tires to Chinese brands and its shocking. Not just for trailer tires, but for automotive and heavy trucks.

I can't understand why anyone would put these things on. You'd be better off with a set of quality used tires by any name brand.

A lot of people group all Westlake tires together and call them junk. That is unfortunate. If you go back and read the hundreds of posts about these tires across multiple RV forums you'll learn that the "E" rated Westlake tires are the ones that were susceptible to problems and even then it was usually because the tires were mismatched with a heavy RV. Grand Design used "E" rated Westlake tires on their heavy Momentum and Solitude models for a while and that was problematic.

The "G" rated Westlake tires have been very reliable even in heavy applications. They are not all junk!

[bertschb]

I would suggest that those who lump all Westlakes in the junk pile have VERY good reason to do so

It sounds like you've done your research. Could you share all the links you found relating to "G" rated Westlake tire failures? That would be much appreciated by all the forum members here.

[Dadeo6472]

It sounds like you've done your research. Could you share all the links you found relating to "G" rated Westlake tire failures? That would be much appreciated by all the forum members here.

I came across no review or ratings that provide separate ratings or reviews by load or speed rating for any line of tires. What I have found is frightening enough for me: The Hangzhou Zhongce Rubber Company specifically is called out for low quality tires across the line. And Westlake is named as a brand to avoid across the board. I suspect this is why GD is offering other brands.

See: https://mechanicbase.com/tires/tire-...id-purchasing/ for a very recent article on Hangzhou specifically.

Although the Westlake brand is not specifically named by Consumer Reports, other brands produced by the same company are. This is the best that CR could say about Chinese tires: Certainly if you are on tight budget, and who isn’t nowadays, buying a cheap tire is better than riding on worn-out tires. But as our tests show, buying bargain-priced tires such as these Chinese models isn’t the right choice for the long haul.

Again I argue that if this company can't produce a quality car tire, what makes us want to risk our trailers with them? The reviews and comments I've found for automotive and non trailer tires made by Chinese companies provide enough evidence (to me) that I don't want this company's tires on any of my vehicles. Even if they are no longer "blowing up", reviewers have found that this company's tires don't have the same grip, stopping distances, tread life, puncture resistance, etc...

Again, if they can't make a decent car or truck tire, why do we want their tires on our trailers????

[NB Canada]

I came across no review or ratings that provide separate ratings or reviews by load or speed rating for any line of tires. What I have found is frightening enough for me: The Hangzhou Zhongce Rubber Company specifically is called out for low quality tires across the line. And Westlake is named as a brand to avoid across the board. I suspect this is why GD is offering other brands.

See: https://mechanicbase.com/tires/tire-...id-purchasing/ for a very recent article on Hangzhou specifically.

Although the Westlake brand is not specifically named by Consumer Reports, other brands produced by the same company are. This is the best that CR could say about Chinese tires: Certainly if you are on tight budget, and who isn’t nowadays, buying a cheap tire is better than riding on worn-out tires. But as our tests show, buying bargain-priced tires such as these Chinese models isn’t the right choice for the long haul.

Again I argue that if this company can't produce a quality car tire, what makes us want to risk our trailers with them? The reviews and comments I've found for automotive and non trailer tires made by Chinese companies provide enough evidence (to me) that I don't want this company's tires on any of my vehicles. Even if they are no longer "blowing up", reviewers have found that this company's tires don't have the same grip, stopping distances, tread life, puncture resistance, etc...

Again, if they can't make a decent car or truck tire, why do we want their tires on our trailers????

The failure rate due to the tire and not user abuse I believe is less than .5 percent

The only thing I agree with is that other tires likely take abuse more than westlakes


2021 Imagine 2400 BH
2018 GMC Sierra 4x4 crew

[Canyonlight]

It sounds like you've done your research. Could you share all the links you found relating to "G" rated Westlake tire failures? That would be much appreciated by all the forum members here.

Yes, Brian - other than the one link (short on detail and specifics), all the other links shared are the "old news" which has been shared ad nauseam here on this forum for several years over and over relative to the defective gum strip issues of a decade plus ago

It is really a dis-service to members (especially new members) to be sharing outdated information which is not applicable to current generation Westlake trailer ST tires and other Chineses equivalents.

Relative to the Westlake G tire failure question, I do not recall even one post on the forum regarding a failure. Many of us would appreciate factual information on G failures to learn more, of course if it exists.

Dan