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  1. #11
    Long Hauler
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    When on the road with a trailer, I automatically carry a floor jack and jack stands. Many call the Chinese tires on boats and RV's "willpops," and failure rates are ridiculously high.

    My new GD 323BHS is arriving the next week or two, and I'm going to replace the tires on day one.

    I've researched various RV forums, boating forums and diesel truck forums. The below tires are the top quality non-Chinese tires for our use. Lowest delivered prices found online are:

    Bridgestone Duramis R250 $232 TireRack.com Rib tire.
    Maxxis M8008 $160+delivery. DiscountTireDirect. Great quality ST radial.
    BFG Commercial T/A $168 Amazon.com Rib tire.
    Michelin XPS Ribs $298 Treaddepot.com Rib tire.
    Goodyear G614-RST $399 Amazon.com (G weight spec'd.) Special trailer tire.

  2. #12
    Site Sponsor 2hams's Avatar
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    We had the BFG Commercial T/A on our previous fifth wheel. They aren't a rib, but used to have a good reputation. They were < 4 years old, about 25K miles. We swapped them to our Reflection. Although not the size, these were the date of the BFG recall. After our blowout, which looked like tread separation, we found out that the BFG (and also Michelin) are known for tread separation. We have the Duravis R250 on our 303 now.

    Kay &amp; Dave - Virginia Beach, VA
    Golden Retriever Molly - Been swimming in 28 states
    2019 Solitude 310GK
    2019 GMC Denali CC/LB SRW
    Previous rig: 2014 Reflection 303RLS #314 and 2008 Silverado 2500 D/A

  3. #13
    Long Hauler
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    I hear nothing but nice things about the Duravis R250's, but hear of tread separation on the Firestone Transforce supposedly coming out of the same factory.

    Owners of the Michelin XPS Ribs universally brag on them, but they're $65 x 4 more expensive.

  4. #14
    DennisK
    Guest
    @Lidreaux, it was my valve stems that wre faulty, not the tires (yet). I took the unit to a tire dealer and had them replace all 4 valve stems with metal ones and the problem is resolved. I sent the bill to my dealer and they paid immediately.

  5. #15
    Seasoned Camper
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    Quote Originally Posted by Bamaman View Post
    I hear nothing but nice things about the Duravis R250's, but hear of tread separation on the Firestone Transforce supposedly coming out of the same factory.

    Owners of the Michelin XPS Ribs universally brag on them, but they're $65 x 4 more expensive.
    Firestone TransForce AT tires have the issue, not the HT which is recommended for trailers. The AT is a more aggressive tread design, HT is highway tread. Michelin XPS have some issues, and as 2hams stated, the Goodyear Commercial TA's also. Any tire can fail and I have even found threads of folks having issues with the Duravis R250's. I just changed out my Westlake ST for Firestone HT. Getting ready for 3000 mile trip so will keep you informed how they handle and last. Previous trailer had Goodyear Wrangler HT on it, lasted 6 years, changed for new ones, swapped trailer 4 years later. Had one blowout on the Goodyear's, 6 year old tire, driving fast on 104 degree day. Can't blame the tire for that. My fault totally. But I can say I checked the pressure and it was at 80 psi when I started.
    Don & Judy
    Charlotte - SPCA Special


    2014 Reflection 303RLS
    2019 F350 Dually CC LB 6.7L

  6. #16
    Site Team
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    Okay, here's the details:
    We were traveling westbound, I40. Temp was just above 90 deg, and we were traveling at 67 MPH. When the tire blew, I heard a loud boom. The trailer shifted like it would if there was a wind blast. I looked in the back window, and could see the steel and rubber flying out of the side. I slowed the vehicle down and brought it over to the curb. I checked the wheel, and determined that it could make the 1/4 mile to the next exit. I had recently purchased a breaker bar and a set of lug nut sockets, and put them to use on the tire. I tried putting the front tire on a 4" block to raise the rear wheel, but it didn't raise it high enough. The trailer was leaning too far to the passenger side for the leveling jacks to do their thing but the rear was able to lift it high enough. We quickly replaced the tire and were on our way. I had the tire dealer put the spare on the rim, and put a cheapo china tire on the spare rim. An hour later we were back on the road.

    When the tire blew, I checked all of the others at that moment. They were all around 82 PSI. The spare was at 80. I am pretty meticulous about tire pressures. The RTV I referred to was a "blemish" that I saw on the tire on the inside. It looked like an injection site for the rubber. I asked the dealer to look at it, and they determined that it was RTV - Silicone that had made its way on to the tire. He indicated that he had pulled it off and that all was fine. That MAY not have been the issue... but I can't say for sure. The tire didn't smell like anything. My wife said she smelled "burned rubber" in the trailer. The failure was definitely sidewall related, but I couldn't determine which side had blown.

    Today, I was overly cautious about the tires. I sniffed each one when I stopped for fuel. I do have a reasonably well developed sense of smell when it comes to automotive or electronic issues. Those are the fields in which I was trained. During today's driving, we were traveling in temps over 100 deg at speeds upwards of 70MPH going down hill. Most of the time we were doing 67 MPH. 67 seems to be the magic number for me. It allows me to travel without downshifting to often without getting poor mileage.

    I don't have TPMS. I may pick one up this trip. We'll see. I ran into a woman next door who blew two tires on her trip from FL. The second one took out her driver's side cabinets in the kitchen.

    Bottom line, I don't believe this was a "Cheap China Tire" issue, but a defect issue. I think I turned 7K miles at this point. The tires have been great so far. I think they ride well, and handle well. The weight rating of the tires -3520 - is really good. Even the new spare is 3420. I may go LT tires when I switched them out, but I'm not sure at this point. It will depend on what I find for tires at that point.
    Chris Tretta
    Albuquerque, NM

    2013 Ram 3500 Megacab 4x4 6.7L Cummins
    2019 Grand Design 385GK
    2014 Grand Design 369RL - Sold
    Class A CDL, Doubles/Triples, Hazmat and Tanker endorsements


  7. #17
    Seasoned Camper mtpocket's Avatar
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    Chris
    Let us know if all the repairs are paid for by the tire manufacturer. When my "American" tire blew they paid for every nickel of damage except the replacement tire, which had it been their brand it would have been paid for also. They also paid to have the blown tire shipped back to them to evaluate.
    Chris and Debbie
    St. Charles County, MO
    2007 Dodge Ram Cummins DRW
    2015 369RL Solitude

  8. #18
    Site Sponsor ACDW-Ottawa's Avatar
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    Thanks for telling me about your blow-out experience. It doesn't surprise me that you didn't feel it, the RAM has so much power, that you really don't feel the trailer behind you.

    Last year, I avoided a blowout by sheer luck. 20 minutes after I started driving that day, I had to make a pit stop. It was then that I noticed my right rear tire looked low. it only had 20PSI due to a nail puncture, so I swapped tires. The thing is. I did not feel anything different when I was towing my trailer. it handled just fine. The truck did not lean right or pull. Between the RAM's power and the pivoting 5th wheel hitch, it held the truck level. You really can't tell what's really happening back there with the trailer unless you can see it like you saw the debris after the blow-out. Since then I bought a TPMS to monitor all of my tires. Hopefully that will alert me to a potential problem and maybe even avoid a blow out although I do realize blow-outs can still happen. Still, the extra security can't hurt.
    Aaron & Donna
    2014 Solitude 369RLS #1067
    2010 Dodge RAM 3500 SLT Mega-Cab 4x4 SRW 6.7L Cummins Diesel
    AMP Power Step Running Boards, Bed Step, & Bed Step2; Garmin RV760 GPS & EEZRV TPMS; Truck Covers USA Roll Cover
    Firestone Rear Air Suspension System, on-board compressor with 5 Gallon tank and Air port; Hijacker 16K Ultra Slider 5th Wheel Hitch, Dee Zee Truck Tailgate Assist; DU-HA Humpstor Truck Bed Storage Box; Voyager Rear Back Up Camera System
    YAKUPSŪ Vertical Kayak Rack and Custom Lippert 2" Receiver; Sailun S637ST tires; WeBoost Cell Phone Booster.

  9. #19
    Site Sponsor dchrist1733's Avatar
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    I also had a tire blow out on me on I-40 on the way to the Grand Canyon. The tire was unable to be fixed as it effected the sidewall. It happened in Oklahoma. The roads are pretty bad in places along that route. The temperature was about 95 so I slowed down to about 60 to keep the tire temperature down a bit, and I also check tire inflation before every trip. I was very lucky my TPMS system alarmed me right away and there was not any damage to my unit. I have since replaced all of my tires with the Goodyear G614RST tires. Had these before and they worked well. I can already feel the difference in the way the unit handles. An expensive change but worth it. I hope someday they will put better tires on these units. I got 15,000 miles out of the original tires on the unit which is better than nothing.

    Debby - Stafford, Virginia
    2017 Grand Design Solitude ST374TH
    2012 GMC Denali 3500HD DRW

  10. #20
    Rolling Along dloase's Avatar
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    I have a question. How many of you are running nitrogen in your tires? My 369 has nitrogen filled tires, which makes it a pain for keeping pressure correct. I can't just put air in, I have to go to a station/dealer that has nitrogen. Luckly, none of them have charged.
    David & Linda - Plainview, VA
    2008 3500HD CrewCab DRW
    2014 369RL #258
    2007 Solstice
    2008 TrailBlazer
    2016 Kia Sorento
    [SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]

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