TWO tires leaking badly, unit only 2 weeks old!

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DennisK

Guest
I have owned my Solitude for 2 weeks. TWO tires (Westlake) are leaking, one goes down to about 43psi (from 80) in a day or two, and the other one goes down to around 60 psi. We live about 500 miles south from the factory so I am guessing these tires have a total of 600 miles on them including transit from Indiana to Nashville. I do not want to take a vacation day to drive this unit 1 1/2 hours to Nashville so they can verify they are bad. What are my options? I don't have access to electricity where I store my unit so I can't air them up before driving (I should not have to for that matter).

As much as we all love our Grand Designs, I think we all equally dislike the cheap tires they put on them. Why doesn't the factory go to a bit better tire? I had Goodyears on the Pinnacle that I traded, how I wish I would have traded them before leaving the lot.

Disappointed in the tires but otherwise I absolutely LOVE the unit!

Dennis
 
If it were me, the first thing I'd do is spray a solution of soap and water around the bead, and on the valve stem to try and pin point where the leak is. I don't suspect the tires are leaking, but the interfact between the wheel and the tire or the valve stem/valve core. If it's the valve core, you can buy a tool for less than $1 to tighten it.

FWIW, I'm still running my Westlake tires after 3000+ miles, and I've only had to put a few pounds of air in each at around 2000 miles.
 
As was stated above, it probably isn't the tire....

Look around the valve stems, and call your dealer when you find the leak.
 
Tires is an issue on all recreational vehicles and boat trailers. I still don't know why ST tires are not better quality, and why those Goodyears cost 2x or 3x what they should @ $399 each.

If I was in your position, I'd jack up the trailer, remove the two tires and head for the nearest good tire store. It could be as simple as a tiny nail picked up. Or a bad valve stem.

It sure beats hauling that big sucker all the way back to Music City to a dealer.
 
Most alloy trailer rims are cast and it is not uncommon for some to be porous. It might not be the tires.
 
Just bought ours yesterday and same thing with two tires. Lost 40 pounds of pressure in one of them overnight. Hubby just left to buy an air compressor so we can try to make it home. Fairly P.O.'d cause it's been one little thing after another. For a brand new RV and as much money as we spent, I'm just frustrated right now.
 
Interesting that you noticed the tires were leaking as soon as you took delivery of the unit. Unless you picked up a nial or something on the way home, I would think it was leaking all along. Interesting that the dealer didn't notice it. They must have had it for some time to at least get it ready for delivery to you.
 
I know exactly what the problem is now. I went over there today after purchasing a valve tightening tool thinking (hoping) the valve was loose and I could simply screw it in. No joy, both of the tires that are leaking are bad valve stems. If I simply hold on to it and move it either direction, it loses quite a bit of air. Why does GD put up with inferior suppliers such as this? I am not the only one having problems with tires. I am going to tow the trailer to a local tire dealer and have them pull the wheels and install new valve stems and send the bill to Grand Design in hopes that they will do the right thing and pay.

Dennis
 
Thx for posting. My husband couldn't figure out what the problem was and he checked after I read your post to him. It's the same problem u have on at least one tire and the other has a rivet in it which I'm certain came from the dealer where we bought it.
 
DennisK
Make sure they put high pressure bolt in valve stems. I would highly recommend doing that.
 
No matter the type or brand of tire, a failure on a trailer can have significant consequences. I've lost tires in the past which took out the whole wheel well and fender. As soon as I purchased my reflection, I pulled the tires and took them to our local tire shop where I had them balanced and installed metal valve stems. Then, I ordered a tire pressure monitoring system. I screwed the sensors on to the metal valve stems, and placed the monitor in the cab of the truck. From the cab, I can monitor the temperature and pressure of each tire as I'm rolling down the road. The monitor will also trigger an alarm if the pressure or temperature changes from the values I select. It gives me great peace of mind to know that my tires are safe while I'm pulling this rig behind me.
 
I also run the TST TPMS flow throughs and it works well. Metal valve stems are recommended if not required if your going to use any kind of TPMS. I have had a tire blow on a previous trailer and it is a mess. Tore up the whole fender and sheet metal skirt. Had to cut metal away to continue after a tire change. Wouldn't leave home without a tpms now.
 
If you're finding faulty valve stems, I'd suggest that you replace them with ones like these especially if you want to add tire pressure monitors to them.

Dave

040312090807.jpg
 
When I pickup my new Reflection 358BHS in a few weeks, my dealer's got 3 different campgrounds setup to stay in. We're going to store our fiver locally for a couple of months visiting it every other week--in case warranty work is needed.

And we're going to get rid of the Chinese tires--switching to high quality LT model E rated rib tires off a 1 ton truck.
 
DennisK said:
I am going to tow the trailer to a local tire dealer and have them pull the wheels and install new valve stems and send the bill to Grand Design in hopes that they will do the right thing and pay.

Dennis
Click to expand...

I would call them (GD) and talk to them about it before you just send them a bill...

It's not a huge thing, but if you just start shoving bills at them, they can easily deny the claim, and deny paying you.

Personally, I would throw the bill at the selling dealer, since they obviously didn't do much of a PDI on the rig. What makes you think that the parts are inferior??
 
You are right... I need to discuss this with the dealer first. I have decided that regardless, I will have the valve stems replaced with metal ones and balanced on all 4 tires by a local dealer. I am just a bit disappointed that I am having to go through all of this with a brand new unit. I realize everything is susceptible to a few bugs and by and large, this is an excellent unit thus far. So far as the inferior parts, that is my opinion as related to the fact that I need to go get them replaced. I can easily make air escape from the base of the stem by moving it ever so slightly to one side.
 
DennisK said:
You are right... I need to discuss this with the dealer first. I have decided that regardless, I will have the valve stems replaced with metal ones and balanced on all 4 tires by a local dealer. I am just a bit disappointed that I am having to go through all of this with a brand new unit. I realize everything is susceptible to a few bugs and by and large, this is an excellent unit thus far. So far as the inferior parts, that is my opinion as related to the fact that I need to go get them replaced. I can easily make air escape from the base of the stem by moving it ever so slightly to one side.
Click to expand...
I think it would be a good idea to get ALL FOUR done. If two have failed, I could not trust the other two. Just my opinion though....
 
I am taking it in tomorrow to have all four done. My dealer is awesome! They said to take it to a nearby place and have the stems installed, including balance the tires and send them the bill end they will reimburse me. I would highly recommend anyone looking for a Grand Design dealer to contact them. Cullum and Maxey in Nashville, TN.
 
I too had a tire that would go down into the 40lb range. Took it to my regular tire store. Found the O-ring on the valve stem was pinched. They fixed it for free for me...
 
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