Beware of these tires

[dpcrf450]

In January we purchased a fuzion 342. We have camped with it 10 or so times putting maybe 1500 miles or so on it. We love it. We recently talked to another Fuzion 342 owner about the tires that were on his unit which happened to be the same as ours when we bought our trailer. The brand is trailer king and the tires were E rated. He talked about having a blow out and discovering that the inside of the other tires had bubbles forming on them. I didn't know what he was talking about at first but became increasingly concerned that these tires were not up to par as I researched on the various forums, etc.... I decided to invest in upgrading to G rated goodyear tires hoping that I might reduce my risk of having a tire issue. Since the trailer king tires were so new I decided to keep the tires and see if I could sell them. Here is a photo of the inner facing side of one of the tires. Two of the four tires had this problem. Unbelievable is all I have to say. I would note that I religiously check tire pressure before and during any use off the trailer. I would urge all folks with these tires to at least check the inner facing side wall of the tire and or get different tires.

[X-Treme]

Originally Posted by dpcrf450

In January we purchased a fuzion 342. We have camped with it 10 or so times putting maybe 1500 miles or so on it. We love it. We recently talked to another Fuzion 342 owner about the tires that were on his unit which happened to be the same as ours when we bought our trailer. The brand is trailer king and the tires were E rated. He talked about having a blow out and discovering that the inside of the other tires had bubbles forming on them. I didn't know what he was talking about at first but became increasingly concerned that these tires were not up to par as I researched on the various forums, etc.... I decided to invest in upgrading to G rated goodyear tires hoping that I might reduce my risk of having a tire issue. Since the trailer king tires were so new I decided to keep the tires and see if I could sell them. Here is a photo of the inner facing side of one of the tires. Two of the four tires had this problem. Unbelievable is all I have to say. I would note that I religiously check tire pressure before and during any use off the trailer. I would urge all folks with these tires to at least check the inner facing side wall of the tire and or get different tires.

Did you maybe mean POWER king, rather than trailer king? Power king tow max are what everyone seems to have a hate on for, myself included. Got 2 years trouble free out of them, but wasn't chancing a third. Went with Maxxis.

[crash]

for the info I will have to check mine when I get home this evening.

[therink]

My 2013 Sydney came with these "Trailer King" tires. Fortunately I made the dealer swap them out with American made LT tires before taking delivery. I am glad I did.

[Bob Landry]

LT tires are generally the tire of choice. However, I think a lot of people jump on that without considering the load rating of them. Any replacement tires need to be of the same rating or greater.
I went through the tire anguish also. What I found was a very limited selection of LT in the 15" size, and the ones I did find didn't cut it on the rating. I didn't want to replace wheels so I ended up buying Maxxis Load Range E tires. They are a higher load range than my originals. Maxxis makes them in both D & E ratings.

[SAABDOCTOR]

First off i am not defending that brand of tire. but I looked closely at your picture. the tire had some help in getting that way. Any tire hitting a pothole can break the sidewall cord and bubble like that. But before you chop my head off a weak side wall will also show up this way. What I am saying and your picture confirms. Is that you all ways need to check the tires on both side walls as part of the pre trip and after encountering a pothole. Enjoy those new tires.

[SmittysRV]

Originally Posted by X-Treme

Did you maybe mean POWER king, rather than trailer king? Power king tow max are what everyone seems to have a hate on for, myself included. Got 2 years trouble free out of them, but wasn't chancing a third. Went with Maxxis.

I had the Tow Max Power Kings, what a waste of rubber. Two blow outs, complete tire failure. Luckily each blow out didn’t take my side panels with it. Make sure to contact your tire warranty and you can get a replacement. I just got all new Goodyear Marathons on my Raptor 4014. I sure hope they are better. A good friend of mine has had good luck with them and they seem to be a much better quality tire.

Here is a pic of my last blow out.

[Bugle Boy]

I just checked mine and I have the Trailer King made in china.

But I noticed something I should have noticed before. None of my 4 wheels have balance weights which means they were never balanced.

That needs to be checked during the PDI and I didn't do that.

I will be replacing these soon as I have zero confidence in the quality of chinese tires.

[dpcrf450]

Appreciate the feedback and agree that this could be from the poor quality of our northern california highways or pot holes. No doubt, but man, I have never had any tire from any of my present and past vehicles/trailers have this problem.

[fla-gypsy]

Chinese made trailer tires have the worse reputation of any tire made for any use for good reason. I switched to the Thai made Maxxis ST 225/75R15E tires for the same reason Bob makes. Namely the availability of no suitable LT tires in the 15" size. Until a better alternative comes available the Maxxis ST tire is the best out there.

[IdahoSRT10]

Originally Posted by fla-gypsy

Chinese made trailer tires have the worse reputation of any tire made for any use for good reason. I switched to the Thai made Maxxis ST 225/75R15E tires for the same reason Bob makes. Namely the availability of no suitable LT tires in the 15" size. Until a better alternative comes available the Maxxis ST tire is the best out there.

I am pro buy USA but the Maxxis ST is one good tire! I have yet to see one fail.

[fla-gypsy]

Originally Posted by IdahoSRT10

I am pro buy USA but the Maxxis ST is one good tire! I have yet to see one fail.

Oh they can fail just like any tire when damaged or from road hazards. I recently replaced my old set that had been on the trailer for 6+ years and I changed them because one started separating. 6+ years is unheard of with most ST tires.

[abneynormal]

I had 3 different blow outs. after researching ALL st tires are rated for 65 mph max speed. I chose firestone transforce ht tires they are 10 ply lt tires with a speed rating of 106 mph and a load rating of 3169. the tires we had were 235/80-16. I would opt with 245/75-16 if this is your size. the 14 plys were more expensive and I heard a few negative reviews

[CWtheMan]

Originally Posted by abneynormal

I had 3 different blow outs. after researching ALL st tires are rated for 65 mph max speed. I chose firestone transforce ht tires they are 10 ply lt tires with a speed rating of 106 mph and a load rating of 3169. the tires we had were 235/80-16. I would opt with 245/75-16 if this is your size. the 14 plys were more expensive and I heard a few negative reviews

Like ST tires, LT tires have their load capacity calculated from their load range. The LT245/75R16E tires are rated at 3042# at 80 psi.

CW

[abneynormal]

you are right it is still over 3000 not by much I know the purist will harp the st tires were for 3500 oh well my actual weight on all 3 axles is 14200 with both bikes in the back. lets do the math axle 6000 actual 4733.3. the tire is 304? the actual weight is 2366.7. I have room to spare. it varies for each rv. weigh your rv by the actual axle weights and divide between number of axles. there are those who make it the total weight of the rv minus your drive weight on your toter. I don't too many years in a tractor trailer to believe that your toter carries its weight in travel just like the trailer axles. be sure to weigh your rv and whatever you do DON'T drop your trailer on the scales you can damage them.

[KanTC]

Originally Posted by Bugle Boy

None of my 4 wheels have balance weights which means they were never balanced.
That needs to be checked during the PDI and I didn't do that.

Paul, I apologize in advance if I've misunderstood your comment but.....

Generally speaking, RV tires are not balanced by the RV manufacturer, nor RV dealerships prior
to the sale. There may be some exceptions, with some manufacturers/dealers of course, but typically
it's the buyer's decision/choice to have them balanced (elsewhere) after purchase.

Terri, the Chevy co-pilot

[theeyres]

I have hit thousands of potholes with my truck and car--many in Northern CA as I used to live on the OR/CA border--and I've never had a tire bubble. In fact I've never had a tire failure, other than flats caused by nails. Why shouldn't a trailer tire be built to the same specs? If a pothole will cause a bubble that seems like pretty conclusive proof of a cheap, poorly built tire!

[davidjsimons]

Originally Posted by theeyres

I have hit thousands of potholes with my truck and car--many in Northern CA as I used to live on the OR/CA border--and I've never had a tire bubble. In fact I've never had a tire failure, other than flats caused by nails. Why shouldn't a trailer tire be built to the same specs? If a pothole will cause a bubble that seems like pretty conclusive proof of a cheap, poorly built tire!

That way of thinking is why I no longer buy Goodyear tires for my vehicles. I had four Goodyear Wrangler H/T's on my truck. I was driving in a harvested corn field and noticed a knot about the size of a baseball on my sidewall. I left the field and went back to the Goodyear store. Upon my arrival, I noticed that a second tire had developed a knot as well. The Goodyear rep said that I must have hit something. They would not even pro rate the tread wear toward the purchase of a new tire. The very next day, the third tire had a knot. No pro rating for this tire and no consideration about how suspect this seemed. Well, two weeks later, the set was complete. My fourth tire developed the same knot as well. After that round, I've bought nothing but Michelin tires.
My cousin bought the same tires for his truck at the same time that I had bought mine. Guess what? He had knots in his sidewalls as well and got the same treatment as I did. Michelin got a second customer.
I don't know if I want my trailer tires built to those standards. I know this is an absurd comparison, but this just proves that even tires with a reputable name fail.


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[chuck&gail]

You said you changed tire LOAD RANGE. Did you check rating on rims? Usually stamped on rear, or in valley under the tire. Over pressure on rims no safer than on tires. Be careful out there.

[T11ravis]

This was my Friday evening thanks to Tow Max...