North America made tires

[davidjsimons]

Originally Posted by Festus2

Little Joe & Hankpage -
I just spoke to Hercules Customer Service and was told that all of their RV trailer and light truck tires are made in China and carry the Hercules name They do make some of their passenger and other vehicle tires in North America but not trailer tires. So........back to square one.

Well, that's depressing.


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[LittleJoe]

Still haven't had a look at actual tire for where its made (keep forgetting ).

Regardless of where they are made, I still stand by the fact that these are the best of many brands we have tried, and we have had zero issues with them. They are however in the 205/75/15 size which is not a first hand experience to the larger sizes on our RV's.

[smiller]

Sorry, they are made in China and therefore by definition must be China bombs. Any other real-world experience doesn't matter.

[therink]

I replaced my Towmax 15" junk D's with 15" Maxxi E's. Best hing I could have done. I bought mine at "Pep Boys" (if you have one in your area) . They didnt stock them, they were special order tire.
Good luck.
Steve

[Quiroule]

Thanks everyone.

Therink, how much did-you pay? That's exactly what I need.

[kenn209]

You can get Maxxis tires from Discount Tire Direct.

http://www.discounttiredirect.com/di...w=false&cs=225

But I believe these are made in Thailand, Planning on replacing all the Towmax tires next year. No blowouts with the Towmax or anything.

[Jim W]

Originally Posted by kenn209

You can get Maxxis tires from Discount Tire Direct.

http://www.discounttiredirect.com/di...w=false&cs=225

But I believe these are made in Thailand, Planning on replacing all the Towmax tires next year. No blowouts with the Towmax or anything.

When I replaced my Towmax tires this year I installed Michelin XPS RIBS on my 318SAB. I bought them from Discount tires paying a little over $1400 for 4 of them. The spare is a Power King bought new in 11 and never used so I kept it as a spare tire.
XPS Ribs are an all position tire and the size is LT245/75R/16E which fits in the tire opening with no clearance issues. Just a thought for another tire that can be used for your Cougar 318SAB trailer safely.

Jim W.

[therink]

Originally Posted by Quiroule

Thanks everyone.

Therink, how much did-you pay? That's exactly what I need.

I believe I paid $180/tire with tax mounted, balanced, installed.

[hankpage]

Originally Posted by Jim W

When I replaced my Towmax tires this year I installed Michelin XPS RIBS on my 318SAB. I bought them from Discount tires paying a little over $1400 for 4 of them. The spare is a Power King bought new in 11 and never used so I kept it as a spare tire.
XPS Ribs are an all position tire and the size is LT245/75R/16E which fits in the tire opening with no clearance issues. Just a thought for another tire that can be used for your Cougar 318SAB trailer safely.

Jim W.

Jim, Was $1400 a typo??? I replaced all 5 of mine with new rims for less. LT215/85R16 XPS RIBS at Costco $201 ea. - $70 promotion and steel wheels $50 ea. from local trailer parts supply + 100psi metal stems around $50. I wouldn't think that a few sizes larger would be that much more.

[LittleJoe]

I will be replacing my TowMax with XPS ribs in 235/80/16 when the time comes. The Towmax have been fine so far (hope I didn;t just jinx myself)

I don't generally tow in really hot weather as it works out.

[Jim W]

Originally Posted by hankpage

Jim, Was $1400 a typo??? I replaced all 5 of mine with new rims for less. LT215/85R16 XPS RIBS at Costco $201 ea. - $70 promotion and steel wheels $50 ea. from local trailer parts supply + 100psi metal stems around $50. I wouldn't think that a few sizes larger would be that much more.

No, the real price was $1444.58; that included disposal fees, sales tax, mounting and balancing the tires from Discount tires. Sam’s wanted $1420 for four tires mounted and balance +taxes along with the disposal fee. I even tired Tire Rack along with Just tires they were all about the same price. Since I have dealt with the Discount tire store in Oswego all the time before I went back to them for the XPS Ribs again.
Jim W.

[kenn209]

Originally Posted by Jim W

No, the real price was $1444.58; that included disposal fees, sales tax, mounting and balancing the tires from Discount tires. Sam’s wanted $1420 for four tires mounted and balance +taxes along with the disposal fee. I even tired Tire Rack along with Just tires they were all about the same price. Since I have dealt with the Discount tire store in Oswego all the time before I went back to them for the XPS Ribs again.
Jim W.

Plus the cost of 4 new wheels. We have 15's on ours.....

[CWtheMan]

Originally Posted by LittleJoe

I will be replacing my TowMax with XPS ribs in 235/80/16 when the time comes. The Towmax have been fine so far (hope I didn;t just jinx myself)

I don't generally tow in really hot weather as it works out.

Michelin considers replacing ST tires with their XPS Rib to be a misapplication. Their newest warranty for that tire also disallows fitment on your axles because of the disparity in load capacity between the XPS Rib and OEM tires.

There is a long thread currently running it’s course about this very subject on RV.net. You can get more particulars there.

CW

[Festus2]

Why then are a lot of people rushing out to buy and install these Michelin XPS Rib tires on their RV's? Not that long ago, they were being touted as the greatest thing since sliced bread and were - and still are- being highly touted and recommended here on this forum.

To someone like myself who is looking at replacing my 15" "China bombs" as they are affectionately referred to, I find this really quite confusing!

[jsmith948]

Originally Posted by CWtheMan

Michelin considers replacing ST tires with their XPS Rib to be a misapplication. Their newest warranty for that tire also disallows fitment on your axles because of the disparity in load capacity between the XPS Rib and OEM tires.

There is a long thread currently running it’s course about this very subject on RV.net. You can get more particulars there.

CW

If the XPS Rib tire has a higher load capacity than the OEM tires, how can that be a problem? We have read here that the XPS Ribs are considered an all position tire, even though they have LT on their sidewalls.
Don't know about the reluctance to use LT tires on a trailer. Drove and owned tractor trailer for years. Always bought new tires for the steering axle then moved them to the drivers or the trailer as they wore.

[hankpage]

Originally Posted by CWtheMan

Michelin considers replacing ST tires with their XPS Rib to be a misapplication. Their newest warranty for that tire also disallows fitment on your axles because of the disparity in load capacity between the XPS Rib and OEM tires.

There is a long thread currently running it’s course about this very subject on RV.net. You can get more particulars there.

CW

The disparity in load capacity is between ST and LT tires of the same size. Even though their load rating may be the same the capacity of the LT will be slightly lower. (This also may be because of more responsible testing from the manufacturer) XPS RIBS do not come in 15" so if you are replacing 15" C or D rated tires with 16" E rated tires and wheels you are definitely increasing your safety margin as far as tire capacity goes. This safety margin is the only thing that is increased due to the limits of the axles and other components. (Peace of mind of having a QUALITY tire aside) If I had to stay with ST tires and 15" I would have upgraded rims and went with Maxis, but since I was not my choice was Michelin. Again .. JM2¢, Hank

[CWtheMan]

In truck tire terminology there are two distinct axel design elements, “drive & steer“. The “all position” designation refers to a tire that fit’s the requirements of both the “drive & steer” axles. The trailer axle tire is just called “trailer tire”. Those terms can be found in any of the major tire manufacturers truck tire data books which can be accessed on the internet.

The three paragraphs below are verbatim statements from the current Michelin warranty that would be issued for tires covered on their limited mileage warranty.

– Misapplication, improper maintenance, racing, underinflation, overinflation or other abuse;

– Use of MICHELIN® tires that is inconsistent with the safety information provided in your owner’s manual.

– Use of MICHELIN® tires that is inconsistent with the maintenance information provided in your owner’s manual.

Someone emailed Michelin to verify if their LT tires could be used to replace OEM ST tires and the answer was no, because it would be considered a misapplication.


CW

[mhs4771]

I think it's becoming a CYA by some of the LT Tire folks and their Dealers. If a Dealer knowingly installs tires with a lesser rating than the OEM Mfr recommendations and you drive off and have an accident because of the newly installed tires, Could you then sue the Dealer and Tire Mfr for damages?????????? Something to think about.
All the RV forums are full of Tire info and if you read enough you will come across posts where some Tire Dealers have refused to install LT tires on RVs. We ordered the optional G614s on our new unit and plan to change them out for 17.5 G114s and new rims.

[Jim W]

Originally Posted by CWtheMan

In truck tire terminology there are two distinct axel design elements, “drive & steer“. The “all position” designation refers to a tire that fit’s the requirements of both the “drive & steer” axles. The trailer axle tire is just called “trailer tire”. Those terms can be found in any of the major tire manufacturers truck tire data books which can be accessed on the internet.

The three paragraphs below are verbatim statements from the current Michelin warranty that would be issued for tires covered on their limited mileage warranty.

– Misapplication, improper maintenance, racing, underinflation, overinflation or other abuse;

– Use of MICHELIN® tires that is inconsistent with the safety information provided in your owner’s manual.

– Use of MICHELIN® tires that is inconsistent with the maintenance information provided in your owner’s manual.

Someone emailed Michelin to verify if their LT tires could be used to replace OEM ST tires and the answer was no, because it would be considered a misapplication.


CW

CW, what owner’s manual would that be? The O&M guide for my Keystone 318SAB Cougar does not specify any tire in the booklet. The only thing that is specified is the lug not torque for the lug nuts and this is a general statement. This in its self is incorrect since the booklet does not specify dynamic and static checking torques for the lug not application.

As far as someone e-mailing Michelin and they have this letter stating misapplication from Michelin. Will that to me is like saying my brother second wife’s cousin third sister said this…….
Just another internet rumor, just like the State Farm ad on TV; you can't say any that's not true on the internet.
Jim W.

[mhs4771]

Tire info is generally not in the RV manual, but you should have a placard on the Left (drivers side or road side) front corner that will show the tire size, load range, and max pressure. No one cares what brand you put on, just that it meets or exceeds those numbers for the OEM tires.