Chinese Tire "Bombs" - Fact or Fiction?

[smiller]

Originally Posted by therink

Fact- Maxxis ST tires are better quality than most if not all ST tires on the market. They also cost more. I made the investment in these on multiple trailers and now don't spend every minute peeking in my mirrors waiting to see tire shreds.

lol... That's just the way I feel. After all the tire problems I've had I was sometimes thinking that I spent more time looking in my review mirror at my rig than looking ahead! Now after about 8,000 miles of hard full-time use on the Maxxis they still look new, perfectly even wear, and I just don't think about tires anymore. That alone is worth twice the price I paid.

[kenn209]

Well just pulled the trigger on 4 new Maxxis tires. Looking forward to not having to worry about blow outs

[fla-gypsy]

Originally Posted by Festus2

I don't want to belabor my point that I made earlier but when you consider the extraordinary volume of Chinese-made tires on RVs today, it is no wonder that almost all of the problems reported are about Chinese tires. If, for example, 80% of all RV tires are Chinese and 80% of the problems reported are about these tires, one could easily point to Chinese tires as being bad. Who else, but the Chinese, can we blame?

I'm still going to buy Maxxis tires so its a win-win situation for the both of us. We both like Maxxis.

The fact that you chose Maxxis means you had doubts about the quality of Chinese tires. Otherwise it wouldn't have mattered. Good choice IMO.

[Jim W]

I don't worry about Chinese tire failures anymore at all, I am using Michelins tires on my trailer. I could even tell a difference in towing the trailer seems to track better. All four tires were balance when mounted also.

Jim W.

[hankpage]

I have to agree with Jim. The lower rolling resistance of the LT tires is noticeable. I've trusted Michelin on my trucks and cars for years,(since 1968, long term memory is still good) Oh! it just made sense to put them on the Cougar.

[raytronx]

Originally Posted by hankpage

I have to agree with Jim. The lower rolling resistance of the LT tires is noticeable. I've trusted Michelin on my trucks and cars for years,(since 1968, long term memory is still good) Oh! it just made sense to put them on the Cougar.

I've loved Michelin on my vehicles too, until I priced them for the dually. *gulp*

[SAABDOCTOR]

YEP Ray they $$$$ put them on mine have all most 68k on them they are wearing like iron the oem tires made it 29k. so given the price diff the muclucks are way ahead! ps you have health insurance? takes care of the heart attack!!!

[apr67]

[QUOTE=cabinfever;69747Keep the pressures checked and run to the max allowable for tire and rim. I think that is more important than brand or cost.[/QUOTE]

I have done the same thing with various trailers and RV's and only had one blow out.

[Ken / Claudia]

After reading here I, checked the goodyears on my boat trailer. Found the fine print. Made in China 2007 35th week. So far so good. I have mantained them at max printed psi.

[kenn209]

So those that went to LT tires, What size did you get? I have 15 inch wheels so I would have to get new wheels too.

[Comptech]

So after reading all these scary stories about tires, I went home and looked at the mfg date. My 2012 Cougar was mfg in Feb of 2012, the tires are of the China Bomb brand and the date code on the tires was 1149... I guess meaning that they were mfg on the 49th week of 2011. So I am guessing that they were new relative to the mfg date of the 5er...

[Festus2]

Comptech --

I don't think any of the posts, including mine, were intended as "scare tactics". If nothing else, the importance of routine, proper tire maintenance, regardless of brand or country of origin was stressed and will go a long way to prolong tire life.

Having checked the manufacturing date of your tires you are more aware of your tires' history than you were before. Hopefully, more people will take the time to do the same thing when checking their tires or when purchasing new ones.

[Comptech]

Festus, noted and revised to better state my intentions...

[mhs4771]

A lot also depends on the weight the tires are carrying. E rated Marathons on a 10K rig will be a lot better than those same tires on a 16.5K rig. Our RW uses Marathon as the OEM tires and the rigs have a gross of 16.5 and most leave the factory at 14K before us owners add a single paper plate.

[Jim W]

Originally Posted by kenn209

So those that went to LT tires, What size did you get? I have 15 inch wheels so I would have to get new wheels too.

Ken,
When I bought my 318SAB Cougar I made sure that the trailer was equipped with the 16" tires. This was an option in 2010 if I remember correctly. I had 15” tires on my older 5er and had done a lot of research before buying the trailer and a lot of users on TDR said to make sure that you get 16” tires.
Jim W.

[smiller]

Only in the RV industry could tires with an adequate reserve capacity be considered an 'option.'

[kenn209]

So far no luck on the Maxxis tires, Made 2 orders and none in stock at any of the online retailers. (discount tire direct, and performance plus or something like that), Still looking. Amazon had them but now they are out of stock.... Oh well.

[Festus2]

kenn209 -

Just recently, I ran into that same problem ----- "Sorry, we're out of stock but should have some in 5-10 business days". I placed an order on the condition that they would be in by April 4th. "No problem". A day later, Discount Tire phoned and said they were somewhere on board a freighter and might be here in 2 weeks "or so".

I couldn't wait that long so told him to cancel the order and to refund payment. He then told me in would check around and 1 day later phoned me back saying he had located a set of 4 Maxxis and they would be in his shop in 2 days.

If you have a Discount Tire near you, get them to do a search. You may get lucky - worth a try.

[smiller]

Looks like the word has got out.

[michol02]

Had a blowout on rear RV tire today, so I'm going to Walmart in the morning to try to find a replacement(on vacation miles away from home). I'm wondering if I can use E rated truck tires instead of trailer tires.