Tire brands

[dandt]

After reading all the postings about the Mission tires I have decided to replace mine also. (you people got me all freaked out about the missions, with good cause tho)I called my local Les Schwab & they want to sell me Tow Max brand tires. Anyone have any dealings with this brand? I would think that Michelins would be the best out there but I might be wrong on that. The tow max's were $652

[ols1932]

You will find many good brands out there for your rig. I'm a little partial to Michelins and Bridgestones. I have the Michelins on my truck and Bridgestones on the rig. LonnieB can give you a lot of information about tires since that is his business and he also owns a Montana.

Orv

[gitrdun]

My Monty came with Tacoma tires made in the USA. Three years now and no problems and wearing nicely.

[stiles watson]

Some of us have moved up to Goodyear G614 tires. These G-rated tires are a bit pricey, But the heftiness of these American made tires plus the fact that they are 14 ply adds to my feeling of security.

I also choose to monitor my pressures with Pressure Pro tire monitoring systems. These choices come after having 4 tires fail, not from road hazards, but from tread separation. These were General Tire and a Chinese brand tire. I dumped the Missions on the new rig after 3000 miles.

You have to do what makes you feel comfortable. Confidence in your tires is priceless.

[JimF]

I went with BFG Commercial TA's, any brand with the correct size and weight loading is better than Mission or any other China made tires.

[exav8tr]

Dave and Teresa, I got rid of my Missions in Spokane after two failures. My BIL is a diehard Les Schwab customer so he talked me into going there. I ended up with 4 Towmax tires and so far so good, they are also made in China but at least I have Les Schwab to back them up if something goes wrong, I like that. I don't think you will find an "ST" (standard trailer) tire that is NOT made in China as the demand is not as great for ST tires here so the American Tire makers won't produce them. NOW this doesn't mean you have to run ST's on your Montana. Many are using the LT tires very effectively, The only thing you have to be careful of is to match the wheel pressure rating with the tire pressure rating. i.e. don't buy a tire that needs 110 psi and put them on a wheel with a max pressure of 80 psi. Good luck in your choice, BTW, when my Towmax run the limit, I will probably get the Goodyears also, but I think I will have to buy new wheels also. Maybe some fancy chrome plated Mickey Thompsons or American Racing Mags. NOT.......

One thing for sure: I would dump the Missions soon.......

[sailer]

I put on BFG on all 5 , still have not got a reply from tirco on what they are doing on the missions,,, sailer

[Bill and Lisa]

Phil,
You got me thinking and I went and looked at the Goodyear site for tires. The G614's do run at 110 PSI. I thought it was tough finding pumps that went up to 80 psi! Does anyone know if the rims are rated up that high?

An alternative that presented itself is the Marathon tire (http://www.goodyear.com/rv/products/marathon.html) specifically the 235/80R16 which is "E" rated at 3420 Max load at 80 PSI. The rims should definately be able to handle this pressure as the Missions are max load rated at 80 psi.

The G614's are "G" rated with a max load of 3750#.

Does anyone know what goes into determining the "Letter" rating of a tire? I thought it had to do with max load but am not sure since you can get an "F" rated G614 with a max load of 3415# (at 90 psi)which is 5# LESS than the "E" rated marathon

[Bill and Lisa]

Checking the Goodyear FAQs to see if I could answer my own questions I found this instead which seems to me to say it is NOT a good idea to use LT tires on our rigs!

1. What is the difference in a trailer specific tire and regular passenger tire?

Trailer tires are considered a special category in the current global design standards of Tire and Rim. The major difference is that trailer tires are required to carry 10% more load than an equivalent P-metric size tire. LT type tires are actually on a lower formula and would require a significant size or load change to meet the trailer load requirements.

In the design process, we evaluate what works best under trailer applications/conditions. We typically find that a narrower tread width and a shallower non-skid (tread depth) provides a better overall performance in a free rolling position. This is one case where wider is not better. There are significant design differences with these tires and this explains why trailer tires are in a special category. In addition, that is why we recommend using trailer designed or trailer specific tires in trailer towable applications.

[jjackflash]

I don't understand!
What's this mean?
http://www.goodyear.com/rv/products/g614rst.html
This is a trailer tire.
Does your trailer have the 7000K axles?
If it does,it's rated for 110 PSI.
I have the 3400RL that had the Missions on it and the rims were rated at 80Lbs. This is the reply I received from Tredit Tire & Wheel Co.
"This wheel has been re-rated to have a capacity of
3750#
with the 110psi. This wheel is rated for the "G" rated tires."

Thank you,
Missy Rogers
Inside Sales Manager
Tredit Tire & Wheel Co.
BTW,The GY Marathon is another Chinese bomb!

Jack

[LonnieB]

Dave,
With most items manufactured these days, quality is pretty much brand specific. IMHO this is not the case when it comes to ST rated tires, as they are all built with about the same quality, poor. Here are some pics of 4 Towmax tires I removed from a Grand Junction with less than 2400 miles on them, and just over 1 year old.

[bncinwv]

Lonnie,
I am looking at either the Michelin Xribs or BFG T/A's for purchase over the winter. Do you have any opinions and experience as to the durability of these two brands. IF you don't want to state such on the forum, please PM me, I value your opinion. Thanks,
Bingo

[LonnieB]

Bingo,

Of the two tires you mentioned, the Michelin XPS Rib is the better tire if you don't choke on the price . They are extremely durable and, thanks to the all steel construction, are less prone to punctures in the sidewalls than other tires with polyester, and nylon cords.

The BF Goodrich Radial T/A is also a good tire though, and would most likely work well if you chose to go with them.

That being said, I will add the Bridgestone Duravis R500 commercial light truck tire to the mix. Being a Bridgestone dealer, I'm kinda partial to these, and use them on my own Montana, as well as several other trailers. So far, I have had no problems with this tire on my trailers nor any others I have put them on.

[bncinwv]

The Michelins are around 250, the BFG's are around 150. what is the typical price range for the Bridgestones?? Somewhere in between??
Bingo

[LonnieB]

Right at 190 now. They, like everything else, have had a price increase.

[bncinwv]

Thanks Lonnie,
Sounds like I have three options now for the winter replacement.
Bingo

[c5racer]

Might want to check the price of Michelin's at costco.com.

[exav8tr]

Lonnie, Those Towmax look pretty rough. I have about 5000 miles on mine and they look like new. Wouldn't you agree that the type of towing and what kind of terrain one is towing over has a lot to do with tire life. Those tires look like they have been thru the very bottom of the Grand Canyon and back. I would think that for those of us that don't do alot of off-roading this might not be typical. I do, and I recommend everyone do the same, look closely at my tires before each pull and everytime I get out to Pee or grab a cup a joe. As we plan on keeping our Montana for quite awhile I'm sure I will get a feel for each tire I buy, hopefully that won't be too often. I think everyone on the forum values your professional expertise, as I do.

[LonnieB]

Phil,

The photos make the tires look much worse than they actually were. Where there were no problems, the tread was still about 90% good. There was a considerable amount of mud on them, but not from offroading, the road theses people live on is dirt, and when they pulled in to park their trailer for the summer, it had rained quite a bit. In fairness to the tires, I will say I have no idea how well the tires were taken care of, all I have to go on is what the owner told me.

Yes, I absolutely 100% agree, that the type of towing and the terrain one chooses to travel over has a considerable effect on tire life. Thoroughly inspecting your tires before each pull, and at every stop, along with staying within the speed and load rating, is a must. I'm like you, and most everyone else on this forum, I keep a close eye on my tires, but unlike most everyone else, I do get off road on almost every trip. I'm not talking about Baja racing, or rock climbing, mostly just dirt and gravel forrest roads, and when the going gets rough, it's granny gear slow .

Thanks for bringing this up Phil, it's a very valid and important point.

[Thunderman]

I went with the BF Goodrich Commercial TA.