Marathon tires

[J-KB]

I have Good Year Marathon tires, are these the ones that are bad ?

[bncinwv]

In my opinion, if they are stamped "Made in China" on the sidewall, they are unreliable.
Bingo

[DQDick]

Many problems have been reported with them and some folks have reported no problems. At the very least if you have them on your rig and your rig is heavy you should have a tire monitor to try and get a heads up if there is trouble. If you email me at dqdick10432@yahoo.com I'll send you a copy of an article from a few years back and you can make up your own mind if it has value or not. It was a regular thing at the National Rally for a number of years for someone to show up with a blown Marathon and give Keystone hell about them. For me, we went with Goodyear G614's and I'm very happy I did.

[1retired06]

They are ok for lighter rigs, but not the heavier ones and lots of folks have had problems with them. I will not run them and recommend you go with a quality LT tire. The damage from a blowout adds up fast.

[NCFischers]

A tire pressure monitor did me no good when the tire exploded and caused $1500 dollars in damage. If I were you, I'd get rid of them.

[GreatWhite]

We are starting our 2nd year with them. Not full timing and putting that kind of mileage on ours.. but, just finishing up our summer trip that started at the Rally at 7 Feathers.. 7+ weeks on the road this year. No issues. However, I DO keep rolling at 55mph.. Only creeping up to 60 once in a while before backing off.

[sambam]

It looks like you have one of the heavier Montana's. In my opinion, you should be looking at a G-rated tire for it.

[7.3Ford]

Good Year Marathon = China Bombs.

Since my 2010 Montana 3665RE is totaled, been looking at 2015 Montana's, they now come with Trailer King Tires, not sure where they are made.

[waynemoore]

Trailer King = China bomb. These tires are sometimes ok on a weekend rig. Always under 10,000 lbs never over 65 mph. I had them on my last Mountineer and they were marginal at best. That being said using the formula above I did get about 12'000 miles out go them. My new 3582rl is just to heavy for them. I changed them out to Bridgstone LT tires as recommended on here.

[rafael33155]

quote:Originally posted by J-KB

I have Good Year Marathon tires, are these the ones that are bad ?


good thing you ask i was coming home this pass weekend when i saw a 5th wheel on the side of the road as i passed him i notice he had a blowout so i stop to help out he was already on the phone with AAA so i ask him a couple of question and went to see the tire guess what they had MARATHON CHINA BOMB on the rig so the blowout rip the hydraulic line from the rear leveler and broke the fender as far as i could see so i ask him how fast where you going he said 75mph i ask him did he knew that the tires where only rated for 65mph and the tire where made in china he had no idea i told him change the tires when you get home right away guess we gonna have to put the word out more to get this horrendous tires off the street

[bigskyjimmy]

it always surprises me when people with ANY brand heavier 5th never heard of ST E rated tires having blowout problems it is a good thing you asked Before you have problems ,like was said before those tires are fine for lighter rigs but the bigger boys need G rated LT tires

[Mark N.]

There is a TON of personal evidence here that these tires can cause serious problems. I dumped my Marathons almost immediately. I still have to wonder if Keystone listens and gives a crap. How often does something have to fail before someone makes a decision to change?

[bigskyjimmy]

None of Montana's competitors give a Crap either they all use some brand of ST E rated tires

[sambam]

quote:Originally posted by bigskyjimmy

None of Montana's competitors give a Crap either they all use some brand of ST E rated tires

Maybe if one manufacturer would take the leap and make G rated tires standard on the larger rigs, others would follow suit. Of course, this would increase the price tag a little, and maybe no one wants to be the first, I don't know. After all, at least for Montana, they seem to know the big ones need (or should have) G's. Why else would they put rims on that can accommodate them?

[mazboy]

yes, these are the ones. when you can move up to a G rated.

[Crystal2002]

I'm new to this forum, I wish I had joined in sooner. I have a 2011 Montana 3465sa & pd. extra for the Goodyear Marathon's (China I found out later) On my trip to Florida this past winter, 1 tire blew out on the way down & I had a double blowout on the other side on the way home. What a Nightmare!! The treads separated from the tires. Damage to my rig alone was over $1500. Not to mention all lost time & aggrevation getting it all back together. Thanks to the info here I'll be looking for G rated tires.

[JandC]

Our first Montana we purchased used and the previous owner was a retired truck driver. It had G614's on it. The Montana we have now didn't move from the dealer's lot until he installed our new G614 tires. Heading over 30,000 miles towing Montana's and have never had a tire issue.

[jlb27537]

quote:Originally posted by J-KB

I have Good Year Marathon tires, are these the ones that are bad ?


John, The Marathon tires are not bad tires if used on a light trailer. You have a heavy trailer.

I would suggest you weigh your truck and trailer loaded for a trip. Once you know your axle weights, only then can you make a decision as what you need for tires.

All ST tires are speed limited to 65mph and do not have a reserve capacity, most are loaded to their limits thus a high failure rate.

Not knowing any details about the 2500 truck, I might also question if it is loaded and towing with in it's limits.

[KathyandDave]

Marathons are bad for our big trailers. Despite creeping at 55, our tread separated. We were lucky not to have a blowout. The Goodyear rep let on that the marathons are only rated for 10,000 miles or less. We got G614's. Warning, you must also replace the wheels.

[rohrmann]

Only need to replace the wheels if they are not rated 110 psi & 3750 lbs load capacity. The newer Montana's have come with the heavier rated wheel for several years now. Ours even had the G614's as an option, but we were not aware of the issue and bought ours off the dealer lot new, with Marathons. At least it came with the good wheels on it

[Carole]

Used our 358rlt Mountaineer for almost 2 years with Marathons, but would not take long trip with them. Called Goodyear and made a good trade for the G 614's at Wingfoot Tires. Glad to get them off and have peace of mind. Priceless.

[pkhalin]

So, a couple questions. I too, have a 3582RL. I guess the over/under on a heavy carriage is about 10K? Any idea on the breaking point to get a trade with Goodyear? I have the Marathons on my 2013. I live in Centennial CO. I've hauled to/from Blue Mesa Res, Gunnison CO (260 mi each way), Rocky Mtn Ntl Park (105 mi each way), Lake Havasu AZ (970 mi each way and I40 is a bear!). No blow outs, no trouble. I'm sure the general thought here will be I'm living on borrowed time. Thanks for any input.