First Time Tire Blowout

[ChiefKB]

I am a long time Montana owner, my most current rig is a 2014 3850FL fifth wheel. While on the way to a recent camping week I experienced a first time tire blowout of my drivers side rear wheel which scared the bejeebers out of me. The result was major damage to my skirting, body, stairs, underlayment and who knows what else. It goes in for insurance estimate and repairs tomorrow so I will surely find out more.

This is my first tire blow out ever. 3850FL has less than 2,000 miles. After the blow out I did some checking on the remaining tires. On the opposite side I found that the rear tire had much more weare than the front tire, and even more wear to the inside of the tire. This caused me to head for the nearest tire store that would actually change it, finding a Blain's Farm and Fleet.

The factory tires are Goodyear Marathon ST235/80R16. The tire that I had to replace that I got from Farm & Fleet is the same size but a CARLISLE brand.

So I am looking for advise on what to do. The original GOODYEAR tires have little wear plus the CARLISLE is brand new. My major concern is preventng another tire blowout. I live in Wisconsin and generally do only summer trips, less than 500 miles, but that doesn't rule out future trips of greater miles.

Thanks in advance for your comments.

[gary s swenson]

Try and go with a "G" rated tire (14 ply). They are rated for 100-110 psi. I put these on our 2001 3280. And they are on our new 2017 3721RL. If you go this way you need to check that your rims will support 100 psi, if not then you can cut back on the psi. The current brand is Goodyear . But we ran an off name tire on the old unit that were used on cattle and horse trailers. Hope this helps.

[rohrmann]

Your wheels will be rated 110 psi and 3750 lbs weight capacity. You have the Goodyear G614, the Sailun S637, and there are a few other brands that others have posted about that they say works for them. All the Montana rigs are now coming from the factory fitted with G range tires. We went through five of the Marathons, never had damage, before we put the G614's on the rig, and have not had a failure since, and that is with well over 45,000 miles. Good luck with the repairs.

[DQDick]

Marathons are know for problems when put on the heavier rigs. We changed to Goodyear 614 on the old rig and got the Sailuns OEM on our 2017.

[mlh]

This tire section was started because Marathon tires were giving so much trouble. They have been known around here as China Bombs. If you keep using them you WILL have another blowout. Not might, will have another. Get a set of G rated tires and solve the problem. Goodyear in the past has been good to pay to have your camper repaired if you kept the old tire.
Lynwood

[sambam]

Judging from your MOC number, you have been a member for a long time. If you have been rolling on Marathons, the fact this is your first blow-out amazes me. Your rims should be rated for 110 psi, so the G rated tire is an excellent upgrade. Hope you get a good response from your insurance company and are back on the road soon.

[Kenw]

Please make sure that you are towing level! If you are not the front (low front) or rear tire (high front) will receive more load/ware. This will also explain the uneven tire ware that you are experiencing. You have an expensive 5th wheel, purchase the best tires that you can afford, do not purchase the cheapest tires out there! The standard tires that these rigs come with are crap! You will only find your self in the same camp next year. Go to the tire form here and read! Either the Goodyear G614 or the Salun tires seem to be the preferred tire in the tire form.
Good luck!!!!!

[Butch & Kathy]

Same thing happened to me with 2K miles on the rig. $2500 damage. I immediately switched to Sailun S637 tires.

[cw3jason]

No matter what brand tire you choose, and I agree with the G rated choices above. If you don't get your alignment fixed as noted by your uneven tire where, you can kiss those brand new G rated tires goodbye as well. you need to fix the root cause of the tire overheating before putting on new sneakers.

[ChiefKB]

Originally Posted by mlh

This tire section was started because Marathon tires were giving so much trouble. They have been known around here as China Bombs. If you keep using them you WILL have another blowout. Not might, will have another. Get a set of G rated tires and solve the problem. Goodyear in the past has been good to pay to have your camper repaired if you kept the old tire.
Lynwood

How would I go about contacting/speaking to Goodyear about repairs. In the least I am out of pocket for the blown tire as well as my comprehensive deductable.

[ChiefKB]

What is the consensus on which tire is better, the Goodyear G614 or the Salun S637?

[ChiefKB]

Originally Posted by cw3jason

No matter what brand tire you choose, and I agree with the G rated choices above. If you don't get your alignment fixed as noted by your uneven tire where, you can kiss those brand new G rated tires goodbye as well. you need to fix the root cause of the tire overheating before putting on new sneakers.

My rig run slightly higher at the hitch, but I mean really slightly. The other issue is why the wear on the inside of the tire?

[CaptnJohn]

Originally Posted by ChiefKB

What is the consensus on which tire is better, the Goodyear G614 or the Salun S637?

The GY has a good rep and a search found very few failures. The Sailun also has a good rep and a search found zero failures. Additionally, Sailun are about half the cost. I put 5 Sailun on my Montana.

[cw3jason]

Originally Posted by ChiefKB

My rig run slightly higher at the hitch, but I mean really slightly. The other issue is why the wear on the inside of the tire?

its not a nose high issue, its either a camber issue, too heavy and you will get inside tire wear, or a toe issue. the rear tires are not in line with the front causing wear. the toe issue is easy to fix, because you should have correct track installed. improper camber will require proper loading or bending the axle. when unloaded both axles should bend up at the center (camber). If one is flat or curved downward this is not good. If the 2014 did not come with correct track, then you will need to bring it to an axle shop and check your alignment and have them bend the axles into alignment.

[bigfrank]

I had a tire go bad but as luck would have it I caught it before it blew I called goodyear to see if they give me any credit on the purchase of G614,s and they were very helpful and wanted to know if I had any damage to my trailer as they would pay to repair it so call goodyear be fore using your ins co, they gave me a credit off the purchase of the 614,s hope this info helps you
Big Frank

[phillyg]

You said you only had 2000 miles on the tires, but I'm assuming the tires were at least three years old, and three years is all we should expect from ST tires, according to the "experts." Seriously though, many folks report failures as early as three years, self included. I don't know if the GY or Sailuns are really comparable. I went with Sailuns based on no known complaints.

[bigred715]

After you buy your new tires get your alignment done. I think a lot of trailers don't come aligned from factory.

[Ram Montana High Country]

Would a TPMS help catch it before it blows?

[mlh]

Yes and no. If the tire leaks some before it blows, yes. If it just goes bang, no. What it will do is give you time before the tire does serious damage to your camper to stop. I keep my mirrors set to where I can keep an eye on my trailer tires. We went to Wyoming before these TPMS were available and had 3 tires go bad on the way, one blowout. The other 2 tires were smoking before they blew out.
Lynwood

[Clays390]

Our rig had the Goodyears on it when we were dealing on it. We refused to even pull it off the lot until the tires were up graded. Started out with the Firestone Transforce HT's that have been trouble free for the past 2 years. Just pulled the trigger on a set of the S637's. $152.00 a tire, got $275 for the Firestones in trade. SCORE!!!!