Tires

[swanny]

Found this on another site I belong to.

This is how to determine if the tire is made in the U.S.A.

Stamped DOT BE XX XXX XXX

Almost all tires have on the side wall where they are made (made in USA). Not all so you need to look on the side wall for the DOT #. The BE after the DOT means this BF Goodrich tire owned by Michelin was made in Tuscaloosa,AL. The last 4 xxxx of the DOT is the day and year that tire was made. Example:3210 would be the 32 week of 2010. Remember you do not want your tires too old when buying new. Below is a list of more American plants and their 2 letter code after DOT.

BE B.F. Goodrich/Michelin Tuscaloosa,AL
BF B.F Goodrich /Michelin Woodburn,IN
AN B.F. Goodrich/Michelin Opelika,AL
UP Cooper Finlay,OH
UT Cooper Texarkana,AR
DA Dunlop/Goodyear Buffalo N.Y.
JJ/MD/PU Goodyear Gadsden, AL
JN/MJ/PY Goodyear Topeka, KS
JE/MC/PT Goodyear Dansville, VA
JT/MK/TA Goodyear Union City , TN
JP/MP/PL Kelly-Springfield/Goodyear Tyler, Texas
JF/MM/PJ Kelly-Springfield/Goodyear Fayetteville, NC
CC Yokahama Tire Salem, VA
VE/YE/YU/8B Bridgestone/Firestone Des Moines,IA
2M/3M Bridgestone/Firestone Bloomington,IL
D2/E3/W1/Y7 Bridgestone/Firestone Lavergne, TE
2C/4D//5D Bridgestone/Firestone Morrison, TE
DY Denman Warren,OH

I called Goodyear and asked where Marathon Trailer Service tires are made, the majority is made in china, but some are made in the U.S.A., you just have to check the DOT.

Hope this helps in finding tires made in the USA. Here's a full list of manufacturing locations
http://www.tire-information-world.com/dot-codes.html

kevin

[Parts Ed]

Thanks for the info, I will have to check my DOT numbers out!!

[Art-n-Marge]

I've seen the table of tire manufacturers in the world. This is a very short list meaning most tires are made overseas.

I've confirmed my Marabombs are made in China, but the cost prevents me from swapping them out until they are at least 5 years old (they are 2 1/2 years old right now). Unfortunately, due to family commitments we haven't gone out much or even very far. This infrequent use can't be good, but we don't have a choice.

[Sniperduce]

The country of origin is required to be printed on the tire information on the sidewalls. My Marathons that came on our 2011 Mountaineer sure enough are labeled "made in china". Oddly enough we've towed over 10K miles without any tire issues thank God.

[richfaa]

We have General Grabber T/r tires on the Montana. Why we have them is a long sad story that involved U bolts, Axles and having no other choices. They are a sturdy tires with now @ 7K miles and showing no signs of wear. Our tires show they are made in the Chech Republic so they are not "China Bombs)

It is a E rated tire and the tire load rating is 3083 ..not adequate for the 3400 but they won't wear out
"About General Tire
General Tire was founded in 1915.
General Tire is part of Continental Tire North America, Inc. CTNA, based in Fort Mill, South Carolina, is a company of Germany-based Continental AG. With targeted annual sales of more than €26.4 billion ($40 billion US) for 2008, the Continental Corporation is one of the top automotive suppliers worldwide. As a supplier of brake systems, systems and components for the powertrain and chassis, instrumentation, infotainment solutions, vehicle electronics, tires and technical elastomers, the corporation contributes towards enhanced driving safety and protection of the global climate. Continental is also a competent partner in networked automobile communication. Today, the corporation employs approximately 150,000 people at nearly 200 locations in 36 countries

[bighornram]

Our trailer is a week old, "Made in China"

[moutard2]

So much for the myth that Marathon's are now made in the USA!

[jackel1959]

quote:Originally posted by bighornram

Our trailer is a week old, "Made in China"

Are you saying the manufacturer date was a week ago or you picked it up a week ago? I have been hearing that Goodyear supposedly was moving manufacture of the Marathons back to the states, but don't know for sure. I just fired of an e-mail to them asking that question and am awaiting a reply.

Jack

[bighornram]

quote:Originally posted by jackel1959

Are you saying the manufacturer date was a week ago or you picked it up a week ago? I have been hearing that Goodyear supposedly was moving manufacture of the Marathons back to the states, but don't know for sure. I just fired of an e-mail to them asking that question and am awaiting a reply.

Jack

We took delivery of the trailer a week ago. Took it to Discount Tire yesterday, they commented the tires are a year old. G614's are $300.88 at Discount Tire.

[BB_TX]

Here is a list of all the country codes for tires.

[bighornram]

I'm planning to replace the Marathon tires with g614's. Do the rims also need to be replaced? The 614's require 110 lbs. inflation!

[jackel1959]

quote:Originally posted by bighornram

I'm planning to replace the Marathon tires with g614's. Do the rims also need to be replaced? The 614's require 110 lbs. inflation!

bighornram,
There has been much discussion about this on the forum too. You should have a weight and pressure rating stamped on the backside of your wheels on one of the spokes. Ours indicates "MAX LOAD 6/3200 lbs. (6 LUGS) & 8/3750 lbs. (8 LUGS) @110 PSI". Here is a photo of what it looks like on ours....yours should be similar.

Wheel Stamp:

[DQDick]

The problem is that the Goodyear man told me the 614's have to be on a 17" rim was he wrong? Our rims seem to be 16".

Dick

[mhs4771]

Sounds like you better find a different Goodyear man. I think you will find that everyone here who has changed to the 614s have 16 inch rims with 16 inch 614s

[DQDick]

Thanks! I was concerned about his knowledge of the situation and knew the folks here would know the right answer. One of the bad things about living in the boonies is that nothing is close. The good thing is that it's about the same distance to three large towns. Once we discover someone doesn't know what they are talking about we can try another one in the next town.
Thanks again!

Dick

[bighornram]

quote:Originally posted by jackel1959

bighornram,
There has been much discussion about this on the forum too. You should have a weight and pressure rating stamped on the backside of your wheels on one of the spokes. Ours indicates "MAX LOAD 6/3200 lbs. (6 LUGS) & 8/3750 lbs. (8 LUGS) @110 PSI". Here is a photo of what it looks like on ours....yours should be similar.

Wheel Stamp:

Thanks!!
That is EXACTLY what I saw when they pulled the tire off. 614's on now.

[jackel1959]

I have read and re-read this e-mail response from Goodyear and can see they are just offering "Lip Service" on this issue. I was very specific when I contacted them regarding where the Marathon tire is manufactured and will be manufactured in the future. This is their response.....I am not impressed. OBTW I never mentioned replacing my tires with Goodyear's, but only that I had replaced them with another brand after a failure.

"Sent by: Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company Consumer Relations 728 1144 East Market Street
Akron, OH 44316
Voice #: 800.321.2136
Fax #: 330.796.6829

Jack,

Thank you for contacting our web site and for thinking of Goodyear for your replacement tire needs.

Goodyear is the only major US owned and operated tire manufacturer and our world headquarters are located in Akron, Ohio

We are a global corporation with manufacturing plants throughout the world.

However, the vast majority of Goodyear tires sold in the US are manufactured in our North America tire plants.

We are always concerned when we learn that we have failed to exceed a customer's expectations with regards to our product or service.

All Goodyear tires come with a six year limited warranty against workmanship or material related conditions that have occurred during the manufacturing process. During the first 12 months or 2/32" of tread wear, which ever comes first, workmanship or material conditions are replaced with a comparable Goodyear product free of charge, mounting and balancing are included.

After the no charge period, tires experiencing a workmanship or material related condition that occurred during the manufacturing process are replaced with a comparable Goodyear product on a pro-rata basis with the consumer paying for the mounting and balancing.

Without inspecting the tire in question we could not comment as to it's cause or condition.

Goodyear relies on a network of retail locations, both Company Owned and Independent to determine warranty eligibility. If your tire is still available and has not been inspected by an authorized Goodyear retailer we would suggest you do so. You can locate your nearest authorized retailer by calling toll free 1-800-466-3932 or on our web site at the following
path: http://www.goodyeardealers.com/

If after inspecting your tires the authorized retailer is unable to assist you please ask them to contact our Customer Assistance Center toll free at
1-800-321-2136 to discuss your situation with one of our Customer Assistance Professionals. Reference file# 1203907

Sincerely
Kim
Consumer Relations"

[sreigle]

[/quote]
We took delivery of the trailer a week ago. Took it to Discount Tire yesterday, they commented the tires are a year old. G614's are $300.88 at Discount Tire.
[/quote]

Suggest you shop around and even email tire stores asking for a quote and telling them you are shopping for the best deal. I did that when in California last year and got 5 G614's, tax, mounted, balanced, stems, and disposal of old tires for under $1200. That's for 5 G614's.

[sreigle]

quote:Originally posted by DQDick

The problem is that the Goodyear man told me the 614's have to be on a 17" rim was he wrong? Our rims seem to be 16".

Dick

Our G614's are on the 16" rims that came with this 2007 Montana.

http://www.goodyearrvtires.com/tire-selector.aspx
then click on the "--->" for the G614 RST tire.

[hunts800]

We're leaving on a long trip to Canada on 9/6, so after all the threads here, I decided to put on G614s, even though my trailer is virtually new with new Marathons. Best deal I could find - and I looked hard, including the internet - was a Goodyear dealer at $1485 out the door for four G614s, plus he is giving me a $125 allowance for the four Marathons, bringing the total to around $1000 bucks! Luckily, my rims are rated for the 110 psi tires.

Still pricey, but two years ago had a TowMax blowout on a Cougar TT which ripped out the drain pipes from both the black and grey water tanks, causing a cancellation of a trip, plus $3000 damage to the trailer (thank God for insurance).

At any rate - seems like G614s are the ONLY safe game in town when it comes to tires!