2016 Sport Bambi 22FB Tire Upgrade ?

[jcole]

Hello Everyone, We are newbies to Airstream ownership, having recently picked up our new trailer a week ago. I am concerned about the opinions of many here about the standard tires that Airstream uses & would like to upgrade to a higher grade 15 inch. Any opinions regarding what tires to purchase & whether I will need different rims. I know nothing about tires or rim sizing so any advice would be much appreciated. Thanks

[Ron A]

I think you will find a lot of information on tires. Whatever you decide make sure the tires you pick will carry the weight of your trailer. Many including myself found I had to upgrade rim size along with tire size to carry the weight.


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[jcole]

I know nothing about trailer tires, thought I could just get a different make other than Good Year with a higher load rating & still keep it in 15" tire ?

[Ron A]

jcole,

There in lies the difficulty. Staying with the15 inch tires you are likely going to need to stay with an ST (special trailer tire). If you go with the Michelin tires as many on this forum have for light trucks or SUVs. My understanding is to take the weight on the side of the tire and divide by 1.10 this is the weight the tire will carry for your trailer (am not a tire engineer this is only my understanding of what I have read). Therefore most people have to go up one rim size and tire size unless you stay with the ST rated tire. Do some more research, make sure you understand the difference before making a change. Safety is priority one. My ST tires were speed rated for not more than 65 mph, careful not to overload, keep a close eye on tire pressure before each trip & would suggest considering changing ST tires every 3 to 5 years. Don't be in a rush to change, do your research first, be safe and enjoy some camping.

Ron


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[Mrjkq]

Originally Posted by Ron A

jcole,

There in lies the difficulty. Staying with the15 inch tires you are likely going to need to stay with an ST (special trailer tire). If you go with the Michelin tires as many on this forum have for light trucks or SUVs. My understanding is to take the weight on the side of the tire and divide by 1.10 this is the weight the tire will carry for your trailer (am not a tire engineer this is only my understanding of what I have read). Therefore most people have to go up one rim size and tire size unless you stay with the ST rated tire. Do some more research, make sure you understand the difference before making a change. Safety is priority one. My ST tires were speed rated for not more than 65 mph, careful not to overload, keep a close eye on tire pressure before each trip & would suggest considering changing ST tires every 3 to 5 years. Don't be in a rush to change, do your research first, be safe and enjoy some campin

Ron


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You are somewhat correct about the dividing issue of minus 10 percent, its called derating. The big picture is weight load after derating & some LT or LTX tires are very capably of carrying trailer weight & supporting the side walls on these tires. I'm in the market to replace my GYM & I"m torn between the LT & ST tire argument, for me it's either the Michelin Defender LT 235/75 R15 or the Maxxis ST 225/75 R15 E-rated tire. I believe both are a good choice but there is a liability issue putting the Michelin tire, technically considered a passenger car tire on a TT.

[guskmg]

You may be OK using Maxxis tires on your 22', but on my 35' SOD, I went through 21 tires in nine years. Goodyear, Carlilse, Maxxis, all the same problem, tread separation. Personally, I would by Michelin and forget about tire problems. In years past I have used excluvely Michelin on all my vehicles and trailers and never had a blow out or tread separation.
guskmg

[AnnArborBob]

Since you have a single axle trailer, your biggest challenge is going to be finding a pair of 15 inch non-ST tires that can carry the weight of your trailer (about 2,250 lbs per tire with the safety factor being the weight carried on the tongue of about 400 lbs.) There are so many different tires out there that I would head down to your local professional tire store and work with them. You might find that you have to upgrade to 16 inch rims.

[jcole]

Originally Posted by jcole

Hello Everyone, We are newbies to Airstream ownership, having recently picked up our new trailer a week ago. I am concerned about the opinions of many here about the standard tires that Airstream uses & would like to upgrade to a higher grade 15 inch. Any opinions regarding what tires to purchase & whether I will need different rims. I know nothing about tires or rim sizing so any advice would be much appreciated. Thanks

Any thoughts on the Loadstar ST225/75R-15" Load Range E 10 Ply. Being 28.4 " in diameter, Max PSI 80LBS its about the same size as the GYM now on my 2016 Sport 22 FB. I am thinking the extra 2 Ply giving the added strength to prevent any possible blowouts while still staying within the max load range of the original tires.