Airstream Tire Failure Poll

[Bruce B]

My tire "failure" was identified before the tire could really have done any damage. I identified the failing tire with RoadForce balance measurements before the tire fell apart.
Bruce

[Phoenix]

Note: In investigating 16-inch tire failures, it appears that the two 16-inch failures reported in this poll were actually 15-inch, 225/75x15, Goodyear Marathon tires. One was a blowout with tread separation, and the other was a tire stem failure.

Therefore, as of 07/05/12, there have been NO 16-INCH TIRE FAILURES reported in this poll.

[A W Warn]

If you do a follow up poll, it would be interesting to add "what brand of tires are on my trailer now".

[Phoenix]

From following the tire posts on this forum, the people that have stayed with 15-inch wheels seem to be switching to Michelin LTX M/S, "XL" rated tires in 235/75x15, which appear to be similar to the old Load Range C tires with 50 psi max inflation.

Of the people that have switched to 16-inch wheels, most seem to be buying Michelin LTX

[Phoenix]

From following the tires posts on this forum, the people that stayed with 15-inch wheels seem to be switching to Michelin LTX M/S, "XL" rated tires in size 235/75x15, which appear to be the same as Load Range C tires, with max pressure of 50 psi.

Of those who switched to 16-inch wheels, most seem to buy Michelin LTX M/S, Load Range E tires in size 225/75x16, which have max pressure of 80 psi. I estimate about half are running 80 psi, and others appear to be using somewhere between 65 and 72 psi. I think the LTX M/S is popular because of price and the fact that Airstream offers these as a factory option.

A few have switched to Michelin XPS Ribs in Load Range E, size 225/75x16; although, they are in the minority and appear to be mostly 19- or 20-foot Airstreams with single axles. Users are so few, that I am unsure what pressures they are running, although I do recall a couple saying they use 80 psi (including me).

Even fewer have switched to BF Goodrich Commercial T/As in Load Range E, size 225/75x16, which are very similar to XPS Ribs and are all-steel construction, too.

Regarding those that switched to Michelins, I do not recall anyone reporting subsequent tire failures; although, I may have missed the posting. If there were any Michelin failures, they have pretty much gone under the RADAR.

I was planning to do another poll for 16-inch wheels and tires, but there are probably too few people that have switched to provide a significant amount of data. Also, I hope that poll would be really boring, with hardly any failures.

The BBS software used for this site is not very conducive to polls with a lot of questions, and construction is very time consuming. Also, you pretty much have to get it right the first time; as the poll cannot be corrected or updated easily. I suspect that a moderator may be able to edit them, but I'm not sure they would want to devote the time to trying to fix problems.

Perhaps, later in the year, enough people will have switched to make the creation of a new poll worthwhile. There appears to be a lot of tire failures this summer as people hit the road, so we can revisit this subject closer to the holidays.

Thanks for the inquiry...

[Gene]

Phoenix, first, thanks for keeping this going and providing the analysis for those who don't want to read the whole poll.

I have this vague memory of someone having a problem with a Michelin a couple of years ago, but I'm unsure. I can't remember what the problem was either. I had a Michelin on the Safari pick up a screw and drove thousands on miles with a very, very slow leak until I finally got it fixed, but that's not a tire failure problem.

Gene

[switz]

I had to post "NO" failures on the ST tires because I only towed the trailer from the dealer in Los Angeles to Phoenix (about 450 miles). At that point in time, the trailer was about three months old from build completion date.

Having started reading the "tire issues" threads on this forum before taking delivery of the trailer, I was aware of the "ST" tires issues and immediately changed all five tires to Michelin LTX (P) 235/75R15 XL on the factory 15" wheels to preclude the chance of the notorious "ST" tire issues.

Since the tire switch, I have only towed the unit about 150 miles for two trips across the CAT scales. The trailer is perhaps a quarter inch higher off the ground.

[polarlyse]

I have been sort of, kind of following this thread on tires. For the time being I am satisfied with the relatiely new GYM- 15"ers that came along with our, new to us, '01 Excella. Drove them hard last summer in hot weather with no problems. But I will keep an eye on them. Thinking ahead when they are due for replacement I've been paying attention to threads like this one. I like the wheels on the trailer ( original Alcoa style) and don't have any interest in upping to 16".

My question is: Among those that have changed tires and stayed in the 15" wheels have you found that the weight capacity is adaquat for safely handling a 30' AS ?????

Thanks all, see ya on the road sometime.

[SteveH]

Interesting poll and interesting data, however it seems that even as extensive as the poll is, it is lacking a significant group's input. That is, the ones like myself who have never had a tire failure. After you give the input that you have never had a failure, there is no more information asked. I took the poll and input my information so long ago, I had forgotten about it.

To be meaningful, I think there should be a section for input from those that have never had a failure about what they have done that could contribute to no failures. I know this could get really overloaded with data, but the poll actually only looks at one selective group.

As an example, did those who have had no failures drive slower, did they carry less weight, did they run higher air pressure, did they drive in mostly a cooler climate? If most of the people that had never had a failure ran max air pressure in their tires, that would be significant.

[Gene]

Creating a poll is not easy and Phoenix should be congratulated for doing a pretty good job. I would like to see a way of knowing what percentage of failures according to each brand and specific tire, but the poll is already very long. Obviously there are going to be a lot of Marathon failures because there are a lot of Marathons, but what percent? There appears to be a slow, but steady migration to Michelins, but we have no percentages on that either.

Gene

[SteveH]

Originally Posted by CrawfordGene

Creating a poll is not easy and Phoenix should be congratulated for doing a pretty good job. I would like to see a way of knowing what percentage of failures according to each brand and specific tire, but the poll is already very long. Obviously there are going to be a lot of Marathon failures because there are a lot of Marathons, but what percent? There appears to be a slow, but steady migration to Michelins, but we have no percentages on that either.

Gene

Yes, I agree and in no way was trying to slight Phoenix's efforts.

The failures by brand of tire, and by country of origin of tire is actually in there.

I went to 16's on my Airstream, but went with Goodyear LT's, not Michilin because of cost. Haven't had them too long (little over a year), but happy with them so far.

I never had a failure with 15" ST's, but lived constantly in fear of the damage that would happen if I did have a failure.

I have a friend in our unit that refuses to use ANY steel belted tire (runs bias ply 700X 15) because he maintains it's the steel belt that does the damage to the trailer when the tire fails. Might be some merrit to that as well.

[Gene]

I don't know that any tire is made without steel belts anymore.

The info I'd like to know is how many failures per mile with each specific tire—that is what I was trying to say. I don't think you can figure that out from the poll. Nonetheless, there is lots of good info in the poll.

Gene

[SteveH]

Originally Posted by CrawfordGene

I don't know that any tire is made without steel belts anymore.

Gene

You won't find them at your well known stores. Think my friend buys them from a farm Co-Op.

[mhilley]

Have had 3 Goodyear Explodeathon blowouts. Two were new within a year and the 3rd was older. Using MAXX now.

[SteveH]

Originally Posted by mhilley

Have had 3 Goodyear Explodeathon blowouts. Two were new within a year and the 3rd was older. Using MAXX now.

Just curious here, do you remember how much air pressure you were running?

[Phoenix]

I plan to do another poll for people that switched to non-ST tires, but I haven't got to it yet. One thing that has deterred this effort is how cumbersome a poll is to construct, and then to edit and correct before posting, using the underlying software. Then, after it's posted, there's no way to make additions or corrections.

In any case, there is a lot of information buried in the poll above; but one needs to track each response from individual Airstream owners, which is a tedious process. Perhaps, I can do that one day; although, the info is becoming dated even though I encourage people with new tire failures to update the poll with new, current data.

One thing that is not immediately apparent, is that some entries contain errors. For example, the two responses that indicate 16-inch tires failed seem to imply that LT tires may also have problems on Airstreams. However, if you track the individual responses by User ID, those two failures were actually 15-inch GYMs. I'm not trying to find fault in the responses, only to point out the fact that, as with any poll, some data may be flawed.

In a detailed analysis of each User ID's responses, apparent incorrect data could be adjusted, assuming it is an obvious error and not an intentional response.

Regarding GYMs that did NOT fail, after reading all of the tire posts on this site, I think that a general summary statement would be that owners probably drove at 65 mph or slower (many driving 55-60 max); they kept their tires inflated to at least 60 psi (probably most used 65-72 psi); and they traveled mostly in areas where summer temperatures were below 100 degrees F. For those who purchased new tires and had no failures on their previous GYMs, please feel free to post your details in this thread.

In hindsight, I could have added certain questions, and others could have been worded differently, to get a more thorough summary of tire problems. However, this data appears to be more information than other RV sites have been able to gather. For that, I thank the Airstreamers who took (and continue to take) the time to contribute to this poll.

Phoenix

[Bill M.]

I run the P metric Michlen tires on my 25'trailer and am confident with them. But not on a 32' with Al wheels and 65 inflation pressure. I think you need load range D tires. I put GYM on mine because I only pull it a few hundred miles a year. If I traveled in it I would look hard for a LT load range D tire of some brand.

[overlander63]

Originally Posted by CrawfordGene

I don't know that any tire is made without steel belts anymore.

The info I'd like to know is how many failures per mile with each specific tire—that is what I was trying to say. I don't think you can figure that out from the poll. Nonetheless, there is lots of good info in the poll.

Gene

There is at least one, Chinese, of course.
They are Turnpike 7.00x15 load range D. Build code shows end of 2011.

[macofpei]

My tire failed in the fall of 2011 as we were returning from the Rally at PTown, aprox Oct 14th. I had never had a blow out before and was quite supprised how much my Airstream shook. I took pictures and hope I can post them on here.

[JamuJoe]

Unfortunately this very detailed poll will be inconclusive as it does not address the success rate of various brands in use, only the number of failures and their causes. It will thus show the greatest number of failures on the most common original tires (Goodyear Marathons)