Goodyear Marathon Disaster Adverted

[Bill M.]

To me the wear on the tire could be from a belt shift in the tire. Could be from alignment. I would put my money on a bad tire.

Still would get the axle checked. All Airstream checks is the distance from the edge of each wheel to the center of the hitch ball socket. Not sure how one would adjust camber on one of these axles.

[WestieHouse]

Originally Posted by Timberock

Thanks for your concern. We contacted Dexter Axle to locate a alignment shop in the Seattle area. They recommended Kimball's Alignment in Tacoma, WA. Service took about 3 hours for a dual axle trailer and ran $340 with tax.

The tech working on the trailer make me ensure we were only going a short distance at low speeds when he caught the tire damage. Luckily we only had a 20 mile journey back to the Airstream dealer for the tire swap and other maintenance.

I was pleased with the service I received and would recommend Kimball's to others looking for an alignment shop in western Washington.

Thanks for the reference. It is valuable to have first hand reports from satisfied customers. I am in the metro Seattle area.

[16595]

My experience on my well-travelled '05 31' Classic is that the factory axle tuning will favor wear on the outside edge of the tire tread.

I took it to a truck shop and tires wear evenly now. It was not cheap as they did not have the equipment that Airstream uses. But it was done well. No odd wear at all.

Dwight

[WestieHouse]

Originally Posted by rostam

The title of this thread is misleading. This issue has nothing to do with the tire brand.

I would also take much of what I read here with a grain of salt. There are at least a dozen "themes" in this forum (hitch, TV, tires, stability, etc) that are all exaggerated, inaccurate or flat out wrong. They are repeated so many times, that they are now shared as facts.

Excellent ponts about the GYM story. As a newbie in 2015 I went on a 14,000 mile trip from Seattle to Newfoundland in all kinds of road conditions and weather. I did a great deal of homework and planning (I have also traveled cross country on my Harley). We had zero problems with our GYM other than a screw-caused flat. I had it properly repaired at we traveled 12,000 more miles on it.

Fortunately, I had not read all the GYM war stories before our trip. Otherwise, I would have needlessly worried the entire way.

I replaced my GYM tires after one season and almost 20,000 miles. They were worn evenly and had lots of tread left. I replaced them with ST tires, though a different brand recommended by Les Schwab, my trusted tire vendor for 30 years.

Bottom line: As several posts here note, good tire care, proper loading, pressure maintenance, weight distribution, lug nut torque, bearing lubrication, road conditions, and driving style collectively are probably far more important than the quality of any new tire sold in the USA.

[ijustlee]

All 4 tires look to me like they have had belt shift inside the tires. Unless the camera lens has distorted the look of the tires. Did anybody jack up the wheels and spin the tires to see if they were still round before they were taken off? Needed new tires for sure! I've seen just as many Michelin's with cord shift as any other brand on cars and trucks since the mid '80's, it seems like all tire manufactures are scrimping on the rubber compounds. Back in the '70's I thought Michelin's were the best but not sure now.

[moxie t. moto]

We have the same tire and rims. Try 70 lbs.

[HowieE]

Originally Posted by m.hony

You couldn't run the Load Range E tires at 45 or 50 psi?
The 80# on the sidewall is maximum air pressure, right?
I run my Load Range E tires at 65 psi even though the sidewalls state 80 psi.

We are getting off the OP a bit but sometimes one just has to correct misinformation.

The recommended tire pressure for my E rated Michelins with my load is 35 lbs. I happen to run them at 45 just so I can get off the road with one tire off the axle after a flat.

There is probably not 10% of the tire dealers in the country that know how to determine the correct tire pressure so they yield to the Lawyers statement on the side walls. Use the manufactures pressure chart. If they bothered to create it use it.

Oh yes and now that I am running a TPS system and see the actual running temperature I may drop the pressure 5 lbs.

[m.hony]

The pressure increase to 70 or 71 psi when the tires are turning.
I can watch the pressure continuously on my Dill TPMS.

[jmpgino]

Well a friend just emailed me and said he had a Goodyear marathon delaminate on him, it was a 2012 with plenty of tread. Well I thought I would come on here and do some reading. You boys sure know how to depress a man when it comes to tires.
We have the same tire 2010 on our 25 footer, they look very good. After checking the tread, the outside is a little lower than the inside in terms of wear but otherwise I would not bother worrying about them, until now.
So what advice would you give me, what checks would you perform.
All I know is, if I tell the wife we need a new set, she will find someone to make a bunch of shoes for me out of the Goodyear tread because they just look so good.
So come on lads, help a simple peasant please, when I read BENDING AXLES AND FANCY ALIGNMENT, I START GETTING WORRIED !!!!!

[m.hony]

They look perfectly normal one weekend, but then the very next weekend...
Poof!

[OTRA15]

Originally Posted by jmpgino

. . .
We have the same tire 2010 on our 25 footer . . .
. . .

If I had any tires that were 6 years old, I would get them replaced before any significant road trip IMO.

Our lives are worth more than the cost . . .

[PKI]

It appears the tires are still mounted. That means there is another chapter to the story. Interested to hear the tire techs take on the GYM condition when they come off the rims.

It is supposed to be possible to determine condition by spinning each tire and checking radial and lateral run out. There is also reported to be a difference in quality between US and Foreign manufactured tires.

Travel safe. Pat

[Troy Tyson]

Amen

[HowieE]

Originally Posted by jmpgino

So what advice would you give me, what checks would you perform.
All I know is, if I tell the wife we need a new set, she will find someone to make a bunch of shoes for me out of the Goodyear tread because they just look so good.
So come on lads, help a simple peasant please, when I read BENDING AXLES AND FANCY ALIGNMENT, I START GETTING WORRIED !!!!!

Without a TPS system the way to know if a tire is on it's way to a blowout is to touch each tire just after you stop. A tire that is coming apart inside will run hotter, you won't be able to hold your hand on it, than the others.

Coming home last winter while the temperature was just above freezing I had one running very hot and the tread had high and low spots. Went to a garage and asked to have the spare mounted. The mechanic said the front tire, that one showed ware, I said no the middle one. I had stopped long enough for the heat to dissipate and the irregularity had disappeared. You have to catch them while they are hot.

[Bill M.]

If the tires are dated 2010 you have already checked everything you need to check. Get them replaced.

[tjdonahoe]

5 years old? Replace them, if it blows out, it will do damage to your shiny trailer, not worth taking a chance over the price of new tires...

[franklyfrank]

Originally Posted by HiJoeSilver

That wear pattern is not caused by the tired but by the axle/wheel having way to much positive camber. If not fixed you will have the same result in your michelins.

Why would he need an axle alignment on a 2013 trailer unless he hit some serious chuckholes or a curb ?

[franklyfrank]

Originally Posted by jmpgino

Well a friend just emailed me and said he had a Goodyear marathon delaminate on him, it was a 2012 with plenty of tread. Well I thought I would come on here and do some reading. You boys sure know how to depress a man when it comes to tires.
We have the same tire 2010 on our 25 footer, they look very good. After checking the tread, the outside is a little lower than the inside in terms of wear but otherwise I would not bother worrying about them, until now.
So what advice would you give me, what checks would you perform.
All I know is, if I tell the wife we need a new set, she will find someone to make a bunch of shoes for me out of the Goodyear tread because they just look so good.
So come on lads, help a simple peasant please, when I read BENDING AXLES AND FANCY ALIGNMENT, I START GETTING WORRIED !!!!!

GYM tires are junk. If you are lucky when they peel you won't end up having to replace the entire side of your trailer.
On these forums you are a road hazard waiting to happen unless:
1. Your Tow Vehicle is a F-350 Diesel or something comparable.
2. You are using a Hensley or Propride hitch, absolutely nothing else will do.
3. Must upgrade to 16" wheels and Michelin Tires that don't have a "P" on it.
4. Must have Centramatics and a tire pressure monitor.
And that's just for starters.
Of course you can get smart do your own research and enjoy your trailer your way.
I tow a 2013 30' International with a 2012 Ford F-150 Platinum Ecoboost. I replaced the GYM road hazard tires with Michelin LTX P235 R15 tires without centramatics use a Blue Ox hitch. I travel out west every year, have been up and down every pass including Monarch plus some without names never feeling the need for a bigger truck and I am still alive posting here ready to hit the road for the Rockies National Park again in two weeks.

[franklyfrank]

Originally Posted by franklyfrank

GYM tires are junk. If you are lucky when they peel you won't end up having to replace the entire side of your trailer.
On these forums you are a road hazard waiting to happen unless:
1. Your Tow Vehicle is a F-350 Diesel or something comparable.
2. You are using a Hensley or Propride hitch, absolutely nothing else will do.
3. Must upgrade to 16" wheels and Michelin Tires that don't have a "P" on it.
4. Must have Centramatics and a tire pressure monitor.
And that's just for starters.
Of course you can get smart do your own research and enjoy your trailer your way.
I tow a 2013 30' International with a 2012 Ford F-150 Platinum Ecoboost. I replaced the GYM road hazard tires with Michelin LTX P235 R15 tires without centramatics use a Blue Ox hitch. I travel out west every year, have been up and down every pass including Monarch plus some without names never feeling the need for a bigger truck and I am still alive posting here ready to hit the road for the Rockies National Park again in two weeks.

PS: I am doing all this traveling with two bikes hanging of the back of the trailer with a non Airstream bike rack in a hitch I fabricated and installed myself. And to my surprise the trailer floor is still attached to the frame and the frame hasn't bent or given way.

[Tn Traveler]

Just drove back from South Florida to Tennessee. There were two vehicles pulled off to the side with blow outs. What were they? You probably guessed. One a fifth wheel and the other a travel trailer. No Airstreams although I did see several on I 75.

Earlier my son pulled his 26' boat back from Florida. 2 blowouts with ST tires load range E. fortunatly, he stopped and picked up another spare to replace the first blow out. They were not GYMs. ST tires to me are suspect.