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crispyboy · 10-20-2015, 08:36 PM

Pure speculation but it reminds me of Cindy Crawfords mole......

StrmyWeather · 10-20-2015, 09:06 PM

We replaced several Marathons on our dual axle boat trailer one year. Then, while returning from the Keys, we lost 2 more. We got lucky and bought the last of the needed size tire from the Okeechobee Wal-mart before they closed on a Saturday night (not Marathon!).

The first tire developed a small bubble heading down the Turnpike and was pointed out by a concerned truck driver about the time I noticed the fender bouncing. They don't ride smoothly with a bubble. We were able to change it. The second blew before we got too much farther. We had to put the bubbled tire (nothing like the bubble shown; just a raised lump) on to limp into town and by then the bubble had grown, similar to the one pictured. Goiter is really appropriate. Naturally the kids (and I) thought it was pretty funny, but from a distance and I had them move away further. Seconds later it blew. We drove to a more public area, unhitched the trailer, left my wife sitting on the leaning post under the T-top reading her book, and went in search of a tire late on a Saturday evening. More than a few people stopped and asked her how the fishing was.

The bubble shown looks similar to how our tires acted. I wouldn't feel too safe standing around looking at a goitered tire under any pressure. Anyone that's experienced tire failure will understand. It seems this was typical with Marathons at the time. The Goodyear dealer replaced all the tires (this after I had already had about 3 of the 5 replaced and lost another two on this trip) with Carlisle. Terrible tire but good customer service.

cwf · 10-21-2015, 09:49 AM

Wow.. That is too many failures to tolerate.

NavyCorpsman · 10-21-2015, 01:44 PM

? Rubber Baby Buggy Bumper??

Tireman9 · 10-23-2015, 09:49 AM

rmkrum with his suggestion of "it looks like air leaked between
layers of the tire, as a guess a manufacturing defect or
weird damage." Is definitely on the right track. But we need a bit more information/inspection to narrow things down to discover the real "Root Cause".
"Root Cause" is the initiating action or condition that leads or develops into the the current condition. For example if a tire looses air there are a number of possible causes. One might be a leaking valve, but why is the valve leaking? Is it because the valve was damaged or defective or installed incorrectly? If it was because it was installed incorrectly we could ask "Why" again and maybe discover the improper install was because of poor training or incorrect tools or the technician was rushed and distracted while doing the install.
It may be that one tech started the valve install and was called away and a second tech thought the install had been completed and went ahead and mounted the tire.
I think if you consider the above example you can see that learning the real reason for the condition is needed if we want to prevent a re-occurrence.
Simply jumping to the conclusion that the tire failed because it was made in tire plant that was painted blue is not really helping us to learn.

I do not agree with the various posts on "old tire"

CapriRacer is suggesting further inspection But I don't agree with following his exact inspection method as there is a potential of destroying the evidence if the cut is done in the wrong location.

As I understand it, this tire is a number of years old so "Manufacturing Defect" is less likely as those issues should normally show up in first couple of months use.

Further examination is needed to collect more physical evidence, if we want to move away from guesses what should be done is to deflate the tire and dismount it from the wheel.
Visual inspection of the interior with good lighting is the next step.

Depending on what we see will dictate if further examination and dissection is needed or not.

Before any cuts are made it is important that a theory is established so an appropriate action is planned out.

I have some examples (photos) on my other PC and will post examples later today that will allow us all to learn the real Root Cause. Until then I would request that the tire not be cut.

Dingo Girl · 10-23-2015, 10:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lumatic

Sidewall separation from running flat, low pressure or impact with a curb?

Could also be an implanted alien baby.

I vote for alien baby too!

aftermath · 10-23-2015, 10:38 AM

Too many left turns. This puts extreme pressure on the plys on the right side of the tire. Or, was it right turns...Making turns cause all sorts of trouble.

That's my story and I am sticking to it.

m.hony · 10-23-2015, 12:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tireman9

rmkrum with his suggestion of "it looks like air leaked between
layers of the tire, as a guess a manufacturing defect or
weird damage." Is definitely on the right track. But we need a bit more information/inspection to narrow things down to discover the real "Root Cause".
"Root Cause" is the initiating action or condition that leads or develops into the the current condition. For example if a tire looses air there are a number of possible causes. One might be a leaking valve, but why is the valve leaking? Is it because the valve was damaged or defective or installed incorrectly? If it was because it was installed incorrectly we could ask "Why" again and maybe discover the improper install was because of poor training or incorrect tools or the technician was rushed and distracted while doing the install.
It may be that one tech started the valve install and was called away and a second tech thought the install had been completed and went ahead and mounted the tire.
I think if you consider the above example you can see that learning the real reason for the condition is needed if we want to prevent a re-occurrence.
Simply jumping to the conclusion that the tire failed because it was made in tire plant that was painted blue is not really helping us to learn.

I do not agree with the various posts on "old tire"

CapriRacer is suggesting further inspection But I don't agree with following his exact inspection method as there is a potential of destroying the evidence if the cut is done in the wrong location.

As I understand it, this tire is a number of years old so "Manufacturing Defect" is less likely as those issues should normally show up in first couple of months use.

Further examination is needed to collect more physical evidence, if we want to move away from guesses what should be done is to deflate the tire and dismount it from the wheel.
Visual inspection of the interior with good lighting is the next step.

Depending on what we see will dictate if further examination and dissection is needed or not.

Before any cuts are made it is important that a theory is established so an appropriate action is planned out.

I have some examples (photos) on my other PC and will post examples later today that will allow us all to learn the real Root Cause. Until then I would request that the tire not be cut.

Yes, root cause is a cheaply built junk tire that is marketed well and sold at a high profit. You get the same sales pitch from every employee at every tire store. It is a good concept and a good principle in theory or on paper that does not translate well into reality.

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Tireman9 · 10-23-2015, 02:25 PM

OK since I can't post links to my blog and have to upload individual pictures to a photo hosting site it is a pain to have too many pictures but here are three from one tire.

Background. Tire and wheel sent in for analysis with request for information on what was wrong with the "defective" new tire.
Picture 1

Here we see a smaller version of the sidewall bubble.

Picture 2

same tire but on the inner sidewall

Picture 3

this shows the interior of the tire at the location of the bilge.

If you review Picture 1 and Picture 2 you can see the witness mark where the tire sidewall was deflected down to the point that it left a black mark on the top of the wheel flange.
You might also note that the impact (in the pothole ?) was bad enough that both inner and outer rim flanges were bent during the impact.

Di you believe the country or state of origin where this tire was made was the reason for the sidewall bubble or do you accept that it is possible to fail any tire under the correct set of circumstances?

m.hony · 10-23-2015, 04:00 PM

None of our Marathons are on a bent wheel that hit a pothole-

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Tireman9 · 10-24-2015, 10:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by m.hony

None of our Marathons are on a bent wheel that hit a pothole-

Sent from my iPhone using Airstream Forums

You don't need to hit something hard enough to bend a wheel to have an "Impact break" in the tire sidewall.

Here is a tire that had a smaller but similar SW blister. You can see the broken body cord. No bent wheel either.

It sure would be nice if I didn't have to provide evidence whenever I offer technical information based on 40 years as a tire design engineer.

aftermath · 10-24-2015, 10:51 AM

Thank you Tireman. It today's Fox News world hype out trumps fact and it is often difficult for many to separate fiction from reality.

I appreciate your calm experienced based posts.

J. Morgan · 10-24-2015, 10:52 AM

Here are my observations, the vast majority of tire failures are a result of under inflation or road hazards, but some tires are crap from the get go.

The hard part is being able to;

A. See the difference

B. Admit the difference

I have no experience whatsoever with Goodyear Marathons, so I have to infer an opinion, weighing that as OEM tires on most Airstreams, they have a lot of exposure to negative comments.

My opinion is that the tires are not as rugged as they should be, but they are maybe as good as other ST tires.

I am in fact (heavily) biased toward LT tires, but unlike the majority of posters in this category I am content with 15" wheels.

Brevi tempore!

m.hony · 10-24-2015, 11:45 AM

Carlisles and Marathons are junk from the get go.
Properly inflated, rotated, balanced, Armor-all'ed to protect from UV rays. never hit a curb or pothole and still won't last 3-4 years.

J. Morgan · 10-24-2015, 12:05 PM

Against my better judgement I allowed my local tire shop to talk me into ST tires for my Airstreams first set of tires.

I don't remember the brand, they didn't blow out but the tread was all but worn out in about 12K to 15K miles and two years.

I was NOT IMPRESSED.

Brevi tempore!

bladesmith2 · 11-28-2015, 09:58 PM

I bet they are made in China. Life is short and trailer repairs are expensive, so don't waste your hard earned money on Goodyear tires.

tjdonahoe · 11-29-2015, 06:46 AM

My original marathons have 21000 miles on them and are at 50 per cent .I do check the air every time we get ready for a road trip, I have rubbed and massaged them looking for lumps and irregularities, above all I do not drive over curbs ,even going over some steep drive ways at an angle you can be putting all the weight on one wheel with this type of suspension, it does not equalize like the springs do, the new 16" michelins will go on this winter , they will be treated the same way, as I don't want any damage to my trailer..

m.hony · 11-29-2015, 08:06 AM

You don't have to hit curbs or potholes for Marathons to fail.
They give no warning. At home, they appear in good condition. 30 miles later...
You are wise to get no tires.

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PKI · 11-29-2015, 11:04 AM

Are Marathons time or millage limited? Originals are possibly 2 years old. We believe they have about 20K on them. They show generally as new with no wear. We will replace them with 15s, the question is when? Now, or after this year's travels? Most folks seem to say they have 3-4 years service at a minimum. The exceptions are the folks who say they have had new tires fail on their first trip, which sounds like a manufacturing defect or bad road hazard damage. Does good initial service indicate proper manufacture, a couple years off normal GM life, or just a couple of lucky spins of cylinder on the GM roulette wheel? And thank you all for posting your experience and upgrade solutions. Pat

polarlyse · 11-29-2015, 11:19 AM

I don't think you can put a definitive life for any tire. GMY's have a history. It seems they are good until they " are not". I took mine off after 3 yrs. they looked fine as far as tread wear goes. One had begun to separate on the inside of the tire where I couldn't easily see it. I'm one of the lucky ones.