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Old 10-08-2016, 11:41 AM   #81
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The key words are heavy loads. If you overload the AS you will experience tire failure. This also includes exceeding the speed rating of the tires. I assume that we are all talking about AS trailers.
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Old 10-08-2016, 12:34 PM   #82
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Originally Posted by tjdonahoe View Post
Well maybe you should run the marathons or you might find some other off the wall cheaper tire and feel good about it, after all a tire is a tire.....

That's not what I said. I said Michelins are just tires. They can blow like any other tire. Last I checked, Michelin was not making the claim of being blow proof. And especially when used against their own recommendation. Like when used on a trailer.

You get what you pay for. There are other brands of tires, cheap and not cheap. But they are made for trailers. I'd look into one of those before I decided to override the manufacturer's recommendation and put a light truck tire on a trailer. But that's me. YMMV.
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Old 10-08-2016, 12:48 PM   #83
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So if the manufacturer recommends it, I'm all for it. If the manufacturer doesn't recommend it, I'd think twice about it. That's all I'm saying.
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Old 10-08-2016, 12:49 PM   #84
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This place is some times like a Michelin cult. They are good tires, but also can fail. In 30+ years of driving, I have only had one tire failure on a motor vehicle. That tire was a Michelin LT tire on the rear of a pickup. Incidentally, it happened while I was towing an Airstream, so I guess my story is topical.....lol
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Old 10-08-2016, 02:32 PM   #85
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Back to the original question "Why Michelin tires?"

Because they are not GYMs.
This helped me change my mind. At 5am in the dark I don't even now I had lost a tire till I head the cords ticking against the wheel well.

Some might question how I had the tread if I didn't know I had lost the tire. The tread was wrapped around the trailing arm of the axle and came along for the ride.


The tread on that tire looks pretty worn. How old was the tire at the time of failure?
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Old 10-08-2016, 03:05 PM   #86
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I use Firestone LT tires on my trailer. Another good alternative to ST tires.
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Old 10-09-2016, 10:42 AM   #87
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What I decided to do for a single axle Airstream

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Yep, under particular circumstances, any tire can fail. There are lots of folks where an ST tire is a perfectly good match. My experience is with heavy loads carrying between 8,600-9,100 lbs. From my usage I realize that ST tires just don't have the longevity that I want in my application.

We are also seeing that longevity bear out as those of us who made the switch have now been towing with them for 4 seasons or more without the belt failures that are trademark of the ST's.

Jack
I have one of the single axle Airstreams. It is a 2014 22 ft Sport. It's demands on tires are more than those of any but the largest tandem axle trailers: 4500lbs GVW: that's 2250lbs per wheel at rated max GVW.

In our second year with the new trailer one of the GYMs it came with blew out on the freeway. At the tire shop later that day, I said, let's check the other one too. The tread was visibly beginning to separate. You could see the space was getting wider in one of the grooves. I replaced both GYM load D tires with the Towmax Load E, which is what the shop had, and then did a lot of research.

I now have Michelin Ribs on 16 inch wheels. That is a commercial grade tire made in Germany. Other single axle streamers are reporting reliable performance still going strong over 20,000 miles with these. If you read the tire forums, there are truck users who are claiming over 100,000 miles.

I am not suggesting that anyone else do anything in particular, and I am not trying to pick any fights, but, my priority is safety first, and not having to replace tires too frequently is second. Based upon reported service life, the Michelin Rib is also a less expensive tire for a 50,000 mile total distance.

I hope that you are each able to find exactly the sweet spot in the balance between factors which works best for you.

Andrew
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Old 10-09-2016, 12:31 PM   #88
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I have one of the single axle Airstreams.

I now have Michelin Ribs on 16 inch wheels. That is a commercial grade tire made in Germany. Other single axle streamers are reporting reliable performance still going strong over 20,000 miles with these. If you read the tire forums, there are truck users who are claiming over 100,000 miles.

Andrew
In case any other single axle owners want to know the details, the tires are 225/75 R16 Michelin XPS Rib, rated to 2680lbs, which cost $245 each from Tire Rack. I inflate them to 72 psi based upon the Michelin published load and inflation table as applied to my trailer 2250 per wheel GVW and (admittedly)recently measured weight of 2350 per wheel fully loaded. (we are working on a diet to get that down)

The wheels are Sendel 16 X 6 Bullet T03, part #TW-T03-66655T from trailer-wheels.com at $121 each. They look like the 15 inch original wheels, but the spokes are a bit thicker and they are rated for 3580lbs. The originals appear to be rated at 2830lbs.

Andrew
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Old 10-10-2016, 01:00 PM   #89
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The tread on that tire looks pretty worn. How old was the tire at the time of failure?
Really can't say because that was over 20 years ago. However when I posted it, from my old pictures, I was quite surprised at how good the tread was.

I believe the tire failed from low pressure. If I remember right i had made a very tight turn on asphalt the night before and most likely rim rolled the tire and dropped some pressure subsequently causing it to blow from over heating.

Another reason to have a real tire on the trailer. I don't now run that risk with E rated tires even while inflated to 40 pounds well below Airstream's recommendation but above the manufactures.

Yes in all industries manufactures make recommendations on the use of their products. That does not mean users are compelled to comply that just protects the manufactures from legal pains. If compliance was required there would be no market for products that have quality and carry a higher rating.
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Old 10-10-2016, 01:41 PM   #90
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Yes in all industries manufactures make recommendations on the use of their products. That does not mean users are compelled to comply that just protects the manufactures from legal pains. If compliance was required there would be no market for products that have quality and carry a higher rating.
Users are never COMPELLED to comply with recommendations of any product. That product is purchased and owned by the user. However there is a contract called a warranty. If the recommendations of the product are not followed by the user, the manufacture does not really have an obligation to pay for repairs or adjustments under the terms of the warranty. Many manufacturers may make a goodwill offer in some circumstances. However the users actions or inactions to follow the recommendations of the use of any product means the user has taken the responsibility for the performance of the product. (Or lack there of)

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Old 10-10-2016, 02:04 PM   #91
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Yes in all industries manufactures make recommendations on the use of their products. That does not mean users are compelled to comply that just protects the manufactures from legal pains. If compliance was required there would be no market for products that have quality and carry a higher rating.
There is a little know quirk in the Federal Law. If a user modifies and the product is submitted for warranty work and the manufacture wants to deny coverage the manufacture has to prove how the modification caused the issue.

Those of you that may have owned some of the early diesels TV may remember when one of the manufactures tried this defense to void a warranty, on a $1200.00 high pressure pump, were shot down. There was a whole industry of modification in use for that pump. I am the third owner of my current TV. The turbo failed while on the road. Expecting a $3,000.00 repair, living in the NE, I pulled into a dealer outside of Atlanta. The truck was repaired at ZERO cost, not even the deduction. Unknown to me the manufacture's feet had been held to the fire on that one.
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Old 10-10-2016, 03:15 PM   #92
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There is a little know quirk in the Federal Law. If a user modifies and the product is submitted for warranty work and the manufacture wants to deny coverage the manufacture has to prove how the modification caused the issue. .........
Ah ...... Mmmmm...... not exactly.

IANAL, but I spent 10 years in the warranty end of the tire business. I have a great deal of experience in how warranties really work - and here's how:

The manufacturer is under the obligation to specifically identify why they are turning down a warranty claim. They do not have to prove a modification caused an issue, just point out that the modification was the cause of the issue and that rendered the warranty void.

This may not be exactly the way the law reads, but that is how the courts have ruled that this procedure is acceptable.
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Old 10-10-2016, 03:57 PM   #93
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We do know however that RV manufacturer's are equipping some trailers with LT tires. My dealer was quick to note that some of the heavy 5th wheels now have LT's. I've seen it at the local RV show here in St. Louis. It's just not Airstream who is doing this. To me the fact that those tire manufacturers continue to sell these tires to the manufacturers for OEM use, implies that those tires are both safe and constructed well enough for use on trailers.

I think if there was an issue regarding suitability, the feds would probably have stopped this practice in a heartbeat.

Jack
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Old 10-10-2016, 03:59 PM   #94
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Thanks Jack, that is my take also FWIW.

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Old 10-11-2016, 06:38 AM   #95
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The 16" Michelin LT225/75R16/E LTX M/S2 tires were installed by Airstream on the Eddie Bauer trailers starting about five years ago. They are standard on the 2015 and later 31' Classics and the 2016 Pendleton. The tires are for sale along with the SenDel T03-66655T wheels at the entrance door to the Jackson Center service center.

Since Airstream jacked up the list prices over 30% in one year between the 2014 and 2015 Classics, they could "afford" to install the better tires.

I knew that if I installed the exact same tires and wheels Airstream was/is using, Airstream would have to honor any suspension issues that arose related to tires.
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Old 10-11-2016, 05:51 PM   #96
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Why Michelin tires?

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... I knew that if I installed the exact same tires and wheels Airstream was/is using, Airstream would have to honor any suspension issues that arose related to tires.

+1 That was my thinking when I installed the Michelins on our FC 27FB (only in my case, I went with the T02-66655 wheels, which more closely match what came on the trailer, a personal preference). I also figured I would be less likely to have any mechanical problems if I stayed close to what AS installs on similar trailers.


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Old 10-13-2016, 08:17 PM   #97
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I don't buy the idea that AS would honor suspension issues. You can keep the Michelin tires for a trailer. I'll stick with tires that have better weight carrying capacity. That to me is an extra margin of safety. The designate LT means Light truck not trailer.
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Old 10-13-2016, 09:14 PM   #98
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Note that the Airstream supplement manual on tires states that the LT tires can be used for trailers.
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Old 10-17-2016, 03:45 PM   #99
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Sorry but Michelin LT Tires do not have the same load capacity as an ST or RH tire. I think most people that switch tires just do it to go faster that 65 mph. In the north the speed limit might say 80 but I still plod along at 60-65 mph. I see plenty of trailers pass me by. So it leads me to believe they just want to go zoom zoom.
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Old 10-17-2016, 03:47 PM   #100
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Sorry but Michelin LT Tires do not have the same load capacity as an ST or RH tire. I think most people that switch tires just do it to go faster that 65 mph. In the north the speed limit might say 80 but I still plod along at 60-65 mph. I see plenty of trailers pass me by. So it leads me to believe they just want to go zoom zoom.
Some of those that go zoom zoom also go boom boom. Which reminds me of a saying from some time ago. Speed Kills.

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