Replace 1 tire or all 4?

[mpl]

Fellow Airstreamers,
I need to replace 1 of my 4 Goodyear Marathon tires (a large piece of tread missing from 1 tire). I have a 2010 Flying Cloud 27FB with less than 10K miles on it.
Question: with that many miles on the tires, should I replace just the damaged tire or all four?
Thanks in advance.

[Foiled Again]

Look at the manufacture date on the tires. The 2010 might have been born in 2009 which would make the tires 4 years old if the tires were fresh when they were put on the trailer. They could also easily be a year older.

5 year old trailer tires need to be replaced due to sidewall rot even if they are low mileage. Also Marathons are NOT great tires. Watch your pressure, watch out for overheating and most of all, understand that trailer tires are not designed for more than 55 mph. You'll find a lot of us, me included, who've replaced the rims and tires with 16 inch Michelins.

Personally - I'd do all four, especially if you're planning on towing more than a few miles.

Paula

[F450Harley]

If money is no issue I will change all 4 rubbers. Rubber separation on one out of a set of four is a warning on the whole bunch and you are lucky to have escaped torn / broken wheel well. I will not mix a brand new tire with 3 old tires, the new one will ware out faster due to stress passed on. On a temporary bases, I will put a spare tire, reduce speed till I get new set. Just my 2 cents.

[hissilver]

Concur....replace all 4

[Gene]

Marathons have a bad history and many of us have bought 16" wheels (0˚ offset) and put on Michelin LTX or Rib tires. They last longer, have better traction and don't lose air. There are plenty of threads on this subject and you can find them under the tire subforum.

Gene

[mpl]

Thanks all. You've pretty much confirmed what I suspected.
Next question...and I won't hold anyone to a quote; how much am I looking at to upgrade to 16" Michelins?
(...and I think I posted this question under the wrong section. Sorry)

[switz]

With new rims and tires, you will put a strong dent in $1,800 plus local taxes...

[polarlyse]

Check around with a knowledgeable tire dealer. You may be able to find a LT tire in 15" size with a rating adequate for your trailer. I have heard that they are out there.

Good luck

[Wazbro]

Originally Posted by switz

With new rims and tires, you will put a strong dent in $1,800 plus local taxes...

From what many have said this is true, at least that is for 5 tires since when changing size you should replace the spare to.

[Foiled Again]

Yo, you're in Pennsylvania. Check the mothership at Jackson Center - they did have a real good deal at one time. About $1400 for rims and tires.

Didn't GPS your location, but if you're in the western part of PA, it's a one day trip to JC.

Paula

[mpl]

Thanks all.
Paula: I'm in Central PA. Near Williamsport PA

[F450Harley]

Just replaced mine. $730 for 4 michellin tire (16' MS/2) after $70 rebate through tire rack. 4 sendel 16' rims @ $110 each ($440) and I use my old 15' as spare but invested in Dill TPMS instead of a 16' spare wheel. I never use my spare in 5 years and I end up replacing them due to age ( 4yrs max, used or not) Your call.

[F450Harley]

http://www.airforums.com/forums/f465...ht=16%27+wheel

[Gene]

If you travel a lot—50-60,000 miles in 5-6 years, you can get 5 good wheels and tires because you can rotate them. Michelins usually get 60,000 miles, but most people don't travel that much with a trailer (we come close). Otherwise a decent quality steel wheel and a same sized spare will do. Note that even though 2 tires may have the same numbers, the diameter may be different. It won't matter for short distances, but may cause stresses if you use the spare for hundreds of miles. It is often said you should keep a tire after 5 years regardless of the tread depth, but Michelin says 7 years.

Nice wheels run roughly around $100 each. I think the Michelin LT tire runs around $200 each. Mounting and balancing may be extra or not. You can probably get them cheaper than at JC. My experience is that Discount Tire usually beats everyone on price. Note that Michelin makes two different LTX tires—one is a passenger car and light truck tire (P) and the other, which supports more weight, is a true light truck tire (LT). Make sure which you are getting and that it can support the trailer.

You can learn more than you ever wanted to know about tires by reading the numerous tire threads. You can thrill your friends with dissertations about tires.

Gene

[handn]

Originally Posted by Gene

Marathons have a bad history and many of us have bought 16" wheels (0˚ offset) and put on Michelin LTX or Rib tires. They last longer, have better traction and don't lose air. There are plenty of threads on this subject and you can find them under the tire subforum.

Gene

I agree. The fact that you have a chunk out of one of your Marathons means that they all may fail next summer in the hot weather driving seaon.
I have LTX 235 R 15 XL tires on my 25 Safari. 15 inchers are the way to go if the load on each tire is 1900 lbs or less. They will fit on your stock rims with enough clearance in the wheel wells.
I had serial tire failures with various brands of ST tires, even E rated ones.
Michelins ride much better, will go as fast as you care to go and are as safe as your tow vehicle tires in hot weather.

[Wingeezer]

I had an experience with Marathons on our previous (non AS) trailer.

Felt a bad vibration half way across Texas - stopped and found a huge chunk of tread gone from one tire and minor wheel well damage. We limped in to Fort Stockton with it as it had not lost air and we were only a mile or two out.

When i looked at the other tires, two others were just starting to show signs of tread lifting away from the carcass.

In this case I am blaming myself more than the Marathons because it was before I had ever heard of routinely changing tires at about five years - i used to just go by teh amount of tread left and whether I could see visible sidewall cracks. Now I know better!

But for my money, I would certainly change all tires - if one went, the others could well be ready to do the same thing - no point risking ripping up the side of your trailer with flailing tread!

Brian.