Tire Recommendation Please

[Steamy1]

Hankook VANTRA ST tires look interesting; any experience out there?

I think Hankook is known for quality tires. I personally do not have any experience with the brand.

Currently using Nokian 15" Rotiiva AT with a LRE on our 23fb. happy so far with about 5,000 miles on them.

[sparkymark]

I have the Hankook Dyna Pro, run flats and also installed the Ford TPMS with camera. All calm when driving knowing if tire goes I’ll get a warning and shouldn’t shred the trailer.

[uncle_bob]

Originally Posted by Steamy1

Hankook VANTRA ST tires look interesting; any experience out there?

.....

Hi

I don't see them in 225/75R16 size .... are they out there in the "right" size?

Bob

[LNBright]

Originally Posted by uncle_bob

Hi

I don't see them in 225/75R16 size .... are they out there in the "right" size?

Bob

That size isn't made.

I find tire sizes interesting: they mix metric, imperial, and a percentage. The width is in millimeters, the wheel size is in inches, then the height of the sidewall is a percentage of the width.

They have it in 235/80R16.

So if you are looking for a 225 but find a 235, then that means its tread face is 10mm wider, which is less than a half-inch wider. The sidewall height is 80% of the tread width instead of 75%. By the math, the sidewall 19.25mm taller, which would be about 3/4" taller. Then, you have the wheel being an inch larger in diameter, so that'd add a 1/2" to the expected height change. Theoretically, going from a 225/75R15 to a 235/80R16, you've gained 1-1/4" in height. However, when you actually compare an actual tire of one size to an actual tire of the other size, you often find that it's not exact, so I wouldn't expect it to be exact, it might very well only be an inch higher.

[uncle_bob]

Originally Posted by LNBright

That size isn't made.

I find tire sizes interesting: they mix metric, imperial, and a percentage. The width is in millimeters, the wheel size is in inches, then the height of the sidewall is a percentage of the width.

They have it in 235/80R16.

So if you are looking for a 225 but find a 235, then that means its tread face is 10mm wider, which is less than a half-inch wider. The sidewall height is 80% of the tread width instead of 75%. By the math, the sidewall 19.25mm taller, which would be about 3/4" taller. Then, you have the wheel being an inch larger in diameter, so that'd add a 1/2" to the expected height change. Theoretically, going from a 225/75R15 to a 235/80R16, you've gained 1-1/4" in height. However, when you actually compare an actual tire of one size to an actual tire of the other size, you often find that it's not exact, so I wouldn't expect it to be exact, it might very well only be an inch higher.

Hi

The gotcha is that a larger tire isn't going to fit in the wheel well / axle spacing on my trailer. The same is true of a lot of the trailers AS put the LT tires on. I can't go to a 235/80 or something like that. The Michelins *are* made in the 225/70 size and they fit.

Bob

[Bill M.]

Lets face it. No matter what tire Airstream put on, the wheel wells were designed for a 15" whee with a narrow tire. And a tight fit.

[Action]

Originally Posted by Bill M.

Lets face it. No matter what tire Airstream put on, the wheel wells were designed for a 15" wheel with a narrow tire. And a tight fit.

Airstream has a tradition of making the wheel well as small as possible.
That is why they moved to horizontal shocks. That type of mounting took less space than vertical. This is done to get as much interior space as possible.

No surprise that a tire on a 15" rim is used as the width is less as well.
GYE 225/75 R15 is about a 1/2 inch narrower that GYE 235/80 R16
Max load diff is 2830 v 3420
So the 16s would be used for the largest trailers

Action

[Glen Carter]

Just installed my new shoes...... Michlein Agilis Crossclimate C-metric 225/75R16C

[uncle_bob]

Originally Posted by Glen Carter

Just installed my new shoes...... Michlein Agilis Crossclimate C-metric 225/75R16C Attachment 410259

Hi

Based on the picture they look just like mine

Bob

[Glen Carter]

BTW, these 16" were the same difficulty installing as getting the old 15" off. The left side of trailer was narrower than the right. I had to pull on the wheel well opening to get the tire out and in. There was a little more room on right ... maybe only ¼" more. A 235/80 would never fit between brake drum and fender. They would clear if you can get them in.... maybe install deflated.

I see no need for any larger tire, the Michlein Agilis Crossclimate 225/75R16C C-metric I installed .... at 65 psi inflation the load rating is 200 lbs above my gross 5000 lbs. At 80 psi its 1000 lbs more.

[Glen Carter]

Originally Posted by uncle_bob

Hi



Based on the picture they look just like mine



Bob

The wheels are 16" Bearcat Gunmetal Gray.

[touristlar]

All, I just purchased a 2015 28’ International Serenity (my first trailer). It's original ST225/75/15 Goodyear Marathons have timed out. I am pretty new to this forum, yet realize there's been a tremendous discussion about the value of moving away from the 15" marathon to the Michelin 16” LT. I know Goodyear now has their Endurance, as do Hankook, Maxxis and Power King in the ST 225/75/R15 size. The specs on all these tires are similar. Unless someone changes my mind, I anticipate buying 5 GYE tires.

Here (finally) is my question. Initially, after reading thru this thread, I thought there was some clear advantage to moving from the 15” wheel to the larger 16” wheel (besides being able to install the 16” Michelin and get away from the GY marathon). I understand the 16’ wheel might raise the ground height of the trailer perhaps an inch, but that’s the only advantage I’ve heard. Then the downside might be fitting the new tires and spare. Am I missing some advantage of moving to 16” wheels vs. staying with 15” wheels?

[Glen Carter]

Originally Posted by touristlar

Here (finally) is my question. Initially, after reading thru this thread, I thought there was some clear advantage to moving from the 15” wheel to the larger 16” wheel (besides being able to install the 16” Michelin and get away from the GY marathon). I understand the 16’ wheel might raise the ground height of the trailer perhaps an inch, but that’s the only advantage I’ve heard. Then the downside might be fitting the new tires and spare. Am I missing some advantage of moving to 16” wheels vs. staying with 15” wheels?

The difference in diameter is about an inch... ½" ride height ....
The Michlein Agilis Crossclimate C-metric has slightly higher load capacity over the Goodyear Endurance.

I went with the Michlein for the higher load capacity and my operating pressures.

[n2916s]

Just forget about the Marathon (long gone and not missed).

Both the Endurance and the Agilis are fine tires that will serve you well.

The Endurance is less expensive and you won’t need new wheels BUT are presently back ordered almost everywhere so it may be awhile before you can get a set.

The Michelins should be readily available but the company has said repeatedly that they don’t recommend any of their tires for trailer service so you theoretically could get an argument if a warranty issue came up.

[LNBright]

Originally Posted by touristlar

Unless someone changes my mind, I anticipate buying 5 GYE tires.

I'm not going to try to change your mind. Right now, it's a bit hard to find the GYE: unless you have a close relationship w/ your tire shop and they can hook you up, I would suggest looking for your closest Discount Tire, they're the best bet for either having, or being able to transfer over to your local shop, the GYE for you.

[Dennis C]

I ordered two Goodyear Endurance tires in November from Tire Rack. They’re supposed to ship next week, but I don’t have confirmation yet. Hopefully they’ll be available soon!

[gypsydad]

Second Discount Tire...I have not had issues finding GYE's with Discount Tire, here in Texas nor in MT in the past. Put a new set on my 28' in Georgetown last May.

[uncle_bob]

Hi

Part of the reason for connecting from 15" to 16" wheels is that the supply of "adequate" tires in 16" tended to be better. This matters when you are swapping them all out. It also matters when you blow one away on the road and need to find a replacement.

How much this or that tire / wheel swap out impacts your ride height is a combo of the wheel and the tire. You can get really skinny tires and you can get big fat ones. With an AS, there's only so much wheel well clearance and space between axles. That very much limits how crazy you can go.

Bob

[jcanavera]

While I've never had a tire for the Airstream require removal on the road, they all have failed while on the road but held together, not deflating, and the failures were noted when I got home and parked. Also notable was that every failure probably occured after my final gas stop or restroom stop while driving home. I always do a walk around an inspection every time we stop the vehicle. Also note that all my tire failures on the Airstream have been with ST tires. None since I went to the 16" Michelin LT tires.

What I have found interesting however is that 3 years ago I had a failure of a 16" LT tire on my tow vehicle while staying close to Holland Michigan. It was a 225 75R E rated Cooper. I went to a large tire dealership in Holland and to my surprise he noted that these size tire were hard to find locally. He called every tire dealer in town before he found a single tire at a Discount Tire facility. Seems like the newer vehicles are using wheel sizes larger than 16 inches. Holland is no small town in my estimation, and has a lot of tire outlets.

Jack

[Acheron2010]

another small factor for the 16" wheel, CoachNet's discount tire program does not include 15 inch tires.