WHEELS 14" vs 15"

[lsawye01]

We have a 2009 Flying Cloud 23CB with original 14inch wheels and tires. We are about to depart on a 4K journey and need to know if there are any benefits to be gained by replacing the 14inch with 15inch wheels? I ask because the newer models of the same AS now come standard with 15".
The bottom line is would I benefit or would I just be waisting money?

Thanks from a relatively Newbie.

[uraljohn]

The main advantage is that you can run the Goodyear Endurance tires rather than the Goodyear Marathons which have a bit of a bad reputation for blowing out. The Endurance tires have been around at least a couple of years and so far have proved reliable.

We had a 2017 Int. Serenity 23D that came with the Endurance tires. 21k miles in 2 years and no problems. Switching to the 15" tires/rims will get you a small amount of increased clearance. One of the reasons we purchased a 2017 model was the switch to 15" rims from the 14" rims. Larger 12" drum brakes sealed the deal on a new vs used coach when we purchased.

Go with the 15" rims and Goodyear Endurance tires. Money well spent in my book.

[PKI]

Yes, there is an advantage. The larger tires/wheels will raise the trailer. That does require a hitch shank adjustment, but provides a reduction in the potential for damage from bottoming the trailer and/or plumbing.

Note - your wheel wells may or may not have clearance. Most who have made the change did not report a problem. The Goodyears are 225s and the Michelins are 235s. A trailer tire warranty, ST specification and slightly smaller width and height come with the 225 choice. The Michelins are passenger rated tires and come with passenger car spec, no trailer warranty (maybe), but must be derated by 10% when used on a trailer. Not much of an issue for a 23.

The GYEs are available in a 14" size. That is also an option. If you install a lift kit it will provide a bit more frame and plumbing clearance than the tire size increase provides.

Lots of thread info on the Forum. Spend some time with the upper right blue Search box.

There are more tire choices with the 15" than the 14". The 16" opens up the choices even more, but will not fit on a 23.

Good Luck with your investigation. Pat

Edit - the 14" GYEs are available in 205 and 215 size. To go to 225 requires the change to 15in. Check what's available on the Tire Rack website.

[uraljohn]

The 14" Goodyear Endurance tires a "D" rated tire. The 15" Goodyear Endurance tires are a "E" rated tire. With the "E" rated tire on your 23CB you will never ever have to worry about tire overload. I ran my Endurance tires at 60 PSI on our 2017 23D. Never any popped rivets, nothing thrown around in the trailer after long hauls. Plenty of spare load capacity at 60 PSI since they max gross weight of your trailer is 6k LBS.

Always a great idea to pay a visit to the CAT Scale to do a 3 pass weigh in. Tells you what the trailer tires are supporting. Happy travels.

[Rich W]

Originally Posted by lsawye01

We have a 2009 Flying Cloud 23CB with original 14inch wheels and tires. We are about to depart on a 4K journey and need to know if there are any benefits to be gained by replacing the 14inch with 15inch wheels? I ask because the newer models of the same AS now come standard with 15".
The bottom line is would I benefit or would I just be waisting money?

Thanks from a relatively Newbie.

I put 4 new 21575R14 Endurance tires on my 23' this summer and made a 5,488 mile round trip out to Beaverton, OR and had no problems. I also put 2 new Endurances on my boat trailer, same size. I don't think 1/2" is going to make a lot of difference on clearance. They don't make Marathons any more but there are probably still some in warehouses around the country. Go with Endurance tires. I inflate mine to 60 lbs. on the AS, 50 on the boat trailer.

If you had planned on buying new wheels, then I would go with 15" but if you aren't looking to do that, the 14" will do just fine, lower center of gravity instead of higher clearance...still 1/2".

[Action]

Bigger rim, bigger tire.
Bigger tire the greater the load capacity.

Similar to saying you cam move from D to E rated load capacity.

The answer to the question really goes back to you. What is the max load on each tire location going to be when you tow it?
(Know that tire loading on a travel trailer is frequently un even for each position)

If you know the max load possible on highest loaded wheel/tire, multiply that number by 115%. If the max load rating on the 14" tire meets or exceeds, I would not upgrade. If it is less than that I might consider moving to a tire that would handle that or more.

Have you run your trailer across the scale?

>>>>>>>>>Action

[lsawye01]

Thanks to everyone that responded. I have not had the AS on the scales but we have been very careful about the amount of stuff we carry so I don't think we will exceed the max gross wt. Will Gert it weighed soon. Our tires are only a couple years old with low milage so I think we will stick with the 14's and see what happens between now and our planned long trip to the Tetons.

Thanks again for helping me sort this out.

2009 FC 23RB
2019 Silverado 1500 crew (Texas Edition of course)

[Tomboy]

We just upgraded from 15” to 16” on our 25 footer and are selling the 15” rims and tires. We are in Northern California if anyone is close enough to be interested. I keep meaning to list them in the classifieds, PM me if you want photos.

[banderabob]

We have a 2012 23D with 14” rims and tires. I contemplated the same question about a year ago prior to a 3,500 mile adventure in the interior of Mexico. We stuck with the 14”, just couldn’t justify the cost, and happy with it. If it works on México’s roads, no problema here.

[banderabob]

Originally Posted by banderabob

We have a 2012 23D with 14” rims and tires. I contemplated the same question about a year ago prior to a 3,500 mile adventure in the interior of Mexico. We stuck with the 14”, just couldn’t justify the cost, and happy with it. If it works on México’s roads, no problema here.

BTW, I should add that the Mexican federal road system is in many ways as good as ours. Getting off the toll roads to visit the places one should visit gets a bit more rough, but the 14”ers are/were fine.