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View Poll Results: Would your insurance company pay out for damage caused by faliure of a non RV tire
Yes 6 75.00%
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Old 01-05-2011, 04:35 PM   #1
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Tire replacement - whats the options?

Hi All and happy new year!

I am currently running Michelin XRV tires, 235/80/22.5 on my Workhorse based MH. They need replacing pretty soon and I was just wondering if there is an reasonable alternative to the Michelins?

You thoughts and experiences please.
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Old 01-05-2011, 05:07 PM   #2
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Quote:
Originally Posted by leeso
Hi All and happy new year!

I am currently running Michelin XRV tires, 235/80/22.5 on my Workhorse based MH. They need replacing pretty soon and I was just wondering if there is an reasonable alternative to the Michelins?

You thoughts and experiences please.
We run a Gulfstream on a WH. Before than, a Holiday Rambler Endeavor. Combined with my experience in my personal automobile, I don't think there is anything BUT a Michelin.
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Old 01-05-2011, 05:19 PM   #3
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Hi leeso,
Why do you want an alternative to Michelin tires? I'm with Beaufort on loyalty to Michelin.
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Old 01-05-2011, 05:20 PM   #4
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Hi Beaufort,
Welcome to iRV2.
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Old 01-05-2011, 06:50 PM   #5
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leeso: any number of options.
The 235/80 22.5 is a Michelin size. It is the same as a 245/75 R 22.5 by Goodyear, Toyo etc.
My rig original tire was XRV 235/80R22.5. Went to Goodyear G670Rv 275/70R22.5 almost same diameter so less than 1mph speedometer error, 1 inch wider tread, Load range H vice G for the 235's, -increased max load by 2200# per tire. (or same load at 85psi vice 105).
Each tire manufacturer shows the specs for their tires, tread width, acceptable rim width, diameter, loaded radius, turns per mile, minimum dual spacing etc.
If you change tire size, need to consider clearance in the wheel well, particularly at full turn, and that minimum dual spacing because if the tires "kiss" they will fail. Check the Load/inflation tables.
Rim size and- my Goodyear tires max inflation is 125psi, my rims are only rated to 120 psi. Can't exceed that, but since I run 85 to 90 psi it is not a concern.
End result, my tires are 12% wider, run at lower pressure for better ride and are 16 ply rated instead of 14.
Hope this helps without adding any confusion.....
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Old 01-05-2011, 07:10 PM   #6
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I'm going to consider Hankooks, Sumitomos or Toyos come spring time to replace my XRV's....number of folks here seem to have had good luck with those brands. Nothing against Michelin at all but they are $$$$....
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Old 01-05-2011, 07:10 PM   #7
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Originally Posted by GaryKD
Hi Beaufort,
Welcome to iRV2.
Thanks! Been posting on the Gulfstream board for years, but not much going on there these days. I got an iPad for Christmas, and found this board via an app.
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Old 01-05-2011, 08:26 PM   #8
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Selecting Replacement Tires

Some general points to consider:

1. Be sure to get all steel radials; both tread & sidewall. With a high profile,
the coach will walk around too much on fabric sidewall tires.


2. Do not go overboard on ply rating or you will have a tire that is hard as a
rock and will ride like a rock. Remember, tires also have a spring rate and
contribute to the quality of the ride.

3. It’s very important to keep in mind that when going to a higher load rating tire it doesn't increase the load rating of the axle, nor the maximum pressure rating of the
rims. Thus, you usually can't improve an overloaded situation by just getting
higher load rated tires.



First step:

1. Do a 4 corners weighing. You need to find a truck scale that has enough room around it to position the coach so that each corner is the only one being weighed. The scale will be a flat platform, level with the ground.

Try searching Yellow Pages for Public Scales, Moving companies, and the one that works best for me -- Grain Elevators. My local elevator did it for free since I didn't need any paperwork, they just wrote down the four numbers and waved me on. Nice folks.


The two critical issues are tire diameter (revolutions per mile) and tire width. Tire width is important for steering clearance and for proper dual spacing at the rear. You need a minimum spacing, or larger, to get air flow between the duals for cooling. It’s a critical measurement.

For tire width steering clearances you get a good picture of the situation by turning your fronts to each extreme, slide under the coach (engine off, brakes set) with a steel tape rule and eyeball all around for clearances, and visually and tape measure see what additional width will do at the turn extremes.

For the rears you can use a simple method. Engine off, brakes set, slide under the coach at one dual position and look between the tires front to back (or back to front) to measure the closest distance between the tires.

The critical place to look is at the "bulges" near the bottom of the tires, and
this must be done with full load on the tires (not jacked).

If the new tires are 1" wider each, use just 1" decrease in the spacing estimated decrease in distance between tires. You only use 1/2 the tire width because half the increase is on each side of the tire. If the new spacing looks reasonable (on the order of around 3" +/- 1/4" take the coach and your measurements and the tire size you are considering to your truck tire dealer and get his opinion.

You do not have to have exactly the same size tires as came with your coach, you do have to have tires that will give you full clearance in turns and between the duals and are within a few percent of the revolutions per mile of your current tires.

If you can’t get closer than 1 or 2% on the Revolutions per mile you can still get the tires if the clearances are good. The pulse count sensor (pulses per mile) that signals the engine can be
reset by a dealer to give accurate readings with your new tires and the speedometer can be corrected via the dip switches on the rear of the gauge.

BTW, going to a higher load rating can give you a softer ride! You don't have to inflate to as high a pressure as you would with a lower load tire. That's straight off the tire load/pressure tables if you look for it comparatively.

2. Here's how I found a replacement size for my tires. I had 9R22.5s as the OEM tire. They are becoming harder to find as most tire makers have moved towards metric sizing.

Toyo has both standard sizes (9R22.5, 10R... etc) and metric (275/65R22.5). You need to look at each Toyo tire model for sizes to find comparables.

Basically the metric numbers are tire width/aspect ratio (sidewall height as a proportion of tire width) Radial 22.5, or 20.. (wheel
size).

Once you locate a Toyo tire model (medium duty truck - all position) with comparable measurements you need to check the tire specs. There is a link on the manufacturer's website that takes you to a table that includes a variety of special information.

I was able to find a metric substitute for my 9R22.5 OEM tires with a Toyo 275/65R22.5. The metrics are 1" wider, but no taller, have the same revolutions per mile (no need to have speedometer re-calibrated) and were a grade higher (from F to G).

3a. The critical issue is tire clearances if you go to a wider tire. For the fronts I turned the steering wheel to extreme left and extreme right and measured clearances between tires and any nearby structure, checked to make sure that the additional width wouldn't hit anything.

The backs get a little more technical. You need to be sure that the wider tires in a dual configuration are far enough apart to allow ventilation between the tires. The specification tables usually give minimum dual spacing.

Simple method. Measure the spacing between the side-walls of the duals at the "fattest" part of the tires. On my coach that was around 3-3/4". If you go with a 1" wider tire, as I did, you have to realize that 1/2 of that inch increase is on the right side of the tire and the other 1/2" is on the left side of the tire.

Two tires each 1" wider, means the gap between is decreased by 1" (1/2 from tire A and 1/2 from tire B. So my dual spacing was reduced from almost 4" to almost 3". Three inches should give plenty of ventilation.

3b. The technical (and a little more difficult) method is to look up your Wheel Offset provided by the wheel manufacturer. You need the wheel model number from the rim and then apply the following formula:

Min. dual spacing = 2x(offset) - width of one tire

My offset was 6.44". I wanted to use a 10" wide tire.

Mds = 2(6.44) - 10 = 2.88.

Two point eighty-eight was virtually the same number I got from the simple method.


4. I made up a spreadsheet to keep track of all the tires I looked at and a simple calculator for the Mds computation. You can see it here:

Tire comparisons: http://home.roadrunner.com/~kwildman/tire.jpg


5. Also, you need to pay attention to Revolutions per Mile since large differences between old and new tires will show up on the speedometer and odometer.

Warning:

When I started this search I really knew nothing about the issues. I did a lot of reading on the internet and now I know just enough to be dangerous.

You need to look at the tables, talk to your tire supplier, and make your own decision.

Ken Wildman, with assistance from SafariFriends members Jim Mexler and Bill Halberstadt.
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Old 01-05-2011, 10:57 PM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by UltraKen View Post

Warning:

When I started this search I really knew nothing about the issues. I did a lot of reading on the internet and now I know just enough to be dangerous.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
That's seems kind of familiar
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Old 01-06-2011, 07:46 AM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JohnRR View Post
That's seems kind of familiar

It is. I made it a doc file and will post it whenever the question of replacement tires comes up.

It's intended for the person asking the question. I think it's more polite than telling them to do a search on the forum.

Once you recognized the first line you can just skip over it.
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Old 01-06-2011, 10:00 PM   #11
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There are a number of good makers of RV tires

I have to buy four drive tires this spring. Currently I have Michelin XZA s and have had absolutely no problems with them. I have newer XZE s on my steer tires and two almost new GY 670's on the tags. After reading MANY of these tire threads and adding in my personal experience I think there are a number of good makers of RV tires. No question Michelin is a good tire. They are always the most expensive though. If I could get Hankooks for half the price of Michelin I would instantly take that deal. If the Hankooks were 85% of the price of Michelin I would likely stick with Mich.

My current list of acceptable tire makers assuming they come in the right size is Michelin, Good Year, Goodrich, Hankook, Brigestone, Firestone, and maybe Toyo, Sumitomo, and Yokohama. I would not put GYear on the steer tires.
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Old 01-07-2011, 08:37 AM   #12
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Hey, thanks for the replies so far. Some interesting points raised.

It seems that some of the alternative manufacturers mentioned do not supply tyres specifically for RV use. Although, I am sure their commercial tyres would do the job (harder ride quality maybe) I wonder what would be their response to a warranty claim if a tire failure occured on an RV?

Furthermore, I can imagine problems with associated insurance claims for damage associated with a tire failure when the cause is found to be a non RV tire.

Can anyone share their experiences on that?

Following on, apart from GY or Michelin, who else makes tires for RV use?
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Old 01-07-2011, 08:51 AM   #13
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I replaced my Michelins with Toyos last summer and after putting on 10K I'm pleased with the ride and performance of them. They ran about $1000 less than Michelins.
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Old 01-07-2011, 09:33 AM   #14
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My choice would be Bridgestones or Continentals in that order.

Good luck with your choice
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