Community Forums

Dunner · 03-10-2012, 11:26 AM

I too had problems with Goodyear Marathons, Denman, Titan II and Carlisle ST tires. I switched to Yokohama Geolandar LT 215/85-R16 tires and never had another trailer tire problem.

ottffss · 03-10-2012, 12:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by VanDiemen23

....
"Special Trailer (“ST”) Tires....

And therein lies the critical distinction. For whatever reason, "trailer" (ST) tires seem to follow slightly different manufacturer guidelines than "vehicle" (moho, truck, car, etc.) tires.

My post deals with vehicle tires, NOT trailer tires. I failed to completely describe that.

wandering1 · 03-10-2012, 01:01 PM

Over or under inflated tires will cause the tire to overheat which will damage the tire. Be careful listening to peoples personal opinions. Check the tire manufacturers site for factual information.

bluepill · 03-10-2012, 01:27 PM

Inflation pressure is important. Remember all the Ford Explorer/Firestone problems that killed people?

'nuff said.

Jnspenc · 03-10-2012, 02:35 PM

Ok, about the tire pressure. My sidewalls say my PSI should be 110. In my RV, (Heartland Landmark) in the cabinet it states tire pressure 110. Now the side panel next to VIN plate states 80 psi. Ok guys and gals, whick one do I go by???

wandering1 · 03-10-2012, 02:38 PM

Use whats on the sidewall. DUH

Mr_D · 03-10-2012, 02:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ottffss

Mr_d - I am NOT going to play the max/min psi for max load semantic game. Nor should anyone else. The sidewall is the MAX inflation, period.

If you don't understand what the semantic game is, this exceptionally well written and well researched post will clarify

http://www.irv2.com/forums/f103/tire...ml#post1091032

Sorry you haven't read the actual quotes I provided from the tire manufacturers themselves. Perhaps you should do some serious research and you will find that what I posted is the absolute truth.

No need for me to play semantics since I'm quoting from actual tire manufacturers printed literature.

Mr_D · 03-10-2012, 02:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wandering1

Over or under inflated tires will cause the tire to overheat which will damage the tire. Be careful listening to peoples personal opinions. Check the tire manufacturers site for factual information.

Which is why I quoted the actual language from their literature on their sites. Can't get any better info than that.

Mr_D · 03-10-2012, 02:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wandering1

Use whats on the sidewall. DUH

That works for car or trailer tires, not for large MH or truck tires, that's why the manufacturers publish the weight/pressure charts.

VanDiemen23 · 03-10-2012, 07:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wandering1

Over or under inflated tires will cause the tire to overheat which will damage the tire. Be careful listening to peoples personal opinions. Check the tire manufacturers site for factual information.

Under inflating certainly will. That was the Explorer problem

Over inflating will not.

Don't believe me? Get a pyrometer and you'll see I'm right. Data doesn't lie.

And, OTTFFSS, while the over inflation trick works to extend the speed rating on ST tires it does not cause a safety problem on LT or P tires as long as you aren't trying to get max "g" or wet traction out of them at the time.

garyspang · 03-20-2012, 12:47 PM

VanDiemen23
Congratulations, you are the only one that displays proper general knowledge of tires. Very refreshing. It brings back good memories when I did thermal analysis of tires at Michelin Research. Thanks for the informative posts.

N3YMY · 03-24-2012, 01:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pwr2tow

I was told years ago from a tire rep that it was o.k. and even advisable to add 5-10 psi more then what the side wall said when towing at max weight.

It's true.

Footnotes in the TRA year book ST tire section say its possible.

It also has the effect of allowing speeds up to 75MPH.

This assumes you are not overloading the tire of course.

Never exceed the pressure rating for the rim though...

wa8yxm · 03-24-2012, 07:50 AM

I think that if you take 10 tire pressure gauges and make a tank with a pressure regulator so you can keep the pressure in the tank within 1/2 PSI of a "reference" and then take readings with all 10 gauges you might well find one that reads 5-10 PSI higher than the rest... Or lower.

And I think the tire makers know this.

So, less your gauge is lab calibrated... You don't really know what pressure is in the tire.

VanDiemen23 · 03-24-2012, 08:16 AM

wa8yxm - that is so true. The cheap linear stick gauges are all over the place. If you want decent readings you have to get a circular bourdon tube type gauge - but there are even more wrinkles.

A few years back I had a Truechoice sealed, silicone oil filled and damped gauge. $$$ The oil is in there to make the gauge less susceptible to handling shock, and there's a little rubber "burp valve" to help it equalize internal pressure with external pressure (since it's a relative measurement). No matter what track I go to I experience at least 2500 ft of elevation change and back on the way.

On this particular weekend I was slow and the car unpredictable. Turns out the gauge wasn't equalizing the pressure changes from the tow and I had way too much air in the tires. In fact, as it slowly changed over the course of the day, my changes to compensate were unpredictable as well! I pulled the burp valve out of it's little hole, threw it away and drained the oil out. Never had a problem again.

Now I buy expensive unfilled gauges and I'm very careful with them.

Amateur formula car race tires are $1200/set and at best last about 3 hrs of running time. You have to predict hot running pressures and start at an appropriate lower point. Typical hot pressure is 18 psi. Screw up 2 psi either way and if you are running hard enough you can turn the tires to junk in about 20 minutes.