Community Forums

RonNBama · 12-15-2006, 04:23 AM

I am about to start the dreaded replacement of aging tires on my '98 Dynasty. The Bridgestones show little wear but conventional wisdom says that they should be replaced after 5-7 years and I have pushed that envelope as far as I can already. Now, the confusion comes in. The R299 B'stones are 295/75R22.5 skins. The Michelin guy tells me that their XZE 275/80R22.5 is the exact same size. The specs seem to support his claim. The Goodyear G670RV 275 data sheet shows about the same, so I guess they weren't blowing smoke up my skirt. I will replace the steer tire first and don't want to mis-size enough to confuse the ABS system.

Now, the Goodyear tire max load rating is almost 1000 pounds more than the XZE. Looks like the costs are about the same ($500 OTD per tire). Without starting another useless tire argument, does anyone have actual experience which would make one tire more RV-friendly than the other?

Thanks for any advise you can give.

RonNBama · 12-15-2006, 04:23 AM

I am about to start the dreaded replacement of aging tires on my '98 Dynasty. The Bridgestones show little wear but conventional wisdom says that they should be replaced after 5-7 years and I have pushed that envelope as far as I can already. Now, the confusion comes in. The R299 B'stones are 295/75R22.5 skins. The Michelin guy tells me that their XZE 275/80R22.5 is the exact same size. The specs seem to support his claim. The Goodyear G670RV 275 data sheet shows about the same, so I guess they weren't blowing smoke up my skirt. I will replace the steer tire first and don't want to mis-size enough to confuse the ABS system.

Now, the Goodyear tire max load rating is almost 1000 pounds more than the XZE. Looks like the costs are about the same ($500 OTD per tire). Without starting another useless tire argument, does anyone have actual experience which would make one tire more RV-friendly than the other?

Thanks for any advise you can give.

GaryKD · 12-15-2006, 11:20 AM

I have Michelin XZE 2+ tires on the front of the coach. The size of the tires is 275X70X22.5, load range J. They are very smooth riding and with load range J, I carry 95 lbs of air. The tires have about 17K miles on them and show no wear (I haven't actually measured the tread). Be it dry, wet, torential rain, or snow, the tires have had excellent traction and performed outstanding.

I have no experience with the Goodyear tires mentioned in your OP.

Kazoo Tom · 12-16-2006, 06:01 AM

I have Michelin XZA in the 19.5" variety on mine. They were original to the coach and I am pushing the same envelope you are. The tires look great, no signs of wear or weathering on them at all. I too am looking to replace mine this spring (makes no sense to let them sit in the snow all winter).

The Goodyear RV tires are said to provide a somewhat softer ride. Good luck finding any recently manufactured Goodyear tires while the strike is still in progress.

My current tires are load range G, I will replace them with load range H for that little bit extra margin. In my case, the Goodyear are a few dollars cheaper, if you can find them.

RV Wizard · 12-17-2006, 02:23 AM

I have been very satisfied with the Goodyear G670RV tires I had put on in Apache Junction a little over a year and a half ago. Smooth ride and no issues.

Tom and Patty · 12-17-2006, 06:34 AM

Ron, you are right. You have pushed the envelope. I run on Bridgestone right now, but all of your choices are good. Michelin just builds the tire in an 80 series. Bridgestone will be about 20mm wider (.79 inches).

One note however. "G", "H", or "J" load rating all carry more weight than the other, BUT only if you air the tires up to a higher pressure. A "G", "H", or "J" for the most part all carry the same weight at 95 lbs. Nothing is gained by going from a "G" to an "H" unless you increase the air pressure above the "G's" 110 max pressure. I'm using 295/75R22.5 as the example.

RonNBama · 12-21-2006, 04:52 PM

This is a duplicate post but I wanted to update folks here who gave me advise. When the tire guys looked at my tires, they were quite adamant that they all (not just the fronts) needed replacing. I immediately assumed it was a sales pitch so I was skeptical to the extreme. After a lengthy conversation and some careful examination of the old tires, I relented and had all six replaced with Michelin XZE's. The old bank account will be in shock for awhile, but I feel better. Haven't driven very far, just shop-to-garage. I immediately noticed that the steering was "stiffer" and that the coach seemed to track better but the real test will be on the road at speed and in a cross wind.

Can't complain about the Bridgestone R299's. They gave 49,750 miles since 1998 and were really not in bad shape tread-wear wise. The sidewall cracking was showing their age and a blowout was probably imminent.

Tom and Patty · 12-21-2006, 07:00 PM

Ron, you got your moneys worth. Next time only run 'em six years.

RonNBama · 12-22-2006, 04:42 AM

Hey Tom and Patty,
The pics in your photo link are great. Thanks for sharing. My PC won't let me enlarge them, but from what I can see, you have been camping in some spectacular scenery.

Yeah, I hope to protect these tires from sun damage. The previous owner of the Bridgestones never covered them and the right tires were noticably cracked while the driver side were without any sidewall cracks.

GaryKD · 12-22-2006, 01:21 PM

Ron,
There may be some good news for you. Michelin has recently gone to a ten year replacement recommendation (not warranty). This is for Michelin tires that came on a new vehicle (read newly purchased tires). Michelin has a sidewall template to assist owners in checking the sidewalls. If tread and sidewalls are okay, not to exceed ten years is now the Michelin replacement recommendation.

Michelin documented this recommendation in their manual titled Michelin RV Tires, document number MWL42739, dated 06/06. You can order a manual by calling 800-677-3322, option #2.

If we keep our tires covered and clean, the 6 year replacement recommendation may no longer be valid.

SacsTC · 12-22-2006, 02:24 PM

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">There may be some good news for you. Michelin has recently gone to a ten year replacement recommendation (not warranty). This is for Michelin tires that came on a new vehicle (read newly purchased tires). Michelin has a sidewall template to assist owners in checking the sidewalls. If tread and sidewalls are okay, not to exceed ten years is now the Michelin replacement recommendation. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Ron, I got 10 years out of my tires on my 94 Bounder. At that time 7 years was the recommended life span. I think that a lot of it has to do with usage. If the rig sits a lot, the compounds in the rubber dry out whereas if they are used regularly, they do not. Even at 10 years, these were just beginning to show cracks, but because we were already beyond the 7 year max, I changed them out.

RonNBama · 12-22-2006, 04:09 PM

I sure hope to get ten out of these. That is indeed good news to hear that the mfg supports the longer life cycle.

Thanks for that info.

Tom and Patty · 12-22-2006, 05:00 PM

Funny that Michelins website says their warranty is good for life of tread or 5 years from the date of purchase. Michelin "Long Haul" tires have a 7 year 700,000 mile 3 retread warranty.

I do find it hard to believe in these days of litigation, that Michelin would "recommend" 10 years.

But, I learn something new everday. I wasn't born in the "Show Me" state but close. I'll be calling my Michelin rep on Tuesday to get this document.

RonNBama · 01-05-2007, 05:18 PM

Thought I would give a brief update and my Michelin observations thus far. Have about 1K miles on the set of new Michelins now. They are round, well balanced, ride much better than 50K miles, 8 year old Bridgestones (duuuhhh) and handle better too. I do notice that the steering requires more effort (don't understand this). I have had to air up the right back tires (both) several times a day! Since we were travelling with grandchirrens, I wasn't about to spend four or five hours at a tire shop, so I just checked them at every stop. They will go back to local TCI shop next week.

EDIT: Turns out that the guys at TCI didn't properly tighten the shrader-valve extensions and the leaks were occuring at the junction of the part fixed into the rim and the extension. A relief for sure.

I hope I didn't damage a tire by running low pressure for a couple of hundred miles. When I found that I had a problem, one dual had the originally installed pressure of 105# and the other had only 40#! A testimonial to Michelin's load carrying capability.