RV Tire Shop Near Memphis?

[HamboneTHW]

Good Afternoon All,

I am coming up on 7 years from the date stamp on the coach we bought last year. I don't have good records to tell me when exactly they were replaced or how many miles are on them. We're going to replace them at the 7 year mark.

Has anyone had good or bad experience with any tire shops near Memphis? I'm wanting to find a shop with extensive RV experience.

We're looking at Toyo, Hankook and Sumitomo tires. I've read good reviews on all three. They are also cheaper than the Michelins that are on it. I'm not trying to cheap out on tires, but Michelins just seem overpriced.

Thanks in advance.

[theroc]

Good choices. Yes, if you've read my posts on tires, those are the brands I like too. I too believe that first-tier tires for motorhomes such as Michelin, Goodyear, etc. are way overpriced. Sure, I know many will disagree. I have bought Michelin for my cars in the past because of their excellent reputation for long tread life but in a motorhome application, tread mileage does not factor into most of our decisions. Plus, all the other issues we've had to put up with, with Michelin RV tires. Still, many on this board believe that Michelin gives them more of a safety factor. I believe that tires from the Japanese and South Korean -based manufacturers have quality that equals the first-tier tires and are just as "safe" as Michelins.

So yes, Toyo, Sumitomo, and Hankook meet those standards in my opinion.

Also consider the Yokohama 104ZR if you have the 295/80R22.5 size. I believe this to be an excellent tire. And, Yokohama has, I believe, now shifted all of their commercial truck tire production to their plant in Mississippi so all of their truck tires should now be U.S. made. Like Toyota, Honda, Nissan, etc. are all reputable Japanese companies, they all have plants in the U.S. and are providing jobs here in the U.S. Our toad for years was a Subaru Outback that was made in Indiana and seemed to have the same quality as the Subarus made in Japan ...we never had anything major go wrong with it and only spent money for routine maintenance in the over ten years we had it.

As far as a dealer in Memphis, I'm not familiar with the area but if you don't get viable suggestions in this thread, I'll look in my notes to see if I have any recommendations in your area.

[HamboneTHW]

Originally Posted by theroc

Good choices. Yes, if you've read my posts on tires, those are the brands I like too. I too believe that first-tier tires for motorhomes such as Michelin, Goodyear, etc. are way overpriced. Sure, I know many will disagree. I have bought Michelin for my cars in the past because of their excellent reputation for long mileage but in a motorhome application, long tread mileage does not factor into most of our decisions. Plus, all the other issues we've had to put up with, with Michelin RV tires. Still, many on this board believe that Michelin gives them more of a safety factor. I believe that tires from Japanese and South Korean -based manufacturers have quality that equals the first-tier tires.

So yes, Toyo, Sumitomo, and Hankook meet those standards in my opinion.

Also consider the Yokohama 104ZR if you have the 295/80R22.5 size. I believe this to be an excellent tire. And, Yokohama has, I believe, now shifted all of their commercial truck tire production to their plant in Mississippi so all of their truck tires should now be U.S. made.

As far as a dealer in Memphis, I'm not familiar with the area but if you don't get viable suggestions in this thread, I'll look in my notes to see if I have any recommendations in your area.

Thanks so much for the input and vote of confidence! I view tires as very important for safety; after all, it's the only thing between 30,000+ lbs. carrying my loved ones and the road... But, I am in complete agreement that Michelin and Goodyear are too far overpriced. In addition, as you stated, mileage isn't going to be an issue, as we put around 5,000 miles a year on our coach.

If you find a list of a good shop in my area, I would greatly appreciate it. Google isn't offering much. I'd like to find a shop familiar with RVs.

[04georgieboy]

You might look at Southern Tire Mart. I used them for tire balance in west Memphis and they did fine.

[theroc]

I just looked at my notes (I've kept a log during the past 15-20 years of what other RVers have told me pertaining to their service experiences around the country) and I agree with 04georgieboy that Southern Tire Mart is worth considering. Three entries in the log show very good reviews of Southern Tire Mart in your area and two were for the dealer in West Memphis Arkansas with the third for the one in Memphis on Old US Hwy 78.

Southern Tire Mart is a dealer for both Toyo and Yokohama. I'm not sure about Sumitomo or Hankook but many tire dealers will order brands that they are not dealers for if their customer desires that brand so you might ask them once you establish a good relationship with them.

I don't think you have to necessarily use a dealer that sells tires to a lot owners of motorhomes as these dealers such as the two Southern Tire Mart locations mentioned are commercial truck dealers and are familiar with and cater to trucks, commercial vehicles, buses, RVs, etc. so can very easily sell and install the tires along with providing the service you need. If you read some of the online reviews, you can see where there are several from satisfied motorhome owners using Southern Tire Mart commercial truck locations, however.

I'm just assuming that you have 295/80R-22.5 because of the coach you have listed in your profile but if you don't, we may have to adjust the information in the links I'm providing:

Southern Tire Mart - West Memphis, AR ...contact information

Toyo M144, 295/80R-22.5

Yokohama 104ZR, 295/80R-22.5

[HamboneTHW]

Originally Posted by theroc

I just looked at my notes (I've kept a log during the past 15-20 years of what other RVers have told me pertaining to their service experiences around the country) and I agree with 04georgieboy that Southern Tire Mart is worth considering. Three entries in the log show very good reviews of Southern Tire Mart in your area and two were for the dealer in West Memphis Arkansas with the third for the one in Memphis on Old US Hwy 78.

Southern Tire Mart is a dealer for both Toyo and Yokohama. I'm not sure about Sumitomo or Hankook but many tire dealers will order brands that they are not dealers for if their customer desires that brand so you might ask them once you establish a good relationship with them.

I don't think you have to necessarily use a dealer that sells tires to a lot owners of motorhomes as these dealers such as the two Southern Tire Mart locations mentioned are commercial truck dealers and are familiar with and cater to trucks, commercial vehicles, buses, RVs, etc. so can very easily sell and install the tires along with providing the service you need. If you read some of the online reviews, you can see where there are several from satisfied motorhome owners using Southern Tire Mart commercial truck locations, however.

I'm just assuming that you have 295/80R-22.5 because of the coach you have listed in your profile but if you don't, we may have to adjust the information in the links I'm providing:

Southern Tire Mart - West Memphis, AR ...contact information

Toyo M144, 295/80R-22.5

Yokohama 104ZR, 295/80R-22.5

The coach came with 11R22.5, which they are currently running a set of Michelin XZA 11R22.5 16 ply tire. Last time I weighed the coach, I was nearing 30,000 lbs. (rated at 33K max). I think that would require a 16 ply tire, correct?

Do you happen to know the difference between the Toyo M144 and M177?

I will definitely be reaching out to Southern Tire. Thanks so much!

[theroc]

First, let me qualify the information I may post: I am not a tire expert.

I'm just another poster on this forum that spews his own opinions whether they are right or wrong ...just as many others here do. Like many who post the forum, I like to compare products before purchasing so will do research on subjects such as cars, RVs, TVs, tires, etc. to gain as much information as I can. Some of the information may be faulty, however.

With that disclaimer stated, I'll attempt to answer your questions in the best manner I know how. Hopefully, if wrong, others will chime in and correct the information. We have many tire experts on the forum who know much more than I could ever know. In fact, we do have several tire experts that post on the forum who hopefully will see your thread ...one is tireman9.

I think you should go with at least the load range that your current tires are rated. The term "load range" and "ply-rating" are used in combination with each other.

Commercial truck tires commonly have these identifiers:

Load range G will be 14 ply rated
Load range H will be 16 ply rated

The Bridgestone information sheet I have attached below will explain "load range" and "ply rating."

I'm thinking that the majority of Class A motorhomes will only "require" load range G -14 ply-rating tires. Take a look on your sidewall to see if you can identify the load range. Michelin XZA 11R22.5 will come in both load ranges as will most of the Toyo models in your size.

If it were me, I'd buy the same load range as what the manufacturer used and since you say that the current tires came with the coach, you'll know what is safe as the manufacturer will not have put tires on the coach that couldn't handle the weight. I'm going to assume that you'll have a "load range G, 14 ply-rated" tire but check for sure.

I've seen several threads on this in the past, here's one of them:

Should I move from load range G to H?

Since we now know your tire size, I'm tempted to say to go with the Toyo M154 since the M144 does not come in the exact 11R22.5 size. The M154 is an all-position multi-use tire for a reasonable price. It comes in both the G and H load ranges. The M154 is what many purchase to replace Michelins so are proven for RV use and seem to get very high reviews from RVers who use them.

Toyo M154

My understanding of the difference between the M144 and the M177 is that the M177 is focused specifically for use by the long-haul trucker where long tread life is what you'd be paying the premium price for when purchasing the M177.


eta: The Yokohama RY023 also comes in the 11R22.5 size in both load range G and load range H and although it's described as a "regional" tire, many tires commonly used and designated for RV use are described as "regional." Again, the RY023 I believe is now made in Mississippi.