Community Forums

jim81147 · 08-12-2012, 10:07 PM

I have read many of the threads concerning tires but have not seen this ? addressed. With the cost of "RV" tires and what appears from my understanding of what I have read , thier short life span , why dont more people just use regular automotive tires?

Mr_D · 08-12-2012, 10:12 PM

Hard to find 22.5" car tires that will carry 7,500#'s each!

jim81147 · 08-12-2012, 10:18 PM

Sorry , guess I should have clarified a bit ........." fifth wheel RV tires "

Conquest102 · 08-12-2012, 10:32 PM

Same problem weight capacity.

Who wants to risk ALL there tires blowing out from being under rated for the load just to save a
few bucks

adamfolger · 08-12-2012, 10:44 PM

It is all about plys and load ratings. There are simply no car tires or even light duty truck tires that can carry the loads placed on them by fivers. True rv tires have compuonds in their chemical make up to counter uv rays and and make them last longer in general than truck or passenger tires. Time is the enemy not mileage....It is also true that some tires rated as rv tires have little to no chemical protection but they are at least rated for the load. Passenger tires as a general rule are made from softer rubber compounds than comercial tires. It is not a simple subject....just stay with tires that are constructed and rated for the loads you put on them.

19 yrs in the comercial tire retreading industry ( before my 23 as a cop ) I know a few things about rubber compounds and " where the rubber meets the road "

Actually I have probably forgotten most of it

Bondad · 08-13-2012, 05:21 PM

I agree with the other posters. I had a buddy that got some new tires from a tire shop. The tire shop decided to save a few bucks and put the wrong rated tires in the RV (something about using a C instead of a D or E instead of an F - something about letters, anyway). 25 miles from home on his first trip and one of the tires just unpeeled and ripped apart several compartments and wires on it's way out. Those steel belts had no mercy!! Their trip was put on hold for weeks while the RV was being fixed and fitted with new tires - all at the expense of the tire shop.

jim81147 · 08-13-2012, 10:40 PM

Thanks for the replies . I have seen the discussions on load ratings but I never stopped to think if the trailer load was heavier than the truck load. Good thing for dumb questions !!!!

paz · 08-14-2012, 06:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jim81147

I have read many of the threads concerning tires but have not seen this ? addressed. With the cost of "RV" tires and what appears from my understanding of what I have read , their short life span , why dont more people just use regular automotive tires?

By "short life span" of RV tires, I assume you mean the occurrence of weather checking and sidewall cracks, not tread life. Weathering of RV tires is an issue because RVs tend to sit in storage for months at a time. Flexing of the tires during use helps bring some of the UV and ozone inhibitors to the surface of the rubber. Automobiles tend to be used every day, and for that reason we usually don't see weather checking on automobile tires. It's not because automobile tires are any better. In fact, as has been mentioned, manufacturers sometimes put more UV inhibitors into RV tires than there are in automobile tires.

As has also been mentioned, most of the reason for the higher cost of RV tires is the fact they have higher load ratings than auto or light truck tires.

richardcoxid · 08-14-2012, 04:05 PM

Jim81447
Don’t be embarrassed about the “dumb question”, there is no such thing as a “dumb question” only dumb answers!
It is amazing to me that one thing means one thing to one person and a completely different thing to another person!
That is the way WE ALL learn!

jim81147 · 08-14-2012, 11:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by paz

By "short life span" of RV tires, I assume you mean the occurrence of weather checking and sidewall cracks, not tread life. Weathering of RV tires is an issue because RVs tend to sit in storage for months at a time. Flexing of the tires during use helps bring some of the UV and ozone inhibitors to the surface of the rubber. Automobiles tend to be used every day, and for that reason we usually don't see weather checking on automobile tires. It's not because automobile tires are any better. In fact, as has been mentioned, manufacturers sometimes put more UV inhibitors into RV tires than there are in automobile tires.

As has also been mentioned, most of the reason for the higher cost of RV tires is the fact they have higher load ratings than auto or light truck tires.

By short life span I was refering to the fact ( as I understand it ) that perfectly good looking tires with lots of tread left on them need to be replaced because they are over age . Thanks everyone for all the replies.

JimM68 · 08-15-2012, 05:28 AM

I've never really thought about it in reference to fifth wheels, but it is common practice to go to 16" LT (light truck) tires (instead of 15" ST trailer tires) on travel trailers, to GAIN load capacity.

Gary RVRoamer · 08-15-2012, 07:33 AM

You can use "LT" (Light Truck) tires on a trailer, but not "P" (passenger) car tires. For one thing, they probably don't come with an adequate load carrying capacity, but even if they did the sidewalls are not designed for trailering. Basically that means they aren't stiff enough.