4th Tire Failure - This is getting old

[Daniel A.]

Are the wheels stock on the trailer ?

Changing to a different wheel can case problems.

[Jared J]

Changing wheels will not cause a tire to blow. This is a well known, well documented problem all over the Internet, Goodyear, Carlisle, you name it. If you were incredibly ignorant, you could get a rim way too narrow and wear the center, or wayyyy wide, and have it run on the sidewalls, but anybody that couldn't tell a problem there shouldn't be pulling a trailer.

I suspect most people on this forum get lucky for two reasons.

1. The trailers are light, and the tires don't get maxed out much.

2. They have undersized tow vehicles, and are staying safe and driving slow.

Guys with large campers, car trailers, and bigger tow vehicles are much more likely to see these issues pop up due to weight and speed.

[Francesca Knowles]

LT tires are not a solution for trailers...the tread design is all wrong, for one thing. Why would one put a drive/steer tire on a wheel that only needs to follow? Big truck drivers know this, and the tread pattern on their trailers is designed accordingly, as is the tread pattern on ST tires.

The number one reason for flat tires is over/underinflation, folks. The number two reason is heat buildup due to high speeds/environmental temps, or a combination of the two.

And there's no empirical evidence that the country of manufacture has anything whatsoever to do with tire longevity/performance.

Francesca

[Jared J]

Until the tire industry wakes up and makes trailer tires for the modern highway, LT tires are about the only option, IMHO. Like I said, I'be probably blown around 8 st tires on a 4 tire trailer. Some of them blew on their maiden voyage. The 15 year old, weather checked LT tire? Still going strong.

Each to their own. I plan on switching my st's to the car trailer, and buying lt's for my camper. It's not worth the risk of ripping the side of the camper off, to me. The car trailer has 3/16" steel fenders and two axles, doesn't matter if a tire blows on it.

As for semi tires…that's not even in the same ballpark. They also will blow, been there, done that. They were also rated for 70mph. Some are also for steer or drive wheels. None of which really matters for our uses, anyway.

If somebody wants to drive 55-60, st's are probably fine. If they drive at speed limits, then they're a ticking time bomb, in my experience.

As for the country of manufacture not mattering, check reviews if Goodyear marathons pre/post china.

[Glenn Baglo]

I've had Goodyear Marathons on my Escape 17 since I picked it up at the factory in July 2008. Same two tires, gravel washboard roads and freeways. No problems.