Car tires for a Scamp....???

[floyd]

Originally Posted by Donna D.

Floyd, Jeff is in Alberta. Perhaps DOT regs for tires are different there than where you live? So far, I've not found any rules/laws that are universal except for the need to use common sense and there are lots of people who don't know how to apply that....

Great point! I am sometimes amazed at how heavy this site is on Canadian and west coast members. Both areas can be harbingers of things to come beyond our wildest midwestern imaginations or fears.
The photo is of Illinois Transportation Secretary Ann L. Schneider.

[RogerDat]

Tire stores and tow outfits will refuse to install tires beyond the "safe" number of years after manufacture date stamped on tire. That includes the spare that may have been sitting on the back of our FGRV for a lot of years.

Had that brought to my attention with the full sized spare for my car. Checked around and here in Mich. it was universal, for liability reasons I was told.

[floyd]

Originally Posted by RogerDat

Tire stores and tow outfits will refuse to install tires beyond the "safe" number of years after manufacture date stamped on tire. That includes the spare that may have been sitting on the back of our FGRV for a lot of years.

Had that brought to my attention with the full sized spare for my car. Checked around and here in Mich. it was universal, for liability reasons I was told.

So considering that the "Logan's Run" number varies from 5 to 10 years, what number did the tire salesman give you?
Which would you trust more on the expressway... a minispare or a 6 year old full sized spare?

[RogerDat]

Originally Posted by floyd

So considering that the "Logan's Run" number varies from 5 to 10 years, what number did the tire salesman give you?
Which would you trust more on the expressway... a minispare or a 6 year old full sized spare?

Well this was a 96 Honda maybe three years ago... I'm pretty sure it was past the 10 years. I think it's 6 or 7 years the mechanic said but don't recall for certain.

Those donut spares scare me! They do save space and weight but depend on really high air pressure to work and how many people keep the pressure checked?

A minispare does make a decent pole base for a bird feeder. Pretty useless as a tire swing however.

[Willys]

Sorry if I'm incorrect about it being required to have ST tires on your trailer. It appears to me that what is being said is that ST tires are of lower quality. That being said I think that maybe we should suggest the power that be to have all manufacturers stop making them. I never would have thought that it would be better to have car tires on my trailer.

[RogerDat]

Originally Posted by Willys

Sorry if I'm incorrect about it being required to have ST tires on your trailer. It appears to me that what is being said is that ST tires are of lower quality.

I think our small personal trailers are exempt from many DOT regulations that would apply to longer/heavier and commercial trailers.

I'm pretty sure that quality is going to be sufficient to keep the manufacturer from getting sued if product is used as intended and recommended. I can't see any market reason a business would want to sell an inferior product or take on the added cost of producing another product line unless there was a reason for doing so.

My own inclination would be to purchase ST tires, rated for my load (plus a bit) inflate to manufactures recommended pressure and drive at or under recommended speed for the tire.

I figure that trailer use is different than passenger car use and that tires will be engineered for the intended use. Tread design comes to mind, a lot of engineering goes into tread design and trailer tires do not have to give consideration to use as drive train traction tires, thus can be designed with tread for better towing maybe more hydroplane or scuffing resistance.

I'm not saying that passenger tires are "bad" or "wrong" just would not be my own first choice. If I needed tires and a good set of three appropriate load rated passenger tires was available at a good price I would consider it. Going to a store to purchase tires I would go ST.

If I understand correctly the question we are discussing is what kind of tires to buy TWO of every four or five years. Is the difference in price between ST and passenger so large as to be worth worrying about? Same for the difference in "quality".

To the original question, yes you can put passenger tires on trailer. Some people will say that was a better choice, some will say it's a worse choice. Both with valid points or experience but in the end it's your choice.

[floyd]

Originally Posted by Willys

Sorry if I'm incorrect about it being required to have ST tires on your trailer. It appears to me that what is being said is that ST tires are of lower quality. That being said I think that maybe we should suggest the power that be to have all manufacturers stop making them. I never would have thought that it would be better to have car tires on my trailer.

Don't misinterpret what I said as repudiating the use of ST tires on small trailers. I use "C" rated Carlisle ST Radials on my 13D Scamp.
What most should gather from my years of posting is that you should do the right thing because it is right, not just because it's a bureaucratic rule.
I got mad at my dog once and called him "bureaucrat"... He sulked around for a few days then left, I'm sorry and I miss him. Our conversations were so much more intelligent than any I've had with a politician!

[Ian G.]

A very interesting article on just this topic.
RV Trailer Tires: What is the correct tire pressure for my trailer tires?

[gmw photos]

There is at least one tire being marketed as both a "trailer tire" and "light truck" (LT) tire. As a LT tire is carries a speed rating of 99 mph ( as opposed to 65 mph for ST ), and it presumably is also designed for stresses of trailer use. That tire is the Kumho 857. According to most accounts that I have read, people are having good luck with this tire.
The Maxxis 8008 is also garnering a good reputation. It is a ST rated tire.
There is also a Hankook LT tire available in the US that some folks are running, and it too seems to be good.

These three tires are on my short list of what is going on my camper.

[Henry N]

Originally Posted by Thomas G.

Oh sure, what does Goodyear know about tires?

I don't care who you are.....that's funny!

[BCDave]

Originally Posted by gmw photos

There is at least one tire being marketed as both a "trailer tire" and "light truck" (LT) tire. As a LT tire is carries a speed rating of 99 mph ( as opposed to 65 mph for ST ), and it presumably is also designed for stresses of trailer use. That tire is the Kumho 857. According to most accounts that I have read, people are having good luck with this tire.
The Maxxis 8008 is also garnering a good reputation. It is a ST rated tire.
There is also a Hankook LT tire available in the US that some folks are running, and it too seems to be good.

These three tires are on my short list of what is going on my camper.

Wish I had known about those Kumho ones a couple of weeks ago (when I had yet another "incident" with my Marathons and consequently put a full set of Les Schwab House brands on the trailer. The Les Schwab ones are 65 mph rated - which is a lot slower than I like to travel, but I can't go faster with them on. Just like using the Marathons- I am restricted by a stupid tire design

I have run Kumhos on pickups, SUV's and on spouse's Lexus and have liked them immensely. A bit hard to justify taking the new ones off now, though - they are a only couple of weeks and about 500 miles old.

Someone commented about "What does Goodyear know about tires?" Judging by the Marathon trailer tire - not very much at all!