Tires

[Weldingmedic]

J Mac, I like where your head is at. Enjoy the ride, time goes by fast enough !!

[padlin]

I could not find a speed rating on my Carlisle Radial Trail RH's, nothing on their web site either so I'll go with the 65 mph that is standard for ST's.
Radial Trail RH's are a new model, they had a lot of issues with previous ones. Couldn't find any feedback on these. Supposedly they were made to go up against the Maxxis.
I have a 1 yr old set of Maxxis M8008's on my other trailer (replaced TowMax's), considered by most on the big RV forum to be the best, they look very similar to the Radial Trails. Marathons get mixed reviews. Towmax flat out stink.

[santacruzer]

I'll do 65 in states where it's allowed, but much above that and my personal comfort level goes way down. A sudden blowout at that speed with a single axle trailer poses far more problems than on a tandem rig.

[Brian B-P]

Originally Posted by cpaharley2008

I felt uneasy trying to maintain the 80 mph speed allowed in some western states, I never intentionally exceeded 70 mph any time due to trailer tires...

I think it's reasonable to assume that factory-stock Escape tires have the default ST rating for sustained speeds up to 65 mph, at the minimum inflation pressure for the current load. If an Escape 21' has ST 205/75R15 Load Range C tires, those tires can handle 1820 pounds each at up to 65 mph with 50 psi of inflation... but Jim's trailer has an average of only 950 pounds on each tire. 950 pounds only needs less than 25 psi inflation.

As I recall, these tires should be able to handle

• up to 1610 pounds at up to 75 mph with 50 psi inflation (as described in the Tire Rack article linked by jamman)
• up to 1450 pounds at up to 85 mph with 50 psi inflation (further speed increase with 10% load reduction, not mentioned in the Tire Rack article)
• lower loads at these elevated speed if the inflation pressure is lower

Pumped up enough, the Escape's tires are likely okay at 80 mph, although there are other issues with high speed, of course.

[J Mac]

Darn right there are other issues with towing a trailer at high speeds (80 MPH).
Should a blow-out occur at high speed on another's trailer I sure hope it's behind me.

[Brian B-P]

Originally Posted by padlin

I could not find a speed rating on my Carlisle Radial Trail RH's, nothing on their web site either so I'll go with the 65 mph that is standard for ST's.

I agree - I have looked at Carlisle Radial Trail RH tires online (at both Canadian and U.S. official Carlisle sites and retailer sites such as Tire Rack and Discount Tire) and in person, and I have seen no indication of a speed rating on the 14" and 15" sizes.

Originally Posted by padlin

Radial Trail RH's are a new model...
I have a 1 yr old set of Maxxis M8008's on my other trailer (replaced TowMax's), considered by most on the big RV forum to be the best, they look very similar to the Radial Trails. Marathons get mixed reviews. Towmax flat out stink.

I have seen the same trend in forum posts, but I'll note that this is a comparison of ST tires, which is the type installed by ETI. Other types are another subject.

[gbaglo]

I think the discussion of speed ratings isn't really about how fast you can go, but what is the margin available to maintain a level of comfort?
I have found myself running at 120kph ( 75mph ) for very short periods and sometimes I feel more comfortable running at 110kph ( 68mph ), with the speed of the traffic, rather than at 90kph ( 56mph ).

[thoer]

Originally Posted by gbaglo

I think the discussion of speed ratings isn't really about how fast you can go, but what is the margin available to maintain a level of comfort?
I have found myself running at 120kph ( 75mph ) for very short periods and sometimes I feel more comfortable running at 110kph ( 68mph ), with the speed of the traffic, rather than at 90kph ( 56mph ).

My exact thoughts. I usually drive no faster that 65mph, but have to exceed that in situations in heavy traffic or needing to pass.

[J Mac]

Sure, we all have to speed up to pass etc. but what I'm afraid of is a blow out at high speed. Here's a you tube on such.

Blowout! (Airstream Tire Blowout) - YouTube

[padlin]

Oh Oh, it's a Marathon.

[gbaglo]

And, then there is my anecdotal evidence: haven't had a flat or blowout on my Marathon tires in six years.

[escape artist]

Hi: cpaharley2008... The last glass of red wine I drank, looked like new, had low miles, and I still didn't like it!!! Tires don't improve with age. Alf
escape artist N.S. of Lake Erie

[cpaharley2008]

Yeah, I know, it is either new tires or a new truck. I can not remember the last time I had to buy tires, nor brakes!! Hell, I have never refilled any of my propane tanks on any of my trailers over the past 10 years!!.

[FMLNM]

Originally Posted by padlin

I could not find a speed rating on my Carlisle Radial Trail RH's, nothing on their web site either so I'll go with the 65 mph that is standard for ST's.
Radial Trail RH's are a new model, they had a lot of issues with previous ones. Couldn't find any feedback on these. Supposedly they were made to go up against the Maxxis.
I have a 1 yr old set of Maxxis M8008's on my other trailer (replaced TowMax's), considered by most on the big RV forum to be the best, they look very similar to the Radial Trails. Marathons get mixed reviews. Towmax flat out stink.

The Maxxi's were our choice too when we swapped out the original equipment Goodyear Marathons after we bought our used 2008 Escape 5.0. The original tires were dated 2007.

[Donna D.]

Goodyear Marathons had a bad rap. After following ALL the molded forums, I came to the conclusion that was ONLY for the 14" tires. I never read ANYONE that had a problem with 15" tires. Conseqently when I changed the axle on my Scamp and went to 15" tires... I bought Marathons. ZERO problems until they aged out.

Carlise, Maxxis, etc. have all had problems. There again, following the forums, I've come to the conclusion, it's not weight... it's the temperature of the asphalt and SPEED towing that has caused most of the problems.

[FMLNM]

Originally Posted by Donna D.

Goodyear Marathons had a bad rap. After following ALL the molded forums, I came to the conclusion that was ONLY for the 14" tires. I never read ANYONE that had a problem with 15" tires. Conseqently when I changed the axle on my Scamp and went to 15" tires... I bought Marathons. ZERO problems until they aged out.

Carlise, Maxxis, etc. have all had problems. There again, following the forums, I've come to the conclusion, it's not weight... it's the temperature of the asphalt and SPEED towing that has caused most of the problems.

We didn't have any problems with the Marathons...but they were 6 years old when we bought the trailer so we figured it was time.

[Donna D.]

Originally Posted by FMLNM

We didn't have any problems with the Marathons...but they were 6 years old when we bought the trailer so we figured it was time.

Exactly. If you follow the forums, a number of problems were because the all molded towable was "heavy," towing at 70+ mph and at 90+ ambient temperature (can you even imagine how hot the asphalt/road was?). Any and all could be contributing factors for a blow out.

[Devil Dog]

For about 100.00 bucks cdn + tax. You get a ballanced tire a and white rim from ETI. So just UPS them. And forget all the headaches from shopping around. The tire alone is good and shipping would be less by weight. Just use your old rims.

[LeonW]

One of the options I added to the Skylark this week was to have ETI add rock protection for wheel wells. As I recall, there was a discussion a few months ago about tires blowing out, and some thought that adding a material like that used for lining pickup truck beds would minimize damage to the trailer.

That said, I strongly agree that the best thing to do is keep the tires properly inflated, and replace the tires before they need replacing.

[Jim Bennett]

Originally Posted by gbaglo

And, then there is my anecdotal evidence: haven't had a flat or blowout on my Marathon tires in six years.

Knock on wood, but I too have not had anything but a couple PSI drop in 5 years. Heck, this spring, all the tires were right up 50 PSI. Not in a rush to change them either, but if I was to head out on a long trip, I might consider it.