Forrest's Trail America Tire Blowout Discussion (moved from ATF)

ChopperBill

Well-known member
FF, I turned my claim into State Farm and they went after the tire company. I have a zero deductible comp and did not have to pay out anything. Just my inconvenience. After you get your new tires set one next to the Chinese RV tire and check the side wall. The difference is unbelievable. You wont even make a tire swing out of your take offs. I don't care what the rating is those tires should be outlawed. Not saying tire maintenance isn't a good thing but when you have junk to start with all the maintenance in the world ain't going to make it any better.
 
C

Chulinw

Guest
FF, I had the same type of damage done in Jan 07 and was very luck that Kenda did step up to the plate and took care of the damage. The sad part is that it took 6 weeks to get the damage fix. Like Chopperbill said turn it over to the insurance company and they will go after the tire company. Best of luck. This is the reason I feel strongely if the Heartland would put better tires on and increase the cost to cover the tires people would be very happy to pay it and to avoid this type of damage to RV. Unit the owners demand better tires from Heartland they will keep putting the ChaCom tires on them. Report this to NHTSA so that they can keep a file on this company about the tires.
 

mufflerman

Well-known member
The biggest problem with trailer tires is separation, this is do to dragging the tires in turns, Cheap tires have weak sidewalls that start the separation process. once a tires cord separates the case loses its strength, causing the tread to break loose of the case.
Better tires = better sidewalls = less chance of separation.
 

Uncle Rog

Well-known member
I Feel Your Pain

FF, et al, here are some reminder pictures of mine. I lost both rear tires and have now gone to the GY's with Doran system. I hope I never hear it go off outside of testing...........
 

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jpmorgan37

Well-known member
Forrest;

You have taken the right step in contacting Scott and Jim Fenner. Continue working with them directly by e-mail or by phone. For the rest of us, we all can contribute nothing more than sympathy for his tire failure and beyond that, be grateful that there was no physical injury. I am going to request that the comments be kept civil and constructive from this point on and let Forrest deal with whomever he choses. This started out as an "Ask the Factory" question and has turned into a philabuster.

Thanks for your cooperation in this matter.

John
 

tdharley

Well-known member
Filibuster-a filibuster is an attempt to extend debate upon a proposal in order to delay or completely prevent a vote on its passage???????

Anyway, I see only constructive opinions, here.
 

jpmorgan37

Well-known member
Ok Tom,
I stand corrected on the spelling and use of the word, but not all of the comments have been constructive. That is the point of my request. I hope to help keep this forum a useful tool for all owners to share suggestions and get answers from each other and the factory. We are very fortunate to have Scott, Coley and others from Heartland respond to our questions here on the forum, which is very unique to this industry. Let's work together to maintain this forum as it was intended from the start.

John
 

mrcomer

Past Ohio Chapter Leaders (Founding)
jpmorgan37,
Did you pull someone's response? I have yet to see anything here that would be considered not civil.
 

tdharley

Well-known member
I tell ya I give Scott ALOT of credit to step up to the plate & answer these tough posts. Kudos, Kudos, Kudos.

And in a way I do side with him on the tire issue. Heartland is NOT the only one using what we THINK are inferior tires. I do not know the answer, I did though change my tires, just in case. My Itasca motorhome came with the Goodyear tires.

I had a blow out with my last rig a Keystone Raptor, scary.

Sometimes it seems like an inquisition but I think it also alot of us sharing our experiences.
 

Cooper

Well-known member
Scot, I could not get Trail America to return my phone calls. I final gave up and fix my rv and disposed of the tire. My tire dealer said it was a tire failure and the highway patrol that I passed thought someone had shot at her when it blew and she said that I did not hit anything. I also check my tires twice a day.
I now have GoodYear G-614 not a Foreign made tire. I tired to find American made wheels but with the right ratings but did not have any luck.
 

Uncle Rog

Well-known member
Heartland Seems To Be Trying

Howdy, I now have two BH's in the compound. "Red Neck Life" is storing their 3670 down below the Avocado trees until their house is finished. After we chocked it up and disconnected I started looking at his tires. They looked exactly like my new GY's! The new brand is "Freestar", which is ChiCom I am sure, however, they have the same tread pattern as the GY's AND they have 4 steel plies in the tread and one in the sidewall, just like the GY"S. It seems like somebody is at least trying to improve the product.....good for Heartland
 

iefpro01

Well-known member
Question - What is the best tire?

Hey guys I just bought a new 3655RD. It is heavy and reading this string has me wondering if I should change out the factory tires for something else. I have a 5K trip planned this fall. Be in the mountains and desert as well. I am sure some very hot roads. Don't want to kill my trailer with a blowout like I saw with your other guys!


So the question is what is the very best tire for the "big" Big Horn? I think the trailer comes with 235 16s. I have the alum rim package.


BTW I agree that this is good discussion. Hearing the stories and how the situation worked it self out - allows someone like me to consider the issue and to really understand the severity of the possibilities of making one decision over another. I agree that we should not "overly" bash anyone or any company - but the truth should told in a calm manner.


I am also very impressed with Heartland - actually I think it was the factory reps that made a big difference when selecting the brand...
 

Forrest Fetherolf

Senior Member
I found this article interesting regarding sidewall markings.

The Trail America tire that exploded a couple of days ago was manufactured by Tianjin Kings Glory Tire Co. in Yang Liu Qing, TianJin, China and was 2 years old.
The DOT Marking on the tire was DOT 1NOR 2105. The 1N is the manufacturer and location. 2105 is the week (21st) and year (2005)manufactured
 

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Uncle Rog

Well-known member
FF, you are right on the money. Most trailer tires are trash in three years due to the sun and element degradation. The DOT date is to inform people as to the age and life expectancy of the tire. On another note, the GY's that we all are switching to are re-groovable. What that means is that there is enough tread on the tire to actually use a heat tool to re-groove the depth of the tread after significant wear. That is what I am talking about, real meat on the road....UR
 

mufflerman

Well-known member
I don't think that most trailers are towed enough to have to have their tires regroved. they usually crack before the tread is worn down.
 

fhollan

Well-known member
Very Concerned!

The more I go through the forum, the more I read about the problems with tires such as Mission, Trail America, etc. I did read about a month ago of someone that traveled all over the country with Mission tires and was very fortunate with the tires. Can't remember who it was. I'm planning a two week trip soon and since I've still got Chinese May-Pops (may pop at any time) on my BH it sure concerns me. I don't have many miles on them yet and they are not exposed to the sun, since it's parked in a pole barn. I will be keeping a close eye on them and travel light. I'll let you guys know.
 

ChopperBill

Well-known member
Quite frankly I would feel safer sitting a a big tub of rattle snakes than pull a trailer with Chinese tires. :eek: I don't care who defends them there are WAY TOO MANY POSTS on this and other forums about there destructive possibility's to take a chance.
 

vangoes

Well-known member
FYI, I am taking the factory's word to heart that our Karrier tires are as good as any out there. My tires have approx. 5,000 mile and they look as good as new..............no scuffs, cracks, or any visible signs of wear. They have never required air to be added. I will be heading out soon on a 2,000 mile trip and as all my prior miles have been in cold weather, this should be the trip that test the reliability of my tires. Many of you will say I am crazy (and maybe I am), but if these tires are as road worthy as the factory says they are they should not need to be replaced after only 5,000 miles. If they blow, then my insurance company can go to battle with the factory/tire warranties and I will join in with the "I told you so's". Of course, I am certainly hoping that my paranoia is not warranted!!!!!!
 
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