3 out of 5 bad tires??

bsnider

BS & Ruth Ann
:eek: I have had Karrier tires on my Big Horn, from the factory for about 2 years now. Well past warranty. I have put about 4000 miles on them and I run the full 90 pounds of air, keeping my speed below 65 as required by the information on the sidewalls and generally keeping an eye on them.

Back in April I call Roger Ansel at 1-800-225 4714 ext 213. Mr Ansel is the key person for warranty issues for Karrier and a number of other Chinese tires that have been used on a lot of 5th wheels, not just Big Horn. Mr Ansel told me that there had been no unusual number of complaints, or that the level of complaints was about the same for the Karrier line as most other tires including those with American names on them.

A few weeks ago, in California, I noticed a bubble on one of my tires. I had my road service people come out and change it, putting the spare on the ground. I tried to find someone that would sell me a tire, but I couldn't find anybody in California and I needed to get on the road to Texas, so I ran with a bad spare. Here at the park in San Antonio Texas, a neighbor noticed a bubble on one of my tires as I was parking. I looked under the trailer and two of my tires had bubbles. This is 3 out of 5 tires with bubbles.

My Ansel, could you please explain to us how you could be getting such wonderful feedback on the Karrier tires in warranty and I get 3 out 5 bad tires in about 4000 miles and now comfortably out of warranty.

Here in Texas, I found a number of people willing to sell me tires that were in stock. I tried to get tires that were not made in China, but I am told that all trailer tires of this size are made in China, including the ones with American names on them. Since I am not willing to put truck tires on my trailer (LT), I reluctantly chose the Shield tires. I was told by the local dealer Lester's Automotive Center Inc. in Boerne TX that one of their customers � American Dream Vacations in Boerne TX had switched away from brands like Goodyear in favour of using only Shield tires on all their rental motorhomes and trailers. They came out and installed all 5 tires on my Big Horn in the park for only $750.

I feel very lucky. No blowouts, great price and I wonder how long I rode on those bubbles.

Admin: Long post fixed. Sorry :)
 
Last edited by a moderator:

bsnider

BS & Ruth Ann
What are the rules?

What are the rules on how long a post can be? As you can see, I was cut off pretty quick.
 

cdbMidland

Past Michigan Chapter Leader
I guess I also am wondering. I saw this thread name later and went to the link and I don't think it was too long. Certainly bsnider was not told the truth about tires - I switched over to GYs after one of my Trail America tires had a blow out and I definitely can state that the GYs are stamped "made in USA" on them. Mine are G-rated.
 

jbeletti

Well-known member
Not sure what happened guys. I went into Bob's post and added the missing text from the copy on his website. Sorry Bob :eek:

Here's the current limit that is set:
Maximum Characters Per Post: 12,000
Posts that contain more characters than the value specified here will be rejected with a message telling the user to shorten their post.

So I am saying "it was a glitch", not a limit rule issue.

Sorry.

Jim
 

Ray LeTourneau

Senior Member - Past Moderator
BS. Were the bubbles on the side wall or tread? How large or noticable were they? We have Karriers and I make it a point to inspect every time we stop but I don't get under and check the inside of the tire every time. So far so good on the outer walls and treads with about 6000 miles on the tires. I think if we make it to Texas this Winter without problems, I'll get the Goodyears while we're there.
 

bsnider

BS & Ruth Ann
Bubbles in tires

Ray LeTourneau said:
BS. Were the bubbles on the side wall or tread? How large or noticable were they? We have Karriers and I make it a point to inspect every time we stop but I don't get under and check the inside of the tire every time. So far so good on the outer walls and treads with about 6000 miles on the tires. I think if we make it to Texas this Winter without problems, I'll get the Goodyears while we're there.

The bubbles are on the sidewall near the tread. They are large enough to hold a golf ball inside and are easily seen. I suggest you look on the inside of your tires. Do some research before you consider the LTs instead of the STs. The LTs are truck tires and what I have learned, they are not designed for trailer use. Also, they tell me that Goodyear ST tires are made in China. American Dream Vacations apparently prefer Shield over Goodyear. I just jumped because I had three bad tires and needed to do something quick. This tire thing is not easy - Good luck.
 

snuffy

Well-known member
This is a reply from Goodyear about my concerns with Chinese made tires.

From: goodyear_cr@goodyear.com on 08/30/2007 03:11 PM

Sent by: Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company Consumer Relations 728 1144 East Market Street Akron, OH 44316 Voice #: 800.321.2136 Fax #:
330.796.6829

Thank you for contacting our web site and for your interest in Goodyear tires. Goodyear is a global company with factories all over
the world. The same molds and standards would apply to all of our tires regardless of the country of origin.

Barbara Hummel
Consumer Relations
 

5erWonk

Well-known member
I visited the tire supplier I use for our fleet vehicles the other day and he told me that most ALL trailer tires are coming out of China....I specifically asked about Goodyear and he said he could not guarantee they would not come out of their China plant.

I was surprised by his comments, but he has never steered me the wrong way in 15yrs doing business with him.
 

kakampers

Past Heartland Ambassador
We have been in our unit since we picked it up...three months ago...and put just about 4,000 miles on our Goldway china bombs in that time period. And guess what, bubbles started appearing on the inner and outer sidewalls...they were promptly removed and replaced with Goodyear G614's. Guess that's just about the life expectancy of these POS chinese tires.

Hopefully problem solved.
 

sidney dreyfus

Well-known member
Goldwing tires

KaKampers,
We just received our 3670rl a few weeks ago. It also has the Goldwing tires on it. I don't see any problems as yet, but your post concerns me and the tires only have 900 miles on them from the dealer. I also don't expect to be using the camper till the spring. It will be sitting in my driveway. What is the best way to handle the situation with these tires?Wait and see what happens to them in the future? Is it possible that you just got a bad bunch of tires and it was an isolated situation? Can I hear from other owners who have received these Goldwing tires? How are your tires holding up?

Sid Dreyfus
08 3670RL
05 Dodge ram 3500, 5.9 L, 4.1, Dually
 

jpmorgan37

Well-known member
Sidney;

As has been posted in previous threads, if you are parking for several months, it is best to put the tires on wood, instead of leaving it on concrete or asphalt as it tends to leach out some of the natural oils from the rubber.

John
 

bsnider

BS & Ruth Ann
sidney dreyfus said:
KaKampers,
We just received our 3670rl a few weeks ago. It also has the Goldwing tires on it. I don't see any problems as yet, but your post concerns me and the tires only have 900 miles on them from the dealer. I also don't expect to be using the camper till the spring. It will be sitting in my driveway. What is the best way to handle the situation with these tires?Wait and see what happens to them in the future? Is it possible that you just got a bad bunch of tires and it was an isolated situation? Can I hear from other owners who have received these Goldwing tires? How are your tires holding up?

Sid Dreyfus
08 3670RL
05 Dodge ram 3500, 5.9 L, 4.1, Dually

Some things to think about; If you don't use it, when the bubbles show your warranty may have expired. If you get a blowout, your insurance will pay for damages minus the deductible. If you change them now, it is all out of your pocket, but, the piece of mind is probably worth it.

Here is a link which gives the name and location of the factory where the tires were made, from the DOT number;

http://www.harriger.com/tiremakers.htm

My tires were made;
7Y --> KENDA RUBBER CHINA CO., LTD. --> KUNSHAN, JIANGSU --> --> CHINA
 

sidney dreyfus

Well-known member
tires

thanks JP. I have a piece of plywood between the peastone and tiresl. I was just curious if anyone else has had premature problems with the Goldwings.

Sid
 

bsnider

BS & Ruth Ann
Under warranty!!

I thought my Karrier tires only had a one year warranty. I was wrong, it is two years. They are sending me a check. It's great to see that Heartland negotiated a good warranty for these tires, but, I wish they had got better tires to begin with.
 

cookie

Administrator
Staff member
I need to correct your information. Most Goodyear G-614's are radial and are made in the USA. The only time they would be made off shore is if they had a run on them and the plant here in the states could not handle the volume needed.
Although the G-614's are actually commercial truck tires they are used on trailers.
FYI, the post you replied to is 4 years old.

Peace
Dave
 

TravelTiger

Founding Texas-West Chapter Leaders-Retired
Regardless of the warranty on the trailer or what you "think" is the warranty of the tire, contact the tire manufacturer. They need to know their tire prematurely failed. In one case, TBC Brands sent us a new tire, no charge (tire was 17 mo old). 6 mo later, we replaced all the tires due to broken belts in one, and irregular wear on the rest. The tire shop said two definitely looked like factory defects. I sent pics again to TBC, and they sent a check for $235.

Erika
 
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