Upgraded to 17.5" Wheels and Tires

Terry H

Past Texas North Chapter Leader/Moderator
Staff member
Last week while returning home from Amarillo, TX we stopped at a rest area near Wichita Falls. As I was entering the trailer I noticed the front door side tire tread was ballooned like a bicycle tire. The tires are Goodyear G614’s and are 2½ years old . On closer inspection I noticed the tread was beginning to separate on the inside of the tire. I called road service and had the tire changed. We made it home without further problems. Since Carol and I are planning a long trip this summer we decided to replace the tires before the trip. After doing research we decided to replace the Goodyear G614’s with 17.5” Goodyear G114’s. A few days later I went to a local Goodyear store and received an adjustment. I had them put the replacement tire on the spare. I ordered new G114’s from Trailer Tires and Wheels, the tires arrived today and I installed them on the trailer. The tires and wheels look great on the trailer. We are hoping we will not need to replace them for about five years. Attached are photos of the old and new tires and wheels.


 

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TravelTiger

Founding Texas-West Chapter Leaders-Retired
Nice Terry, show them off in Durant! Do you have a TPMS? Did you have any warning of a problem besides the visual bubble?


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Terry H

Past Texas North Chapter Leader/Moderator
Staff member
Yes, I have a TPMS and the tire that was ballooned was the same pressure and temperature as the rest of the tires.
 

kakampers

Past Heartland Ambassador
You will not be sorry! Our G614's were just at three years when the tread went...glad you caught yours before any damage...our failure is what prompted the change to 17.5!
 
So it sounds like the TPMS is a waste of money as I've read a few threads today of no change in temps or pressure with failing G614 tires. Glad I run LT tires.
 

pegmikef

Well-known member
Gee Terry, this is the second bad thing I have read today about the 614's which I planned on ordering from the factory for my BH . . . might have to rethink this. Glad you found it in time so there was no damage. We will see you this weekend.
 

danemayer

Well-known member
So it sounds like the TPMS is a waste of money as I've read a few threads today of no change in temps or pressure with failing G614 tires. Glad I run LT tires.
Hi greatwhitenorth,

TPMS may not tell you that the tread has separated or that you have a sidewall ballooning. It will tell you if you have lost some air pressure and are damaging your tire, setting up a future blowout. 20% loss is considered flat by the tire industry. Running that way ruins the tire. But the failure event may occur some time later and way down the road, long after you notice the problem and add air.

TPMS will also let you know that your tire has picked up a nail or other object that's causing a significant but gradual air loss that might not cause a severe handling problem. If you keep towing with all the weight on the remaining tire, it may set you up for a future failure on that remaining tire and could also overload the axles.

So there are some things a TPMS does and other things it doesn't do. Only you can decide whether it does enough for you to part with your money.
 

Terry H

Past Texas North Chapter Leader/Moderator
Staff member
Gee Terry, this is the second bad thing I have read today about the 614's which I planned on ordering from the factory for my BH . . . might have to rethink this. Glad you found it in time so there was no damage. We will see you this weekend.

In my opinion, the Goodyear G614's are the best Load Range G trailer tire that you can buy. However, I believe that the life of the tire is about 20,000 to 25,000 miles or 3 to 5 years of use which ever happens first. I had about 20,000 miles on my G614's and about 2 1/2 years of service. So i believe that it was about time to replace the tires anyway.
 

Ray LeTourneau

Senior Member - Past Moderator
So it sounds like the TPMS is a waste of money as I've read a few threads today of no change in temps or pressure with failing G614 tires. Glad I run LT tires.
I don't feel it's a waste of money. As for the G614's, still the best 16" Load Range G tire available. The TPMS is great for all the things that Dan said PLUS, it's the easiest way to continuously monitor your air pressure. Just turn on the TPMS and in a minute or 2 you're in the know.
 

porthole

Retired
So it sounds like the TPMS is a waste of money as I've read a few threads today of no change in temps or pressure with failing G614 tires. Glad I run LT tires.

When my tire was failing it was because of a bubble on the inner side wall. I did know about it as the sweeper at Lippert pointed it out to me.

I was alerted to the actual failing though by my TPMS.

When the bubble got big enough to start leaking my alarm started going off.
 

bdb2047

Well-known member
I am replacing the 614s with 17.5 Goodyear.Have had no problems but getting time to replace and wanted more of a margin on weight not over weight now just to close.They are supposed to be here tommorow.
 

For20hunter

Pacific Region Directors-Retired
We did the same thing and love the new shoes! The best thing is that I no longer worry and feel the need to stop at every rest area and check on the tires! Peace of mind is awesome! Not to mention they look pretty awesome too! :cool:


Before 2.jpg After 2.jpg
Before and After
 

jolar3329

Well-known member
Terry,
Are you going to run them at the pressure for maximum load (125PSI)? If not, what pressure will you run at?
Larry
 

Terry H

Past Texas North Chapter Leader/Moderator
Staff member
Terry,
Are you going to run them at the pressure for maximum load (125PSI)? If not, what pressure will you run at?
Larry

For now I am going to run them at 125 PSI until I get the trailer weighed in Goshen in June. Based on the results I might reduce the pressure based on the trailer weight.
 

danemayer

Well-known member
For now I am going to run them at 125 PSI until I get the trailer weighed in Goshen in June. Based on the results I might reduce the pressure based on the trailer weight.

Terry, as I understand it, 125 will be over inflated if your rig is at or under GVWR. I'm thinking that might cause excess wear on the center of the tires.



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