ATF: Road Warrior - TowMax Tire Failures

Thursday we had another Towmax tire failure on our Road Warrior 30C that was bought in April 2013. The first failure happened back in November where a sidewall split while going down the road. Thursday February 6th another tire failed. The second tire developed one baseball size bulge and another smaller bulge. Are there any other reported problems with these tires? What can be done about it from the company aspect? I keep a journal of mileage on the vehicle and the first tire had around 13,000 miles on it and the current failed tire has 14,000 miles. Part of our preparation for travel includes a tire pressure inspection to make sure the tire pressure is 80 psi per tire. Thanks you your time. I can forward pictures upon request.

Update: When moving out Sunday 9 Feb 2014 we had another blowout. We had just left the campground 2.1 miles down the road. We had not went over 25 mph and another tire blew. Making a 6 inch gash on the sidewall. I always check tire pressure (80 psi) and checked lug nuts before we moved out. Since we had a failure on Thursday the spare was on already so we are stuck until roadside can pick up 2 new tires that were purchased on Thursday but not in stock. Replacement tires are not Towmax tires!!

Do a search for "towmax" on this site and see what pops up. You will be afraid, very afraid. You got more mileage out of those two than some of us got before ours failed.

I received a phone number to a representative from Towmax on Monday. I called Olga at (800) 238-6469 and she had me take the damaged tires to a local Tire Kingdom to have them inspected. They were supposed to be on the rim, but mine weren't. The shop had to call Olga and give her the tread depth on the inner, center, and outer sides of the tread. She then called me and started by saying there could be something wrong with my camper because the tread depth varied from inside to center to outer by 1 or 2/32th of an inch. But she did say they would do a "Good Will" payment of 80% of their assessed value of the tires. We purchased Goodyear G614 replacement tires.

It is always something other than the Towmax. What XX!

At the very least, take the time to file a report with the NHTSA. They do listen when enough people report their mishaps. Sometimes, as with my case, it only took one entry for three wheel failures in the same wheel area in the last 30 months to open an inquiry.

I'm not sure if you've noticed . . . but they have been given a new nickname 'BlowMax' around here!

I still have mine on . . . under 3000 miles . . . but will be replaced this spring!

Mine still look perfect . . . but I just don't trust them after all I've read about them here.

This is two different tow max tires that I was able to remove before they blew. Thanks to a driver that waved me down on the highway. I was only 20 miles into my trip with the first one. The second one popped up while I was parked. A third one blewout on the road. I removed the forth. Could not take the chance of another blowout. I will never use another one.
L. Fox

lefox7 said:

View attachment 28458View attachment 28459This is two different tow max tires that I was able to remove before they blew. Thanks to a driver that waved me down on the highway. I was only 20 miles into my trip with the first one. The second one popped up while I was parked. A third one blewout on the road. I removed the forth. Could not take the chance of another blowout. I will never use another one.
L. Fox

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Wow!

That is scary stuff!

Were yours BlowMax Power King's?

Mine are Towmax Power King ST205/75/R15's.

JohnD said:

Wow!

That is scary stuff!

Were yours BlowMax Power King's?

Mine are Towmax Power King ST205/75/R15's.

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BlowMax STR Power king Radial ST 235/80/R16 Had less than 5000 miles when the 3rd one blew. by then I had had enough.

One of my PowderKeg Blowax threw it's tread 5 months from new. Did $1,400 in damage. Replaced all 6 with GY G614. Don't wait, just do it.

Ric_Flair said:

One of my PowderKeg Blowax threw it's tread 5 months from new. Did $1,400 in damage. Replaced all 6 with GY G614. Don't wait, just do it.

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I will agree with you on this. My Landmark had GY G614's and never had a tire issue, ordered the new rig with them from the factory. The cost of repairs and a tire is cheaper than just buying a better tire.

See my thread under Tires Section, photos of my first Blomax blowout. My RW415 will be getting G614's next week. Ridiculous situation that all new owners are put through. I would buy quality and longevity any day. If only I knew before I took delivery of my camper.

rmckee6 said:

I received a phone number to a representative from Towmax on Monday. I called Olga at (800) 238-6469 and she had me take the damaged tires to a local Tire Kingdom to have them inspected. They were supposed to be on the rim, but mine weren't. The shop had to call Olga and give her the tread depth on the inner, center, and outer sides of the tread. She then called me and started by saying there could be something wrong with my camper because the tread depth varied from inside to center to outer by 1 or 2/32th of an inch. But she did say they would do a "Good Will" payment of 80% of their assessed value of the tires. We purchased Goodyear G614 replacement tires.

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We went through this same ordeal with towmax and Olga for over 2 years, I finally got tired of changing blow outs and bought a set of real tires. Had them a year and half before w started having WHEEL cracking on inside of wheel.

This is why I went to the 17.5 and the G114 at the same time. The Hi Spec wheel design resist rim cracking. The OEM Rims and tires are too light to handle the service duty required.

TerryM said:

We went through this same ordeal with towmax and Olga for over 2 years, I finally got tired of changing blow outs and bought a set of real tires. Had them a year and half before w started having WHEEL cracking on inside of wheel.

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What are others replacing them with other then the Goodyear G series? With the damage that my recent blowouts cost me, its hard to come up with the 2000-2500 to replace all four of them with the Goodyear's right now.

There was another TowMax blowout report this weekend, he has already replaced his for $1200 with the rebates and coupons.

Compfixerdude said:

What are others replacing them with other then the Goodyear G series? With the damage that my recent blowouts cost me, its hard to come up with the 2000-2500 to replace all four of them with the Goodyear's right now.

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Compfixerdude said:

What are others replacing them with other then the Goodyear G series? With the damage that my recent blowouts cost me, its hard to come up with the 2000-2500 to replace all four of them with the Goodyear's right now.

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I'm running ST235/80R16 Taskmaster Provider tires from Discount Tire Direct and so far they have held up pretty well. I've used Taskmaster tires on my utility trailers for the last 10+ years with only one blowout that wasn't the fault of the tire.

Ok this is my first post. Might as well start off with a question of epic proportions. So while I have never owned a Heartland, I am not new to the RV community. We are currently in the market for a 5er toy hauler. The Road Warrior and Heartland have so much going for them with some awesome products and innovative thinking, why on earth would they continue to put such a well documented inferior product on their otherwise outstanding product line? One would think the risk to their reputation alone would be cause for alarm. I got so say I has me second guessing.

Hi king-arthur1953,

Welcome to the Heartland Owners Forum and hopefully to the family. We have a great bunch of folks here with lots of information and all willing to share their knowledge when needed.

I am pretty sure you can order or work out an upgrade on the tires. It is like all the others... price point. I do agree, that Heartland has an outstanding product in all categories and with the factory backup and the Heartland Owners Forum... Heartland is the best.

Enjoy the forum.

Jim M

king_arthur1953 said:

Ok this is my first post. Might as well start off with a question of epic proportions. So while I have never owned a Heartland, I am not new to the RV community. We are currently in the market for a 5er toy hauler. The Road Warrior and Heartland have so much going for them with some awesome products and innovative thinking, why on earth would they continue to put such a well documented inferior product on their otherwise outstanding product line? One would think the risk to their reputation alone would be cause for alarm. I got so say I has me second guessing.

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I am sbetting HL has a contract that's hard to break. I do know that TowMax offers some roadside assistance and a warranty, which was not available a few years back.

That said, Heartland is no longer putting TowMax on some of their brands. It may be a transition that has to happen gradually.

Like JimToo said, you can negotiate tires in your purchase, either with the dealer or special-order direct from the factory.