Tow Max...is it just me?

[RuralPastor]

I've read numerous posts about the quality of Tow Max tires. I believe them. Every trip I take I worry about blow outs and half the side of my camper coming off WHEN it happens. It hasn't happened yet. I'm tired of thinking that today is the day. We have driven 12,000 miles of the worst highways rural America has to offer. They still have great tread, no bubbles, run cool, etc.

Is it just me? Am I on borrowed time? Are there others who have loaded the mileage on these tires without problems? I know, I know. Tomorrow I'll have a blow out. How are yours holding out? Just wondering.

 

[Ray LeTourneau]

I think the heavier rigs are potentially more apt to have tire issues with pretty much any Chinese made tires. We don't seem to hear about as many issues with the lighter travel trailers. Even the US made tires aren't blow out proof. Be diligent with air pressures and keep on campin. When you feel the time is right, Maxxis would be my suggestion for your rig.
Travel Safe!

 

[Sumo]

I've never had a tire blow, But I did loose one.
Looking to upgrade my tires to ST235/80R16 12 Ply.
Any thoughts???

 

[dougw]

Keep max air in them and make sure they are balanced.

 

[JWalker]

I've never had a tire blow, But I did loose one
Looking to upgrade my tires to ST235/80R16 12 Ply.
Any thoughts???
View attachment 20703

What caused you to loose one? What size are the original you have know? Look similar to mine, but they are 15".

 

[Sumo]

I don't know. Stop to sleep in a rest area 55 miles east of Missoula, Mt. The tire was their when I left the rest stop and gone when I stopped for Pancakes at Paul's Pancake Parlor in Missoula , Mt. I do try and watch my tires, But I missed this one. I have added "Check the torque on the tires" as part of my pre-flight check list.
I'm looking at a little larger and a 12 ply tire, for peace of mind.
My current tire size is 225/75R15 8 ply.

 

[jnbhobe]

In the end it will be cheaper to go to 17.5 wheels and tires, you will never have a problem again. Its overkill for your rig but the same $$$$ as going to 16in and more availability.

 

[danemayer]

I don't know. Stop to sleep in a rest area 55 miles east of Missoula, Mt. The tire was their when I left the rest stop and gone when I stopped for Pancakes at Paul's Pancake Parlor in Missoula , Mt. I do try and watch my tires, But I missed this one. I have added "Check the torque on the tires" as part of my pre-flight check list.
I'm looking at a little larger and a 12 ply tire, for peace of mind.
My current tire size is 225/75R15 8 ply.

Sumo,

Since you plan to "Check the torque" should we read into this that the lug nuts came loose and the wheel fell off? Had the wheel recently been taken off?

Was there any damage to the axle/lug nut mounts?

If I'm understanding your post, you didn't have a tire failure - you're just changing to different tires since you need a new one with the replacement wheel.

 

[JWalker]

Does anyone know the the number of Tow Max tires used on Heartland units. I'm curious to know the failure % rate? It is not in our budget to spend thousands on wheel/tires for a unit we will only have for a 3-4 years.

I remember on the first years of the North Trail (2008-09). These units came with 14" Duro tires and the same problems seemed to be happening. I wonder what Heartland's stance is on this problem? It seems that it would make sense for a quaity tire to be on the units from factory, even at a higher price. Just my thoughts.

 

[TedS]

Have TowMax on our Bighorn. About 8000 miles on them. Still look good. I keep them at max air pressure.

 

[danemayer]

FYI, at the Gillette National Rally, the tire expert talked about tire issues and if I remember correctly, he claimed that tires manufactured in China are no longer a problem (although I don't think he was trying to say they didn't have problems in the past).

Lots of sources claim that tire failures are primarily caused by excess heat - which is usually caused by excess loading or underinflation (2 sides of the same coin), or by driving too fast. In addition, hitting or running over curbs damages the tire, setting up a future failure.

2 years ago at the Goshen Rally, the tire expert explained that if the pressure is 20% low, the tire industry considers it to be "flat" even though it looks ok to the eye. Driving on a "flat" tire causes permanent damage that could result in a blowout at a later date. If your sidewall says 110 pounds - below 88 is "flat." If your sidewall says 80 pounds, 64 is "flat."

This is why TPMS devices can be so helpful. They won't prevent every problem, but they will alert you if tire pressure is wrong or if temp on one tire starts climbing. With those warnings, you may be able to prevent most calamities.

And yes, at the 2011 Goshen rally, the tire expert did also say that some Chinese manufacturers in prior years were skimping on materials, leaving out the layer that helps dissipate heat - which would have been a cause of many blowouts in past years.

 

[RuralPastor]

I think the heavier rigs are potentially more apt to have tire issues with pretty much any Chinese made tires. We don't seem to hear about as many issues with the lighter travel trailers. Even the US made tires aren't blow out proof. Be diligent with air pressures and keep on campin. When you feel the time is right, Maxxis would be my suggestion for your rig.
Travel Safe!

Your comments really help bring this into perspective. I do keep a close watch on the tire pressure, lug nuts, and keep them coated with some UV spray (404). Thanks.

 

[RuralPastor]

FYI, at the Gillette National Rally, the tire expert talked about tire issues and if I remember correctly, he claimed that tires manufactured in China are no longer a problem (although I don't think he was trying to say they didn't have problems in the past).

Lots of sources claim that tire failures are primarily caused by excess heat - which is usually caused by excess loading or underinflation (2 sides of the same coin), or by driving too fast. In addition, hitting or running over curbs damages the tire, setting up a future failure.

2 years ago at the Goshen Rally, the tire expert explained that if the pressure is 20% low, the tire industry considers it to be "flat" even though it looks ok to the eye. Driving on a "flat" tire causes permanent damage that could result in a blowout at a later date. If your sidewall says 110 pounds - below 88 is "flat." If your sidewall says 80 pounds, 64 is "flat."

This is why TPMS devices can be so helpful. They won't prevent every problem, but they will alert you if tire pressure is wrong or if temp on one tire starts climbing. With those warnings, you may be able to prevent most calamities.

And yes, at the 2011 Goshen rally, the tire expert did also say that some Chinese manufacturers in prior years were skimping on materials, leaving out the layer that helps dissipate heat - which would have been a cause of many blowouts in past years.

Thanks for that insight. While we do have Maxxis tires in our future, hopefully they can wait until this season is over. We have another four to five thousand miles this year. If not, I can certainly not complain about their lifespan. I would like to get a TPMS. Someday I will. Didn't someone say recently their sensor was responsible for pulling out the valve stem? Yikes!

 

[RuralPastor]

Have TowMax on our Bighorn. About 8000 miles on them. Still look good. I keep them at max air pressure.

Wow! Your doing well and pulling a lot of miles for a 2011, and more significantly a whole lot more weight than my TT. Thanks for weighing in. Mark

 

[pegmikef]

I've read numerous posts about the quality of Tow Max tires. I believe them. Every trip I take I worry about blow outs and half the side of my camper coming off WHEN it happens. It hasn't happened yet. I'm tired of thinking that today is the day. We have driven 12,000 miles of the worst highways rural America has to offer. They still have great tread, no bubbles, run cool, etc.

Is it just me? Am I on borrowed time? Are there others who have loaded the mileage on these tires without problems? I know, I know. Tomorrow I'll have a blow out. How are yours holding out? Just wondering.

12 K plus miles and still going. Tires look fine, no cracks, bubbles, etc. I maintain their pressure, keep them covered from the sun, only run at about 60 MPH (mine are ST with max speed of 65), and have a fairly light TT (8700 pounds loaded I think). I did, however, have to replace two for abnormal wear on the outside edge, but that was athe result of a different issue and me failing to notice the wear early enough to take remedial action. Except for the wear, the rest of the tires were still in excellent shape.

 

[JWalker]

FYI, at the Gillette National Rally, the tire expert talked about tire issues and if I remember correctly, he claimed that tires manufactured in China are no longer a problem (although I don't think he was trying to say they didn't have problems in the past).

Lots of sources claim that tire failures are primarily caused by excess heat - which is usually caused by excess loading or underinflation (2 sides of the same coin), or by driving too fast. In addition, hitting or running over curbs damages the tire, setting up a future failure.

2 years ago at the Goshen Rally, the tire expert explained that if the pressure is 20% low, the tire industry considers it to be "flat" even though it looks ok to the eye. Driving on a "flat" tire causes permanent damage that could result in a blowout at a later date. If your sidewall says 110 pounds - below 88 is "flat." If your sidewall says 80 pounds, 64 is "flat."

This is why TPMS devices can be so helpful. They won't prevent every problem, but they will alert you if tire pressure is wrong or if temp on one tire starts climbing. With those warnings, you may be able to prevent most calamities.

And yes, at the 2011 Goshen rally, the tire expert did also say that some Chinese manufacturers in prior years were skimping on materials, leaving out the layer that helps dissipate heat - which would have been a cause of many blowouts in past years.

Great info.

Have the 10 sensor 507 TPMS system. Went to hook it up last week and the monitor would not except any sensors on the passenger side. A quick phone call and I dropped it in the mail. They said it was a malfunction and they would send me a new one out. Great customer service. Hopefully it arrives before our O.C. trip.

 

[TravelTiger]

Just another TowMax victim here.... Even if you do everything right, these tires have a history of failure. We always checked air pressure, always checked at rest stops, used UV tire protectant on them, drive at 62mph, etc. etc. Had the bad wear on the inside of one, but was not consistent wear, so deemed a defect by the manufacturer. We moved spare tire to the rim, and less than 500 miles that tire had broken belts inside. I luckily caught it crawling around underneath taking close-up pics of our running gear. If we had kept driving on what we thought was a "new" tire, we would have for sure had an expensive blowout under the kitchen slide. All this within the first year of rig ownership, and tire mfg date less than 18 mo.

We now have 5 Maxxis tires, and after a year and 12K miles, still look great! We also added a TPMS system this May, and it has already caught two low tires.

I think Heartland would really be taking a leap forward to offer good, reliable tires on their units, not just take the low-bid.

 

[berky]

I believe you have the 26LRSS, if I remember correctly Pastor? We have the same model and ournexperience has been the same with the TowMax tires ... good tread (although only 3,000 miles or so logged), cool running, no bubbles.

I think the diference for us is that we're fortunate to have some excess capacity in the axles and tires. My running weight, less the tongue weight carried by the truck, is around 6500#. Compare that to the 4 TT tires with a total rating of 8800#. We're only using 75% of the tires' rating. The bigger rigs are pushing the limits of available axles and tires. I imagine the bigger rigs are running more like 90%-95% of the tires' rating. Couple that with higher road temperatures and poorer towing habits, and you have a recipe for premature tire failure.

I don't lose a whole lot of sleep over the TowMax's in my situation. I check the pressures before each trip, check the tire temperatures at stops on the road, and periodically look for the early signs of bubbles.

With that said, I'm also not going to roll the dice too many times. I figure 3 years or 10,000 miles and I'm going to replace the tires regardless.

 

[robnmo]

Our Tow Max had somewhere around 25 or 30K on them and would have turned 3 yrs this Dec, we just changed them out for Maxxis 2 months ago before we hit the road again. We never had one issue with the Tow Max, but we check tire pressure before every trip, keep the tires to the max pressure, and inspected them regularly, and kept them clean and coated with 303. Our friend that purchased a new Cyclone is going to put them on his and store his new tires since his RV is just setting. There is still plenty of tread on them but we noticed some very slight cracking in the sidewall and decided to change out. If we couldn't have gotten Maxxis we would have went back to Tow Max. I will say the Maxxis are a world of difference in towing, we'll see how well they hold up.

 

[Sumo]

Sumo,

Since you plan to "Check the torque" should we read into this that the lug nuts came loose and the wheel fell off? Had the wheel recently been taken off?

Was there any damage to the axle/lug nut mounts?

If I'm understanding your post, you didn't have a tire failure - you're just changing to different tires since you need a new one with the replacement wheel.

I did have my tires removed and balanced.
I don't know if the lug nuts where loose or over tighten.
I did a walk around of the trailer before leaving the rest area and didn't see anything wrong. When i discover the missing tire the studs had been sheared off. The axle was Ok.

I'm going to a tire with a higher load rating. Just in-case I loose a tire, again.