What is being done about Towmax Tires

[ucwinters]

Regarding the switch from Powerking TowMax to Westlake tires, it's still a china bomb tire. This article was from 2007 but still makes for an informative read:
http://www.china-recalls.com/tires.htm

 

[oscar]

If they examine the failed tire and make a determination that it failed due to overloading, under inflation, excess speed, hitting a curb, or road hazard, those types of failures are not covered by warranty and the pro-rated value is irrelevant. Their offer of a cash settlement is an accommodation to maintain customer satisfaction (or at least say they made an effort).

I know that some people would say that they always determine that the failure was caused by something not covered by warranty, implying that since they have a vested interest in that finding, their findings are suspect.

As far as I can tell, tire experts, manufacturers, distributors, retail outlets, insurance companies, and the government all agree that almost all trailer tire failures are caused by one of those excluded items - not by a manufacturing defect. So the tire companies have a lot of support for their findings.

On the other side of that argument, almost every owner is ready to swear that they weren't overloaded, under inflated, driving too fast, and never ever hit a curb or other road hazard. Therefore it must be a manufacturing defect.

The only way I can think of to resolve these conflicting views is to put the failed tire in the hands of an impartial third party to determine cause of failure. That would be NHTSA. And if they find manufacturing defects, they take action to help all consumers who have the defective tire.

So why doesn't everyone send their failed tires to NHTSA? Well, I'll hazard a guess that the $125 from the tire distributor is more meaningful to them than a possible determination that there's a manufacturing defect. After all, that $125 will help pay for the new tires that are needed right now.

There are a lot of people on forums who assert that these tires have manufacturing defects. If some of you put your failed tires in the hands of NHTSA, they might prove you right.

Everything you say is true. I think what has transpired from these discussions, and the subsequent action on HL's part to ship newer units with G rated tires, is that the E-rated Blowmax was an under rated tire for the job. It claims 3520# at 80 psi, whereas the G614 "only" claims 3750# at 110 psi. Something doesn't pass the sniff test there, and in my opinion it's that the 3520# claim of the Blowmaxes is optimistic at best and it was a poor choice for these units.

 

[codycarver]

Regarding the switch from Powerking TowMax to Westlake tires, it's still a china bomb tire.

How come when a Goodyear tire blows they aren't refered to as "USA bombs"

Our Trailer came with tires made in China and I went out of the way to replace them with the same tire. They are performing as expected and I wouldn't hesitate buying them again.

 

[buddyboy]

So glad you've had good luck with them. We didn't. We replaced the remaining with Goodyears and no problems.

 

[TravelTiger]

Everything you say is true. I think what has transpired from these discussions, and the subsequent action on HL's part to ship newer units with G rated tires, is that the E-rated Blowmax was an under rated tire for the job. It claims 3520# at 80 psi, whereas the G614 "only" claims 3750# at 110 psi. Something doesn't pass the sniff test there, and in my opinion it's that the 3520# claim of the Blowmaxes is optimistic at best and it was a poor choice for these units.

I don't think it mattered what unit TowMax was put on, I think the are poorly constructed, period. Just off of the top of my head, I bet we've seen posts of failures on NorthTrail, Prowler, Sundance, Silverado, Gateway, ElkRidge, Big Country, and Bighorn.

I think the industry as a whole thought Chinese-sourced tires were as good as any other. But with time, we've seen that's not the case. Can any large corporation make a "quick" change to a major component across their entire manufacturing process? Not likely.

At least Heartland has begun the switch away from TowMax, a known problematic brand.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[codycarver]

So glad you've had good luck with them. We didn't. We replaced the remaining with Goodyears and no problems.

Doesn't really answer my question. Goodyear's blow out too. Just wondering why they don't get the name calling.

All I said was they were made in China....not what brand they are.

 

[buddyboy]

Maybe because they don't go sideways as often as others and there is a warranty on them. I actually just related our experiences with what we had on our trailer. Safe travels.

Martha

 

[danemayer]

Dave's on a good point. There's a lot of China bashing that goes on here. But I wonder how many of us have Chinese made tires on our trucks and cars. How many use smart phones made in China. How many of us wear clothing made in China.

It's certainly possible to criticize a particular product without making it about an entire country. Especially when there are fine products that also come out of that same country.

And comments about other brands of tires, bashing them because they look similar to Towmax, is just silly. How many of us could identify any tire without looking at what's stamped in the sidewall.

Anyone who thinks that Brand X is the same as Brand Y can look at the DOT codes to find out the plant of manufacture. If both are built at the same plant, you at least would have an argument that they might have similar issues. But arguing that 2 tires are the same even if they're built by different companies 1000 miles apart is ridiculous. That's like saying that a tire made in Texas is the same as a tire made by a different company in Illinois.

If you want to bash a tire brand, at least start with some facts.

 

[JohnD]

I've been told that Plant 10 (Trail Runner / Prowler) switched to Rainier branded tires around December 2014.

Our 2015 Prowler was manufactured on 1/26/2015 . . . and it had BlowMax tires on it at the dealership when we purchased it.

Although it didn't leave the lot with them on . . .

- - - Updated - - -

At the campground we are in there is a trailer on one side of me that has Goodyear Marathons, and on the other side that has BlowMaxes . . .

Ironically, the treads are identical.

 

[caissiel]

I have 7 year old G rated LT tires on our unit and made in China.
ST tires are Junk and I class them all equal no mather where they are made.
They are designed with light thread to ride with less friction. To me it's not worth it on my trailer application.

 

[brw549]

I am a victim of the towmax issues also. While my 3650RL is in the shop being repaired because of the tire explosion I have done a lot of reading about RV tires. Prior to my taking delivery of my fifth wheel from the repair center, I plan to have a new set of Carlisle 12 ply RV tires installed with nitrogen in them. The nitrogen will reduce the tire pressure changes significantly. One item we all may overlook with tires is that basically we are riding on air. The tire holds the air in and supports the load. When the pressures increase beyond the tire capability something has to give. I thought allowing the RV tire to be 10 PSI lower than the max would allow the air room to expand. It does right out the sidewall when it over heats. Another area I often forget is my tow unit tire are larger than my RV tires. This creates more speed and heat in the RV over the tow unit tires because its turning more. The manufacture date on tire is important also. Although your tire may be only three years old and have good tread on them it does not mean they are safe. Anyway, just some thoughts. Travel safe everyone.

 

[GOTTOYS]

I am a victim of the towmax issues also. While my 3650RL is in the shop being repaired because of the tire explosion I have done a lot of reading about RV tires. Prior to my taking delivery of my fifth wheel from the repair center, I plan to have a new set of Carlisle 12 ply RV tires installed with nitrogen in them. The nitrogen will reduce the tire pressure changes significantly. One item we all may overlook with tires is that basically we are riding on air. The tire holds the air in and supports the load. When the pressures increase beyond the tire capability something has to give. I thought allowing the RV tire to be 10 PSI lower than the max would allow the air room to expand. It does right out the sidewall when it over heats. Another area I often forget is my tow unit tire are larger than my RV tires. This creates more speed and heat in the RV over the tow unit tires because its turning more. The manufacture date on tire is important also. Although your tire may be only three years old and have good tread on them it does not mean they are safe. Anyway, just some thoughts. Travel safe everyone.

Tires should be inflated to maximum pressure on sidewall. As they heat up they will will expand and the pressure will increase. They are designed to do this. Don't put too much stock in the ability of Nitrogen to solve any tire problems. The air we breath is about 75% Nitrogen. It may help in an airplane at 35,000 feet but it won't do anything for your trailer tires. Just another gimmick who's merits have been discussed and evaluated hundreds of times on this and many other forums. Most are of the opinion that it does nothing......Don

 

[danemayer]

I thought allowing the RV tire to be 10 PSI lower than the max would allow the air room to expand.

Unfortunately, this practice reduces the load capacity of the tire and is roughly equivalent to overloading the tire. The excess flex causes heat to buildup faster than the designers intended, which can result in internal damage to the tire fibers, followed by a boom.

 

[jmgratz]

x2 on cold inflation that is on the tire sidewall. Even on the tow vehicle. Manufactures post tire inflation based on ride whereas tire manufactures load capacity are based on inflation. Load capacity on the sidewall is at the max inflation.

 

[wdk450]

Speed is the other factor not mentioned in the recent postings on this thread. I am thoroughly convinced that if you keep your speed down, you risk of tire failure is dramatically reduced. Failures from junk tires are still going to happen. California has a maximum speed limit for vehicles towing anything of 55 mph (somebody needs to tell the truckers this), and that is my maximum towing speed everywhere (all states). Also, I would think that tire explosions at higher speeds would have more rig damage than tire explosions at lower speeds.

One needs to evaluate the SMALL time and mileage gains of higher speeds versus the big gains in personal and public safety, and the avoidance of trip interruptions.

 

[JohnD]

Speed is the other factor not mentioned in the recent postings on this thread. I am thoroughly convinced that if you keep your speed down, you risk of tire failure is dramatically reduced. Failures from junk tires are still going to happen. California has a maximum speed limit for vehicles towing anything of 55 mph (somebody needs to tell the truckers this), and that is my maximum towing speed everywhere (all states). Also, I would think that tire explosions at higher speeds would have more rig damage than tire explosions at lower speeds.

One needs to evaluate the SMALL time and mileage gains of higher speeds versus the big gains in personal and public safety, and the avoidance of trip interruptions.

I always try to keep my speed at 65 mph or less . . .

When pulling a 10,000 pound beast . . . why not keep the speed lower

 

[TxCowboy]

Speed is the other factor not mentioned in the recent postings on this thread. I am thoroughly convinced that if you keep your speed down, you risk of tire failure is dramatically reduced. Failures from junk tires are still going to happen. California has a maximum speed limit for vehicles towing anything of 55 mph (somebody needs to tell the truckers this), and that is my maximum towing speed everywhere (all states). Also, I would think that tire explosions at higher speeds would have more rig damage than tire explosions at lower speeds.

One needs to evaluate the SMALL time and mileage gains of higher speeds versus the big gains in personal and public safety, and the avoidance of trip interruptions.

Bill, this is a very good practice to have and is mentioned here from time to time. But I can tell you from personal observation on my local Texas roads where the speed limits on the interstate highways can be 75 to 85 mph that people do NOT drive/haul their RVs at or below the recommended tire rated speed of 60 to 65.

In fact, if you're doing 65 or less on these highways, it is a traffic hazard (as if the condition of the roads wasn't hazard enough). The RV is literally a traveling road block. But even the side roads in Texas frequently have speed limits in access of 65, including the road directly in front of my neighborhood. I've seen people do some pretty stupid stuff when they are trying to pass a slow(er) moving vehicle.

We all want to drive safely but sometimes driving safely (for us) can mean creating hazards for others.

It's a Catch 22.

 

[JanAndBill]

Tires were a major line item expense for us in our business. Over the years the #1 reason for tire failure was heat buildup caused by under inflation. #2 reason was road hazard (debris in the road, potholes, curbs, etc.). #3 was suspension and alignment issues. #4 overload or speed. #5 was failure due to manufacturing defect. The bad thing is that the first two issues were cumulative in nature. Damage may take days, weeks, months to finally show up.

I'm not a big fan of Towmax, not because of were they are manufactured, but because they are at the maximum rating for the application. With a maximum speed rating of 65 mph, they just aren't a good choice for today's 5th wheels.I also have to wonder at the abuse the tires take while in possession of a transit driver, who gets paid by the mile. Does anyone really believe they would tell the dealer - "Oh by the way, coming down here,I drove 80 all the way, and I think I might have hit a couple of curbs, and man there were a lot pot holes along the route I took".

 

[brw549]

I thought the Nitrogen was a gimmick also until two years ago. My dodge ram has electronic pressure monitoring. Here in Georgia the road get very hot, so I I inflated my truck tires with regular air on one side and nitrogen on the other. Drove around all weekend and notice the air inflated tires increased in pressure almost 8 to 10 lbs over the nitrogen tires on each trip. Have any of you tried the Carlisle 12 ply for RVs yet????

 

[JohnD]

I thought the Nitrogen was a gimmick also until two years ago. My dodge ram has electronic pressure monitoring. Here in Georgia the road get very hot, so I I inflated my truck tires with regular air on one side and nitrogen on the other. Drove around all weekend and notice the air inflated tires increased in pressure almost 8 to 10 lbs over the nitrogen tires on each trip. Have any of you tried the Carlisle 12 ply for RVs yet????

I had nitrogen in the tires on my previous car, but when I bought new tires for it I had them put air back in.

It was a hassle trying to get them topped off when needed, plus the oil change shops always mixed air with the nitrogen . . . so why bother.

As for the tires increasing in pressure when on the road . . . aren't they designed to handle that?