Thinking seriously about changing from Michelin to Toyo.
Our Michelin XZE 275-80-22.5 are aging out, 7 years this summer. 50,000 plus miles and no sidewall cracking. When not on vacation the coach is in its shed, so no direct sunlight and not exposed to the wet ground. They LOOK great....... but, 7 years ?
Question is, with so many models of Toyo 295-75-22.5, Which would suit my 28,000 GVW coach the best? Wear not being an issue but ride, handling and a quiet ride are. I would prefer LRH at lower tire pressures as with my Michelin LRH tires now.
I know everyone has their opinions but I value the experience of others.
Thanks.
M137 Extreme Long Haul Commercial Steer Tire | Toyo Tires (https://www.toyotires.com/commercial-truck/tire/pattern/m137-extreme-long-haul-steer-tire/)
My $.02 which surprise a few of you....
I know I had a 6 YO michelin blow out on the right front, but it spent winters (6 months+) in FL on wet ground and was exposed to significant UV the rest of the year (tires were covered in FL)
My tire blew because moisture got to the steel inside the carcass and rusted it out. Tire looked perfect on the outside.
Not sure the humidity where you are, but given your conditions, (and even given my personal experience, I would consider another year or two on the Michelins. Michelin says 10 years if not run low on air at any point in their life. After 7 years they suggest a yearly inspection (including dismount I think) but not sure I would do that, due to cost.
I know what I just said is heresy to what I personally do, but every circumstance is different and if Michelins were ever going to make 10 years, it would seem like you have the right circumstances to make it. Really about personal risk tolerance and potential inconvenience. New tires can blow too...
I guess I may need an exorcism to get rid of the demon that just possessed me, or maybe someone hijacked my laptop and ghost wrote this reply.
Thanks for the reply Tim, I feel the same way, hate to have to change them. I run a TPMS and keep close watch on them. We live on a sand hill in Florida and the coach shed has 4" of lime stone (road base) and 4" crushed gravel floor. But........most recommend 7 years max with Michelins. I know it boils down the "risk tolerance" vs "wallet thickness"
Hmmm. We used to store wood boats indoors on gravel in WI (not concrete) as the moisture in winter in the gravel led to less shrinkage of the wood vs concrete.
Knowing you are in FL on gravel changes my mind (again) Take ''em off....your steel could be easily rusted almost through sitting on gravel all that time. Rubber is not impervious to water.
I'll catch grief for saying so. But Michelin engineers (along with most other tire makers) say 10 yrs. The 'most' you ref are those that are subject too one or more of the following. Folks subject to internet panic stories (like an airliner accident) One might think tire de-lamination/blowout is far more common than it actually is. have a thick wallet, know more than the engineers who designed and built the tire.
There also are incidences of new tires coming apart. But it's like an airliner crash, it's rare.
The BIGGEST cause of RV tire failure isn't age. It's under inflation due to poor tire pressure maint. Secondly is likely the surface one stores a coach on and if the tires have UV blocking covers on them.
I've had three 22.5 flats and a huge blowout of a slightly smaller size. The 22.5s just started vibrating and caused no damage. The almost new Michelin went tick, tick, tick in about half of a second and then exploded. Steel bodied MBZ bus so no body damage.
Tire covers will help but smog will take it's toll on tires. Some casings stand up well over time, others don't. As far as removing the tire for inspection, some casings don't do well being removed and replaced. Our Coopers were really showing their age at eleven with millions of sidewall cracks but our lone Firestone (Bridgestone) looks like new. Bridgestone gives a maximum of 15 years for a bus/truck casing being recapped with no maximum number of caps. Others have poor casing life. Check old posts for brands rated for quality. Some of the most expensive age the worst.
Regional sidewalls tend to be thicker/stiffer than OTR tires and will tolerate more curbs, rocks, etc.
Our Coopers were made here, the Firestone and Linglongs are all made in Thailand. Our new car tires also are Thai.
Pierce
Holy cow. Talk about bad tire luck. I owned several class 8 trucks hauling doubles across Wyoming at 75mph. Never had one tire issue in 1,500,000 miles. I ran few Michelin's. But they were too much money and had belt slippage issues. So changed over to General's.
Sharp objects on two, screw/nail, road gator on one.
Pierce
We replaced our Michelin at 9 years. Professional inspection at 8 years but then the sidewall cracking Accelerated in that last year.
I liked the look of them and the ride so replaced them with the same. Just sayin......
That is exactly what these tires were built for, to be used. Sitting in place is bad for everything that was designed to move and be exercised. Most blowouts I ever had was on a old Ford F-350 dump bed that never ran above 10 mph and was off road driving over stones while being overloaded. Tires were always at max pressure and failed regularly. The savings out weighed the cost so I just keep changing tires out. Michelin lasted by far the longest. Ive also had brand new tires fail. I still like the idea of selling my half life tires and running newer tires on the coach. Costs the same in the long run.
Tread life on an RV is not an issue. While our Coopers had a lot of sidewall cracking, the tread depth didn't show much wear in 80,000 miles. RVs never wear out the tread but casing life should be the top concern.
Here is the tire recall/complaint part of the site. You just enter the brand name and all the sizes from car to truck size shows up. If it ends in 225, that means it's a 22.5 inch. Check for Recalls: Vehicle, Car Seat, Tire, Equipment | NHTSA (https://www.nhtsa.gov/recalls)
Now, I've entered Goodyear in the box and all their tires have come up with the recalls, complaints, etc for the size. If you click on "recall", you can see exactly why it was recalled. This goes for "complaints" also. Clicking on complaints, you can see exactly as the complaint was written and if you write a complaint, it will be there as you described the problem/fault. Check for Recalls: Vehicle, Car Seat, Tire, Equipment | NHTSA (https://www.nhtsa.gov/recalls)
Pierce