On 5 Aug while heading North on I-5 at 55 MPH a passing motorist waved me down. He advised that the left rear tire on My Travel Trailer had just cut loose and beat the tar out of the back of the Trailer. Initial estimate is $5-6,000.00 damage.
That Goodyear Marathon ST225/75R15 load D had just been mounted on the trailer during the second week of July 08. It had been carried on the spare tire rack under cover since the trailer had been brought home. The tire had been balanced and air pressure checked every time I checked the other tires. And, it had just 591.34 towing miles on it when the tread seperated from the casing which held air.
I just filed a complaint on the www.nhtsa.gov web site. While doing so I noticed that only 60 other complaints had been filed against Goodyear Marathon tires.
Since this was the third Marathon to fail for me, I find it hard to believe that only 60 other tires have failed.
So, I am posting this to incourage other to file reports when their tires fail. Just don't talk about it here on this site.
Bob
2001 2500 Silverado LS 4x4 6.0, 4.10
2007 Jayco Eagle 288RLS
Cocktails for 6, Dinner for 4, Sleeps 2
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End of dirt road, no signs in sight, sun going down: I am not lost, just getting ready to go camping.
In MOST cases, like yours, there is usually no way of telling what caused the tire failure. Could have been something as simple as picking up a nail and the tire going flat. After driving on the flat for a minute or two it would SEEM to explode as the built up heat causes it to come apart. Most just ASSUME the tire went flat when it blew up but it's far more likely that it went flat THEN blew up. I certainly wouldn't hesitate to file a report if I had evidence that the tire had failed BEFORE going flat (provided I had accurate weights on my trailer so I knew it wasn't overloaded as many are). Good luck / Skip
The going flat after a nail theory, while a good one, is not the case here. The casing held air after the tread seperated. I drove 3 or so miles to the next exit to find a place to safely change the tire. The casing still had 65 PSI when I pulled it off the axle. The next day at the tire shop it still had 65 PSI. This same thing, seperated tread and casing holding air, happened to two other Goodyear Marathon tires that I had mounted on a trailer.
Bob
Third Goodyear tire failure you've had???? Seems like 2 would have been sufficient to cause me to look elsewhere for tires. WHen we replaced ours this year we went with Maxxis and so far no problems - knock on wood.
2005 Dutchmen 35SRV, Pergo floor, 5th Airborne, JT Strong Arm, Kodiak Disk Brakes, Backup camera
2006 Dodge CTD RAM QC 3500 LWB 4WD, Reese 16k, Airlift, Pacbrake, Britebox, 60g aux fuel tank
04 HD Ultra, CanAM 400MAX Quad
dhamblet;
Have to agree with you. What happened our '01 Nash 22GQ had two Goodyear Marathon tire failure. We Sold that unit and purchased a '05 Jayco Eagle.
The '05 came with Maxxis load E and I was happy.
Then Murphy struck. The '05 suffered from delamination of the walls and after 5 months of down time and two incidents of failure, the manufacture and the dealer combined to buy it back and sell us the '07 Jayco.
While the deal was a sweet one, we still unpocketed $2,000.00 due to larger TT and upgrades we wanted. When the 07 was delivered it came with Goodyear Marathon tires, no joy. However, I figured that I could take a chance and run them for a year before replacing them.
Hindsight always proves when we make a bad decission
So, when the unit cames back from shop after repairs it is going to the tire shop for a complete set of new shoes.
Bob
Sorry to hear 'bout that. Your tires are same exact size and load rating as I have on my trailer. I put new tires on it last April, and seriously considered going with Goodyear Marathons, just cause of how easy it is to find dealers for such. In the end, though, I just couldnt get past the zillions of reports like yours, of GY Marathon tires blowing up. Way too many of these blowing up.
I went with a set of Maxxis M8008s. And so far, they have been great. Seem to have less rolling resistance than the Generals I had previously, and have held their pressure perfectly. In all the research I did, Maxxis was one of the few brands of trailer tires, where nearly everyone that bought them were happy with them, and had not had any failures. Same thing with Titan, and a few others I can't remember.
Personally, if it was me, I'd dump every one of those GY Marathon tires before another one fails on you, and get a good set of Maxxis tires. As you learned, trailer tire failures can do a LOT of damage to the undercarriage and sides of an RV trailer.
..Its interesting to note that when you look at the specifics of which tires are having so many failures.....Seem to almost always be tire brands made in China, and frequently less expensive brands. IMO, that should tell you what kind of tires to avoid, if you want to reduce the chances of this happening.
Will & Angela
2 wonderful children that love camping, Stephen & Allison
2003 Ford Excursion V10 4x4
2003 Thor Citation 33M, Hensley Arrow hitch, Brakesmart Brake Control
(wanna see? Here is a picture of it )
Sorry to hear about your problem.I just bought a 5er about 6 months ago and it had Marathons I didnt like the look of them(sidewalls looked dried out,cracking) so had them changed out to Maxxis,no problems thus far.
..Its interesting to note that when you look at the specifics of which tires are having so many failures.....Seem to almost always be tire brands made in China, and frequently less expensive brands. .........
And just where did you think Maxxis tires came from? IMHO its hard to find a tire that wasn't made in China.
Maxxis are made in Taiwan, not China proper. Lost my Marathon at 1250 miles, sold the remaining four and replaced all with Maxxis M8008 ST 225 75R 15Es. Peace of mind PRICELESS
4X4 Bob,
You make an excellent point. If everyone on this forum that has had an ST tire blow up on them or fail (not due to road hazard) submit a report to NHTSA, we might get somthing done about these cheap ST tires that are often from China.
Even if I got a nail in my TV tire, I have NEVER had one explode on me. If an ST tire explodes, the tread flies off, sidewall or tread bulges or any other failure not caused from abuse, it should be reported.
Hopefully, I won't have to do a report. Knock on wood.
2007 Dodge RAM 2500 Quad Cab w/6.7 Cummins
2008 Palamino Sabre 31RKTS
Reese 15K Pro Series manual slide
Prodigy
Firestone Air Bags
Travel in peace...leave the M-I-L at home.
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