RV Tire Safety with RV tire expert Roger Marble I was reading a magazine aimed at motorhome owners and there was an item about a man that suffered an RV tire failure. It was one of his rear duals. The RV owner reported that he decided to drive to the nearest tire store, where it was suggested that he replace…
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Did your RV company/dealer follow federal law regarding tires?
RV Tire Safety with RV tire expert Roger Marble I’ve been reading a number of posts recently on recalls, violations of federal safety standards in the RV industry and on tire and fire extinguisher recalls. If you have been a reader of my blog, you know that I am a strong proponent of filing complaints on failures of safety-related systems and…
Read MoreDifferences between towable, motorhome and car tires
RV Tire Safety with RV tire expert Roger Marble This is a summary of a discussion I had on an RV Forum on tire pressure that started with a question and some comments. Question: “I’ll give my take on maybe why we have travel trailer owners, motorhome owners that never had a TT, TT owners that moved up to a…
Read MoreWhat effect does speed have on tire failure?
RV Tire Safety with RV tire expert Roger Marble Question: What effect does speed have on tire failure? “I have an 8000 lb. trailer with four Goodyear Marathons. The truck is a Dodge 2500 diesel so I can cruise at 75 mph subject to wind and hills. How much, if any, does speed factor into tire failure? I replace tires…
Read MoreTruck camper owners: Check those rims!
By Russ and Tiña De Maris Truck camper owners, you pack a lot of weight in the bed of that pickup truck. With that in mind, there’s plenty written about the need for checking tires, knowing your load weight, and never, ever exceeding the load capacity of your tires. But there may be another area of concern that comes from…
Read MoreWill the “correct” tire pressure issue ever be resolved?
RV Tire Safety with RV tire expert Roger Marble Question: Do you think the tire pressure issue will ever be resolved to people accepting the values recommended by the tire manufacturers based on actual loading? Or will some always be confused between the tables, the placard and quotes of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS) from some on the forum?…
Read MoreCan black tire “covers” be used without causing damage?
RV Tire Safety with RV tire expert Roger Marble Back in June 2011, I did a post that asked the question: “Tire Covers – Do they do any good?” In that post I showed the numbers from a test I had run where I collected tire temperatures showing the effects of shielding my tires with white vinyl covers versus the…
Read MoreWhat you should know about tire “safety margins”
RV Tire Safety with RV tire expert Roger Marble Some people ask “How much Safety Margin should I have with my tires?” While this concept is simple, the reality is quite complex. If you want to skip over “why” safety is complex just jump to the “Bottom Line” below. In engineering it is more proper to talk about “Safety Factor”…
Read MoreWhom to believe on RV tire inflation?
RV Tire Safety with RV tire expert Roger Marble I was reading an RV forum and found a number of folks offering their interpretations on what the proper inflation is for tires in RV application. Some insisted the only correct inflation pressure was what was shown on the “Tire Placard” or “Vehicle Certification label.” Here is my reply: We have…
Read MoreWheel failures and a “silent recall”
RV Tire Safety with RV tire expert Roger Marble I have seen a number of posts on an RV Forum about cracked and leaking cast aluminum wheels on one brand of RV trailer. (If you want to read the forum thread you can do so here.) Some owners are reporting more than one failure. There appears to have been a…
Read MoreOK to change tire size on duallies?
RV Tire Safety with RV tire expert Roger Marble Question from RVer on a forum “I need six new tires for a 2004 38-foot Dutch Star on a Spartan chassis. Michelin tire models and sizing has me totally confused. Current Michelin size is 275/80R22.5. Dealers claim this Michelin size is interchangeable to 295/75R22.5 from brands that don’t offer the original…
Read MoreQ&A on TPMS settings
Question from a reader: I would like your opinion as to what would be good alert values to set in the TPMS on my trailer. I need to set high and low pressures and temperature alerts. Thanks. —Dennis My answer: First, let’s be clear that Trailer Cold Inflation Pressures and Motorhome and Tow vehicle CIP are established differently. While…
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