tireman9

I would think that having the radiator fail after only 3 months would be considered proof that the replacement radiator was defective to start with. Radiators are not particularly "high tech" so in my opinion there is little reason for them not to last 100,000 miles. Do you think truck companies would tolerate a failure at 41,000 miles never mind 3 months? You may not be covered under a reasonable drivetrain warranty (5 year 50,000mi) but someone needs to answer why the failur occured in the first place. While oil in the water isn't something you want I would be surprised if it did damage. However water in the transmission and low trans fluid ("ton of trans fluid in the water" means "tons not in or cooling the trans). This low oil could spell MAJOR long term durability problems down the road. Who sold and installed the defective replacement radiator? Are they willing to stand behind their product? If not why not? Are they willing to stand behind and fix the damage to the trans that might have been caused by their defective replacement radiator? Have no idea what baking soda is supposed to do to the trans oil in the engine. Think the soap would work better.

Glad to hear the virus was removed. Has anyone made an attempt to contact Symantec so they update their warnings?

Norton continues to report FMCA site as having virus. Down to 23 from 24 a couple weeks ago. http://safeweb.norton.com/report/show?url=fmca.com

Might this thread point out the need for FMCA coach reviews to include actual corner weights? We need to do as much as possible to educate owners of the importance and Safety improvement if they know their real loads. We might also see some improvements from manufacturers if they see their real weights posted where MFG A has good balance side to side as well as appropriate reserve spread across all axles when MFG B doesn't.

I would suggest you NOT mix different brands or different type tires from same brand as a pair of duals. You need to keep the Outside Circumference (more accurate measure than Outside Diameter) as close as possible to the same. The reason for this is that the larger tire of the pair will be forced to carry greater load (probably by multiple hundreds of pounds). Different brands and in many cases even tires of the same brand but different designs will have different dimensions. In general it is also desirable to have all tires on any axle all the same brand & type and should always be of the same size. Only exception would be a VERY temporary slow speed drive if you had suffered a tire failure and were running a spare to get to the tire store to get a replacement tire. Sorry if this makes your situation more complex.

With a sufficiently accurate IR sensor you might see the approx 50 degree difference between the hot bottom of the tire grooves and the cooler top of the tread (surface that contacts the road). However the handheld units are not capable of providing this kind of accuracy based on my testing. Hand held IR is probably reasonable for giving the average over a 1 or 2 square inch circular area of a flat surface but the reading for surfaces with large temperature differences over very small areas as occur on the tread surface, will be misleading. How hot is a match when burning? You are holding one end so is the average temperature at all meaningful? Now having said all that, it doesn’t mean your hand held is of no value. If you always take the temperature on the same part of your tires and always go in the same direction around your RV and never stop for a chat so you keep the timing constant. You could use a drastic increase as a warning that you need to do additional investigation such as confirm the inflation.

Having done autopsies on over 25,000 tires that were at the end of their life, I can assure you that few people have the training or experience to make a statement that is much more than their personal opinion. Might just as well ask if Ford or Chevy makes a better car. What you end up with is someone talking about their experience with a 1995 Corvette while another talks about their 2000 F150. Another thing to consider is that without detailed knowledge on the actual load, which roads you drove on at what speed and what was the temperature etc, etc you have no way to be sure you are comparing equivalent service. Based on my 40 years experience as a tire design and quality engineer, I can tell you that I have seen many tires from each of the majors perform just fine and at the same time I have seen individual tires made by the same companies suffer various “failuresâ€. Some and possibly most of these so called “failures†were the result of abuse and poor maintenance. Remember: There is no such thing as a fail proof tire. Re: what to buy. If you know your real load for each position on your RV, and you select a tire size and load range that is capable of carrying your individual loads, and have included at least a 5 psi cushion, and run a TPMS and never run less than your personal minimum inflation, you should be able to go the expected 5, 7 or 10 years with little or no problems. But you can also run over a nail as you leave your tire dealership and have a flat at zero miles usage. Select your brand based on your expectations to be able to receive service and quickly and easily obtain a replacement if needed, as you travel across the USA.

Some comments from a retired tire design engineer. Some important information is missing from the various posts. When posting questions about load and inflation capabilities for tires you need to include the “Load Range†This is a letter code such as D, E, F etc with most RVs using something between E and G. Some class A MH might go up to H and some class B may be down at C or D. Also be sure to give the complete size such as LT235/70R16 or 265/70R22.5. Saying you have a 17†tire or a 265 doesn’t provide enough information for us to really help answer your question. Regarding Load & Inflation tables. With only a few exceptions for some individual tire designs and sizes, all major tire companies use the same tables for showing the inflation so until you find the tables for your particular size you will not be too far off. Usually the exceptions are for additional load capability of a few hundred pounds or an extra 5 or 10 psi for RV application. The Load and inflation information molded into the tire should never be exceeded. These are Maximum load at the stated inflation. RV manufacturers can only guess at how much “stuff†you carry around. What they are giving you on your load charts are the Maximum loads based on the design of the various components used by the manufacturer such as axles, springs, wheels and tires. This is why it is important that you know the real weight for each corner of your RV when fully loaded. If having your holding tanks full results in higher load on your tires then simply dumping your tanks is only a temporary “fixâ€. Temporarily unloading the tires will not repair the damage you have done to the tire anymore than putting air back in a tire after you ran it underinflated. Damage is cumulative and cannot be reversed. You must find a permanent solution to prevent operating your RV when any component in overloaded. RE Tire gage accuracy. If you select a digital gage and compare it to another gage and they both read the same +/- 2 psi or less I think you can count on that gage being sufficiently accurate. RE a 10% cushion on selecting inflation. It is a good rule of thumb to have a “cushion†but must be applied correctly. This does NOT mean you should increase the inflation above the MAXIMUM inflation molded into the tire. For example: If we had a 225/70R19.5 Load Range F tire we can see the markings on the sidewall indicating it is rated at 3640# max when inflated to 95 Psi and sunning in a single application or 3415# as a dual. If you weigh tour RV and find that the heavier side of the rear (dual) weighs 6100#. According to load tables we can see that this tire is rated at 3,000# dual at 85 psi which is not enough so we need to go to the next higher inflation or 90 Psi. This is your MINIMUM recommended inflation. You could simply increase this minimum by 5 psi and have a nice cushion. However if we found the heavy side of the rear really weighed 6,800# we would need to inflate our tires to 95 psi Minimum. Since this is also the maximum inflation the tire is rated for you cannot increase your inflation to 100 psi. In this case your only option is to unload your RV. What does your RV really weigh? A simple Front axle and rear axle weight can be misleading as I have seen reports of one side being loaded by 3% to 7% more than the other side. You really need to get each corner weighed. You can get this done at some FMCA Rallies or check http://www.rvsafety.com/ and under RV Weighing Program check their Schedule.

By any chance do you know if the sidewall cord is Steel or Polyester? This information is posted on the sidewall. I did specialize in failed tire inspection and Root Cause analysis. While a single picture is not really enough to go on there is some visible evidence that suggests the possibility of an impact cut. BUT I would need to see the rest og hte tire and it really isn't worth the effort to shio the tire to Akron. If you still have the tire having a few more well lit pictures might provide more clues.

For those of us who missed the broadcast or had problems receiving it are there plans to post it on YouTube or on FMCA.com?

I found a nice 4 sensor system for cars on ebay for $15 called Secutire. Been evaluating for a couple of weeks and easy to install and have confirmed that after dropping 1.5 psi it activated (I had set the tire low as a test). The company http://www.kysonix.com/ky/productEn.asp also has high pressure 6+ sensor kits but I do not know the price. If you already have Pressure Pro on the RV maybe the Secutire will work for the toad. Don't know the range though. But for $20 including S&H not too expensive to evaluate.

Well since I am a bit anal about tire pressure I installed internal sensors on my unit as I wanted to know both Temp and press. BUT I drive a Class-C and my required inflation is only 55PSI I could go with a unit that is designed for passenger tires (75 psi max) and I have the tools at home to de-seat one bead to replace the valve. I cannot address which brand is best as I haven't tested them. I can tell you that you should expect the TPM gauges to be off by a few PSI. If you get the screw-on-cap style I would suggest that you inflate your tires and set them with your best digital gauge. Then screw on the TPM cap and when all done run a system check. This will give you a reference number for each position. ( I would not worry about +/- 3 to 5 psi because..... 1. You have weighed each corner 2. Checked the table for the lowest inflation needed to carry the heavyest side 3. Added 5 psi to get the proper COLD inflation pressure. With a TPM you probably can use those numbers for your daily check but I believe that you will still need to "Top-Off" your tires once a month. You can use that opportunity to keep an eye on the accuracy of your TPM valves.

I have seen a controlled contest where a number of experiensed OTR drivers were asked to evaluate three tires. OK, Low or High. So with w 33% change of being correct with random guess why did only 27% get the OK tire correct???

Robert and others I have only tested a few gauges so my suggestion should NOT be taken as meaning these are the only gauges that are accurate. First, If you have six gauges but only trust a couple I am courious why. Did you go to one tire and get a reading from all six and compare the readings? The brand of gauge I use is Accutire. These are digital gauges and have tested as accurate to +/- 0.5 psi. If your gauge is +/- 1% then you are probably OK. Mine is a single head 150 psi unit. I have had my coach weighed at each corner. I looked up the minimum inflation needed to carry that load by rounding up on the chart. I then increase my inflation by 5psi. This is my "IDEAL COLD" inflation I set the tires to every day I drive. The extra 5psi gives me just the extra cushion I need to account for normal day to day temperature changes. I also do not get my shorts in a bind if I am one or two "low" from my "IDEAL". If I drop to three low then I add some air. Since I am not a full timer I have access to plenty of air at home. If I were on the road and started seeing three psi drop and added a bit of air then saw another three psi drop I would be suspicious and watch my air in that tire very closely. Of course since i also run a tire pressure monitor I can check my pressure and even temperature a few times a day but I am a tire engineer so I am a bit strange when it comes to taking care of my tires. You may need a dual head gauge so will need to shop a bit. I would simplu Google "Tire gauge digital" and "Tire gauge dual" and "Tire gauge dual digital" I would look at the specifications and claimed accuracy. If no data is given then i would not consider that gauge. You need to have a gauge that reads at least 25 psi higher than your tires stated maximum.

Thanks to both of you for your input. Since at this point we have only made 4 extended (more than 3 day) trips we didn't have any history to go on as I was dumping every other day at the campgrounds we were at as it was free. In our C I have it easy as I can use a flashlight to look down the pipe and look into the tank so I get a real "view" of the lever. LOL. I was considering external sensors but I think we will hold off and see what transpires. Since there is just the two of us, it won't be too difficult to keep an eye on the various levels at BG which will be 7 nights for us. Not dumping so often will also save $ I have been paying the roving honey wagon at other FMCA Conventions. There are a couple of rest stops on the Ohio Tpk that have dump stations for $15 so will plan on using one on our way home from BG. Thanks again. Roger

We have a Class C Coachmen Freelander and are very happy with it. Last year (our first with the RV) we noticed that we seemed to be filling our black tank faster than I thought reasonable. This presented no real problems as we were able to dump at various campgrounds every other day (reading 2/3 full). We went to the GLASS Rally in May and I was getting worried as we went 4 days without dumping and the level read full. After dumping I added about 5 gal of water plus some ice cubes ( a trick I read about to aid cleaning when they slosh around) and headed home. Dumped again then I filled the tank two times with fresh water. After draining for the final time I figured we were all clean. I started to add water 3 gal at a time and checked the level with each 3 gal bucket. Empty read E + 3g > E + 3g gave 2/3 + 3g gave Full I continued to add 3 gal buckets till the water level was visable at the bottom of the toilet pipe and ended up with the specified 21 gal when the water reached the bottom of the pipe. My dealer said these readings were due to the tank shape but after crawling under this just does not seem reasonable. Suggestions?

Glad you got this done. I have heard of some cars having a failure in the garage while parked and the ignition was off. Somewhere there is a service you can subscribe to to get a notice on all recalls. If I find it, I will come back and post the link.

TBUTLER Great write up. The high pressure warning was probably due to brake heat soak after the long downhill drive. Your item about the warning of the low tire on your toad shows the value of a TPMS. One only has to consider the potential cost of 1. a tire failure plus 2 potential damage to the toad to offset the cost of your TPMS.

As I recall the final week that allowed a 3 digit date code ( wwy ) was about April or May 2000. I seem to recall that 1600 was the change over date. You will probably not see a 4 digit code ( wwyy ) with a 99 but it is possible that there were some tires made in the latter half of 1999. Hope this helps.

As a Tire Design and Quality Engineer with 40 years experience, and as a retired professional race car driver and driving instructor, I can say the I agree with almost everything TBUTLER and wolfe10 have said. A couple of additional details. For about 99% of all tires, you will find that the Load & Inflation table for manufacturer A is identical to that of Manufacturer B and these both match industry guidelines as published in Tire & Rim Association (US) or ETRTO (European) or JATMA (Japan). This means that you don't have to worry if you cannot find the information from your tire manufacturer. If any of you are going to Bowling Green I am giving a seminar "Tire Basics for the RV owner" and will be offering to compare your tire gauge to one of my calibrated digital gauges. Stop in and say Hi. Regarding checking your tire pressure every day you intend to drive is a good suggestion. Personally I do that most of the time BUT I have a Tire Pressure monitor system on my RV so I know my tire pressure about every hour (in addition to the automatic checks done by the system. As far as getting up before sunrise to check your tires. Personally I would not bother. BUT I would check my tires once, sometime late in the evening at least 4 hours after driving and being out of the sun. Be sure you record the inflation at that time. Then when you check the tires after they have warmed up in the sun you will see the increase (about 3 to 10psi I would expect). Make a note of the "Inflation in the sun" number. If I had checked all my tires (out of the sun) at the start of a trip and then checked each day I would not worry about a few PSI increase due to warming in the sun. I also would not worry about the 1 or 2 PSI increase if the ambient temperature went up from the day before. NOTE tire inflation will increase or decrease by about 1 PSI for every 10 degrees change in air temperature. Running your tires 3 to 10 PSI higher that required to carry the MAXIMUM load they see in actual use is something I suggest. It gives you a bit of a margin for all the variables. You should NEVER run your tires at an inflation that is less than specified by the tire Load & Inflation tables. Also, if I had set all my tires to the correct pressure at the start of a trip I would probably never let any air out to lower the pressure as long as I was not exceeding the Max Cold Pressure molded in on the sidewall of the tire.

You can also look into these ideas for trailers if you don't want to flat tow your Smart. http://www.smarttrailerusa.com/ http://www.smarttrailers.com/SmartTrailer/ http://www.smartfortow.com/

I saw a simple camera for $100 at the local auto parts store. The camera attached to the license plate. Probably good enought to avoid hitting a car behind you but I have not used so I agree with Tbutler that having some watch when you are parking. Try to Google back up camera for car and you will find a lot in the $100 range. I found one at $72!