grnordstrom Report post Posted June 12, 2017 Hi, 1) I'm looking at an 18,000 mile '06 Country Coach. It is in nice shape. Needs a few things but nothing that's a deal buster. Except the tires. The owner put a set of 11Rx22.5 H rated GOODRIDE tires on this unit. Never heard of that tire brand, Found out they're Chinese made. Don't know that much about tires but I'm skeptical about these babies. A front blow out at 65 could ruin my whole day!! Any body got any positive experience with these tires? 2) Maybe a good set of Michelin's on the front? 3) There are a bunch of mainline tires on the market. The tire programs by FMCA look really good. My question is which of this vast array RIDES the best even if it doesn't have the best mileage longevity. The tires I put on will time out before they wear out. Better to get the ones with the better ride. Any thoughts? 4) Suggestions and advice would be appreciated. Ray . Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
desertdeals69 Report post Posted June 12, 2017 If ride is the issue I would go with Michelins. Toyos are about half the price but have a little stiffer side wall because they are a truck tire. I have Michelins on the front and Toyos on the rear. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
wildebill308 Report post Posted June 12, 2017 3 hours ago, grnordstrom said: Hi, 1) I'm looking at an 18,000 mile '06 Country Coach. It is in nice shape. Needs a few things but nothing that's a deal buster. Except the tires. The owner put a set of 11Rx22.5 H rated GOODRIDE tires on this unit. Never heard of that tire brand, Found out they're Chinese made. Don't know that much about tires but I'm skeptical about these babies. A front blow out at 65 could ruin my whole day!! Any body got any positive experience with these tires? 2) Maybe a good set of Michelin's on the front? 3) There are a bunch of mainline tires on the market. The tire programs by FMCA look really good. My question is which of this vast array RIDES the best even if it doesn't have the best mileage longevity. The tires I put on will time out before they wear out. Better to get the ones with the better ride. Any thoughts? 4) Suggestions and advice would be appreciated. Ray . First, welcome to the forum. I don't have any info on the Chinese made tires. If you ate sceptical about them I would change them. I would hate to be worried that the tires may blow out when I am trying to have fun on a trip. I like the prices in the Continental program better than what I see from Michelin. Any new tire will ride better than the old ones. You will never wear them out. If you do you will be one of the first I have ever heard of who wasn't driving commercially. Interesting, I did a little digging and found the Goodride tire was listed by the EPA as a low rolling resistance tire. Which doesn't mean to much as it appears from the list that nearly every tire is listed. https://www.epa.gov/verified-diesel-tech/smartway-verified-list-low-rolling-resistance-lrr-new-and-retread-tire Bill Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BillAdams Report post Posted June 12, 2017 What is the DOT date stamp for the tires (not what the owner says)? I don't think a Chinese tire is bad by default so I would look at age and appearance before I looked at the name brand. It's not going to be sold in this Country without DOT approval or some branch of Government. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
manholt Report post Posted June 13, 2017 Welcome. DOT and look for any cracking of all side walls. I would be more concerned about the low mileage...when was the last time it ran down the road? Maybe one oil change in 17 years. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ace020599 Report post Posted June 13, 2017 We bought a 2002 Newmar Kountry Star a few years ago, our first motorhome. I learned more about tires and the DOT code and had to buy new tires last year. I bought the Michelins through the FMCA tire program. Although we dropped about 3 grand it was worth it for the ride and sense of security knowing we had the best tires we could buy on the coach. I wasn't willing to take any chances on a cheaper tire when the drive tires are so valuable. If one of those goes there could be terrible consequences. Good luck in your decision making process. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
grnordstrom Report post Posted June 13, 2017 Thanks for your feed back!! Ray Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
wildebill308 Report post Posted June 13, 2017 2 hours ago, manholt said: Welcome. DOT and look for any cracking of all side walls. I would be more concerned about the low mileage...when was the last time it ran down the road? Maybe one oil change in 17 years. That is more like 11 years but lack of use/maintenance could be a problem. Bill Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Corona4me Report post Posted June 13, 2017 14 hours ago, desertdeals69 said: If ride is the issue I would go with Michelins. Toyos are about half the price but have a little stiffer side wall because they are a truck tire. I have Michelins on the front and Toyos on the rear. x2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tbutler Report post Posted June 13, 2017 I made the switch from Goodyear to Michelin several years ago. The improvement in the ride and steering was very noticeable. I made the change because of several problems with Goodyear tires I'd had in the past. I don't think I'd ever go back. I started by changing just the front tires. Last year I changed the rear tires. When I changed the rear tires over the ride improved also. Many years ago I had a really bad set of tires, possibly caused in part by poor mounting techniques. Since then I've had the tire on the rim checked for round. With Goodyear, there were always some issues with the tires being out of round. Even though it is measured in tiny amounts, at 60 MPH it can cause vibration. I've also had the Michelin tires checked for round. Surprise, they test well within tolerance every time. I think this is a good part of the difference in the sensation the tires give when traveling down the road. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
desertdeals69 Report post Posted June 13, 2017 A balancing bead manufacturer sent me a set of beads to test. They sent the right weight for the size of tire. Have gone 2k miles in the last 2 weeks and they seem to do the job. It has been smooth up to 75 mph. Thats as fast as I have been. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
manholt Report post Posted June 14, 2017 DD. That's as fast as I would want to go for a short distance. Bill. Clueless on the 17 number...my bad. Still the same ? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jleamont Report post Posted June 14, 2017 Replaced all 6 on our coach this year. Went with Michelins tier 2 level tire (BF Goodrich). We had Michelins on the steer before and Firestone on the drive, I can say the coach doesn't ride any different now, but it's more stable in a lane. The tail would wonder or wag if you rocked the steering wheel before. At almost $300 savings each it wasn't hard to make a decision. Time will tell how they hold up but our Michelin factory rep and a Michelin engineer highly recommended them. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tireman9 Report post Posted June 15, 2017 Ride is pretty subjective. While I have never personally done a comparison on 22.5" tires I have done many scientific comparisons on Passenger and Light Truck sizes. By scientific I mean back to back within the hour evaluation on the same roadway of new tire from tire company A vs new tire from tire company . We would run with no radio, A/C off and windows closed to cut down on distracting noise to do the comparison on the exact vehicle the tires were to be used on. This meant that many times we were using prototype vehicles when designing tires for new vehicles. We would NEVER use a Ford car to evaluate tires for Chevy or vs-a-versa as different vehicle manufacturers had different approaches to suspension, chassis and seat design. I specifically even remember when I had a special opportunity to do a "ride-along" when a set of wheels was being evaluated. In this case we ran the test route on one set of tires & wheels (cast aluminum) then the car came in and the wheels were changed with the tires being swapped out onto the 2nd set of wheels (also cast aluminum) in the same position so any difference in specific tires would not influence the results. I was amazed that I could feel the difference after less than a mile. All this is to point out that a difference in tires that one person may feel is not always a good predictor of what someone else may feel. This is especially true when comparing new tires with old worn tires. It is known that just a difference in tread depth can have a significant affect on ride with deeper tread being better. It entirely possible that the difference some feel is just due to tread depth along with the potential for personal expectations of what one brand can deliver vs another brand which can mislead or add to the difference between new vs 7 year old tires. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Corona4me Report post Posted June 16, 2017 I run Michelin on my Heavy Haul Truck, Ride difference, Mileage difference ( 220+ on steers, 240+ on Drives and over 200 on the Trailer), yes even with the little sidewall cracks that everyone is consumed with....Our DS had Firestone Tire when we bought it so I took it down and had Michelins installed all the way around as expected the RIDE was like day & night...piece of mind is priceless, so you save a buck with a cheaper Tire? but do you really..... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
wildebill308 Report post Posted June 16, 2017 Just a comment on what Joe posted "The tail would wonder or wag if you rocked the steering wheel before." I have found this to be a problem when running different tires on the front than the rear. The difference in how the tires respond to input from road irregularities and steering input can be fairly dramatic. As I am sure Tireman9 can attest to. Bill Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jleamont Report post Posted June 17, 2017 200,000 miles on truck tires?? We run exclusively Michelin at work, NEVER get over 150,000 miles on any road tractor on any wheel position caps or virgin and we perform alignments twice a year. I guess it's the difference between you pay for them or the company pays for them Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
obedb Report post Posted June 17, 2017 This is tire related. I have a six gallon 120vac porter cable compressor to maintain tire pressure. A lot easier than using the onboard air system on our Phaeton. Lowes has them on sale now for $100. Do not know if it is a company wide sale, but I would not be without it. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
wolfe10 Report post Posted June 17, 2017 Byron, My only problem with those portable compressors is that most have no dryer. So, in addition to air you are adding water to the tire. While air follows the ideal gas law (predictable PSI change with temperature change), water does NOT. And not good for tires either. Adding a small dryer makes a big difference. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
obedb Report post Posted June 18, 2017 Where do you find a reliable source of dry air in subtropical Texas? Truck stops or gas stations? I doubt that their air is moisture free. Can a dryer on a diesel coach cope with that moisture? Don't know myself. Just asking. Our tires were mounted by my gold standard for commercial tire service. Service Tire in York, PA. I keep the schrader or valve cores snugged up. After a top off before first use, I check our tires before getting under way, with a quality gauge and seldom add air. If I do it is very little. I never have tropical parts of the US on our travel plans. Dry western air at altitude is our choice. I like my little portable compressor. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
manholt Report post Posted June 18, 2017 Quote Byron. Dry air in Texas is just West of Kerrville, South West of San Antonio and West North West of San Saba... Only a small portion of Texas is sub tropical. Hill Country has a higher humidity (lots of lakes and rivers) than Houston! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
obedb Report post Posted June 18, 2017 Did not mean that all of Texas is subtropical. I am thinking of Houston south along and near the coast. You live down that way as does Brett ( I think ). Lived in San Angelo twice as a kid. Certainly not subtropical there. Dry and hot mostly. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
wildebill308 Report post Posted June 19, 2017 4 hours ago, obedb said: Lived in San Angelo twice as a kid I can understand why you don't want to come back. Bill Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Corona4me Report post Posted June 19, 2017 On 6/17/2017 at 5:21 AM, jleamont said: 200,000 miles on truck tires?? We run exclusively Michelin at work, NEVER get over 150,000 miles on any road tractor on any wheel position caps or virgin and we perform alignments twice a year. I guess it's the difference between you pay for them or the company pays for them Ted Wiens keeps track of my mileage as well as I, feel free to contact Rick @ Ted Wiens 702.271.7646 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tireman9 Report post Posted June 22, 2017 In my blog I showed the small air dryer I made out of parts from local auto parts store. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
