What tire if price no concern

[richard5933]

Never hear much about Firestone tires for RVs. Is it because they're not making RV tires or for some other reason? We've got Firestone tires on our coach and they are nice. I know that our ride takes a larger tire than most - we're running FS400 315/80R2.5 right now, which even for our coach is too much tire. They give a nice ride and seem to be holding up well.

[manholt]

Richard.

I have had Firestone, on a lot of cars and motorhomes, running 16 and 19 inch rim....never thought about them on a DP!  I got 315/80R/22.5 on steer axle, Mitchelins.  You may be on to some thing!!!

[richard5933]

Maybe so - the guy I bought the coach from ran lots of buses in commercial service, so I'm sure he installed what he had on hand when he put the tires on our coach. The FS400 is a commercial tire and that might be why it holds up so well. They're more pricey than other options, but I'd probably install them again unless someone can present a good reason why another tire is a better option. We're not anywhere as heavy as some Class A rigs being sold, so I'm sure that others can benefit from the commercial tires as well.

[fagnaml]

My "two cents" is purchase the "best value" tire.   When I purchased my motorhome 2-1/2 years ago from a consignment dealer in Houston (PPL Motorhomes) it needed a full set of new tires.   PPL recommended Goodyear G661 HSA tires as they were more readily available and around $100 per tire cheaper than "RV" tires from Goodyear and Michelin.   My tires are 255/70R22.5 "H" load rating as required by the Freightliner tire specification sticker.    The Goodyear G661 HSA's have provided a comfortable ride and look nearly new after 10,000 miles of use.  They cost about $600 per tire installed.

I was not a member of FMCA at the time I purchased the motorhome and new tires so I don' know how the price I paid compares to equivalent tires from FMCA's tire purchasing program.

Here is a link to the sales brochure for Goodyear G661 HSA tires --> https://www.goodyeartrucktires.com/pdf/resources/publications/sellsheets/g661_hsa_sellsheet_oct_2015.pdf\

Also, during "lunch time" Googling, I found the Modern Tire Dealer website which has a qualitative (?) ranking of top quality commercial truck/bus tires from a 2016 survey.  I'd think the "fleet owner rankings" provide a better view of actual tire performance.   Michelin and Bridgestone have a close "first place" ranking followed by Goodyear/Yokohoma/Firestone in a tight "second place".   The fleet owner quality ratings start to fall off with Toyo and other brands --> http://www.moderntiredealer.com/uploads/stats/page-26-chart.pdf

Given that quality rankings for the "top five" are "pretty darn close", I'd suggest pricing each brand and chose the lowest cost set of tires.

I'm anxious to see TireMan's responses to this topic.

[rsbilledwards]

I too have the Goodyear HSA tires and the ride, wear and appearance after 3 years and 20 thousand miles is as expected. Perfectly happy and the price was fine as well at $500 each mounted and balanced.

[wildebill308]

On 7/11/2018 at 9:35 AM, rsbilledwards said:

Perfectly happy and the price was fine as well at $500 each mounted and balanced.

Yep $500.00 each is what I payed for Continentals. I generally think they are a better tire.

Bill

[rsbilledwards]

Mr Bill, why? Something you know and we do not or just a gut feeling. My choice would have been TOYOs

[manholt]

FMCA just signed on with Hankook  tires for fleet price.  

Back in the 70's I ran Coopers and in the 80's it was mostly Kellys!

[obedb]

Just a guess/ Firestone was purchased by Bridgestone?  I run Firestones on my F-150.

Ran Goodyears on my steer axle ( last truck/Western star )  and Bridgestone on the drives for the last set before retirement.  Both brands served well, and I had permits for 90 thousand in MD and PA for containers out of Maryland piers.  Even got a little bit over 90K a few times. I mention this because there isn't a lot of difference  between tire loading on big RVs like  Carl's or Richard's and my "large car."  That would be with a normal load. Not one of my 90K specials.

[jleamont]

I ran the Bridgestone Duravas R250 on the last coach, no complaints and they held up well, that coach rode terrible with any tire under it. We have some Bridgestone/Firestone on the fleet at work and have no issues with them whatsoever.

They got a bad rap in the early 2000's with the Ford Explorer which IMHO was not fair to them, you run any tire that under inflated nothing good will come from it, except a smooth ride until failure. 

[rsbilledwards]

Joe,

For decades I ran the Bridgestone V-Steels, all steel belting including side walls on my Super Duty Ford Vans. They were a bit less money than the Michelins and wore better as well. Then in their infinite wisdom ended production and redesigned the tire. At that point the Michelin was the only all steel radial casing left and thinking it would get the mileage I bought them for my 2003 F350 Ford dually. They have turned out to be a real disappointment. I am back to eking out 20 k on the front tires, rears will do 35-40k.    I tried the first addition of the Duravis and barely eked out 20,000 miles. The V-Steels would do 40K. Are the new Duravis any better than the originals. I have read some stories about how slippery they are in the wet. The V-Steels were not in any condition. I am coming up on a new set later this summer and in a quandry.

[jleamont]

58 minutes ago, rsbilledwards said:

Are the new Duravis any better than the originals.

Bill, I had 4 years and probably 32,000 miles on them and they showed very little wear, I ran the straight tread all the way around. No complaints with traction at all. I also didn't cover them much (just in winter storage) and they held up to UV very well also. 

[megadiesel]

 I just had a blowout on my Coach running Goodyear 670s I am going through the FMCA tire program for new tires. The Michelins XRV tires seem to be a hot Item and I don't know if my dealer can get them for me. Does any one run the XZE tire? It has 16 cords while the XRV has 12. My coach is only 34 foot and don't know if the ride quality will be affected if I go with the XZE.

[wildebill308]

On 7/20/2018 at 10:48 PM, rsbilledwards said:

Mr Bill, why? Something you know and we do not or just a gut feeling. My choice would have been TOYOs

Don't have time to dig all the research I did out as on the road.  I do remember they are the number 2 rated on Consumer reports Michelin was number 1. I got great service from the ones on my CR-V. I had a article that they are a top tire in Europe and a gut feeling.

We will see how they run, so far they are excellent. 

Bill

[manholt]

I run the XZE and it's holding  up well...8 new in August 2014, as of today 42,000+ miles !   Cavet. I'm probably twice your weight.

[wolfe10]

On 7/21/2018 at 6:23 AM, manholt said:

FMCA just signed on with Hankook  tires for fleet price.  

Back in the 70's I ran Coopers and in the 80's it was mostly Kellys!

As most of you know, FMCA Staff is tied up with the Convention.  They asked me to post this for them:

So, as soon as details are worked out they will be posted.

Brett

 

From: Daniel Ball
Sent: Wednesday, July 25, 2018 10:46 AM
To: Brett Wolfe
Subject: RE: Hankook tire program

 

The Board voted to add Hankook Tires as a 3^rd option for members.  Details and an agreement are still being finalized.

[megadiesel]

On ‎7‎/‎23‎/‎2018 at 9:56 PM, manholt said:

I run the XZE and it's holding  up well...8 new in August 2014, as of today 42,000+ miles !   Cavet. I'm probably twice your weight.

Thanks Manholt, Had to order the XZE as my tire dealer could not get the XRV. $30 cheaper per tire so I save a little there. Should be fine. My rig has 2 slides and a motorcycle lift on a W22 chassis so not too light.

[obedb]

Have XZE on our Phaeton. One of the reasons I bought XZE is that a new tire would be easier to find in the event of a failure.

[jleamont]

19 hours ago, obedb said:

Have XZE on our Phaeton. One of the reasons I bought XZE is that a new tire would be easier to find in the event of a failure.

Size of tire will also dictate availability. That’s why I dropped the 295/80 R22.5 (coach only size) and went with a 12R22.5. Plus it gave me a little bit of overdrive.

the 295/75R22.5 is often considered a “suitable” replacement, it’s also readily available. it cannot handle the load and is dangerous on our coach and most coaches when installed by someone not understanding why the 295/80 was the tire selected by the chassis manufacturer.

[manholt]

The 295/80 are still being used for new coach's!  I looked at a new 2019 Entegra Anthem, had 295/80 Drive & Tag, DOT January 2013!  Per Sales woman, "they only have 2,114 miles on them and should last another 7 or 8 years"!  We left !  Entegra & Jayco is now Thor! IMHO, POS !!!

[jleamont]

11 hours ago, manholt said:

The 295/80 are still being used for new coach's!  I looked at a new 2019 Entegra Anthem, had 295/80 Drive & Tag, DOT January 2013!  Per Sales woman, "they only have 2,114 miles on them and should last another 7 or 8 years"!  We left !  Entegra & Jayco is now Thor! IMHO, POS !!!

I believe tge 295/80 is also only made by a select few tire manufacturers also. Which will hurt when on the side of the road. 

Keep in mind if a major tire dealer doesn’t have a Coach bus company as a regular customer chances are they will not carry that size, that will add significant time on the side of the road. 

12R tires are pretty common on road tractors or straight trucks with a 14,000lb or above steer axle. The biggest issue is making sure you have adequate room for them since they are slightly taller.

[richard5933]

46 minutes ago, jleamont said:

I believe tge 295/80 is also only made by a select few tire manufacturers also. Which will hurt when on the side of the road. 

Keep in mind if a major tire dealer doesn’t have a Coach bus company as a regular customer chances are they will not carry that size, that will add significant time on the side of the road. 

All the more reason to always carry a spare, even if it's not mounted. Finding a mobile tire service to swap the tire for you will be relatively easy in most locations in the US. Finding the correct size tire may not be. Having the tire with you might be the difference between a few hours on the side of the road and an expensive tow into town waiting for a tire to arrive. The troopers will usually only have so much patience waiting for road side repairs before they call for a tow, especially in dangerous or busier stretches of road.

[manholt]

In my case, I can get a 295/80 thru the bay door, about 2/3 way...AC added on some metal to my dropped rail chassis, so I can't get the tire into the bay & close the door!   That's why I carry, my & Linda's golf clubs, in the toad! 

[five]

2 hours ago, jleamont said:

...I believe tge 295/80 is also only made by a select few tire manufacturers also. Which will hurt when on the side of the road... 

True.  We spent five and a half hours on the side of the road because the emergency road service could not find a 295/80 tire.  He said "the truckers don't use them, so there are not many around."  He finally found one...for $800.

[kaypsmith]

Richard, do you have a spare tire compartment on your GMC? Most busses have a hidden compartment behind the front bumper, my MCI is there. I had the compartment open checking the condition of the tire the other day when my wife walked by, her eyes got big as saucers and said, you mean we actually have a spare tire on this coach, that's a first.