Michelin Advantage Program

[rickvikki]

Hello everyone: We are replacing our front tires on our Tiffen Phaeton 2006 40ft dp. We currently have Goodyear but are switching to Michelin. We are wondering whether to buy truck tires or RV tires and also whether to buy tires for steer use or not.

Any help would be appreciated

Rick and Vikki

[wildebill308]

Welcome to the forum.

Have you checked out the FMCA Michelin discount plan?

I would recommend you talk to a qualified Michelin dealer. Actually I would talk to several to kind of get a consensus.

Bill

[wolfe10]

What size tire?

[obedb]

Put 6 new Michelin XZE 255/80/22.5 on our 2003 Phaeton 40 last June. They are more available than XRV tires and probably easier to find if a road failure happens. Unit handles well on curves and in cross winds. Saved $100 a tire through FMCA. Pay any labor and parts separately. Dealer told me that it would be higher if all charges were on one invoice.

[tmcmillanb@att.net]

I have Michelin tires on my 40' diesel pusher Travel Supreme. I am in the process of replacing all my tires and have done a LOT of research. I am replacing with the same Michelin XZA3. As we all know, we never wear the tire out, they break down first, so the first thing to think about is not miles but how many years will they last. The RV tires are compounded to last the max time, the truck tires are not, therefore the truck tires will break down faster (less years). The RV tire compound is softer you get a better ride and they are quieter than the truck tires.

I recently read that all of the new pusher manufacturers have moved to Michelins'. They say you should change your RV tires out every 6 - 7 years, mine have lasted 9 years my buddy pushed his too 10 years. My existing tires have 45,000 miles on them with lots of tread but I'm starting to see a few check marks on the sidewalls. I NEVER use anything on my tires but mild soap and water. I clean them after each trip. I have thin sheets of plastic I park on to block contact with the concrete pad.

Hope this helps.

[obedb]

XZA tires tires are primarily steer tires I believe. Tires built for RV use are designated XRV or did I miss something?

[manholt]

ObedB, I have 8 XZA's...2 in front are 315, rest 295. Brand new 18 August 2014 in Oregon.

[tireman9]

Definately go with "Steer" or "All Position" tires. If you go with "Drive" tires on the rears it will mean you can not rotate the rears to the front or to place the two fronts on one side of the rear if there is a need at some point in the future to move the tires around.

[obedb]

If you visit the Michelin websites you will discover that the XZA3 was developed to be a linehaul steer tire for the trucking industry. There is no reason you shouldn't run those tires on your rear axles on a DP, but I don't believe that they have the special compounds that are used in the true XRV tire. As I indicated, I went with the XZE model all around knowing that they didn't have the compounds that are considered favorable for the way RV tires are used.

Trucking companies that are likely to need better winter traction (almost all long distance carriers or companies doing most of their business up north) run different tires on drive axles. As a trucker, I often got 300,000 miles on drives and with premium steers (as XZA3 are) running long distance trips, 200,000 miles of use was possible. For truckers better fuel mileage has been a benefit when using drive tires resembling steer tread patterns, but they had to be able to handle the high torque modern high displacement diesels deliver. If I was lucky enough to afford a high end DP with one of those engines for power, I would look at different tires for drive axle use.

[brown774]

Just used the program at our local Les Schawb Tire Center. It was a fairly painless process and I am very pleased with the results. When I used the Find a Dealer function in the program it gave me only commercial truck tire dealers who were 20 - 30 miles from me. Our local Les Schawb is 5 miles away and provided excellent service. I look forward to concentrating on the joy of driving our coach not paranoid of a tire failure with possible collateral damage!

[mcbm@juno.com]

We have had a 2006 Thor Mandalay since Sep 08.It came with XZA3 on it from Freightliner. It had 9009 miles on it when I got it home from purchase. I still have 3 of the 6 originals on it. They show no weather check at all. Of course I wash only the rims. I have had 2 XZA3 blow outs. I cut down a rear on a culvert. One blow out had less than13k miles there on. The other had about 41k there on. The machine has about 65k on it. In between blow outs I tried Toyo stear and put it down on the right front new. It was mostly used up within 21k, wearing on one side. The tire that blew had flat ware. I put another XZA3 in its place and it is wearing flat. I had the alignment checked twice because of what I call wheel 'hop' in the front some how. The shops found nothing wrong and made no changes. I keep the fronts at 107 PSI cold and the rears at 100. Rarely notice any 'hop' at this setting now. I am not sure that I can get even 150k miles out of any one of them without regroving. By that time they will be old enough to retire*.*! I have a monitoring system and like it. [At one point in my working period of existence I owned 5 tractor trailers and three extra trailers.] What I can say with some authority is that tires have become absurdly expensive even with the modest discount FMCA provides. I will stay with the Michelin XZA3 design until I can be shown better. What I can say about the Freightliner chassis is that it is ridiculous that there are three different wheel rims/hubs. Bad news bears! That just ain't right!

[elkhartjim]

So you are driving on 3 original tires (8-9 year old) mixed in with 3 new tires. That may be the reason for unusual tire wear plus running at 107 psi/ 100 psi seems to be over inflated by quite a bit.

Are you saying you have three different wheel sizes on your motorhome? I've seen two but never three unless the steer tires are one size, the drive tires another size and the tag tires another.

I wish you well having the tires around enough years to get that 150,000 miles - whats that, another 12-15 years? please keep us updated on how that works out for you.

Have a safe and happy Thanksgiving.

[toy4chuck]

I have been a long time believer in Michelin tires until recently. My Michelin 235x80x22.5 XRV tires developed sidewall cracking long before their time. I approached Michelin about replacing them in hopes of getting some sort of rebate, but that did not turn out to be the problem. There were none of this size tire in the country and repeated calls to Michelin convinced me that they had no idea when any would be built if ever, and I know a lot of folks use this tire. Would hate to be on the road and no replacement available. Long story short, after much research I settled in on a Toyo equal replacement. They were less expensive with similar warranty. I have just returned from a 4,000 mile trip through the Southwest and love the quietness and handling of these tires.

I did learn my lesson though - keep the tires covered no matter where you live.

[desertdeals69]

Because of the difficulty of finding the Michelin 235/80r22.5 I went with the Toyo 245/75r22.5. About $120 per tire cheaper that on the Michelin program. Seem to ride OK.

[countrystar]

I'm in the process of replacing all 6 of Michelins on my 2007 Kountry Star, I have pricing from a dealer using the Advantage pricing, however I have no where found what others are paying for tires so there is no comparison to know if I'm getting a good deal or not.

The tires I'm buying are XZA-2's in 275/70R/22.5.

I was wondering if anyone would share their pricing out the door and per tire with or with out FET.

I think it would be very use full to others as well.

[huffypuff]

It will be hard for you to compare as the prices recently went up. I replace mine same as your size and type and it was a little over $500 each not including shop charges. Mounting, balances, and valve stems adds to it so depends where you get it done.

[countrystar]

Thank you for replying, I have a quote for $522 per tire including FET, but a total out the door price of $4200 does that seem in the ballpark?

[huffypuff]

I did the front two first and loved the ride and handling so much that I did the rear four. Do you have 6 or 8 tires?

[mohamer]

Steer tires are always a good thing to have, my MH will not go very well without them!!

I am currently running Truck Tires on my MH and they are not M brand. I got the ones I have much cheaper!! And they ride wonderful!!!!!!!

YMMV

[lunchbkt1]

Just replaced the Goodyear tires on steering axle with Michelin 295/80R-22.5 XZA-2. Chose these by checking the Michelin website and followed the recommendations there for an all positions tire. Purchased them through the FMCA membership and the Michelin Auto Advantage program. Not sure what the Michelin's will cost, as I have not been billed yet by Michelin. This will be a one year test run for Michelin's vs Goodyear, if all goes well, plan is to replace the other six, next year.

Also added the Safety Plus system to the coach. Will report on findings in a few months. As always appreciate any comments on tires & Safety Plus.

[obedb]

I was told by my tire dealer almost one year ago when I had six replaced to bill just the tires on one invoice. Pay for any parts and additional labor on a separate invoice payable there on your card or by check. I was assured that it would save $$$. They knew me because I have dealt with them for some time. From what I have heard, I was well advised.