Older Tires on new 2670MK

[scdock]

I purchased a 2670MK a couple of months ago and have been reading a lot on various threads regarding the China bomb tires. I checked the manufacture date last weekend and it was February of 2019. Has anyone who has purchased a GD recently seen the same 1 1/2 year old tires on a new rig?

[howson]

I purchased a 2670MK a couple of months ago and have been reading a lot on various threads regarding the China bomb tires. I checked the manufacture date last weekend and it was February of 2019. Has anyone who has purchased a GD recently seen the same 1 1/2 year old tires on a new rig?

My "2019" 315RLTS is actually exactly the same as the late-production 2018s. The RV industry is wierd in that the year rolls over but changes to the actual model doesn't happen until mid-year, though there's no change in designation. In other words, a late-year 2019 is different from my early-year 2019 model.

I wrote all of that so you can figure out (based on your VIN) when your trailer was actually manufactured. I think Jim, TucsonJim , knows about that stuff. You might just do a google search, too, for how to figure out your GD VIN and there's bound to be something out there on the internet. The point is the age of your tires may be quite appropriate for your "2020" trailer.

Regarding the quality of the tires--are they Westlakes? Given that they are and you have an Imagine, they are probably fine. I'd be a hypocrite, though, if I didn't tell you I swapped mine off my 315RLTS for Goodyears even though there was no indication of a problem. But that's the issue--the Westlakes can fail without any warning. I've seen lots and lots of pictures of tread separation where the inner tire was still inflated (incredible).

OK...rambled enough. I don't know if I addressed your concern or not. I swapped my tires for Goodyears because I could and didn't want to have to think about it. If you can't (or won't travel much) the odds are the Westlakes will be fine. Remember--it's those who have an issue that complain. The thousands and thousands that didn't have an issue never posted.

Howard

[Country Campers]

The actual date of RV manufacture is printed on the white manufacture sticker located on the front corner off door side, or driver side. This is the month and year of manufacture. As far as the date code on the tires there is plenty of room for dates being 1 year old or 1 day old. Remember these tires were manufactured over seas , shipping to get to the US and then to a dealer. They are probably shipped directly to a warehouse and stored for who knows how long. This spring I had new Goodyears installed , on of the tires was a year old. Also this year being that things are upside down manufactures and warehouse managers are trying to keep things flowing at any means so they could be getting into some stock or just a few tires that have been sitting around for a while.
If you just do close to home trips or just a few weekends here and there they should be ok for a couple years , if you are going long distances most of the time you may wish to change those out for something more dependable.

You may also contact your dealer and see what they say.

Brian

[Calbar]

I purchased a 2670MK a couple of months ago and have been reading a lot on various threads regarding the China bomb tires. I checked the manufacture date last weekend and it was February of 2019. Has anyone who has purchased a GD recently seen the same 1 1/2 year old tires on a new rig?

I had the same issue. My 297RSTS was nearly 1 year old when we purchased in September 2018. It was a 2018 model built in October 2017 and my tires were nearly 2 years old as well.

Rob

[howson]

The actual date of RV manufacture is printed on the white manufacture sticker located on the front corner off door side, or driver side.

No, no...that's too easy to find. Can't do it that way.

Amazing how much stuff I forget. Limited brain cells (or limited retrieval capacity?)

Of course you're absolutely right, Brian. As I sit outside on an absolutely gorgeous morning here in middle Georgia I did a quick walk around the trailer and voila--my "2019" trailer was manufactured in May of 2018. (Sticker shows "5/2018").

[Dan Charna]

So, new to all this. My trailer will most likely come with Westlake tires when I take delivery in a month. I plan on going out west this summer and putting somewhere around 7000 miles on the trailer. If I am reading this right, I should switch to Goodyear Endurance first chance I have? Thanks!
Dan

[Country Campers]

So, new to all this. My trailer will most likely come with Westlake tires when I take delivery in a month. I plan on going out west this summer and putting somewhere around 7000 miles on the trailer. If I am reading this right, I should switch to Goodyear Endurance first chance I have? Thanks!
Dan

Dan

You can read a lot into this tire issue but there are some facts and other info that you might take into consideration.

Some of the main issues with the Westlake tires have been noted to occur on trailer with tires that were under rated for the trailer, example some of the Solitudes had "E" rated tires when they should have had "G" rated tires.

Proper loading and inflation are other key factors as well as speed. Hitting a large pot hole or other sharp edge road hazard would surely effect any tire.

There have been numerous members that have used the Westlake tires , quite a few with fifth wheel trailers , that have got 10,000 miles or more out of the Westlake tires. I used ours for 2 years and about 7,000 miles with no issues. I changed because we planned a lot more longer trips this that did not happen.

Changing the tires for your west trip might not be a bad idea as the last thing you need is tire trouble , just wanted to give you a little more info , but surely not talking you into one way or another.

Brian

[Cate&Rob]

So, new to all this. My trailer will most likely come with Westlake tires when I take delivery in a month. I plan on going out west this summer and putting somewhere around 7000 miles on the trailer. If I am reading this right, I should switch to Goodyear Endurance first chance I have? Thanks!
Dan

Hi Dan,

Most towable RVs built today are running on Westlake tires. The "China Bomb" terminology dates back 20 years to when trailer tire manufacturing was first transferred offshore. While some still quote this reference, there is a lot more current data to confirm that today's tires are much better quality. As Brian Country Campers notes, many of the more recent issues occurred with tires that were marginal for the weight being carried . . . not necessarily caused by where the tires were manufactured.

Comparing the rating on the sidewall of your tires to the GVWR on the label of your trailer will confirm how much reserve tire capacity you have. Every owner has to make their own decision on the tire manufacturer that they are comfortable with, but I would echo the observation that many thousands of trailer owners tow many thousands of miles on OE tires, without problems.

Rob

[Calbar]

Hi Dan,

Most towable RVs built today are running on Westlake tires. The "China Bomb" terminology dates back 20 years to when trailer tire manufacturing was first transferred offshore. While some still quote this reference, there is a lot more current data to confirm that today's tires are much better quality. As Brian Country Campers notes, many of the more recent issues occurred with tires that were marginal for the weight being carried . . . not necessarily caused by where the tires were manufactured.

Comparing the rating on the sidewall of your tires to the GVWR on the label of your trailer will confirm how much reserve tire capacity you have. Every owner has to make their own decision on the tire manufacturer that they are comfortable with, but I would echo the observation that many thousands of trailer owners tow many thousands of miles on OE tires, without problems.

Rob

I have to agree with Rob on this one as well. My Westlake tires have 15,000 trouble free miles on them. They are now 4 years old from date of manufacture and I have one that is starting to show some cracks on the tread. Local tire dealer looked at this one and told me I was fine for this year yet but should change them out in the spring due to age. Mine have a lot of reserve capacity on them. Too little reserve capacity which as Rob stated is the reason many fail. My Rockwood came with C rated tires that had 0 reserve capacity so I changed them to LRD.

Another Rob

[315RLTSinPA]

No, no...that's too easy to find. Can't do it that way.

Amazing how much stuff I forget. Limited brain cells (or limited retrieval capacity?)

Of course you're absolutely right, Brian. As I sit outside on an absolutely gorgeous morning here in middle Georgia I did a quick walk around the trailer and voila--my "2019" trailer was manufactured in May of 2018. (Sticker shows "5/2018").

That's how it goes. Our 2018 trailer was built end of July 2017, took delivery August 2017

[Dan Charna]

thanks for the tire clarifications!

Dan