Trailer tire question!

[TMax]

Okay... I know this might not be the right place for this question but I asking anyway... . I noticed that the tires on my 33' toyhauler are wearing irregularly on the passenger side. The outside tread seems to be cupping a bit and the inside is like new. That would tell me my axles aren't exactly straight on the leaf springs. I went around and looked at the other side and it does appear that the inboard tread appears to be slighly more worn than the outboard tread.

Now here is my question... will it hurt my tires to rotate them to the opposite corners (in an "X") so that the treadwear evens out? They are Toyo All terrains and are "E" rated. Best tires I've ever had on the hauler. Anyway... what do you guys think? Will it screw with the belts if they are now going the majority of the time in the opposite direction?

Many thanks!

 

[Grizzly]

Tell us more about the tires, like how old are they. Are they the OEM on your 03 Tahoe. I have to assume they are 16" LT's since they're Toyo's. Who is the manufacture of the axles and running gear? If they're Chinese, that could be part of the problem.

 

[TMax]

The tires are about 5 years old but have probably 60% tread left on them. They are LT's and they were not the junk that came on the trailer. To be honest with you... that's what sold me on the trailer was that the guy put Toyos on it and it had a Serta Perfect sleeper (reeealy nice mattress custom installed in the master bed). It it a Tahoe Transport and they are 16" rims which is another reason for my purchase. I had enough of the 15" blowouts on my other toyhaulers. Can't say who makes the axles but I guess I can find out. Don't they usually have locator pins in the leaf packs to hold the axle where it should be?

 

[rscurtis]

One thing you could do to verify your alignment is very accurately measure the center-to-center distance of the axles on each side of the trailer. Then you'll know whether or not you have an alignment problem.

 

[sag2]

It should not hurt them at all to rotate the other direction. I would check the toe at least. Just get a friend and measure to the same place on the tread at three and nine o'clock and compare the measurement front and rear. The measurement should be equal or slightly (<1/8") smaller at the front than the rear if it is neutral or toed in. If it's off more than 1/8" in either direction the axle is bent. You could check camber with a bubble level with a degree marking and at least see if you are close.

 

[Grizzly]

TMax, your Toyhauler is manufactured by Thro California. The quality is about medium with good Hwy Control. It appears to be mod #33TB al, which is 35' in length and a GVWR of 13,500 lbs. The weight of the trailer is the reason why the manufacture of the running gear maybe a factor. If you crawl under the trailer you should be able to read the manufacture's name.



I'm thinking alignment maybe the problem. If the axles are pre cambered, and most likely they are, it will make realignment very difficult. Sometimes it's easier to replace the axles with Dexter brand. I has to do that with my (then) 29' Holiday Rambler 5th wheel because realignment wouldn't work on pre cambered axles.



george

 

[macdaddy]

Try changing over to Michelin XPS RIB's. You didn't say what size Toyo's ur running or if it is a triple axel. If it's a triple then go with the 215-85/16's, if it's tandem then 235-85/16's. Im sure those are Dexter axel's on there.



Without seeing how bad the tires are you have on there now it's hard to say wether or not to get them spinning backwards (rotating to the other side). If they are only cupped a "bit" it should be fine. Otherwise you might have some balancing issues. Personally I would never leave tires on an rv for five years, regardless of how much tread you have.



Mac

 

[HBarlow]

Those tires are overdue for replacement, even if they still have 100% of tread left. You are risking a tread separation that will tear the side wall, fender well, and possibly the plumbing and cabinetry above it out of your trailer.

Replace the tires with a new set and take it to a truck alignment shop. A truck alignment shop can bend the axles to perform a proper alignment. That is the way they align the front axles on a big truck.

Your trailer is almost certainly built on a Lippert frame and I would not expect it to have Dexter running gear.

 

[steved]

If one's wearing the outside, and the other is wearing the inside; would that not be an indication of an alignment issue and not of a bent axle???

 

[Grizzly]

steved, A bent axle is an alignment issue, since one must bend the axle to align the wheels.



george

 

[steved]

I was thinking more of an axle twisted on its mount, not a bent axle.

And let me clarify that, since I was on a blackberry and couldn't respond fully...

If the springs aren't square, and the axle is further forward on one wheel than the other; you would have one tire being "pushed" (outside bead worn) and one tire being "dragged" (inside bead worn) on the same axle... if it was a bent axle, I would expect a single tire wearing weird and not both.

That's just my logic...

 

[rscurtis]

Your logic is correct as I pointed out in #4. I had a customer knock over a fire hydrant with one of my Beck equipment trailers when I had my rental business. It was carrying a JD 250 skid steer at the time. The front axle and associated parts were replaced, but the tire to tire contact between the front and the rear slightly bent the rear axle. It became obvious when pushing the trailer up to a vehicle, it would want to steer to the left. Sure enough, the tires were feathered. The fix was to remove both right side brake drums, put a straight edge along the backing plates, and the bend was obvious. Heating the drop section of the axle and pulling it forward with a 6' pipe and a load binder solved the problem.

 

[MMeilicke]

I have a 5th wheel which was wearing the right front tire on the outside edge. After three attempts to correctly align the axels, I finely got it fixed. Not ever axle repair shop can fix these things. Recommendation: call your local RV dealers and ask where they get their alignment problems fixed. Hopefully you find the dealers going to the same axle shop. Take you rig there to get it fixed. That was the way I got mine problem solved. Good luck. Also don't be afraid to ask for references from these shops. It is not easy to find a reliable shop.