More Marathon blowouts

We have had three blowouts, left side, on our '08 model 3124 KS... in the last two cases, the blowout has ripped out the sewer plumbing behind the tire. In one case, the floor cracked, and the toilet cracked, from the blowout shards...

Last night, we had the third blowout, and again the sewer plumbing is destroyed... this is first camping trip since last blowout last summer... 55 - 60 MPH, interstate 95 in NC, 92 degrees. Tires at 62 PSI... towed by 2008 GMC Acadia, factory tow bar...

I have yet to call TrailManor factory...

WARNING: The 3124KS is "under-tired," or needs a second axle, or needs larger tires!

We are sick, and disgusted with TrailManor quality... willing to discuss here.

Bob

[Harry Womack]

Switch to load range E tires and run at 70 psi. If you are using the Good Year tires-switch, I blew 6 or 7 Good Years. I have bought 10 Maxxis tires and have not had any problems.

[Bill]

Bob -

The original thread has gotten kind of confused, so I have moved your topic to its own thread.

My first thought is to upgrade the tire size. Many threads on this forum have discussed why and how. The 14-inch Marathons are right on the edge as far as load-bearing capability is concerned. If you load your TM very lightly, the tires are within rating, but depending on how you load it, it is easy to overload them. A move to the 15-inch Marathons will probably have good results - they have for me - by adding substantial margin to the load-bearing capability. I think that TM has gone entirely to 15-inch tires in response to the overloading question, with good results.

The original 14-inch Marathons are Load Range C, with all that implies. The 15-inch Marathons are load-range D, with all that implies. Load Range E is still heftier, but you have to watch out for the rock-hard tires shaking the daylights out of the TM. IMHO, load range D is fine, but others may legitamtely disagree.

Bill

Some of us as part of the "Great ongoing tire experiment".. are running 14 inch D rated tires. I have some on my TM. But only for the past two years.
They have almost 6,000 miles on them. This will be their third season. Fingers crossed. Might want to give them a try. Some members have had very good luck with that size and rating. FRENCHY comes to mind, I think... But if you can making the jump to 15's will help you as well. I was on a budget and had to sort of make do with what I had. Hence the 14's..

[MudDog]

Regardless of tire size, if you haven't, I would switch to metal valve stems.

[Bill]

... after which, you must have them balanced! Don't let your tire dealer tell you that "We never balance trailer wheels!"

Bill

[countrygirl]

Raholm does not list the year of his TM. Our 2007 3124KS came with 15 inch tires...and I thought that all 3124's came with 15 inch tires stock. Perhaps this is not the case though.

FWIW: We did upgrade to the load range E and have not found any damage from shaking.

our '08 model 3124 KS...

there's your model year. I believe the 'shaking' that is noted on higher load rated tires is related to how much air pressure is put in the tire, not the load rating itself. The higher rated tires allow for much higher maximum air pressures, but are not required to be run at maximum pressure. As the pressure is increased, the carrying capacity goes up until the maximum is reached.

There's no question that weight savings involves some compromises, but most of them can be mitigated. After the first tire blowout (at the latest), it's time to review one's tire choice and make adjustments. There's lots of higher load range tires and combinations available now. My 15" D rated tires have a 2640lb max, 5280lbs for the two wheels. The current max allowed weight on the axle for a 3124KS is around 3900lbs (empty weight + max load - hitch weight). That's 35% additional tire load capacity.

Here's an idea to keep your tire/wheel size conversion cost down:

3 New 15" spoke wheels with 225/75/15-D tires 470.00
Sell 14" set on craigslist -220.00
Net conversion cost 250.00

[Solitary Refinement]

Well add me to the club of blown Goodyear Marathons.

Was travleing up I65 this morning going from Indianapolis to Great Lakes Naval Training Center. Had the cruise set at 62mph and had been driving about 60 miles when the curbside tire blew.

It didn't disrupt the TV much at all, but the noise was obvious with the initial 'thud' and then the flapping. Unfortunately I did not note the condititions of the tire pressure/temp from my TPMS monitor before it happened. Haven't figured out how to set the parameters for the warning buzzers either, so I've got myself to blame for the lack of warning/data.

Luckily the damage was minimal. The wheel well cover was knocked loose and was hanging down with a few broken spots at the bottom. The tire delaminated entirely and there was a nice gash going from the sidewall across half the tire.

Took about 2 hours to find a place that had a ST tire, and we had to settle for a 205/75/14 instead of the 215/75/14. It was a Goodride brand, and I'm not too sure about it, but had to get something to use as the next spare.

Luckily no more tire problems for the remainder of the drive, and hopefully will not have any for the remainder of our adventuring this week.

Originally Posted by Joseph

Some of us as part of the "Great ongoing tire experiment".. are running 14 inch D rated tires. I have some on my TM. But only for the past two years.
They have almost 6,000 miles on them. This will be their third season. Fingers crossed. Might want to give them a try. Some members have had very good luck with that size and rating. FRENCHY comes to mind, I think... But if you can making the jump to 15's will help you as well. I was on a budget and had to sort of make do with what I had. Hence the 14's..

Can you share with us the brand of tire that you found that is 14 inch, D rated and ST?