Cardinal RV Club

Original Kenda tires were replaced with Loadstars. Just took a trip to Michigans UP and on the way back home noticed the left rear tire was bald as an egg except for a slight trace of tread on the outer 1/2 of the tire. Tire had 4800 miles on it. Put on the spare!! The other right rear tire was wearing excessively as well also but not quite like the left. The other two front tires are also down to over 1/2 the original tread as well with only 5300 miles on them by the time we returned home. I travel light, trailer is perfectly level. Trailer axles weight is 8240 lbs when hooked up to truck.

I have been in contact with Kendra Rep and he wants pictures but I get the impression that I will be getting the run around.

My question is are these tires known for unusual and inconsistent wear like this??

I have not heard of this type of wear, however you might want to search the larger forums like trailerlife.com as there have been reports of AL-KO axle problems with specific year models. I recommend checking that angle.
Bruce

I have measured the distance between the tires (Port side to Starboard side) at the front and rear of the tires and they are consistant. Both the front tires and the rear tires measure exactly the same. Also the tire that wore so bad is perfectly square with the ground. That is why I am questioning inconsistant wear of the Loadstar tires. I will research the other site. Also I want to be sure the axles are good before replacing with better tires.
Thanks for your reply.

Ralph,

I have the same trailer and have not had the wear problems you mentioned on either set of tires that have been on the trailer! The Kenda's which were on the trailer when I purchased it (used) had about 4,000 miles when I had seperation issues and Kenda gave me $80 per tire. There was not any unusal wear on them. I replaced them with Goodyears and have in excess of 10,000 miles with no unusal wear.

Bruce mentioned the axle issue but have you checked the wheel bearings on the rear axle. I have a friend with a different brand of trailer who had bad bearings and had inconsisent tire wear because of it!

The other thing with the kind of wear on the front tires with so few miles on them makes me wonder if you might have a brake drag issue?


Don

Don,
Thanks for the reply. Will check the bearings tomorrow. Everything measures true and square as far as axle alignment goes. Seems very unusual to say the least.
Ralph

Hmmm still sounds like an alignment problem to me. Wearing off the tread like that is usually not the fault of the tire.

We have a new Cardinal on order, after reading all the comments on tires I plan to change the tires on our unit as soon as it comes in. I wrote a note to Michelin to see what they suggest I use the following is there reply.

"Dear Jim,

Thank you for your email. We appreciate the opportunity to serve you.

If your factory tires are ST235/80R16/E, we do not make a fitment for your
2008 Cardinal 5th wheel trailer.

ST (special trailer) tires have a different construction than LT
applications; Michelin does not make ST tires. It is recommended that all
tires installed on your trailer meets or exceeds the factory recommendation.

We are sorry for any inconveniences this has caused you."

What other tires would you suggest I check into?

Thanks

This is the one I plan on using:

http://www.goodyear.com/rv/products/g614rst.html

Be advised that they may be may in China also.
This is a repy from Goodyear on my concern of their tires made there.

From: goodyear_cr@goodyear.com on 08/30/2007 03:11 PM Sent by: Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company Consumer Relations 728 1144 East Market Street Akron, OH 44316 Voice #: 800.321.2136 Fax #:330.796.6829

Thank you for contacting our web site and for your interest in Goodyear tires. Goodyear is a global company with factories all overthe world. The same molds and standards would apply to all of our tires regardless of the country of origin.

Barbara HummelConsumer Relations

My sticker on the side of the trailer (weights & specs) specifically names LT tires and not ST. The Kenda "will-pops" I removed were LTs also. I went with the Michelin XPS Ribs and after almost 30,000 miles so far with good tread remaining and no incidents I'll buy them again. Check that sticker on LH forward end of the trailer, stick to the specs and you can not be held liable. I was surprised, but it really specifies Light Truck tires.

They certainly seem to install a variety of tires. My camper came with ST tires.

If Forest River isn't getting the sticker info right, or not following their own information, it's time for the NTSB to get involved and get the situation clarified.

Either way, I feel safer with the LT tires on the Cardinal, which are built to passenger carrying standards vs ST which I think were intended for farm equipment or similar usage (non passenger, 65 mph max).

My XPS ribs are LT235/85R/16E if I recall correctly. 85's are a bit larger in dia, and OK on the rim width.

I'll check my sticker and tire size tomorrow.

Chief409 wrote:I feel safer with the LT tires on the Cardinal, which are built to passenger carrying standards vs ST which I think were intended for farm equipment or similar usage (non passenger, 65 mph max).

I believe LT is a light truck tire while ST is a special trailer tire. I don't believe it's meant to be standard but to designate the tire application.

Rob & Cathy wrote:I believe LT is a light truck tire while ST is a special trailer tire. I don't believe it's meant to be standard but to designate the tire application.

Your designations are correct LT is Light Truck & ST is Special Trailer. Chief 409 is correct that most ST tires have a 65 mph limit. The odd part is my trailer sticker specifies LT and was delivered with LT, yours on the other hand was delivered with ST tires. Maybe they print the stickers for what the axles or wheels were delivered with? In my case I am legal with LT michelins and others may not be. Getting too confusing for me! Had a nice time fly fishing a pond here in Colorado today and got a couple Rainbow trout in the freezer, so I'll leave the tire discussions and keep on fishing.

campswithcritters wrote:The odd part is my trailer sticker specifies LT and was delivered with LT, yours on the other hand was delivered with ST tires.

You're right Bruce, I went out to the trailer to check the sticker and sure enough is specifies ST tires.

BTW, welcome back and where are the pictures of all that fine mountain fishing?

Checked the sticker on my trailer and it says ST235/80R/16, mfg in January of 2007. I've also taken a look at the NTSB listings, they have P for Passenger and LT for Light Truck, NO mention of ST. (Google search using ST, ST Tire, ST Tire Rating).

Remember, you can always go to a better grade of tire then what the Mfg lists on the sticker, as long as the tire meets the load requirments. I like NASA's rule that rockets have to be MAN RATED before someone actually flys the things, and LT tires fit that description. Also remember, those of you who carry passengers in the 5er where it's legal, having ST tires could open a can of worms if something happened. Just a guess. I'm not a Legal Beagle, but I hold several Federal licences and I'm well aware of what happens if a non-approved component is used on an airplane for example. Trailers and motor vehicles arn't there yet - BUT - remember the Corvair, Ford Explorer, the developing U-Haul trailer story, etc.

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