Comment on Good Year Marathon tires

[Texasmark]

I read a fair mount on here concerning the pros and cons of Marathon tires. I just put new tires on a travel trailer with a '93 build date that apparently a pair of OEM ST Marathon tires still on it.

In deciding to "retire" I checked the tire for weather cracking and found very little to the point that I was about to decide against it. But being 17 years old and not wanting to face a blowout on the highway I bought new tires (I prefer bias plies for this application so I didn't retire with Marathons).

Upon removing the Marathons, what I didn't see from the outside was clearly evident on the inside. When I turned the tire around there was massive sidewall decomposition/cracking on the inside. So, here I could have blown it off, gone on a trip, had a blowout in the middle of nowhere (only place it happens) and blamed GY for crummy tires.

In the process, I went to the goodyear site and read up on their Special Trailer tires and was duly impressed with the Marathon, the available sizes and grades, and the construction. I also read where the tire is limited to 65 mph!!!!!!!!

So I asked myself, self (grin) you don't suppose that a lot of the folks that had problems with Marathon may have had hidden weather cracking, or possibly were running them overloaded or at speeds in excess of their limit?

Mark

 

[dingbat]

Re: Comment on Good Year Marathon tires

It make you kind of wonder. I tow more than most. In the 10 years of dragging trailers around I've never blown a tire. The Marathons tire on the horse trailer are now 16 years old. They are starting to show signs of cracking so they are on the list for replacement here in the next couple of weeks. The tires on the boat are 6 years old and are still good to go for another year

Talked to the guy I sold my old boat to the other day. He?s had the boat from Maine to Florida and back again more than a couple of times in the past 5 years now. Still running the automotive tires I put on it a year before I sold it to him. According to most the tires should have blown out and the owner sued for negligence by now.

Wonder why the government lets us drive around on inferior car tires? Wonder why there is no law against using inferior automotive tires on trailer?

 

[Texasmark]

Re: Comment on Good Year Marathon tires

I learned that tires contain plasticizers that seep out into the external rubber to keep it pliable which prevents weather cracking. If tires set up it can't do that. So the best thing you can do for trailer tires is RUN-EM. Additionally, Ozone and rays from the sun dry them out also......need to keep them shielded from ozone and the sun.

The other thing I have found is that on a tandem trailer, P rated tires don't have adequate sidewall strength to survive. I used to take the P tires off my p/u trucks and put them on my 16' tandem. I would use the tandem trailer for numerous things including picking up a chord or so of wood in the winter. The sidewall squirming of P rated tires drove me nuts. I now use 8 ply bias tires and they work just fine; no squirming and no bulging at all.

Mark

 

[fishrdan]

Re: Comment on Good Year Marathon tires

So I asked myself, self (grin) you don't suppose that a lot of the folks that had problems with Marathon may have had hidden weather cracking, or possibly were running them overloaded or at speeds in excess of their limit?

You betcha... My old boat trailer had 13's and I was having tire problems. I put on the highest capacity 13's (185's) and it was better, but I still had problems. THEN,,, I scaled the boat/trailer as loaded for a trip and the tires were overloaded, 600# of waterlogged foam will do that

I'm out west and see trailers being hauled down the interstate at 75-85MPH all the time... I wouldn't think of going that speed with my big boat.

 

[Yellow Yota]

Re: Comment on Good Year Marathon tires

A good quality ST rated radial tire is really nice to tow.

P rated tires are rated for passenger cars. Different loads require different tires for a reason!