There are SEVEN different brands of tires on my Century Expediter
Steer: 295/75R22.5
L/F is a Dunlop SP384, which is in good shape - no dry rot and good tread.
R/F is a General (Continental) S580, also in good shape.
Drive: 295/75R22.5
L/RO is a Hercules S307, also in decent shape
L/RI is a Yokohama TY577, also in decent shape
R/RO is a Goodyear G662 RSA, nearly new
R/RI is a Bridgestone M726EL, acceptable shape (and passed DOT inspection last week)
Drop axle: 255/70R22.5 (noticeably smaller than the others)
All 4 are BF Goodrich ST230, also in decent shape
Anyway, in discussing tires with the old commercial tire salesman at AOK Tires yesterday, he said in his experience cheap Chinese tires were safe and blowing out wasn't a concern, but he cautioned they didn't seem to last as long (obviously they sell all kinds of tires so I'm reasonably sure he was telling me the straight story). Moreover, since safety is such a paramount issue in America I rather doubt Uncle Sam allows unsafe tires to be sold and thus, I am actually (surprisingly for me) OK with using el cheapo tires.
Here's what I'm thinking of doing. I'll buy one additional Goodyear G662 RSA and putting these on steer. Then I'll opt for four el cheapo Chinese for the drive tires. As for the drop axle, I think I'll leave well enough alone because I hardly ever load the truck sufficiently to need them.
Finally, I'm not in any particular hurry to do this because the tires really are OK still (else I would buy immediately). It just bothers me to see the variety, but since there's no safety issue involved, it doesn't bother me enough to move with alacrity to spend another 2500 bucks on the truck right now especially because I just forked over the dough for tag and taxes when I registered the truck yesterday.
Regardless, is there any cause for concern with my thinking?
SEVEN different brands of tires on my truck
Discussion in 'Freightliner Forum' started by jbeech, Sep 26, 2012.
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I worked for a commercial tire wholesaler for a long time. Most of the Chinese tires are fine, so you should be good. Stay away from retreads as they tend to separate more often much sooner than new tires. Matching up the Goodyear is the most economical move for you right now. Ask the guy at AOK to call you when has a sale and buy them in pieces as you can afford them. Then you can mount them once you're all matched.
I always told my customers to stick with Goodyear, Bridgestone, Continental or Michelin for steer tires. They tend to last longer and had better mileage. -
I have found that it is best to save up and replace an entire axle's tires at the same time. For example, do the entire front drive axle one month and the rear drive axle the next month. Having new and old tires on the same axle set puts a lot of wear and tear on your differential! Plus different size tires on the same side of the axle cause the newer tires to wear out faster.
Last edited: Oct 20, 2012
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