Towing 3000 miles round trip. How are my tires? Upgrade?

[ajrunke]

I have no problem upgrading if it's necessary. I also read a couple people recommend changing tires after 5 years. Mine are 4 years old.

If upgrading is in order, any recommendations? I'll be towing 1 ski 3000 miles round trip. My trailer is a karavan wce-2200-84 2 place trailer, so I won't be close to Max weight.

Also any tips on long hauls. Theven longest I've done was 3 hours.

[FZeeR]

1 ski on a double trailer I'd adjust bunks to sit closer to center to balance weight. Carry 2 spare wheel/tires for that long of a trip just in case. Otherwise should be no problem.

[toyterrific]

Don't believe those are radials. After having a bias ply tire explode on my double trailer I switched to radials. I think they are actually car tires in same size.
No issues since.

[K447]

The replace when beyond five years old is my guideline. The trailer/RV tire industry absolute maximum is seven years old.

Trailer tires age from non-use and exposure to sun and air. The more miles a trailer travels, and the more frequently it is on the road, the more slowly the trailer tires will degrade. The sidewall and tread flexing as the tire rolls along massages the oils through the rubber.

When the trailer tires just sit around with only short trips the outermost layer of rubber dries/hardens and becomes more fragile. Once this happens it is non-reversible.

Four year old trailer tires are well within the age range. You might inspect them for cuts or other damage. If no damage found, the tires are probably Ok for distance travel. I would still want to carry a spare tire, of course.

If you are nervous about the tires just buy three new tires. Spare tire should always be at least as new as the road tires.

Unless the trailer manufacturer specifies otherwise, generally the stock size trailer tires should be pressurized to the maximum sidewall pressure.

[Region8Ultra250X]

aside from what others have said already.

bring spare hubs and a good floor jack.

[K447]

...

bring spare hubs and a good floor jack.

+1

I carry a D jack for the trailer. Compact and works well.



Be sure to buy the exact correct replacement hub to fit your trailer axle. There are a few hub shaft sizes in use, depends on the exact axle you have.

[nmpeter]

advice from those who have been there and done that.


while cringing about dropping a couple of hundred bucks on the aforementioned bits, think about how many 100's you'd set fire to to make a trailer tire/hub/whatever problem go away when you are not in what we call the safest spot on an interstate highway, with your rims digging into the pavement.

on a 3000 mile haul it's more important to keep your eyes ahead then to be constantly looking at the trailer. Pop for some new tires, they ware worth their weight in stomach acid.

and of course in the trailer kit you want a can of some kind of hand cleaner a bunch of clean rags and of course some bandaids and a separate flashlight.

give your hitches and chains the once over, 3000 miles is a long way.

[K447]

...
Also any tips on long hauls...

Hunt around for other threads and posts discussing trailer preparation and towing tips. Plenty has been posted previously.

Obviously the tow vehicle must be properly maintained, ready for the road. If the car doesn't get serviced much, consider taking it in and telling them about your long road trip. Perhaps a fresh change of engine coolant, transmission fluid, engine oil, etc. Do the severe service schedule as pre-trip prep. Car tires inspected too.

Inspect the hitch on the car. Not just for tight nuts and bolts holding it on, but also look for fraying or damage to the trailer connection wire. Corrosion or connection looseness at the flat connector means replace the flat connector (often the connector with new molded wire attached gets replaced). Same for the mating connector on the trailer.

Ball height. When the car and trailer are both loaded up and ready for the road, the trailer frame should be level with the ground. If the tongue of the trailer is tilted up or slopes down towards the car, replace the ball mount so the trailer will tow level.

Easy way to check this is park on flat ground, then measure from top of trailer frame down to ground. Do this right beside the trailer axle. Then compare with the height of the tongue top right behind the hitch coupler. Both numbers should be the same height. It is OK for the tongue to be maybe an inch or so higher than at the axle. You do not want the tongue lower that the frame over the axle.

A level trailer maximizes predictable trailer handling, minimizes possible trailer weirdness during sudden lane changes at speed or hard emergency braking.

Inspect the trailer wiring. Look for areas where the wire might be chaffing or corroded. If you do not have LED trailer lights then consider upgrading. Burned out or otherwise non-working trailer lights are a hassle anytime and can become a safety issue on dark roads and bad weather. Properly installed LED lights will last for years.

Check every bolt and nut on the trailer. Pay particular attention to those holding the suspension together.

Consider using an anti-rattle ball mount. These clamp the ball mount tight inside the receiver, eliminating the constant clunk-clunk noise.

Also adjust the trailer coupler as snug as it can be on the ball. Often there is an adjustment nut tucked underneath the coupler latch, visible from ground level. I keep my coupler adjusted as snug as it can be and still allow the coupler to release the ball for trailer disconnection.

These two things will minimize the amount of noise inside the car from the trailer. The only thing that should be making noise over big bumps will be the leaf spring suspension.

Oh yes, make sure you have a wrench on board that will actually fit the nuts on the trailer wheels. Do not assume the car wrench will fit the trailer.

[cxk]

If I could add something: Safety Chains for the skis. I took a 2500 mile road trip with my skis and didnt think about doing that until right before we left so I ended up using tie downs and the hope method lol. When I got back I bolted a chain rated for 2.5x the weight of each ski and clipped it on the front of my skis. My set up was fairly new. I also bought two new radial tires even though my trailer's tires weren't even a year old but were bias ply. I kept the old tires and brought them along with another rim just in case of a blow out.