Tires for a T1N Sprinter at GVWR?

[InterBlog]

I blew my driver’s rear tire a few days ago, and now I’m looking at what my options might be beyond the typical 80 psi load range E stock tire. It was a Michelin Defender (LTX 225) that blew, young, property inflated (verified manually 7 hours prior to the failure), plenty of tread. It was a sidewall failure at about 55 mph and it was no fun, thank you.

Yes, I looked on Sprinter Forum and didn’t find any outside-the-box thinking there. The overlap is only partial between the universe of T1N owners and the universe of T1N camper van conversion owners. Many T1N non-dually owners don’t have vans that weigh 8,500 friggin’ pounds, and so they don’t need to be thinking about how they might be able to step up from a run-of-the-mill tire.

Anyone on this forum address this predicament? BTW, I realize that the tire itself is only part of this equation. I’m also looking at Fox shocks to help dampen some of the oscillations because they can’t be good for sidewalls. A lot of different factors influence wear and tear on a tire.

Here’s a Kodak moment for you below. Ugh, crap. In the meantime as I’m figuring this out, I went with two new Michelin Agilis CrossClimates on the rear, same specs as the Defender that blew, though, which is perhaps unfortunate (the CrossClimate is the nominal successor to the Defender). I got them because that was what was available on the spot at the Discount Tire I limped into on my spare.

[booster]

I think that the Defenders are no longer available in the load range E tires of the van sizes for just the problem you had. The Agilis is touted to have much stronger construction so not as vulnerable to sidewall and other failures, per Michelin.


I think I would contact Michelin and see what they say, as you might be able to get some adjustment on your "young" tires.


Has anyone talked about going up in size? Getting some extra capacity would certainly be a good thing, I think.

[Frumpster]

I also am looking to get new tires on my 1998 dodge class b-3500. I think I am going to buy the Nokian ONE HT tires. (245 75 16) Load rang E.

[hbn7hj]

Look into the specs of Michelin XPS Rib and see how it suits you. It is a step up from the Agilis, I think. I haven’t blown one yet. It is supposed to have a stiffer ride, I’m told, but my butt can’t feel it. Congratulate yourself on not destroying the wheel well.

[magnells]

We also have a TN1 Sprinter (2006 Roadtrek Adventurous RS) and had a similar problem.

We replaced our tires with a higher Load Index tire (225/75R16C 121/120R) which has a higher maximum load rating. (121 = 3,197 lbs. on a single wheel) versus the load index of the standard LT225/75R16 (115 = 2,679lbs.)

We have Continental Vanco All Season LT225/75R16 tires on all wheels. This a Euro-metric size and is an OEM tire for the ProMaster 3500 which is a single rear wheel model).

Michelin also has a version, the Agilis® CrossClimate® C-Metric. There is also the General Grabber HD.

None of these are inexpensive tires.

[InterBlog]

Originally Posted by booster

I think that the Defenders are no longer available in the load range E tires of the van sizes for just the problem you had. The Agilis is touted to have much stronger construction so not as vulnerable to sidewall and other failures, per Michelin.


I think I would contact Michelin and see what they say, as you might be able to get some adjustment on your "young" tires.


Has anyone talked about going up in size? Getting some extra capacity would certainly be a good thing, I think.

If true, I would like to see some documentation on that. I have encountered many anecdotal reports of the Defenders failing, and I knew that the CrossClimate was its successor, but I thought perhaps it was mostly a change in pet name. Manufacturers do that, to sustain the “all new” aura. Did they also improve the construction with the name change? Jeez, I hope so.

My two sets of Defenders were installed by Discount Tire. They replaced the shredder with a CrossClimate at no charge. Then because I refused to have mis-matched tires on the rear, they “bought back” the mated Defender, essentially giving me fifty bucks off the second CrossClimate. So now I have two 2019 Defenders on the front and two 2021 CrossClimates on the heavy rear.

I don’t know if I could go up in size. MAYBE fit a 245 on the rear, but there’s no way the front ground effects would accommodate that width. I don’t know if it’s smart to run with two 225s and two 245s (certainly rotation would become an issue), or even if that would gain me anything in terms of safety.

[InterBlog]

Originally Posted by magnells

We also have a TN1 Sprinter (2006 Roadtrek Adventurous RS) and had a similar problem.

We replaced our tires with a higher Load Index tire (225/75R16C 121/120R) which has a higher maximum load rating. (121 = 3,197 lbs. on a single wheel) versus the load index of the standard LT225/75R16 (115 = 2,679lbs.)

We have Continental Vanco All Season LT225/75R16 tires on all wheels. This a Euro-metric size and is an OEM tire for the ProMaster 3500 which is a single rear wheel model).

Michelin also has a version, the Agilis® CrossClimate® C-Metric. There is also the General Grabber HD.

None of these are inexpensive tires.

THANK YOU FOR THIS...

Across 3 different forums, this is the most promising feedback I’ve received. I would sleep better at night if I could purchase higher load index tires for the rear, but the question has always been - are they obtainable and reliable in this size? I will look into what you say here.

None of them are inexpensive tires? I almost lost my damned van, into which we have invested close to six figures of labor and materials, because of this rotten $250 Defender. In addition to that, for 90 minutes I had to stand in the “V” of a freeway off-ramp with vehicles screaming past me at 70 mph on both sides as darkness was approaching on a Friday night, so I could have lost my life as well (I was in the exurbs and needed to wait for a flat bed tow). In the context of a better tire, my only question is, who do I make the check out to?

[mloganusda]

I was just at Discount Tire for a flat repair and had them look up Load E tires for my ProMaster Winnebago Trend, with single tires in rear. They had Pathfinder HSR tires, 225/75 R16 121R C8 BSW tire for $122 each. Each tire weights 39# at max PSI=83 psi. This will be the tire I will replace when tires are 6-7 years old. My MH weights 9,350 lbs. loaded by scale weight. This is the 3rd MH I have owned with single rear tires and well aware of weight over rear tires. I only carry 10 gallons of fresh water in tank over the rear passenger tire instead of the 30 gallon capacity.

[mkguitar]

Originally Posted by InterBlog

I blew my driver’s rear tire

Glad you are ok and got it stopped.

I have the Agilis on my Chev and they have proved well the past 6000 miles.

but only time will tell

they were noisy and "slappy" on expansion joints the first 500 miles or so but either they changed or I got used to it.

they have been very impressive in the wet- I had noticed that they threw up much less spray on a wet road and when I hit some unexpected deep standing water we went straight through- I was "concerned" to say the least


mike

[InterBlog]

Originally Posted by mkguitar

Glad you are ok and got it stopped.

I have the Agilis on my Chev and they have proved well the past 6000 miles.

but only time will tell

they were noisy and "slappy" on expansion joints the first 500 miles or so but either they changed or I got used to it.

they have been very impressive in the wet- I had noticed that they threw up much less spray on a wet road and when I hit some unexpected deep standing water we went straight through- I was "concerned" to say the least


mike

What I’ve got going on right now is a butt-heavy van that is a bit too headstrong for my taste. It’s not pulling and it’s not vibrating, but it wants to wander. The effect is more pronounced than what I normally associate with tire squirm following a new installation. The CrossClimates are the 3rd new set that I’ve had mounted on the rear, so I know what squirm is supposed to feel like, and this ain’t it.

I’m not going to have it re-aligned until I make decisions regarding a higher load-rated tire, and Fox shocks, most likely. But those decisions will come quickly.

[ks@yvr]

Also glad everything turned out ok. This probably highlights the fact that some Class B’s are heavy and not only do you need to be aware of your loaded weight but you also need to be aware of the load balance across your 4 corners. It is not good to say have room to spare on the load capacity of the front tires and have spring helpers and have the rear tires overloaded. This can easily happen say if you add more AGM batteries and fill liquid tanks (gas, water), load the scooter on the rear hitch. On some Class B’s there is not a lot of room for a lot of extra cargo if you examine your CCC which by the way you need to include the passenger weight in the mix. Maybe the higher load capacity tires ride harder but the added safety factor far out weighs the comfort loss in my opinion especially if you are within 200 lbs of your maximum individual tire rating. Things like low tire pressure and road hazards can rapidly turn this into a big unexpected safety issue for the operator.

[NAZCamperVan]

Yikes, InterBlog. I'm so glad you and your van are OK, and that you shared your experience here for us to learn from. Wondering, do you have a tire pressure monitoring system, and if so, any indication prior to tire failure?

[hbn7hj]

Originally Posted by NAZCamperVan

Yikes, InterBlog. I'm so glad you and your van are OK, and that you shared your experience here for us to learn from. Wondering, do you have a tire pressure monitoring system, and if so, any indication prior to tire failure?

A TPMS is nice to have for keeping track of pressures but all it has done with regard to blowouts, in three instances, is tell me instantly which tire blew. It gave no forewarning because pressures were correct.

If you read her initial post it says pressures were correct a few hours previous.

[InterBlog]

Originally Posted by hbn7hj

A TPMS is nice to have for keeping track of pressures but all it has done with regard to blowouts, in three instances, is tell me instantly which tire blew. It gave no forewarning because pressures were correct.

If you read her initial post it says pressures were correct a few hours previous.

I manually check tires before every non-local trip and periodically if I’m just doing local driving. If I’m using the van frequently, it works out to be about once every 10 days.

On the morning of the blowout, my husband checked them for me because I was due to make a 350 mile circuit for various work and personal functions. He noted that they were all uniformly a few pounds low and asked me if I wanted more air (we have a compressor in our garage). Hearing the word “uniform” I said, “No, it was very cold last night, and as soon as I start driving, they will warm up and rise to the right pressure.”

I don’t yet have a TPMS for exactly the reason this poster stated above - too many users have noted that it did not tell them anything they didn’t already know.

I’m willing to try it, though as a layer of security that might be useful in certain scenarios. Not a blow-out scenario, but perhaps others.

Next question is brand. I believe George said on another recent thread that he’s using Dill, but I checked their website and they only list product for Sprinters of model years 2007 and up, so that rules me out.

Any other brands worth considering that would be compatible with a 2006 Sprinter?

[booster]

Originally Posted by InterBlog

I manually check tires before every non-local trip and periodically if I’m just doing local driving. If I’m using the van frequently, it works out to be about once every 10 days.

On the morning of the blowout, my husband checked them for me because I was due to make a 350 mile circuit for various work and personal functions. He noted that they were all uniformly a few pounds low and asked me if I wanted more air (we have a compressor in our garage). Hearing the word “uniform” I said, “No, it was very cold last night, and as soon as I start driving, they will warm up and rise to the right pressure.”

I don’t yet have a TPMS for exactly the reason this poster stated above - too many users have noted that it did not tell them anything they didn’t already know.

I’m willing to try it, though as a layer of security that might be useful in certain scenarios. Not a blow-out scenario, but perhaps others.

Next question is brand. I believe George said on another recent thread that he’s using Dill, but I checked their website and they only list product for Sprinters of model years 2007 and up, so that rules me out.

Any other brands worth considering that would be compatible with a 2006 Sprinter?

Do a tire search by size on Tire Rack by size, not vehicle, and you can sort them out once the search is done. I looked at your early posts, and IIRC there were several in the Euro rating system with the higher load rating. Agilis had one I think, and Geolanders were too and maybe some others. They don't seem to be very common though, which is odd because there is a large load rating difference and on a tall heavy van you need that capacity even if it is a 2500 at 8500#.

[hbn7hj]

You wanted a TPMS for a 2006 Sprinter.

I suspect you will have to use the type that screw on to the valve stem. To use those you need a metal valve stem that leaves enough space for the sensors. Perhaps you already have that and just need the TPMS system.

I use the Doran 360 RV system. The sensor batteries are not replaceable. They last for over two years but a replacement sensor due to dead battery is $35. There are cheaper systems but this one is reliable.

There are systems with replaceable batteries. Doran says that replaceable batteries caused them too many problems.

Do you have the metal stems to mount the sensors? I don’t have a Sprinter and wouldn’t know.

I do value the system even though it has not saved me from a blowout. A tire pressure check is instant at startup. I find that removing the sensors for intermittent use to save the batteries does not work. The battery does not always activate when you reinstall it. Put them on and leave them on.

Looking at your tire picture, which is familiar to me, it appears the stem may not leave room for a sensor. They are available.

[booster]

Does the van have any rear suspension changes to improve the handling or rocking?


Steering wander/understeer type slow response to steering with larger than desirable steering movements would often be a sign of a need for some improvements. We have had comments about ill handling single wheel Spinters in the past on the forum.



Perhaps a rear sway bar or larger, one if already has one, or firmer rear springs/Tibrens might help you out.

[GallenH]

Originally Posted by hbn7hj

Look into the specs of Michelin XPS Rib and see how it suits you. It is a step up from the Agilis, I think. I haven’t blown one yet. It is supposed to have a stiffer ride, I’m told, but my butt can’t feel it. Congratulate yourself on not destroying the wheel well.

When I had a tire separation heading to Las Vegas it did a trick on the wheel well. Bent the flare and the body to the rear of the well a good deal. A disengaging tire tread can cause an amazing amount of damage.....as I learned.

[InterBlog]

Originally Posted by GallenH

When I had a tire separation heading to Las Vegas it did a trick on the wheel well. Bent the flare and the body to the rear of the well a good deal. A disengaging tire tread can cause an amazing amount of damage.....as I learned.

I’m going to start carrying extra brake line segments and extra fluid. That’s the only collateral damage of which I’m aware at this point, even though other important hardware is located near the wheel well. My husband had to drive about 60 miles round trip to an auto parts store that was open until midnight in order to get a replacement brake line for the one that was severed by the flapping tread. That should not have been necessary for a 20-ish dollar part.

[booster]

Originally Posted by InterBlog

I’m going to start carrying extra brake line segments and extra fluid. That’s the only collateral damage of which I’m aware at this point, even though other important hardware is located near the wheel well. My husband had to drive about 60 miles round trip to an auto parts store that was open until midnight in order to get a replacement brake line for the one that was severed by the flapping tread. That should not have been necessary for a 20-ish dollar part.

What is with the funny blue color on the rotor. It normally is not good for a rotor to be two colors like that.