Changing Tire Rotation, Dually

[energyi]

Had an inner tire stem spring a leak so changed the tire out with the spare which was brand new, still had sticker. But wondering about fixing the tire stem, and then using that as a spare. Does it matter if rotation is changed on these tires? Swapping out an inner tire for an outer tire the original rotation would be reversed.

Also wondering about tread consistency requirements on dully tires. What if one tire has more miles than the other; Any issues (other than would be best if they are the same)? Thanks in advance.

energyi

 

[az7000']

How many miles on the bad one? 30k might have an issue, 4k not so much...

 

[energyi]

Turns out the tire with the broken valve stem is from 2004, and shop wouldn't work on it. Can only work on tires less than 8 years old. I can replace the valve stem. I purchased valve stem good to 80 psi. I run 65 psi or lower.

The 2004 tire looks new. So maybe it was a spare and recently installed. But that might mean that the worn tire on the dually might be from 2004 also, and thus maybe 60k miles.

 

[marklg]

Turns out the tire with the broken valve stem is from 2004, and shop wouldn't work on it. Can only work on tires less than 8 years old. I can replace the valve stem. I purchased valve stem good to 80 psi. I run 65 psi or lower.

The 2004 tire looks new. So maybe it was a spare and recently installed. But that might mean that the worn tire on the dually might be from 2004 also, and thus maybe 60k miles.

You should not run tires that old, no matter how much tread is left. They are prone to fail catastrophically as the belts may seperate. I live in a very hot place and my limit is now 4 years..In colder climates it's longer, but even 8 years is too much in my opinion. 18 years old is very dangerous.

Edit: Added emphasis and 18 year comment.

Regards,

Mark

 

[Boxster1971]

Agree with Mark. Driving on tires that are 18 years old is risky.

 

[Midwestdrifter]

Not worth it on an RV to use tires that old. I have a pickup with LT hankooks that are 17 years old. It only gets used for local trips, and isn't loaded to heavily. I still check the tires before every trip. I have had 10 year old tires snap belts and do major body damage. I am not a gambling man, but sometimes...

 

[energyi]

The 04 tire must have been the spare for many years because it has no wear. The tire with wear looks like a 2011 tire.

 

[marklg]

The 04 tire must have been the spare for many years because it has no wear. The tire with wear looks like a 2011 tire.

I'll post my tire picture yet again. This happens to old tires. You don't want this to happen.



Regards,

Mark

 

[sailquik]

Just a word to the wise here,
If you must introduce a new tire or a new spare into the rotation, put it on the front.
Running a worn tire and a new tire on a dual wheel setup is asking for significant wear
on the new tire.
I did this on my Mitsubishi Fuso 4x4 box truck on the way home from Texas one trip.
In < 250 miles I noticed all the rubber particles on the front of my trailer.
Running tires with even slightly different outside diameters will wear the larger tire
very quickly as it turns more slowly than the other dual tire.
Read the Revolutions per mile in the tire specifications and you will see that even a small
difference, when both tires are restrained in a dual configuration the larger one turns more
slowly and is actually slightly skidding until it grinds enough off the diameter that they both
do the same number of rev/mile.
One wonders why the spare tire was never made part of the rotation??
Roger

 

[energyi]

Thanks sailquik that's helpful.

Can front wheels be swapped from right to left, changing rotation?

 

[sailquik]

It depends on what you use as a tire rotation interval.
Most Sprinter tires can rotate in both directions with no issues I'm aware of.
If you rotate the tires @ 10k miles any tire can go in any position.
15k rotatin interval any position, but look for obvious wear or difference in diameter.
20K rotation interval be very careful as that half the life on some Sprinters.
I have been getting > 100k miles rotating every 15,000 miles.
Roger

 

[energyi]

Thanks again sailquik.

Small update, with side bar. While removing the tire valve stem from the 18 year old tire, it disintegrated easily. Thus the reason why it was leaking. Rest of the tire is excellent, but just going to use it as the spare.

At dusk last night was working on that stem replacement in my driveway at the back of the van with the two doors open when an at least two year old black bear saunters up right behind me, less than 4 feet away, I didn't see it until it was there. Turned around, saw it, said the big loud F word, and it kept sauntering by. Yelled, raised my arms in the air and I threw a block of wood halfway towards it to maybe learn it not to be around the houses. No reaction. Yes, most likely looking for garbage.