Tires for Towing Travel Trailer

[mrlynn]

2013 Expy EL XLT (5.4L, 6-spd auto, 4WD, factory-towing pkg). General Grabber HTS 60 (275/65R/18) tires have only 37K on them, but are 6 yrs old and tread is getting low, so I am thinking of getting new all-seasons for winter.

Outside of winter, we sometimes travel with a modest-weight molded-fiberglass 21' trailer (Escape 21C), dry weight under 4,000 lbs, max maybe 5,000, using a Fastway E2 weight-distribution hitch; tows straight, no sway. The Generals do all right, but I am thinking of switching for maybe better tread-wear and handling. Tire Rack throws up Continental Terrain/Contact H/T, Cooper Discoverer HT3, and Michelin Defender LTX M/S2, among others. Other sites tout more.

My Generals are 'Standard' load-rated, which I assume is 'D'. Most of the articles I have read on-line say that if you're towing trailers, to go for load-range 'E'. Our Expy manual says it's good for towing up to 9,000 lbs. When I bought the Generals, we had an even lighter fiberglass Casita to tow.

Question: Is D or Standard load OK, or should I spring for E? And/or should I look for 'XL' not 'SL' / 'Standard Load'?

Local mechanic can get whatever I want (there was a rebate on the Generals when I got them). Michelin Defenders seem to be getting highest ratings for all-round all-season tires. We don't really need off-road capability, so all-season radials for mostly highway use should be fine. Eastern MA roads are generally plowed, so full-winter tires are not really necessary—used to run snows on my van's rear tires in the winter, but these days just the all-seasons. We do get a lot of wet weather, so rain (and ice) performance is important. The Expy does have 4WD, though I rarely need it.

Thoughts/experience/recommendations/warnings welcome!

 

[skamerick]

I recently installed the Michelin Defenders on my 2017 EL 4x4 for towing and I love them. Load rating is 113T

 

[JasonH]

Get three peak rated tires if you're concerned about ice. Load D or E will be fine. Even C can carry your load at full pressure. But D and E tires will offer more stiffness and puncture resistance. The latter is especially helpful when you're towing, as punctures when towing are obviously no bueno. I have Cooper AT3 XLT and am very satisfied with them but they're getting noiser near end of life. I think I have around 8/32 left. Defenders are also highly spoken of, but I haven't tried them myself.

 

[mrlynn]

I recently installed the Michelin Defenders on my 2017 EL 4x4 for towing and I love them.

Which load rating did you get?

 

[Cluster333]

Get three peak rated tires if you're concerned about ice. Load D or E will be fine. Even C can carry your load at full pressure. But D and E tires will offer more stiffness and puncture resistance. The latter is especially helpful when you're towing, as punctures when towing are obviously no bueno. I have Cooper AT3 XLT and am very satisfied with them but they're getting noiser near end of life. I think I have around 8/32 left. Defenders are also highly spoken of, but I haven't tried them myself.

I have the Cooper Discoverer SRX tires on another suv and yes they are noisy as well. End of life as well.

 

[mrlynn]

Get three peak rated tires if you're concerned about ice. Load D or E will be fine. Even C can carry your load at full pressure. But D and E tires will offer more stiffness and puncture resistance. The latter is especially helpful when you're towing, as punctures when towing are obviously no bueno. I have Cooper AT3 XLT and am very satisfied with them but they're getting noiser near end of life. I think I have around 8/32 left. Defenders are also highly spoken of, but I haven't tried them myself.

I notice that many tires do not carry alphabet load ratings (C,D,E), but codes SL or XL, and/or numbers before the speed-rating code. E.g. my Generals are '116T', and say 'Standard Load' (rather than 'SL'). But I see that Tire Rack shows the Michelin Defenders as also load-rated at 116, but says 'XL' after it.

Now I read that for towing, 'XL' or 'E' ratings are better. Does the 'XL' refer more to the 'ply' rating that E used to, before plys stopped being meaningful?

 

[JasonH]

The load index is the actual load bearing capacity in lbs and there's a chart for that. The letters actually correspond to peak pressure. Load C is ~50, D is 65, and E is 80 psi. Since no on is checking really checking a load chart for a "116" tire, it's easier (at least, for me) to signify the load bearing ability using the letter, even though it really refers to the max pressure.

"Better" is not quite accurate for higher load tires. It's more a question of suitability for the intended purpose and tradeoffs. I wanted more stiffness for towing and greater puncture resistance since I dreaded getting a flat while towing and had numerous repeated punctures from construction in the Houston area. Getting tires patched repeatedly was a PITA and I had a flat while towing, so wanted to minimize the risk of that happening again because I had eight tires to worry about. I was willing to sacrifice some ride quality, mpg, and acceleration. The "D" tires looked like they had more aggressive, off-road oriented treads, so I went with a three-peak rated "E" that I felt might align more closely with my purpose. I'm satisfied with the tradeoff, but YMMV. Images below to illustrate.

 

[mrlynn]

The load index is the actual load bearing capacity in lbs and there's a chart for that. The letters actually correspond to peak pressure. Load C is ~50, D is 65, and E is 80 psi. Since no on is checking really checking a load chart for a "116" tire, it's easier (at least, for me) to signify the load bearing ability using the letter, even though it really refers to the max pressure.

"Better" is not quite accurate for higher load tires. It's more a question of suitability for the intended purpose and tradeoffs. I wanted more stiffness for towing and greater puncture resistance since I dreaded getting a flat while towing and had numerous repeated punctures from construction in the Houston area. Getting tires patched repeatedly was a PITA and I had a flat while towing, so wanted to minimize the risk of that happening again because I had eight tires to worry about. I was willing to sacrifice some ride quality, mpg, and acceleration. The "D" tires looked like they had more aggressive, off-road oriented treads, so I went with a three-peak rated "E" that I felt might align more closely with my purpose. I'm satisfied with the tradeoff, but YMMV. Images below to illustrate.

Thanks, Jason, for that informative post. I'm going to save the charts. I don't need off-road, just highway all-season. My current General Grabbers are OK–no problems—but I'm leaning toward Michelin Defender LTXs. They don't have the 3-peak snow symbol, but are reputed to do very well on wet, icy, and light snow surfaces. Interestingly, they are XL, not SL, which I gather means thicker sidewalls (good for towing). They seem to offer BOTH Load Range 116 (XL) and 123 (XL). The 116 (XL) is probably good enough for my relatively light trailer, and the XL rating would be an upgrade from my Generals.

 

[Fasttimes]

I have the Defender LTXs for 2 sets now and they have been great for towing my trailer. I keep them at 35psi for normal use and increase to 42psi for towing. I've been very happy with them. Wear seems good, and they stiffen up just fine when max aired for the tow days.

 

[skamerick]

Which load rating did you get?

113T