Optimizing RV Tire Performance: What You Need to Know

February 13, 2023

Maintaining your RV's tires is an essential part of ensuring a safe and successful road trip. Unfortunately, many RV owners aren't aware of proper tire maintenance and the importance it holds for their vehicle's performance. Fortunately, we have RV expert, Bob Livingston, with great tips to help you take care of your RV tires so you can enjoy your next adventure safely and with confidence. Learn how to extend the life of your RV tires and ensure your comfort on the road with these tips!

Storage and inactivity play pivotal roles in RV tire maintenance. Tires on RVs don’t often wear out; they time out. That’s a difficult concept for some people to wrap their arms around. Too many owners base replacement intervals on tread wear, failing to understand that structural integrity is degraded over time, which leads to blowouts and expensive collateral damage.

A good rule of thumb is to replace tires every seven years, even if the tread looks new. The time-out period for tires that have been stored in a building and/or have not been exposed to the elements can be extended to 10 years, depending on the tire manufacturer’s recommendations. But there’s a caveat for all tires over seven years old: They must be inspected by a tire dealer annually until the ultimate time-out date to insure integrity and safety. Sidewall cracking, for example, can lead to failure, even if the tires are within the time-out period, and the tread looks new.

Many problems with tires can be mitigated with basic maintenance. High on the list is air pressure. Tires lose pressure naturally when in storage and over time (even when the RV is on the road), so it’s important to check air pressure regularly. Ultimately, tire pressure should be checked before every trip and daily when on the road. Pressure is based on loading, so most owners use the inflation label on their RV or actual weights from a public scale. That seems like a lot of work, which for some may be the case, but maintaining proper pressure is critical to tire performance.

The best way to keep tabs on tire pressure is to use a tire pressure monitoring system (TPMS). These devices inform the driver of impending air loss problems and provide a constant readout of tire pressure without having to manually use a gauge at each stem. Most new tow vehicles are equipped with monitors from the factory, and no RV should be on the road without a TPMS. It’s important to monitor all trailer, tow vehicles, motorhome, and dinghy vehicle tires.

The use of inexpensive trailer tires manufactured abroad has created a deluge of blowout issues, which almost always leads to the collateral damage caused by flinging tire sidewall material and tread that has separated during the failure. In many cases, tire damage extends to the suspension system, appliances, and exterior walls/compartments—and that includes motorhomes.

The best line of defense is to maintain proper air pressure and keep the sidewalls protected from the sun’s rays. That’s where tire covers come in. Suitable covers for specific-size tires are readily available from Camping World, RV parts stores, and online. Typical covers are not very difficult to install, but they do take up room when stored in a compartment. Magne Shade offers a unique style cover called Tire Shades. These spring-frame covers are quick to install and take up little space when folded and placed in a storage bag.

While covers do a terrific job of protecting the tire, using a product like Aerospace 303 is added insurance against sidewall damage over time. Regular cleaning of the tires and coating the sidewalls with protectant guards against sun and ozone damage when on the road, and when the use of tire covers is not practical. Always clean the tires before using a protectant, and make sure you do this right before putting the RV in storage and adding the covers. Always use protectant products that are free of petroleum distillates.

Tires must be inflated to their rated value before the RV is stored for the season, and checked regularly while inactive and before pulling the rig out of storage. Of course, it goes without saying that tread wear patterns should be watched closely to make sure axle alignment and balance (motorhome and trailer) are within specs.

Tire problems, especially blowouts, are disruptive and typically cause great consternation while miles from home. A little preplanning and regular maintenance habit can help keep RV adventurers happy. 

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Bob Livingston recently retired as the group publisher and senior VP for GS Media and Events, publishers of Trailer Life and MotorHome magazines and their respective websites. Bob has written technical and lifestyle articles and books for 45 years, and penned the popular technical question and answer monthly column, Tech Topics, in Highways magazine, the 1.5-million-member Good Sam Club’s official publication, for more than 20 years.

He created and appeared on the weekly television show, RVtoday, and directed the programing and production during its five-year run on cable TV. Bob was inducted into the RV/MH Hall of Fame in 2014. He keeps his hand in the RV industry as a consultant to a number of companies working on product development and marketing projects. Bob and his wife, Lynne, live full time in their fifth wheel.