Live Truck Tires

[5600K]

I work for an NBC O&O. Recently we switched the tires on the rears of our live trucks. I believe this was because of the blowout of the live truck for Telemundo in Chicago, that happened about a month or two ago. The rear tires are NOW 265 series, instead of 245. Will this change help? The old 245 series tires are load range E, as are these tires. Since we'll be facing snow, isn't it better to have skinnier tires in the snow? Any other opinions? Any other stations having to go through this?

BTW, all our ENGs are Frontline V-10s, with the mast in the rear.

 

[Shootblue]

Our van has radials on it. Had a belt that ripped through the tread, was cupping bad. Probably would not have made it back to the station had it not been changed on scene. Keep an eye on those...

 

[micaelb]

I don't think the width of the tire would matter in snow as much as the tread design. Normal tires all seem to have the 'M+S' rating on them but a snow tire will be much better in the snow.
I had this experiance with my personal car, a rear wheel drive sports car. With the snows on it was able to get around all winter. Without snows just a dusting would make the drive an adventure. While my Porsche wasn't a live truck the same principles apply. Live trucks are awful in the snow and ice and need all the help they can get.

 

[FastFord]

Yes, tread desigh is one of the most important things when selecting a snow tire. The more open the lugs are, the better. It is also true that a slightly more narow tire will help in snow. Why? They can sink down in better, and bite the asphalt. A wide tire can actuly "float" on heavy snow...
However,,,, the trade off is, they will not displace the weight of the vehicle as well. (which is why we see semi trucks and farm tractors with dule wheels ) Aslo, a wider tire sticks the corners better. (not that that's much of an issue in a live truck)
Also, your load rating on your tire is key! Make sure you have a tire rated to carry the wight of the vehicle with it's usual load... Not the empty wight of the truck... Remember, there's a lot of heavy equiptment in that truck.
Bottom line, if snow is your primary concern, skinny is best, if your weather is mosty good, then fat is where it's at!

On a personal note,,, I have a Mustang, with wide tires on it, and yes, that thing is all over with just a skifting of snow! I had a freind aslo with a 'stang, and I told them to get narow snow tires, and throw some sandbags in the trunk, and they were good to go.

 

[The Old Guy]

I would like to know more about this blow out in Chicago. We just changed our tires and they cheaped out with some noname tires. I told them to get good ones but the fleet guy got cheapos. They are only rated for 70,000KM which tells me they are crap.

Can someone give me fuel for my argument? I'm going to call and get the load rating on these tires.

 

[FastFord]

Tires and breaks are probly your 2 most important safety devices... Not the place to pop el-cheepo!
Tires are what keeps any vehicle glued to the road.

 

[Terry E. Toller]

Most tires today have a m/s marking on them. That stands for mud and snow and they get that mark due to tread design. A wide tire is more dangerous in rain and snow. The wider the tire, the easier it hydroplanes and the less bite it has cutting through ice.

For trucks with heavy loads like live trucks, you should go with a 6 ply rating. That of course means six layers of rubber instead of the normal four...

 

[BluesDaddy]

Our Wolf Coach (E350) has Uniroyal Laredo tires. They seem to do a good job.

 

[5600K]

From what I have seen coming from Frontline - though I don't know if they are putting the tires on (or Ford is), but our 2 new trucks came with Hankook tires?!?!? That's cheap!

All the tires on all our trucks have been riding on/replaced with Michelins. So, my shop definitely has not gone the el cheapo route.

 

[Deaf and Blind]

5600k keep a close eye on those Hankook tyres, had some on the front of the Freightliner I used to drive.
Damn things quite literally went out of shape after about 6 weeks (45-50,000) miles. It felt like the steer tyres were out of balance at first then started getting really wild which is not what you want on a tractor trailor.

It's like the old Bell Helmets adverts: If you have a $10 head wear a $10 helmet.

 

[Mark McIntosh]

All tires will have a sticker attached when new that gives details about their quality.
Truck Tires will be identified with the letters "LT" before the numbers all passenger cars will have the letter "P" before the numbers.
The width of the tire, the number that follow the letter is one factor that determins the ride.
The rest of the info. tells you if it is a radial, mud and snow, etc. This sticker also shows "wear quality" - Light truck top quality is "A" the "B" Then "C" -Passenger cars top quality is "AA" then "A" etc.. There is also a grade for Temperature, how much heat is built up by the roadway, A,B,C "A" is the best.
Treadwear is based on a number system 100 is minimum quality 200 a little better. Our ENG truck tires are rated 520. For a good explanation about this go to and other tire inf. og to ... www.handymanusa.com/articles/tires.html# or GOOGLE "Tire Wear" here you will get MANY sites set up by tire companies, or you can go to www.dot.gov and farret your way through to what you need, but my head ususlly explodes when I go to government sites.
Several years ago I set up an inspection system done by a local tire supplier that comes to the staton once a month. When we had a blow out resulting in a roll over of an ENG truck we had no trouble what so ever with our insurance company.
Good tires are as important as good brakes.
Mark McIntosh