Trailers provide an easy and convenient answer for anyone looking to add a lot more storage than their car came with.
Trailer tires, however, are often neglected, which is why we came up with this handy guide on how to care for the ones you have.
How Long Do Trailer Tires Last?
Trailer tires should last for between 5,000 and 12,000 miles or about 8,000 to 19,000 km. Other than the mileage, you can look at how long you’ve been using them to determine when a replacement is due. If you opt to track it this way, you should change them every 3 to 6 years depending on how often and how intensely you use them.
For more information on trailer tires, including horse, boat, car, utility and other tire types, keep reading!
How Long Do Car Trailer Tires Last?
Car trailer tires usually last up to five years and should be replaced at least once during that duration.
How Long Do Boat Trailer Tires Last?
For a boat trailer, the tires should last about 4 years or 5 to 6 if you’re willing to stretch things out a bit longer.
How Long Do Travel Trailer Tires Last?
Travel trailer tires last different periods depending on how they’re used, but their lifespan averages out at between 5 and 6 years.
How Long Do Tractor Trailer Tires Last?
On a tractor trailer, the tires last differently depending on their position in the setup.
Steer tires do a lot more of the heavy lifting so they last about 150,000 miles (around 241,000 km) while the drive tires last longer, at between 350,000 to 500,000 miles (around 563,000 to 805,000 km).
How Long Do Utility Trailer Tires Last?
Utility trailer tires should be replaced every 6 to 7 years as per industry expert recommendations, whether or not they’ve been heavily used.
How Long Do Horse Trailer Tires Last?
Most manufacturers recommend that you change your horse trailer tires every 4 or 5 years, but it’s best to use them for only 4 years before replacement.
How Long Do Goodyear Endurance Trailer Tires Last?
Veteran drivers that have used the base Goodyear Endurance tires estimate they could last for about 24,000 miles (around 38,600 km).
How Long Do Goodyear Marathon Trailer Tires Last?
Drivers that have installed the Goodyear Marathon tires onto their vehicles have reported getting about 15,000 miles (around 24,000 km) before needing to replace them.
How Long Do ST Trailer Tires Last?
A bias ply special trailer (ST) tire can last between 5,000 and 12,000 miles (about 8,000 to 19,000 km) but can go all the way to 40,000 miles (about 64,000 km) if it’s a radial ply tire.
Is Trailer King A Good Tire?
About 72% of Amazon reviews on a popular Trailer King tire model give the product 5 stars, indicating that it’s considered a good trailer tire by many people.
Do Trailer Tires Go Bad From Sitting?
Since trailers aren’t in use throughout, you may find yourself leaving yours in storage, but doing this for long stretches of time could damage the tires.
Having your trailer sit on the ground with the tires still in subjects them to its full weight and, over time, the point of the tire that’s in contact with the ground becomes damaged.
This results in “flat spotting” where this point becomes flat and weaker due to the pressure exerted by the trailer.
Sometimes it resolves itself when you start driving on the tire again but in other instances, it never regains its previous shape.
A flat spot could develop into a blister that causes extensive wear and tear throughout the rest of the tire.
To prevent this, you could unmount the tires from the trailer if you don’t plan on using it for a long amount of time.
Propping it up with a jack is not recommended because a jack isn’t meant to support heavy objects for prolonged periods so it’s more likely to give and result in a safety hazard.
Why Do Trailer Tires Wear Out So Fast?
You could find that your trailer tires wear out faster or less evenly than expected if you don’t treat the trailer section with the same amount of care and attention as your car.
One reason the tires could wear quickly is when you’re using them with the wrong tire pressure, which affects handling if it’s low and could result in a blowout if it’s too high.
Always make sure you check the tires’ pressure and maintain a level that’s in line with the manufacturer’s recommendations.
Your wheels could become misaligned from hitting curbs and potholes, and this affects how the tires make contact with the road, altering their rate of wear.
Most people overload their trailers and excessive weight does speed up the wearing of the tires. Always check to make sure no part of your car or trailer is sagging before you start driving.
Should You Inflate Trailer Tires To Max PSI?
Inflating your tire trailers to their maximum pressure is recommended because it allows them to handle their full capacity in terms of weight they can carry.
Having the tire fully inflated also means there will be less flex in the sidewall so your tire will remain rigid and operable as intended, resulting in better fuel economy.
Which Tires Wear Faster On Trailer?
Wear is largely determined by the amount of work done by a tire. In a trailer, this becomes where you place the most weight.
For example, if you have a dual axle trailer and you place most of the load towards the front, those are the tires that will wear faster.
To ensure all tires wear evenly, you should check to make sure the trailer is level and that the back of your car isn’t sagging. This is how you verify equal weight distribution.
Do Trailer Tires Need To Be Balanced?
Balancing is something usually done to maintain precise steering but since none of a trailer’s tires are used for this purpose, they don’t need to be balanced.
You could still operate a trailer with some degree of misalignment in the tires or axles, but you will definitely notice a smoother ride if they’re balanced.
To know more about tires, you can also see our posts on how long do Goodyear tires last, how much do tractor tires weigh, and flat spots on tires.
Conclusion
Standard trailer tires usually last between 5,000 and 12,000 miles (8,000 to 19,000 km) or replaced every 3 to 6 years depending on how and where they’re used, but they should be replaced even if they weren’t being used.
You shouldn’t leave your trailer to sit on its wheels for months on end as this results in flat spots on the tire that could permanently damage it.
You could opt to remove the wheel in its entirety from the trailer and mount it on a wall or somewhere where it won’t be subjected to that kind of force.
Trailer tires often wear faster because most drivers don’t pay as much attention to them as the primary set of tires on their car.
While they don’t necessarily need to be balanced, trailer tires will provide a smoother ride when they’re properly aligned.