tyre upgrade

T

tojo

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Apr 22, 2019
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Funster No
60,107
MH
hymer b584
Exp
2017
Hi All
We have a Hymer B 584 with Michelin Camping tyres fitted , i think i must be right on the upper limit regarding weight as when driving the van seems to move about [ a bit jelly like ] What would be a suitable upgrade , am thinking commercial tyres would be the way to go .
Steve .
 
Tyres are weight rated. I'd suggest you verify your's have the correct weight rating for the plated max weight of the MH. Weight rating chart here:



Mick
 
When I change tyres on my B584 I’m thinking of going for Vredestein comtrac all seasons and they have a rating of 116 which is higher than Michelin camper tyres I have at the moment.
 
tojo said:
Hi All
We have a Hymer B 584 with Michelin Camping tyres fitted , i think i must be right on the upper limit regarding weight as when driving the van seems to move about [ a bit jelly like ] What would be a suitable upgrade , am thinking commercial tyres would be the way to go .
Steve .
Click to expand...


What pressure do you use?

When I contacted Michelin I was told that camper tyres had to be run at 80psi irrespective of axle load, which I must admit at the time I thought was odd.

Andrew
 
tuscancouple said:
Tyres are weight rated. I'd suggest you verify your's have the correct weight rating for the plated max weight of the MH. Weight rating chart here:



Mick
Click to expand...

The critical weight is normally the rear axle load. Check the permissible rear axle load on your weight plate, then divide by 2 and use the table as posted.

I've always erred on the safe side by adding 10% to the permissible rear axle load and then using the table.....as recommended by some tyre experts.

White van man commercial tyres generally have a higher load index range. I needed a LI of 118 so therefore used commercial tyres.

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tojo said:
Hi All
We have a Hymer B 584 with Michelin Camping tyres fitted , i think i must be right on the upper limit regarding weight as when driving the van seems to move about [ a bit jelly like ] What would be a suitable upgrade , am thinking commercial tyres would be the way to go .
Steve .
Click to expand...

Personally I don’t think there is anything wrong with Michelin Camping tyres. You may need to experiment with the front and rear pressures to achieve the optimum ride.
I would take look at your front springs if you are experiencing a jelly like ride.
I put upgraded Goldschmitt coil springs on our A Class and it made a tremendous difference to the ride, as well as lifting the nose height a few centimetres making levelling up on site easier.
 
Check out Aeon rubber springs in place of the bump stops, easy to fit and relatively cheap to buy.
Made a huge difference to my Hymer which weighs over 4500 kilo's.
 
Micheliin Campers come in 116 and 118 rating so just go 4 the 118's and your good for the weight. Good for 1320kg I think.
 
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On our Pilot Galaxy the Michelin designated pressures are marked in the handbook as being front 5.0 bar, rear 5.5 bar.... and thats on camping tyres. Dont know if that helps
 
Chilloutsolutions said:
On our Pilot Galaxy the Michelin designated pressures are marked in the handbook as being front 5.0 bar, rear 5.5 bar.... and thats on camping tyres. Dont know if that helps
Click to expand...

I use 3.5 bar (50psi) front and 4.8 bar (70psi) rear on a 4250kg chassis based on measured axle weights in touring trim.

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Got 16inch wheels with Michelins and the recomended pressure re the handbook is 80 PSI back and front but I lowered the PSI at the front to 73 and it feels OK to drive even since I had rear air assist fitted recently
 
Mmm, food for thought this. The sticker that's on our van out of the factory states 72.5 psi front (5 bar) and 79.7 rear (5.5 bar) and that was based I presume on 3500kg. The van had also been uprated to 3650 kg by the first owner presumably after Pilote/Michelin had stated the pressures.

It's all a bit ambiguous this tyre pressure malarkey which is worrying when it's such a crucial factor for safety reasons.

No doubt the dealer wouldn't have a clue and tell you to run fronts at 28 and rear at 30 psi unless you are running on remoulds :rolleyes:
 
I tried the commercial tyre route on our old van to save a few pennies, can't remember brand, but the driving experience was terrifying! Put them on the week before a trip to Croatia and all the way there and back was like driving on an inflatable slide! Drifting across road was terrible, any camber and the van took off down it like a scolded puppy! Whipped them off for Michelin Camping as soon as I got home. Ride was then perfect. Currently running the same on new van and it has pressures set to alarm at 80 rear and 69 front....I thought this was too high initially, but after 3000 miles around Europe, it is spot on. Road holding perfect, wet (20 miles of torrential rain along mountain roads and switch backs around Ledro) and dry. Ride is slightly harsh on rough roads, but main roads around France, Germany and Switzerland were a dream! Car-like handling.
 
Have a look at Nexian Roadian CT8's....that's what I'm thinking of going to when the time comes...looks excellent specs and ratings for the buck..

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PepnKook said:
I tried the commercial tyre route on our old van to save a few pennies, can't remember brand, but the driving experience was terrifying! Put them on the week before a trip to Croatia and all the way there and back was like driving on an inflatable slide! Drifting across road was terrible, any camber and the van took off down it like a scolded puppy! Whipped them off for Michelin Camping as soon as I got home. Ride was then perfect. Currently running the same on new van and it has pressures set to alarm at 80 rear and 69 front....I thought this was too high initially, but after 3000 miles around Europe, it is spot on. Road holding perfect, wet (20 miles of torrential rain along mountain roads and switch backs around Ledro) and dry. Ride is slightly harsh on rough roads, but main roads around France, Germany and Switzerland were a dream! Car-like handling.
Click to expand...

But if you don't say what the speed/load rating or ply construction thickness of the Commercials was this is pointless...they have to match or exceed manufacturers specs,,
 
Garry Walden said:
But if you don't say what the speed/load rating or ply construction thickness of the Commercials was this is pointless...they have to match or exceed manufacturers specs,,
Click to expand...

Was four years ago, dunno what the tyres were, they were marked as commercial tyres and for me, lesson was learnt. If you are going for high spec commercials, why not just go for the specific camping tyres, either Continental or Michelin? £125'ish a corner, can usually get a deal when buying four and have piece of mind that they are fit for purpose.
 
I was told, that C-P tyres have stiffer side walls?. Allegedly something to do with the fact that Motorhomes generally spend more time stationary? than your average "white van",and are thereby able to resist deformation due to being in one position, and vaguely think there was also a need to run higher pressures OR they tended to spend more time under high load?.
 
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PeteH said:
I was told, that C-P tyres have stiffer side walls?. Allegedly something to do with the fact that Motorhomes generally spend more time stationary? than your average "white van",and are thereby able to resist deformation due to being in one position
Click to expand...

Extract from Which Tyres:-

So what are camping tyres?

These tyres are designed specifically for use on motorhomes, the main difference is that they have tougher sidewalls. This toughness helps in 2 ways, firstly they are more suitable to run at higher pressures that are required for motorhomes, and secondly the rigidity reduces tyre movement and stops the vehicle from swaying around, particularly whilst cornering. There are also subtle differences in the tread compound which gives the tyres improved grip on wet surfaces and some differences in construction that make the tyre more resistant to abrasions & impacts.

Can I use normal van tyres?

Absolutely, it is still legal and safe to use regular van tyres as long as the load rating is high enough to carry the weight of the vehicle. By using a standard van tyre you will of course not benefit from the features detailed above. The main reason people fit standard van tyres is because of the cost implications of fitting motorhome tyres. The camper equivalent tends to be about 15% more which can equate to upwards of £60 a set. Personally I think the cost is justified and worth the additional cost.
 
I'd also read that the stiffer side walls benefit a MH due to the usual load distribution which in general is higher in a MH and lower (floor based) in a commercial.

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PepnKook said:
Extract from Which Tyres:-

So what are camping tyres?

These tyres are designed specifically for use on motorhomes, the main difference is that they have tougher sidewalls. This toughness helps in 2 ways, firstly they are more suitable to run at higher pressures that are required for motorhomes, and secondly the rigidity reduces tyre movement and stops the vehicle from swaying around, particularly whilst cornering. There are also subtle differences in the tread compound which gives the tyres improved grip on wet surfaces and some differences in construction that make the tyre more resistant to abrasions & impacts.

Can I use normal van tyres?

Absolutely, it is still legal and safe to use regular van tyres as long as the load rating is high enough to carry the weight of the vehicle. By using a standard van tyre you will of course not benefit from the features detailed above. The main reason people fit standard van tyres is because of the cost implications of fitting motorhome tyres. The camper equivalent tends to be about 15% more which can equate to upwards of £60 a set. Personally I think the cost is justified and worth the additional cost.
Click to expand...

Would seem to bear out what I thought?.
 
Yep its all to do with load ratings and sidewall stiffness...ie the amount of ply in the sidewalls...which is exactly why I was looking at Nexan Roadian CT8's...they have a very high load rating and sidewall construction strength..better than Agilis....the main difference to say Michelin Agilis camper tyres is cost...the Michelins are around £140 a piece.. the Nexens for mine £80...when you are a tag axle and have six to replace that's a huge amount of money difference...
 
Isn’t this ‘stiffer sidewalls’ thing all a bit arse about face (excuse the expression). It isn’t the sidewall stiffness that enables the motorhome to sit for long periods, it’s the fact that they are inflated to 80psi that keeps them from splaying at the bottom. The stiff sidewalls just enable higher pressures. This is why Michelin quote 80psi for everything, regardless of weight, reluctantly permitting a reduction to 65 on front in certain circumstances.
 
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Interesting thread.... I have Agilis tyres fitted from new on a 3500kg A Class. Done over 30k miles and still about 4.5 - 5mm tread remaining. Run them at 80psi and yep the ride is a little hard but not overly. When looking at the tyre I noted that they are 116Q rated (1250 kg per corner which is fine as back axle is rated to 2000 kg so 500kg under tyre load limit )

Something that has not been mentioned here is that the 116 rating is when inflated to 80 psi. I can only assume that the rating will be less if inflated to less that 80psi. I note the many people run their fronts at a lower pressure, given that normally the fronts have less load I assume this is probably OK but I have never seen a chart that states what the load rating is for a tyre when run at less than the recommended pressure.
 
I run Micheliin Campers 118 rating COLD 60 fronts 70 rears but COLD!!!! Tyrepal shows they go up to 72-75 front 77-85 rear when running normal temperatures. Van's rated at 4500kgs and I'm usually about 250kgs under depending on water and diesel levels. I wouldn't dream of running any other tyre. You should get your insurance company to agree in writing to alternatives!!!

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TeeMyob said:
What is your Chassis?
Single or twin rear wheels?
GVW?
Current tyre load index?

Might be able to help ?
Click to expand...
Hi .
We have a Hymer b584 which is a single wheel .
Steve .
 
tojo said:
Hi .
We have a Hymer b584 which is a single wheel .
Steve .
Click to expand...

Mines the same model, 2001 and I run tyres at 4.5 bar or 65psi as stated in my manual.
I’ve not noticed any trouble with the Michelin campers.
 
Have used toyo winter tyres for 4 years now max pressure is 70psi but only run at 55 all round 4.5 t 3 axels so 1.5t per axel. Check what the max pressure is on side of tyres
 
tojo said:
Hi .
We have a Hymer b584 which is a single wheel .
Steve .
Click to expand...

Hi,

I use a higher load Michelin Alpin Tyre.

But we use motorhome all-year, including ski trips.

The original Michelin Camping Tyre were terrible. Poor grip and cracking sidewalls. I understand the new one is much better, but it is not something I would single out for use.

Try looking for a 10 ply tyre with a higher LI

TM
 
Our Hymer has Michelin Campers, horrible tyres, hard ride high wear rate, low grip.
I dropped the pressures to, 73 rear, 63 front I have full air suspension. Front wheels sometimes tramp even in the dry. 2 years old & 19,000 miles going to need replacing soon nearly worn out will replace with 4 season or winter tyres.

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