Buying Motorhome tyres- which and where from?
I decided to look at replacing the tyres on my 2011 plate motorhome as although there is still plenty of tread left and no visible sign of cracks, etc. I was aware that the recommended life is between 5-7 years.
The first thing I noticed was that the date stamp on my Continental Vanco tyres was 0708 which I take to mean July 2008. This was a bit of a surprise as it means they are 9 years old, not 6 as I originally thought!
Looking online, there seem to be a few tyres specifically designed for motorhomes, amongst the premium brands are the Continental Vanco Camper range and the Michelin Agilis Camping tyre. These retail at around £120 to £140 per tyre but prices vary. The club has been promoting ATS recently but I found the cheapest online price at Kwikfit with Tyreshopper offering to price match the competition. I haven't yet decided which to go for but I thought I'd share this with members in case anyone has any alternative suggestions?
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We replaced all 5 of our motorhome tyres last Thursday . I checked out etyres after reading on here. They come to you to fit. Thought price was reasonable threw piece of paper away yesterday i think Michelin £672 all in. We went to ATS, used ours for 25+ years, and got continental ones after discount CSMA now Boundless £545.46. I knew we'd not changed our tyres during our 11 year ownership but hubby reckoned they were OK otherwise it wouldn't pass MOT. When we looked at the date they were 2002 from when the motorhome was made. Neither of us knew about suggested 5-7 year change. Like you loads of tread although this year we could see slight cracks appearing. I really think that it should at least be an advisory note on the MOT. I've not driven it with new tyres but hubby says it feels better and I'd say the ride was better too.
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KwickFit often seems to get negative comments on here. However I have used their mobile fitting service several times, and certainly our local mobile man is excellent, and prices are excellent booked online.
I agree about MOT. My Mondeo passed with tyres which were 13 years old and had obvious sidewall cracks (they were noted as advisories). I changed them promptly.
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The important thing is to fit tyres with a CP rating: tyres designed for motorhomes and the constant load and 'abuse' that they're subjected to. We started out with Michelin XC camper tyres but they became in short supply, so we changed to Continental Vanco about 10 years and 100,000 miles ago.
We've been lucky to have retired at 60 and have spent 6 months of the year travelling around Europe. Our tyres have worn out before they were old and cracked!
We've gone to our local garage for our tyres and they've always supplied our tyres at a competitive price. They don't have them in stock and you may have to wait a week or so, but try your local independent dealer.
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From memory I think you will find that "0708" means they were made in week 7 of 2008........
So the situation is even worse than you thought.....!!
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Yes sadly I think it's week 7 of 2008 too. ATS got our Continental camping tyres in next day but to ensure they were there we booked the day after expected. They took 2 hours to fit them all including get the spare off. Chap asked if we had breakdown cover as he said it wasn't an easy storage arrangement and took 2 if them to get it back 😲. Before they started I checked dates on new ones week 44 2016 so can't complain as I presume they don't fly off the shelf. I found advice on here great. CT at its best. Definitely feels like a better ride since the change. No mention to hubby as he chats to our MOT chap about tyres or an advisory. Now wondering about whether to go back to same MOT chap, can't have been oversight for last 5 years plus! I hope we can get some mileage in but with elderly mother and daughter in NZ try to get there every couple of years if possible. I fear we won't get continental trip in just yet so just UK for us for now. Plenty of beautiful places to see so not complaining.
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you dont say what size they are .we own a tyre retail outlet in Oswestry in Shropshire.if you ring me i will try and point you in the right direction.07802 661334
Brian & Jo
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I have bought tyres from www.tyreleader.co.uk on several occasions. They offer speedy delivery, which in my experience is 3 working days and they can be delivered to a local tyre shop tied to their website or your home address. Their prices are very competetive.
Both Michelin and Continental camper van tyres can be found by searching 'tyres by brand' from the homepage on the website.
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"Now wondering about whether to go back to same MOT chap, can't have been oversight for last 5 years plus!". The inspector will have been looking for tread depth and any signs of cracking or cuts, not the age of the tyre. If the tyre's in good condition, does it need to be changed? Up until now, we've been traveling for about 10,000 miles every year and so have replaced on tread depth before age.
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According to things I've read insurance companies can use tyre age to wriggle. Luckily no first hand experience and never read it in T&C but who reads it all as it should be read? Tyre chap said insurance go by CC or C&CC guidance about tyre age. I only learnt the little I know from CT and reading around. Better safe than sorry if we were involved in an accident a few hundred pounds compared to finding your insurance invalid. We don't manage that many miles a year probably 5000 but last year few hundred. I do think that it should be something mentioned on MOT testing as they can see mileage over the year and that it's a motorhome which probably means it's not in daily use. I think the club could do a lot more to emphasis the matter for motorhomes caravans and trailers.
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I think the club could do a lot more to emphasis the matter for motorhomes caravans and trailers.
In fairness the Club has covered the issue extensively, for example here.......
As have many magazines and other motoring forums.....
I think you have just missed it Bakers...
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The Michelin website states that a tyre has no time life. Suggest people read it, very informative.
I recently bought two Michelin Agilis CP tyres from Formula 1 Autocentres for £204 with fitting.
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I check the internet prices and my local reliable garage price match.
Always use Michelin campers and replace at the 6 year point.
Michelin now default to 80PSI for rear tyres.....I stick to their advice from some years ago...50 (F) and 55(R) PSI.
There are various tables showing pressures on the internet.
PS. Yes to metal valves.
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I am using the pressures you state and have done so since I first bought my motorhome. There have been no road holding issues and I have replaced two tyres at 34000 miles. No unusual wear on the tyres, even wear across the tread.
The valves fitted are as supplied by Formula1 haven't noticed what they are made from.
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I remember that, was it this one....??
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-25674077
The operator seems to have got off fairly lightly in the circumstances.....
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We purchased continental tyres and we're assured the pressures we use 60 from the 65 rear were good. We have a coach built. Used to use hirer pressures when we started 10 years ago hard ride. Took advice from tyre fitter and great rides since. No uneven wear.
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On the "Autocruise Sunningdale " i used 'Firestone Vanhawk' all round .Found them to be VERY good in terms of price and usage .
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The question of whether commercial van tyres are suitable for camper vans (
) comes up quite regularly and the answer often quoted is that camper/motorhome tyres are different, one of the differences quoted is that they are designed to be able to stand unused with the weight of the van on the same spot on the tyre for significant periods of time, there may be other differences as well....?1 -
Those "Firestone's" i mentioned ,were £97.00.Fitted,balanced etc.0
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I almost started a war when I replied to a similar thread some time ago, but I'll repeat the gist of it.
My last 2 vans and the current one were fitted with Michelin tyres. Both previous ones suffered tyre wall failures when there was still plenty of tread left on the tyres, and they weren't all that old. My current van was noted to have some tyre wall cracking and I'll have to change them this year. None of the tyre dealers I have spoken to recommended replacing them with Michelin.
I can't remember what make of tyres I had fitted to my last van, but they lasted well with no trouble, and were much cheaper than Michelin.
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Just to conclude my comments on this topic, I finally went for the Michelin tyres and found Blackcircles the cheapest at £130 per tyre. They were fitted free by my local Checkpoint Service Centre but metal valves cost me an extra £20 for 4 (to cope with 80 psi rear wheel pressures!) The valve stems are quite short so I also needed 4 extension pieces from Halfords which cost another £4.99
(with hindsight I'd probably go for the Continental Vanco tyres next time)
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Thanks all for the advice. Decided to take the safe route with a new set of Agilis fitted yesterday. Cracks looked even worse close to when removed. Interesting to find that the date info had been originally installed to the inside/reverse of the wheels rather than easily visible. Mistake or deliberate? The tyres were a year older than the van !!
From here on will shield tyres from sun, move van every couple of week in the quiet season and blame Covid and Brexit for reduce activity over past 18 months .
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