Low Profile Tires on a Trailer?
 

I have an 09 Nas mfg trailer (not a big fan of it though). I replaced all 6 tires to 205/75/15, but they are rubbing the fenders. The trailer calls for 215/60/15 but they will most likely have to be car tires. I didnt feel comfortable with car tires on a trailer, hence the reason I went with trailer tires. But since they are rubbing, I have to change them. Would you guys feel ok about having car tires on the trailer? They would obviously be the highest load rating tires I could find (94 - ~1500lbs). Do they even make trailer tires this size?

Thanks,
Mike

Are they 3500# axles? How much does the boat weigh!!

Yes they are 3500# axles and the boat weighs 4500 (Magic Sceptor 28)

Always use "ST" rated trailer tires. They're designed to handle the loads and twisting forces when manuevering. (Want to guess how I learned this lessson?....)

Yeah, thats my train of thought also! But in this situation, what can be done. The trailers came from the factory like this, and if I cant find any st rated tires in a size that fits, what can be done?

if you cant find the right trailer tire, run a light truck E rated tire. More expensive and better quality IMO

Also check the sidewall plys. You don't want it to roll of the rim in a hard turn.

Can you raise the fenders? Maybe replace with a different style?
What is the suspension configuration? Can you flip the axle if it's leaf springs? Maybe run a spacer between the axle mounting plate and the trailer frame if it's torsion?

I'd go with an LT truck tire over an ST any day. Myco ships all of their trailers with LT tires installed.

fixx
 

+1 look at the axel and see if the sit in the middle of the spring,,swap to under the springs if they have leaf springs,this will give you about 4 more inches of clearance..if they are tortion you can put a steel block between the frame and the axel mount to raise it..

No I cant raise the fenders (welded to the frame). Its not leaf springs, but I'll have to take a look at the axles to see if there is some adjustment.

In regards to the LT truck tires, do they make them in 215/60/15?

Why the hell would a trailer manufactuer do this??? I really miss my Hallett trailer lol!

let me make some calls in the morning i will call my tire distributor and let you know if there is something in that size im not to far from you riverside....

Thanks, much appreciated!!!

I had to do that with my HTM trailer. I would blow out one to two tires a year using car tires.

Ok! You should be ok with (car) tires with the loads that you are running. I am with you and don't like it but they do this all the time with wake board boats for the cool look. If you want an easy fix you can add a lift block to the bottom side of your trailer then attach your torsion axle or order new axles with a different start angle.

My tire guy said they could order a set of LT (truck tires) for me that are 8 ply. Only thing is they are 195/70/15. The height of the tires would be almost 1 1/2 inches lower than the ones on there now (205/75/15). My question is: would 195 be ok? Im sure it wont look as good as the 215's but what about stability of the tire difference (may be a silly question, but I have never had this issue)?

Thanks for all the replies,
Mike

I would think stability would be fine. Another option if you didn't want to have odd ball tires would be to put spacer between the axle and the frame (I assume torsion springs)

A couple people have suggested that, Is that a simple process? I have no idea how that would be done and dont even know what spacers would look like. Is this something I can do in the driveway or should I take it to a "trailer place"?

Is the trailer frame steel or aluminum? I would probably use some stolid bar stock of the dimension of the frame width and the height you want to add. Definitely use some good high strength bolts too.

Hi, lifer tire guy here.
If you decide to stay with 2156015's get the HR, VR or WR's which have more heat resistance than the standard performance tires do.
I also looked up the load index on those tires for you. The 93's can carry 1433 lbs and the 94's can take 1477. So you can only have 5732 or 5908 lbs of trailer & boat on those tires.
The 195/70R15 Load range D's are for water tank equipped VW camper vans, they are really sturdy, although they are 1/2" taller than the 215/60's. That should fit fine - only 1/4" of the height is above the axle. But the real benefit is that their capacity is 1984 lbs each, that gives you 2000 lbs more capacity, a nice cushion. If you get those, and I suggest you do, remind your tire shop to use high pressure valves since the D's run at higher pressure. Probably 65 PSI, read the sidewall to make sure.
If you do the block lift remember that everything above the axles goes up by the thickness of the blocks. So if you have a low bridge, garage door or tree nearby you need to relearn your clearances. Also you may need to replumb your brakes if the lines won't reach the extra distance.
If you do the lift it would also be advisable to put bolts through the blocks, frame and axle mounts to keep the axles located where you want them. I'm assuming you have the torsion spring crank style axles. If you have leaf springs they can be flipped &/or blocked also.

Thanks so much for the information! I am just going to go with the 195/70/15's. The tire shop will do the swap for me from the tires that are on the trailer now for free (just have to pay the difference per tire which is only around $10 or so). The block thing just seems like alot of extra work lol. If I had to pay for 6 new tires then I would def. consider it.

Thanks again everyone!