# Duro Tire Failure



## ronmhagen (Jul 9, 2007)

Our 2008 26kbrs was manufactured in August of 2007 and we picked it up a few days later from LakeShore RV Center. The Duro tire date codes are 2407 & 2507.

We leave for Yellowstone in two days so i brought the Outback home to check over everything and get ready.

I started checking the pressure on the spare tire first since it was closest to the garage. 0 psi. This tire is brand new, never removed from the carrier and looks impeccable, no flaws to the eye. I removed the tire and started pouring my soapy water on different locations. There are many leaks on the first tread in the gaps on the trailer side. No visible defect, but it bubbles out along that seam in multiple locations.

Next, I inspect the other four tires, all pressures are good. One tire is split on the sidewall in a few spots to the point that you replace it immediately. Two tires have slight sidewall splits starting to come through about an inch long, only the beginning. I cannot see any coming through yet on the fourth tire.

The tires look good as far as dry rot goes, the sidewalls are very good and inside the treads it is very minimal.

I have read the other posts on the forum after doing a search. My understanding is that Duro refuses to do anything other than send you a new replacement tire. That won't help me, I have no time and do not want those tires anymore. Keystone and the dealers point you to the tire manufacturer.

So now I have to rush and find a replacement radial before the trip.

Anybody have any positive information that differs from what my search on here has taught me?

I know Milestar did some tire reimbursements, but it appears Duro is not standing by their product as well.

Any recommendations will be appreciated.


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## California Jim (Dec 11, 2003)

History has shown that Duro will send out brand new tires to you with little or no haggling. It's not their fault that the timing is bad, only that you got a set of bad tires. Sorry


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## ronmhagen (Jul 9, 2007)

California Jim said:


> History has shown that Duro will send out brand new tires to you with little or no haggling. It's not their fault that the timing is bad, only that you got a set of bad tires. Sorry


Yes, but they made the tire of poor quality. The other tire company was willing to reimburse if you bought your own replacements, Duro is not. This choice made my Duro will be a level of customer service below Milestar.

Bad or good timing should not be the determining factor on who should suffer when a company makes a poor product. The American Consumer should not be the one to lose money when a company fails. The consumer has already been inconvenienced, the company should bear the additional burden in a good faith effort to repair their failure.


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## skippershe (May 22, 2006)

Well that bites!

I agree, the consumer should not suffer...unfortunately you're in a difficult position at the moment.
Is it possible to get your dealer to replace your bad Duros with a good set of the same brand before you leave?
It sounds like it's either that, or head down the Maxxi road at your own expense. Either way, you need tires for your trip









Please keep us posted


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## ronmhagen (Jul 9, 2007)

skippershe said:


> Well that bites!
> 
> I agree, the consumer should not suffer...unfortunately you're in a difficult position at the moment.
> Is it possible to get your dealer to replace your bad Duros with a good set of the same brand before you leave?
> ...


We didn't buy the trailer local so I doubt I will get any urgency in town. The tires are less than a year old so replacing them with the same tire would make me a bit nervous. In addition, there were many other bad Duro experiences on the forum.

I made sure we didn't have the Milestar tires on our trailer when we bought it so I did not expect any problems for atleast a couple of years. We now know that Keystone just keeps using one junk tire to replace the last junk tire. Nanco to Milestar to Duro. Milestar may have made a bad tire, but they stood behind their product and reimbursed people that had lost faith in their company. Duro will not. I have much more respect for Milestar than Duro at this point.

I think many of us were raised better than our US economy treats us all today. Corporate greed and large companies importing poor quality is costing us all. Previous generations taught me to put my "name" on my work and make sure it is good. Not to make it look good and sneak it by.


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## CamperAndy (Aug 26, 2004)

Call them and see if they will authorize local replacement.


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## jitch388 (Apr 19, 2008)

There is much talk of tires in any forum. Keystone, Forrest River, Heartland.....any forum has many many posts and threads about bad tires. I have posted my own concerns. There is one thing I have to point out. 
Outbacks and Sydney Outbacks are some of the most innovative campers on the market. There are things in my Syd that sold me on it. In their class, OBs and SOBs are also some of the most affordable. Keystone wants to continue producing innovation and style while at the same time keeping weights and prices down. Esspecially in this dog eat dog rv market. Somewhere they have to cut to keep production and unit costs down. When they spend extra money putting higher quality tires on the coaches something else will suffer. It seems this is not just a Keystone issue, it is an industry issue. I hope they can work the contracts with tire manufacuters better but make no mistake, profit morgins will have to be maintained so we wil have to give up quality somewhere else in order to get better tires.
Blessings


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## Scoutr2 (Aug 21, 2006)

I've had nothing but good luck with Duro tires - three sets on two trailers in 12 years. Our 2000 Coleman pop-up (3000# loaded) came with two 13" Duros that lasted five seasons and about 25,000 miles. I called Duro for replacements when the sidewalls started "checking," due to age. (Couldn't find "D" range 13" tires around here.) The tread still looked good, though. Those Duros were traded off after two seasons and about 9000 miles when we sold the pop-up.

Our 2007 Outback came with four (+spare) Duros that have held up well in the two seasons and 8000 miles we've put on them. I had damage done to one tire last summer and Duro shipped a new one to our door in just a few days. I looked them up on the web, called the 800 number, and was pleasantly surprised at how easy it was to get the tires. When the new tires arrived, a local garage mounted the tire for about $15.

I'd give Duro a chance to help you out. The reports on this forum have been mostly favorable for Duro replacing tires. Overall, I'd say the quality of Duro tires is no worse than other OEM tire manufacturers. Actually, compared to the reports on Nanco and a few others, the Duros seem to get higher marks. I cannot say why yours died an early death, but from my experience and the reports here, your experience is more the exception than the rule.

Unless you can adequate find replacement tires somewhere near you, having Duro ship you new tires is probably the quickest fix. You may be able to get some warranty reimbursement after your trip is over. But you won't know unless you call them.

Just my $.02.

Mike


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## Outback Steve (Mar 29, 2007)

We had the milestar and they shipped us new tires as we were not actually in the recall. We took those tires over to Discount tire along with the ones on the trailer and they gave us credit for all of those and we purchased others we trusted better. I thought it was a really good deal.


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## ronmhagen (Jul 9, 2007)

There are plenty of other Duro tire complaints on this forum and others to make me believe I am not the "exception" to the rule. They are putting out a lot of junk. I am glad that you are one of the fortunate ones.

Attempting to be competitive also is not an excuse for a customer getting less than 500 miles on a brand new set of tires. There are no excuses for this reliability and it only hurts the consumer when people try to justify what they are doing. This happens much too often. It dumbfounds me when people try to justify a large companies profit margin at the expense of everyday people, but yet so many have adapted that mentality. Americans need to make a stand and realize the only voice they have in the economy is where and how they spend their money.

When I do business somewhere, if it goes well I will be loyal and return, wether it is a brand or a service branch. Duro tires will not be on my vehicle again. They lost me because of their actions, the accountability is on them, not the customer. When I get back from my trip I will follow up with the warranty and get the replacement tires. If you check their website they have the claim form available. hmmm... I wonder why it is so readily available?









After all of my research last night I left on a mission for replacement tires. My first choice was the Maxxis tire. Nobody had them in stock in my area and I did not have time to order so I went to my second choice. The Goodyear Marathon radial. The Goodyear is also made in China now, but I could not find any tire in stock in my area that was not.

Hopefully this tire will work out well. At least if I do have an issue there is many places available to warranty it. The external construction appearance of the tire is much better than the Duro so I am hopeful. The new tire has much wider span making contact with the surface and it seems to roll much smoother. The Duro tire did make main contact in only the center portion of the tire at the recommended psi, it kind of ballooned over the tread pattern.

Another interesting note is that the stock wheel/tire combo's were not balanced at the factory. That surprised me a bit.

$500.00 lost out of an American families pocket, but we are set to go.


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## California Jim (Dec 11, 2003)

Best of luck with your Marathons. If you hold them to the same internet standard used for the Duro's you would also have to say that they are "putting out a lot of junk". Your results will hopefully vary. I guess you can find poor examples with most any brand if you look hard enough.


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## Yianni (Aug 30, 2006)

We've had the same good luck with two sets of Duros as Mike did. 
I've always kept the pressure right on and most importantly kept them covered with those white tire covers and have not had a bit of trouble.
Good luck to you.


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## ALASKA PFLOCK (Jun 24, 2007)

How about Nanco tires? We have the original Nanco tires on our 2005 26RS and they seem to be fine. What kind of milage should we expect?


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## tdvffjohn (Mar 10, 2005)

ALASKA PFLOCK said:


> How about Nanco tires? We have the original Nanco tires on our 2005 26RS and they seem to be fine. What kind of milage should we expect?


Even if you have had good results so far, I would call Nanco with your tire numbers
http://www.outbackers.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=8034


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