Advantages of Wider ST225 Trailer Tire Over ST205 Trailer Tire

Question:

Looking at tires for our camper and considering the Provider series ST205 or ST225. My question is whether the wider footprint of the 225 provides any advantage or disadvantage to the narrower footprint of the 205? Does one offer better tracking and less trailer sway? Does more road grip give better or worse control? Thank you!

asked by: Tiffany L

Expert Reply:

There are a few things to consider when purchasing new tires and wheels for your camper. A wider tire such as the Westlake ST225 # LHAW124 can certainly provide more traction on the road than the factory size tires on your camper, however this might only be noticed in very specific conditions such as off-roading.

A wider tire may offer minimal improvement with trailer sway. The best way to fight against trailer sway is to properly load your trailer. You want to keep the tongue weight at 10-15% of the gross trailer weight and always make sure the load is as even as possible side to side. If you are still having issues, I recommend looking into a weight distribution system. I have included an article on this subject as well as a link to our weight distribution system selection.

You also want to make sure a larger tire will properly fit inside the wheel wells of your camper and won't cause any interference with fenders, inner sides or other wheels if you have a tandem axle trailer. A wider ST225 will have a width of 225 millimeters and fit a 15 inch wheel diameter. An ST205 tire will have a width of 205 millimeters and depending on the tire, can fit wheel diameters of 10, 14 or 15 inches. It is important to consider these size differences to make sure the tire will fit in your fender without interference.

More important than wheel width when choosing a trailer tire is its load capacity. You want to make sure that whatever tire you choose will have a capacity greater than your camper's axle rating and also sufficient for your camper's loaded weight.

expert reply by: Chris R