Caravan Tyre Maintenance Guide

As an avid caravaners, we all know your caravan tyres are the only point of contact between your caravan and the road, making it essential for your safety that regular checks are carried out.

Things like being able to safely accelerate, brake and steer depends on the condition and pressure of your wheels. In other cases, a tyre may even blow if not maintained correctly. To help you get to your final destination safely, we’ve put together this guide to assist you in tyre and wheel maintenance.

Check the tyre condition and fitting

Before each trip, you should carefully check your tyres condition and pressure. It is recommended that your tyres be replaced every five years or every 10,000kms – depending on which comes first. Even if you’re caravan is not being towed regularly, the wheels can still be subject to wear and tear from external factors such as sun exposure.

Keeping an eye on your tread depth is crucial for your safety – this impacts all areas of driving, particularly when trying to stop. It is recommended your tread depth doesn’t go past 1.6mm.

You should also make sure your tyre rim

Check the tyre pressure

Before you head out on an RV adventure it is critical you check your tyre pressure. The tyre pressure should be around 42psi, depending on the load in your van and your specific RV as some smaller vans can run at a lower psi. The recommended minimum psi is 35psi. To find the optimal pressure for your van, check your tyre placard or caravan book – this should have an indication of correct pressure for weight. Different seasons also affect the tyre pressure.

Check the tightness of the wheel nuts

Checking that your wheel nuts are correctly tightened is important to ensure your wheels don’t fall off while you’re driving. The ideal tightness is tight enough that they aren’t going to come lose but lose enough that you can easily undo if you need to change a tyre – this is listed in your Jayco owner’s manual. The Jayco Adelaide branch have a great blog you can check out to learn how to tighten your wheel nuts using a torque wench.

If you need further assistance with your wheel maintenance, Jayco has a strong network of Jayco dealerships and service agents across Australia to provide the support and expertise needed whilst on the road. With over 100 approved repairers and agents nation-wide, our support network is the most wide-reaching in Australia. Contact your nearest dealer or service agent for an appointment.