Tire pressure?

[otterhere]

So where do you guys keep your tires for best MPGs? I figured unless the alarm came on (warning system), they were fine, but now I'm wondering...

[YAR1S]

.... I personally set them to 32.... just cause I dont want to be on the end of a lawsuit... resulting from a crash that could be attributed to traction loss on my part.


Besides... from what I've heard the differnce isnt much... give or take a few miles, right?

[BailOut]

Increasing tire pressure increases handling, traction and tread life as well as mileage. I run mine at 60 PSI, as do thousands of other hypermilers.

Originally Posted by YAR1S

Besides... from what I've heard the differnce isnt much... give or take a few miles, right?

Fuel efficiency is all about many tactics adding up to significant gains. Tire pressure is one of the larger factors.

[YarisSedan]

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[YarisSedan]

I think the max for a small passanger car tire is 50psi tops. Also the reason why you get better gas milage is becuase now you have less tire to pavement contanct resulting in less rolling resistance. But in turn you will wear out the center of your tire very quickly. There is also a reduction in traction after you get past a certain point of overinflation. Which randomly guessing would be around 45. As well as greater chance of damage to the tire from potholes and road debri. Also depending on the weather climate where you live and the speeds you are going the heat will cause the air in the tire to expand by a few more pounds. Just like when youloose a few pounds of air in colder climate. This could result in psi ranges of 65. Only tires i know that are meant to be run at those raitings are the huge truck tires.

If you want to get the best economy with handling inprovements without and risk or increased wear on tire i would set it around 40. But definately not in the 60s.

[PreciousPups4U]

Mine are around 40 - 42 psi. That rides best to me. Not sure how it affects mpg, it's just what's comfortable to me. I can really tell when they get low.

[gid]

33 > 35 p.s.i. . Still averaging in the upper 30's at these settings . Check every week or so due to change in the temps .

[gid]

here we go again ... temps will rise and some will have a blowout .

[b_hickman11]

I run 6 psi....I like to hear that thud a thud a thud sound when I drive!

[*MAD DOG*]

Originally Posted by BailOut

Increasing tire pressure increases handling, traction and tread life as well as mileage. I run mine at 60 PSI, as do thousands of other hypermilers.

Fuel efficiency is all about many tactics adding up to significant gains. Tire pressure is one of the larger factors.

Too high. You'll have a blowout on a hot day. Your tires are a ticking timebomb.

Originally Posted by PreciousPups4U

Mine are around 40 - 42 psi. That rides best to me. Not sure how it affects mpg, it's just what's comfortable to me. I can really tell when they get low.

That's what I run mine at and that is the maximum the handbook recommends. I feel that 40-42 psi is perfect.

[BailOut]

*MAD DOG*, gid, YarisSedan:

Nearly 4,000,000 road miles between folks at CleanMPG, PriusChat and other sites say that you are wrong. My experience and the experience of every other MPG-minded person on this site says you're wrong. The engineers from Nokian that we spoke to about this issue - at length - say you're wrong.

What you three say held true up through the 1980's, but with the move to steel belted radials and modern materials beginning in the early 1990's everything changed. It is time to update your personal stock of information.

[rningonfumes]

60 psi here And did it all summer too.

I think I scared the Good year tire guy when I had to get one of my tires patched...I even warned him a head of time. He got curious when I asked him to leave the psi of the other tire alone, so he checked one of the good ones and found them to be about 75 when hot.

[talnlnky]

i try to stay near the upper limits of the sidewall rating on the tires... so...40-45psi for me. Problem is... temps have dropped about 60F over the past 3 months, so it seems i'm always adding air to keep it up.... In the spring i'll have to pay attention to make sure I don't go above 45.

[*MAD DOG*]

Originally Posted by BailOut

*MAD DOG*, gid, YarisSedan:

Nearly 4,000,000 road miles between folks at CleanMPG, PriusChat and other sites say that you are wrong. My experience and the experience of every other MPG-minded person on this site says you're wrong. The engineers from Nokian that we spoke to about this issue - at length - say you're wrong.

What you three say held true up through the 1980's, but with the move to steel belted radials and modern materials beginning in the early 1990's everything changed. It is time to update your personal stock of information.

Originally Posted by rningonfumes

60 psi here And did it all summer too.

I think I scared the Good year tire guy when I had to get one of my tires patched...I even warned him a head of time. He got curious when I asked him to leave the psi of the other tire alone, so he checked one of the good ones and found them to be about 75 when hot.

About 9 years ago I had tires over inflated at 50 psi on a car. It was a hot day around 37c and I was on a freeway doing 100km/h I was going around a bend and I heard a loud bang and thud thud thud thud.

I pulled over to the emergency lane very slowly and braked ever so slowly.
When I got out to examine the damage I noticed the tread had popped off my front left tire, some had wrapped around my steering arm and other wheel related stuff.

The rest had been blown apart and was on the freeway. The tire remained inflated but the tread was shredded and gone. I will not over inflate my tires. 40-42 is the maximum in the handbook, that is only recommended for the rear tires under load, that is as far as i will go.

If your suicidal and want to have your tires running between 60-75psi go ahead. Just tell your loved ones that you love them everyday, as it may be the last time you see them.

[BailOut]

*MAD DOG*,

Tires blow out due to manufacturing defects or excessively hard driving. It is likely that the one tire you experienced this with one time would have blown out even at a lower pressure.

By your logic someone that had a blowout at the pressure on the door jamb could forever run around claiming that you should run 20 PSI lower than the door jamb.

[06silveryaris]

40 psi car feels good and when pushed hard I do not see any wear on the sidewalls.

[b_hickman11]

I wonder if they could make tires out of used condoms.....

[YarisSedan]

Well I guess you should help rewrite the books and reteach the teachers at my school. Cause when i took tire and alignment in school they specifically made it clear to make sure you never inflate a tire past the maximum amount stated on the sidewall.

Sidewide is there for a reason to be able to flex and absorb defects in the road. Otherwise on a loaded car at high speeds you hit a large dip or pothole kaboom. Not to metion if you have a 08 model with tire pressure sensors and you atempt to put more than 50 psi in your tire you will damage the sensors. So that 1 or 2 mpg you save results in you spending hundreds for replacement sensors. Or the additional tire wear that is going to cost you more on tire replacement. Or the fact the in wet weather you are more likely to skid. Or the decrease in your stopping distance making your car more likely to get in a accident if someone cuts you off.

So now not only are you putting yourself at risk you are putting others. Thats just my 2 cents. Ive read several hypermiling articles and techniques. And many of them advise not to overinflate your tires beyond the max. I worked at a tire shop a few years back and i remember whenever we had to inflate the tires to set the bead we would put the tire in a tire cage if we needed excessive pressure like in the 70s for fear of the tire exploding and injuring employees. But wait osha requires the employees to have a tire cage in all tire shops when inflating tires in excessive psi past the max raiting of the tire?

I am basing my knowlege what i was taught in school and from real life experince.