General Tire Presure Question


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Old 02-03-04, 12:49 PM
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General Tire Presure Question

Do to the cold weather and snow on the ground here in Jersey I elected to take my car to a local Lube shop to have the oil changed. They checked all the fluid levels and were supprised that they did not have to add anything. I take care on my cars completely myself. In any case they were checking the tire presure and started releasing air telling me I had to much in the tires. Now for the past 25 years I have maintained the tire presure at the max PSI in the winter {this car 42 PSI} and in the spring, fall and summer I run them 2 PSI lighter or 40 PSI to allow for expansion due to the warmer weather. The guy {i don't know his mechanical creditinals} said that I should always run the tires a least 5 PSI under the max rated.

Who is right? All opinions welcome. I am trying to teach both my daughters, who are new drivers to take care of their own cars and if I am wrong I want to correct myself before drilling the maintenance into their heads.

Thanks and I know this is a simplistic question but one we should all know.

Regards,

Doug

P.S. I have never had tire problems....
 
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Old 02-03-04, 02:59 PM
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The owners manual or the tire placard(usually on the drivers door)is where you find tire inflation info.Tires should be checked cold and inflation pressure shall not exceed the posted limit on the tire.If the required pressure by the manufacturer exceeds the tire sidewall max pressure the wrong tire is on the car.I'm not questioning your practices just stating the facts about tire pressure.I've worked for tire manufacturers and dealers and was never advised to adjust the recommended tire pressure due to seasonal changes.I went to plenty of training over the last 26 years.I will say I will alter my pressure to achieve the best tire wear ,but handling does suffer meaning you may lower the safety of operating the vehicle.
 
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Old 02-03-04, 03:54 PM
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There are alot of opinions on tire pressure. Davos explanation is by far the most logical and informative I have ever heard.
My personal opinion is to go by the pressure on the tire to maintain the life of the tire. Some folks feel that this takes away from the comfort of the passengers. I feel this is the reason most auto manufacturers tire pressure specifications are much lower than the tire states.
All in all, as long as you stay somewhere between the manufacturers specifications and the tires max pressure you will be fine. Providing you are not going off road, or on unstable terrain. That is a whole other ball of wax.
Hope this is helpful to ya,
Billy
 
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Old 02-03-04, 05:14 PM
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The 2 previous posters were very accurate with their advice. I would only like to add one point. Sometimes manufacturers run a very different presure from front to rear. This stagger is done to counter an oversteer or understeer condition that is inherant to their vehicle and these staggers should be maintained.
 
 

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