This single and simple thing is perhaps the most neglected on all of our cars. Make it a habit to check your tire pressure once a month. It can save your tires, warn you that you have a leak, and save (some say) 5% on fuel use if they were real low! Check that spare tire too at least once a year! The space saver tires go low after a few years many are dangerously flat to use. Some air escapes through the rubber over time like it does with balloons and doesn't necessarily mean a problem if a lot of time has passed.

It's a WIN-WIN-WIN thing to do. Check for the correct pressure for your vehicle what the recommended pressure is and keep it there.
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Note: Tire pressure should be checked when car has not been driven too much which is why they say "cold" pressure.

Note II: Temperature will increase or decrease pressure about 1lb per 10 degrees F .

Happy Motoring,
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Tom Greenleaf - MetroWest, Boston

Tom,

HOw would you approach the air pressure in your tires in late winter early spring? I know that we normally keep our tires at 32 ppi. But with the sudden increase in temperatures its very possible that in a few short days the temperatures could rise 40 - 60 degrees. Should you lower the pressure in late winter to help adjust this sudden rise in temperature or would you recommend leaving the pressure as is and just check it once early spring arises.

Tires are made to hold more than the cold recommended pressure but I still suggest a routine of checking them. a 40-60 increase in temp from last checked shouldn't be a monster problem as they are slowing losing pressure anyway. The real trouble seems to be the super hot weather and highway driving on a road you could bake a cake on! Just use common sense and check them. Happy and safe motoring,
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Tom Greenleaf - MetroWest, Boston

Neat products and cheap! Sometimes I feel like I've come out of a cave after being asleep for 20 years and cars check their own tires on a display on dash in high end models now. I actually hate it when car makers build in things like this and then just confuse the cars computer system even more with all kinds of traction controls, anti-lock brakes etc., now more common.

For $10 bucks or less they have color changing tire valve caps that change from say GREEN to YELLOW to RED in 4 PSI increments to you can just glance and see the pressure just walking by your car. Non electronic which is a good thing for items exposed to the elements.

Have them on all my vehicles now - love them,

T
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Tom Greenleaf - MetroWest, Boston

Good advice!


..also, some places can now fill your tires with pure Nitrogen instead of air... apparently the pressure change from cold to hot is much less in pure N filled tires, because the gas is totally dry... it's the water vapour in your tires that has the biggest effect due to temperature change.

Also, the natural pressure loss over time is decreased with nitrogen filled tires, though I can't remember why at the moment, and I'm too lazy to google it.

does anyone know nitrogen gas in our tire?
what does it do and how it differs to ordinary air?
What other link is gone the needs regular check up?


(This post was edited by way2old on May 6, 2008, 5:49 PM)

Nitrogen is more stable at maintaining proper pressure than ordinary air. It also lacks moisture which can be the cause of corrosion between rubber bead and rims which then cause leaks.

It's not a bad idea if the price is right.

Other periodic maintenance is listed in all owner's manuals,

T
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Tom Greenleaf - MetroWest, Boston

How about those tire gels sold in TV shopping channels? Are they better than air fills? Been thinking of buying one but I suspect that it's another phony product.

(This post was edited by Tom Greenleaf on Apr 16, 2009, 7:13 AM)

Why add goo to a tire a ruin the balance?? In a jam with a flat - OK otherwise this is garbage. Nitrogen is the only real pragmatic alternative to plain air. Nitrogen doesn't expand and contract with temps so much - air does,

T
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Tom Greenleaf - MetroWest, Boston

In Reply To

(This post was edited by Tom Greenleaf on Apr 16, 2009, 7:10 AM)

If your whole purpose was to spam the site and just copy a prior near year old post you are toast!

T
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Tom Greenleaf - MetroWest, Boston

In Reply To

(remove links)

(This post was edited by Tom Greenleaf on Apr 16, 2009, 8:37 AM)

Everything is cool! Just get rid of links with your sign off! Stop hitting "quote" and just "reply" to a post. You are clever enough to have found the site and sign up so that shouldn't be that tricky to figure out.

Again - you are welcome here no problem - links are by permission only to other sites - that's all!

~~~~~~~~~~~`

The topic is strong and stands but is a tad out of date.

Nitrogen for tires is a great idea but the cost is an issue. I'll ask you to start a new thread on the topic and let this one go down to archives.

BTW - bet you didn't know that "air" for tires degrades in pressure about one pound per 10 degrees Fahrenheit. That said - if you filled tires at 80 degrees out you can clearly see the 8 psi drop if you checked again an ZERO degrees Fahrenheit.

When driven tires easily go over 100F so near almost all tires say to check when cold which makes sense.

Side Note: Imagine aircraft that routinely deals with 60 below zero temps and their tire pressure! They use nitrogen as far as I know to avoid that disaster,

T
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Tom Greenleaf - MetroWest, Boston

Thanks for the tips. Checking tire-pressure is very necessary. But I want to know that every time I want check the pressure I have to go to a garage. Is there any other process to check the tire-pressure by myself in the home. Please help me out. Thanks.

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link removed


(This post was edited by Hammer Time on Jul 8, 2009, 10:54 PM)

There are decent 12 v power port comprssoros to do this yourself. Have a known good gauge helps too,

T
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Tom Greenleaf - MetroWest, Boston

Wanted to add to this ancient thread which still applies. It matters! It's also informative when you find ONE or more way off that the one or more have a problem to tend to. Don't forget to check the spare tire too. Can't tell you how often I did road calls to find a flat spare too! The space savers hold more pressure in general and need it. Keep them up to spec as you can't know when you may need a spare with roads the way they are,

T
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Tom Greenleaf - MetroWest, Boston

Hello,

Right tire pressure is very important for proper driving as well as for the maintenance of car, we often think about coolant and engine oil, but hardly pay attention towards tier pressure.


Regards,
sarah_9



links deleted ..................... not allowed


You have been warned to remove the advertising from your signature. Please do so ASAP

(This post was edited by Hammer Time on Sep 5, 2009, 1:51 PM)

sarah_9

tires in general should be cheched externally for 3
important safety reasons and the best part is you can
check them yourself quite simple and easy...

#1 tread depth theres a few ways too do that and a tool
but basicaly the human eye can chech it as good. you wanna see that tread is above the wear bars the wear bars are
those little bars that are inbetween the treads that run
parallel across if the rest of
the tread is above them your tread is ok if there getting close
to the wear bars then soon your due for tires.

#2 cracks or bulges whats the outside look like are there
any deep cuts or bulges thats something that noone ever
checks for

#3 most importantly air pressure i see every day cars on
the road running low or little air pressure in the tires
i mean you know who they are by just looking at there
tires its crazy!! i even had one guy along side of me
on a busy highway driving with almost no air in the back
side tire smoke cumming out of it thats because the ruber

inside his tire was flexing so hard it smoked..! then it blew..!!
right as im driving along side this guy scary thought..
especially when you hear of a rear tire blow out that caused
an accident and blow outs are a major cause of road accidents
in north america.

SO ALWAYS check your tire pressures not only can
it save your tires help your gas mileage but you will
know your preventing an accident from happening
and that can save you a lot more on grief and insurance
wise.


(This post was edited by trw on Aug 29, 2009, 11:06 AM)

Didn't re-read whole thread but some neat stuff is out there. All my own cars have tire valve caps that now show green, yellow or red for tire pressure! No real magic - they show the pressure! Cheap insurance that the tire is ok or NOT!

T
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Tom Greenleaf - MetroWest, Boston

OH one last thing if i may add my 2 cents worth after
all the talk on nitrogen air and tire inflation pressure
and lody lody things

ahh... you also might wanna no not only does of coarse
air pressure have a big impact on safety and handling
of your car so does tread depth if your running nearly
or

bald tires by now they will heat up a lot sooner
because you have no tread to dissipate the heat away from
them resulting in a BLOW OUT! and on a speedy highway
that can cause an accident..! be aware of that



thats my last peice of advise i can share with you
that NO..ONE has mentioned..?? up

to now.

Quote

Actually, tread depth has exactly the opposite effect in reference to heat. Having more rubber being moved around will generate more heat than a bald tire. The biggest culprit for heat though is air pressure. That's why when you see a blowout on the highway, it is nearly always caused by extreme low air pressure, not a defect in the tire.




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