Tire Pressure – How important is it and how to find the recommended tire pressure for your vehicle?

At TireVan, we often get asked how important accurate tire pressure is for a vehicle and how to find the recommended tire pressure?

Tire pressure is one of the most important factors to ensure the longest life out of your tires, as well as maximum gas mileage and optimal vehicle performance.  Let’s take a moment to understand how each of these factors affects tire pressure and how to find the recommended tire pressure for your vehicle.

Tread Life

Tires are expensive, and most of us would like to find ways to maximize the value of our investment. Unfortunately, inaccurate tire pressure can significantly reduce a tire’s life. Under-inflation and over-inflation each lead to a tire’s deformation and inconsistent performance.

Under-inflation causes the vehicle’s weight to be unevenly distributed on the sidewall and leads to excessive shoulder wear. It also causes heat to build up rapidly in tires, which can lead to quicker breakdown of rubber and eventual tire failure. On the other hand, over-inflation causes the weight of the vehicle to be unevenly distributed towards the center of the tire and can lead to the center of the tire wearing out quicker than the rest of the tire. Over-inflation also reduces your tire’s “footprint,” which can lead to less than optimal traction.

Gas Mileage

One of the primary concerns on a driver’s mind today is the cost of gas. As you may already know, change in tire pressure can measurably impact gas mileage. Under-inflated tires create higher-than-average drag on a vehicle, which leads the engine working harder and an increase in the rolling resistance of the tire. The outcome of this scenario is a lower than usual MPG (miles per gallon) average, which means a higher than usual expense.  Therefore, keeping your tires properly inflated can help keep your fuel expense in check.

Ride Quality

Ride quality can also be affected by inflation.  Under-inflation can cause the vehicle to feel like its riding on gelatin.  The tire is unable to maintain its shape, and this situation can also lead to less than optimal steering precision and cornering ability. Over-inflation can lead to a “stiff” ride, because tires are unable to tackle road irregularities effectively. However, over-inflation can improve cornering and steering up to a point, which is why some automotive enthusiasts who race on tracks tend to operate their vehicles at a higher-than-recommended inflation level.

Another question we are commonly asked at TireVan is, “How do I find the manufacturer’s recommended tire pressure for my car?”

Some people mistakenly believe that the tire pressure information stamped on the sidewall of a tire is the manufacturer-recommended tire pressure for that tire. In reality, that is the “Max Pressure” that you can safely put in the tire.  It’s important to understand that the maximum pressure does not mean that you should operate your tire at this pressure or that it’s even safe to do so for your vehicle.

Another misconception in the marketplace is the belief that inflating your tires to their maximum pressure will allow you to carry more weight in your vehicle.  This is also NOT true! More often than not, your vehicle’s maximum load carrying capability is actually based on the strength of its chassis and/or suspension rather than the tires.