Maintaining Tire Pressure

[ursle]

Found a screw in my tyre earlier this summer
took the car ro a tyre warehouse and had it plugged and then saw an add for nitrogen instead of air, went with the nitrogen, it never changes with the seasons the way air does, it also doesn't contain water so it won't rot your tyres out from the inside, I'll keep and eye on the amount (42f 40r), but so far so good
tyre warehouse said new cars are coming with nitrogen, I still haven't heard that anywhere else but it would be nice to think so

[a64pilot]

Air I believe is 87% nitrogen. I've never seen a tire rot from the inside, have you?
Back in my racing days we used to use nitrogen in tires, but only because a nitrogen bottle was cheaper than any other at the gas supply house. You didn't have electricity at the pit road to run a compressor and the easiest and cheapest thing to fill tires, run impact wrenches etc. was a bottle filled with nitrogen and regulated to 120 PSI or so.
There is absolutely no advantage to using nitrogen in an automobile tire.
I've heard everything from the expansion rate for nitrogen is different to every other excuse to sell it. It's snake oil, save your money.

Edit, on reflection I think I got the numbers backward, maybe it's 78%

[VIAIR Corp]

Regular air is roughly 79% Nitrogen, 21% oxygen. Give or take 1% for the other gases.

JJ742 mentioned that the Prius accessory outlets can only draw 10amps. Is that true?

[New_Yorker]

Originally Posted by MaggieMay

Chicken and egg question: I have a spiffy new tire gauge to help maintain my tire pressure which I know I should measure when the tires are cold. However, I'm roughly 2 miles to the nearest source of compressed air/gas station. So by the time I get there I imagine the tires are pretty warm - too warm? How accurate will the pressure reading be?

Do I have to have a big huge, heavy, noisey air compressor that I haul out of the basement to top off my tires every week or so? (Answer = No)

Any advice? -Thanks!

Maggie May,

All you need to do to achieve correct tire pressure is this. Check the tires before moving the car in the morning and write down how much air in pounds you need to add when you get the car to the air pump at the gas station to reach the correct factory tire pressure level. When you arrive at the air pump check the pressure again, and add the amount you recorded when the tire was cold. If you want to check yourself afterward simply check the tires the next time they are cold, like the next morning.

Another method is to over fill the tires just before you stop using the car for the day, and then let out however much excess tire pressure the next morning when you check them and adjust them to the factory specs.

Incidentally many Toyota Dealers adjust your tire pressure when the tires are Hot when you have them do an oil change. I always instruct them to leave my tires alone, and not spray white grease all over the door hinges, something else they do that makes me crazy.

[New_Yorker]

Originally Posted by ursle

Found a screw in my tyre earlier this summer
took the car ro a tyre warehouse and had it plugged and then saw an add for nitrogen instead of air, went with the nitrogen, it never changes with the seasons the way air does, it also doesn't contain water so it won't rot your tyres out from the inside, I'll keep and eye on the amount (42f 40r), but so far so good
tyre warehouse said new cars are coming with nitrogen, I still haven't heard that anywhere else but it would be nice to think so

MYTH BUSTING DEPT.

Tires deteriorate from sunlight and heat, which help create drying out of the rubber. Water is not a problem. Keep the tires of stored vehicle covered to prevent deterioration from sunlight, 'Photochemical degradation' but its OK if they get wet.

[enerjazz]

Originally Posted by New_Yorker

MYTH BUSTING DEPT.

Tires deteriorate from sunlight and heat, which help create drying out of the rubber.

Agree, than N2 doesn't prolong life. Driving on them seems to wear tires out. For longest tire life fill with N2, store in a cool and shady location, and certainly do not drive on them.

[New_Yorker]

Originally Posted by enerjazz

Agree, than N2 doesn't prolong life. Driving on them seems to wear tires out. For longest tire life fill with N2, store in a cool and shady location, and certainly do not drive on them.

Tires used as intended last a very long time, and they only dry rot when left out in sunlight for about twice the time it takes a normal driver to wear the tread down to replacement levels. Brushing your teeth wears out your toothbrush so by your logic you'd prefer rotten teeth to a worn out toothbrush. most everybody else would disagree with that toothbrush saving strategy, and they'd also prefer to drive on their tires for the same reason. It is the wise use of each product. And the past 100 years of automobile use suggests that Air works just fine when adjusting the tire pressure no need to use anything more exotic than that, ever.

[ksstathead]

Originally Posted by New_Yorker

Tires used as intended last a very long time, and they only dry rot when left out in sunlight for about twice the time it takes a normal driver to wear the tread down to replacement levels. Brushing your teeth wears out your toothbrush so by your logic you'd prefer rotten teeth to a worn out toothbrush. most everybody else would disagree with that toothbrush saving strategy, and they'd also prefer to drive on their tires for the same reason. It is the wise use of each product. And the past 100 years of automobile use suggests that Air works just fine when adjusting the tire pressure no need to use anything more exotic than that, ever.

I think enerjazz was saying the same as you: The tires will wear out before the oxygen in the straight air causes any concern.

[enerjazz]

Originally Posted by ksstathead

I think enerjazz was saying the same as you: The tires will wear out before the oxygen in the straight air causes any concern.

Glad someone got my sarcasm. When I was negotiating my used Prius from a local dealer I saw they had a new 2010 Prius with a $199 markup on the sticker for N2 in the tires. I reached a price agreement with them on the used 2007, then told them to deduct another $199 since I would never pay for that "N2 in the tires" scam.

[FCBarca]

I know analog is preferred over digital gauges but curious what is a recommended one to keep in the glove box?