44 PSI max on the michelin energy S8 tire.

 

He was talking about a Ford Escape Hybrid SUV. I would think he would be using a SUV or lightweight truck tire. 50 psi does seem high but some tires have a very high max pressure a heavier built tire.

I was buying diesel at a truck stop. I asked a 18 wheeler driver how much air he runs in his tires. He said 90 psi. That kind of rattled me, I had no idea. That would be less wear under load and they would run cooler at that pressure.

 

Pressure is determined by a few factors.

1. capability of the tires

2. size of the tires

3. load carried by the tires

4. speed the tire is operated

5. ambient temperature where the tire is operated

There is no one magic pressure that all people should run, and the manufactirers pick a "safe" pressure that should work for all people.

I personally like the stiffer ride from max inflation pressure as well as the side benifit of increased MPG, and better handling.

If the tire is underinflated it will generate more heat which will translate into more engergy wasted and more wear on the tire.

The only proper way to set you tire inflation is by doing a tread measurement. This is done by painting a patch of the tire's tread with a light coat of paint or chalk. The drive the vehicle forward and see if the pattern left on the ground is even. You want to see a nice square pattern where an equal amount of inner and outter tread are in contact with the road. If your pattern looks like twoo streaks, you are under inflated, and if you only have tread contact on the middle of the tire, you are over inflated.

 

Thanks!

 

I've been running 42psi front, 40psi rear for the past 30,000 miles on the factory Bridgestone tires. All tires are wearing evenly and measured 7/32 tread depth at 30K.

I admit I am a bit surprised that the tires are so even. I half expected the centers to be wearing out faster, but they are not. The tires handle much better at 42/40 psi than at 32 psi. The difference is dramatic when cornering.

The tires run very cool. Even after driving 35 miles to work, the tires are just barely warm to the touch when temps are in the 70's and 80's.

 

36 bridgestone

 

I'd love it if these forums had poll/survery capbilities.
Any moderators or admins out there?

 

Great idea!

 

You can.

Haven't done it but in the new thread settings one is:

Post a Poll Yes, post a poll with this thread
Number of poll options: (Maximum: 20)




And I know I've submitted at least one poll response before (something about how much traffic smells, in the TCH?).

 

Didn't see that one
I'll set one up