Does this reduce drag?

[pasadena_commut]

Originally Posted by bhazard

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...6/IMG_0922.jpg
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Fix the big dent? At highway speeds it could mess up air flow a bit and cause increased drag.

[bbjsw10]

Originally Posted by CobraBall

Overinflating also decreases the tire contact area making the vehicle more likely to hydroplane on a wet surface. Not a problem if you live in Mojave.

Over inflating would decrease the risk of hydroplaning. When is the last time your bicycle hydroplaned. A wide tire is able to "float" on top of the water causing it to hydroplane. A narrow tire sinks into the water allowing it to grip the road. Same goes with snow, now ice that is another story.

[bhazard]

The tires are junkyard tires. The fronts are pretty low on tread and dryrotting, I will want to replace them within a year. The rears have pretty good tread though. Either way at $15 a piece for the wheels/tires Im not worrying too much about wear.

[brucepick]

Originally Posted by CobraBall

... 50 PSI on 44 PSI tires. IMHO what you might save in MPG by overinflating the tires will be lost when the center of the tires wear out prematurely .

Overinflating also decreases the tire contact area making the vehicle more likely to hydroplane on a wet surface. Not a problem if you live in Mojave...

I beg to differ on these two counts.
Please see this article:
Driving Under Pressure: Editorial & Features at Officer.com

Numerous hypermilers have run tires at higher than sidewall without center wear. Documented over many tens of thousands of miles. The concern is from old outdated information from the days before radial tires. I've driven 30K on my 44 psi tires, running at 50 and 52 psi, since putting them on last summer and I still have deeper tread in the center than out near the edges. My commute has been 50 + 60 miles each way (two different jobs) so my tires see a lot of miles.

Higher pressure has proven to be a great deterrent to hydroplaning. Reduced contact area = more weight of car per square inch of tire-on-road. This means it pushes through the water better. The opposite - more surface area - would make you hydroplane more easily, like getting up on water skis.

Please don't argue non-facts like hydroplaning and center wear.

You can argue that higher pressure will give a rougher ride. That's about it. Handling definitely improves. Some may argue that higher pressure reduces braking action BUT my theory is that the reduced contact area gives more weight per square inch so the friction per square inch is actually increased, probably a wash vs. "normal" pressure.

[ajax_6531]

I thought the same thing before, but...

Somebody help me out here, I can't find the post.

Somebody posted a link to some tire guy's website where he published test results and his opinion as a professional tire guy about overinflating tires. Basically, he said that increasing your tire pressure does not negatively affect your tires at all, and in some aspects, it improves. The one thing that pushed me over the line was the fact that steel belted radial tires will not cause the center of the tread to wear faster with the tires running a few pounds over the vehicle's recommended pressure. The belts keep the tire in shape, and unless you're planning on running huge pressures, you won't notice the wear difference. He also recommended a 3-5 pound increase if you were to do it.

Now, I really wish I had the link saved. It's around here somewhere...

[justpassntime]

Originally Posted by bhazard

Its all by hand.

And justpassntime I could be wrong but I think the titanium frost color was the rarest color made. Second being mine. In late 88 they were ending the TC production by introducing the "Mach 1 Special Edition" paint package. It consisted of either bright red (mine) or, I believe the titanium frost color (kind of a bluish silver?) and "Mach 1 SE" stickers in the quarter windows. Did your car have such things? Ive seen a few of the bright red cars but NEVER the "other" color. From what Ive heard they are REALLY REALLY rare.

I have never seen a red TC, never heard of the special edition version either. I have seen more black TCs than any other color. The titanium frost almost looked lavender from certain angles. It had everything on it except leather seats.

Oh, my best friend in HS moved to Swanton after graduation in 1980. I went into the military and lost contact. Probably your mom. LOL