How many PSI do you run in YOUR tires?

[1337]

I've seen a few discussions about safe levels of overinflation and "hyperinflation."
(See
Tire Engineer here - concerned about hyperinflating tires

Hyperinflating tires

However, I have yet to see a thread about what ecomodders run in their tires. Please post how many PSI, what sort of tires, and how your inflation compares to the sidewall max.

In my Mazda, I run 48 PSI in the front tires (Michelin Harmony, rated at 44 PSI) and in the back, I run 42 PSI (some off-brand Hercules tires, with no rating listed).

I recently jumped to 48/42 from 45/38. Based on my last few tanks, I think it's likely that the extra few PSI helped my fuel economy.

[Frank Lee]

Your temps have risen recently right?

[blueflame]

Here in NZ my 36psi's and 44psi's have 60psi in them.

12,000km driven in 6 months and even wear front and back

[cfg83]

1337 -

I put them at the sidewall max of 51 PSI. Typically the tires are ~7 miles warm from city travel when I do this.

CarloSW2

[hummingbird]

50 PSI in all tires with a sidewall max of 51. I leave that 1 PSI out because it is difficult to gauge with my pump pressure meter which is analog and I want stay within sidewall max, as MetroMPG's A-B-A testing has indicated marginal or no real benefit after 50 PSI is reached .

I would go higher if the sidewall max pressure were higher. (60 PSI would be limiting case... Don't want it to get blamed on the high pressure if I get into trouble with omnipresent potholes on Indian roads.)

[Katana]

I run 32 in all mine as the sidewall says 36PSI, since the suspension is rather soft it doesn't affect the ride too much.

[McTimson]

My tires say 35 max, and I run them at 34. I'm going to try to get higher PSI rated tires once these wear down, as I'd like to run them much higher, but I'd rather not risk it.

[brucepick]

My tires are marked 44 psi and I'm running them right around 50, read when cold in the morning. I had to get used to the firmer ride but now I don't notice it.

Katana, you might try running your tires at 35-36 psi unless they're not in good condition. I found a handling improvement right around 40 psi when I gradually increased from 35.

For years and years, I ran my 32 psi and 35 psi tires at the labeled 32 and 35 pressures. Every time the tread wore down, it was worn on the outside with deeper tread in the middle. That is, even at so-called max pressure, they were still wearing more on the outside.

I now have two cars with 44 psi tires, running at 50. The older set has over 10K miles and the tread is still DEEPER in the center than at the edges, in spite of the high pressure.

[hummingbird]

Originally Posted by brucepick

I now have two cars with 44 psi tires, running at 50. The older set has over 10K miles and the tread is still DEEPER in the center than at the edges, in spite of the high pressure.

Yeah, I also have 10k miles on my set and the observation is the same as above. Maybe it is the mechanism built-in in the tires by the mfrs to trigger a fresh tire purchase!

And each time I service my car, stupid service engineers at the dealership keep making faces and repeat how over-inflation will wear out the center more than sides!

[bwilson4web]

I'm a little confused by the question:

• absolute pressure - I'm running Sumitomo T4s with 51 psi front and 49 psi rear.
• relative pressure - My Sumitomo T4s are rated at maximum sidewall pressure of 51 psi so my relative pressure is 0 psi front and -2 psi rear.
• OEM pressure - Toyota recommends 32 psi for OEM tires that came with my 2003 Prius so my replacement Sumitomo T4s are running +19 psi front and +17 psi rear.

Let me suggest that one or more polls might be a more efficient way to collect the tire pressure spread. Of all metrics, I would be more interested in the 'relative pressure' compared to the maximum sidewall pressure value. But given non-USA folks use standard units, a relative percentage might be more useful and easier to deal with.

It is a good question.

Bob Wilson