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There is nothing wrong about what I posted. If you want optimum fuel mileage and handling in fair weather conditions use the max.
If you want to sacrifice fuel economy and handling for a more comfortable ride with bettertraction in bad driving conditions use a lower pressure.
Those are just the facts.
The article says to use the tire pressures on the door which may be irrelevant to the tire pressure recommended by the manufacturer on replacement tires. That is wrong.
The tire pressure on the door is what you should use. The max on the tire is literally the max it can take safely. The actual pressure depends on the weight of the car. The recommended pressure by Ford is optimal for even tire wear, handling, and ride
While inflating one's tires to the maximum that is listed on the tire's sidewall will definitely improve your fuel economy, it will also lead to uneven tire wear, with the center of the tread area wearing much faster than the edges of the tread.
And lower pressures will lead to the outside wearing faster.... Where I live it could be compared to riding a roller coaster ride. During the summer I want handling so I use a higher pressure, during the winter I want traction so I use a lower pressure. It all evens out in the end, I never have issues with uneven wear.
The tire pressure on the door is what you should use.
You don't seem to understand, those recommendations are based on the tire that came with your car as OEM equipment which may not have the same range of pressures as the one that replaced it.
The tire pressure on the door is what you should use. The max on the tire is literally the max it can take safely.
Exactly!
To misinterpret "maximum" tire pressure as "recommended" tire pressure is just...wrong.
If your doctor told you that he didn't want to see your blood pressure going any higher than...let's say...140/85...that doesn't mean that 140/85 is an ideal blood pressure.
In reality, your MD wants to see a blood pressure lower than those numbers in order to prevent problems. In this sense, your tires are really no different than your arteries.
In addition to producing potentially "squirrely" handling and increasing the tread wear in the center of the tread, using the maximum inflation pressure on a continual basis will inevitably lead to increased wear and tear on ball joints and other front end components, due to the transmission of higher impact forces from potholes.
You don't seem to understand, those recommendations are based on the tire that came with your car as OEM equipment which may not have the same range of pressures as the one that replaced it.
No it's you that misunderstands-- The number on the tire isn't a recommendation, it's the max the tire structure can handle.
Let's say you have a car that weighs 2200lb... You put one of our C-Max tires on the car. Does it make sense to you that the 2200lb car would need the same pressure in the tires?
There is nothing wrong about what I posted. If you want optimum fuel mileage and handling in fair weather conditions use the max.
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I don't think you are using the word handling the way most of us do, which is probably part of the issue in this conversation. First, we'll agree that higher pressures does equal better fuel mileage.
However the handling characteristic that improves with higher pressures is sidewall deflection. You get a stiffer ride, and less give from the sidewalls, which can improve handling. You are likely to get sharper initial turn-in and regular driving my "feel" better. However, as you also correctly noted, you get less "traction" because you have reduced the contact patch of the tire. This generally will lead to less ultimate grip, so while your turn-in may be more precise, you'll lose grip sooner, since you aren't allowing the tire to maximize it's contact patch. Your "ultimate grip" handling will be reduced at maximum pressure in most cases, because the benefits of less sidewall deflection will be outweighed by a smaller contact patch and not using all the tire. To put it simply, it may be feel more precise on your trip to the grocery store. But if you want to maximize the speed you take on the back road or entrance ramp, maximum tire pressure is not the way to do it, because you don't have the best grip in the turn, which most of us consider handling.
In reality there are a ton of variables here, as each tire will be "stickier" in different temperatures, so getting the tires into those temp ranges and not hotter or colder are part of the equation as well. Not to mention, it is becoming more common for cars to call for different pressures front and back to balance the handling characteristics (actually, usually to dial in some understeer for safety) that you'll miss if you inflate all to the maximum pressure, causing less desirable front to rear balance.
It is true, that the manufacturer's recommended pressures for the car aren't perfect for non OEM tires. However, they are a lot closer to the correct pressures to balance handling, comfort, fuel economy and tire wear than the maximum tire pressure on the side wall, which really only gets you fuel economy, at the expense of all others.
I don't think you are using the word handling the way most of us do, which is probably part of the issue in this conversation. First, we'll agree that higher pressures does equal better fuel mileage.
However the handling characteristic that improves with higher pressures is sidewall deflection. You get a stiffer ride, and less give from the sidewalls, which can improve handling. You are likely to get sharper initial turn-in and regular driving my "feel" better. However, as you also correctly noted, you get less "traction" because you have reduced the contact patch of the tire. This generally will lead to less ultimate grip, so while your turn-in may be more precise, you'll lose grip sooner, since you aren't allowing the tire to maximize it's contact patch. Your "ultimate grip" handling will be reduced at maximum pressure in most cases, because the benefits of less sidewall deflection will be outweighed by a smaller contact patch and not using all the tire. To put it simply, it may be feel more precise on your trip to the grocery store. But if you want to maximize the speed you take on the back road or entrance ramp, maximum tire pressure is not the way to do it, because you don't have the best grip in the turn, which most of us consider handling.
It is true, that the manufacturer's recommended pressures for the car aren't perfect for non OEM tires. However, they are a lot closer to the correct pressures to balance handling, comfort, fuel economy and tire wear than the maximum tire pressure on the side wall, which really only gets you fuel economy, at the expense of all others.
Yes!
All of this bears repeating, because all that thecoalman is accomplishing is the dissemination of his opinion, and--unfortunately--his opinion regarding tire inflation is not supported by factual information from tire manufacturers, car makers, and knowledgeable auto experts.
Also, what kind of tires do you have that you keep only filling them up to 32 PSI? Most new passenger tires specify 44.
Huh? Been driving since 1963 and owned a boatload of vehicles: VW Bug, sedans, pickups and never saw a recommendation anywhere near 44.
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