Tire pressures

I can smell a low tire after a bit of highway driving. But I too got a fancy new digital gauge recently. After a lifetime of stick gauges, then dial gauges, this digital is great! I especially like that it lights up, because now checking pressure at night is no hassle (that's when all the air pumps are unused at all stations!)

Only concern with it is that it looks quite like a small revolver. I've walked toward the station attendants with it in my hand, to request air pump be turned on, and seen alarmed looks on their faces!

Do you have oil? Does the cooling system have water? Sheesh. C

While all my tires emit a bit of "black rubber stink" anytime they've had a few minutes of continuous rolling at highway speeds, a tire just down a few pounds will emit much more noticable odor than the others.

Is the Hummer the only car offering dashboard gauges to show each tire's air pressure?

Anybody try out those AccuPressure dealies that replace your valve stem caps? They're available in dofferent pressures and turn green-yellow-red to warn of underinflation. One concern would be if they are attractive to thieves but they seem like a good idea. I think I saw them on ebay for about $16 or so. I think JC whitney and others have them.

Carl

1 Lucky Texan

W>>Hmm. . that explains the slight rubber-y scent in the air I'd been smelling

Unfortunately I was not. The rear right tire really had gotten as low as

17.5PSI. . but that was the only wheel on the car that was under 25 PSI, and it (thankfully) wasn't one of the drive wheels unless the 4WD was engaged.

In my defense, I hadn't had any prior experience with cars or tires at all (except bicycle tires when I was a kid) before owning a car, and my driver's ed classroom teacher apparently couldn't be bothered to teach us that the tire pressures really were important. As I said in my original post, I ass-u-me'd (assumed) that the tires would be slouching at the bottoms if they'd gotten bad. Checking the tire pressures is now incorporated into my fill-up procedure. Problem is, there seems to be differing opinions about whether the tire pressures should be checked when hot or cold. .? Not sure, but mine were only lukewarm when I read the PSI and pumped them up. It's really a pain to check mine when cold - I have to drive to a gas station where an air hose is, and then wait for them to cool before I do anything.

Anyway, the manual on the car said the tires should be 28 PSI the world around. . I decided to run 30, because I've read in many articles written by credible sources that higher pressure gives slightly better mileage and tire life.

I've learned my lesson. . at least I didn't learn it the hard way when one of my drive train components was damaged by it or a wheel was bent, eh? ( You should have seen the look on my face when I saw the reading on that gauge after I took it off the rear right tire. . )

--Decimal Cat

Check'm at home when they're cold. Note which ones need air, and how much. (ie: Front left at 28, needs 4 more...)

When you get to the service station check'm again. Front left now at 30, needs about 4 - fill to just over 34. Repeat for all 4 wheels.

Checking them cold is the only way to get repeatable consistent readings - without checking the temperature of the tire as well. It just requires a bit of short term memory to remember which tires need which amount of extra air. If you do it regularly it's usually only one or two at a time anyhow.

(and yes, I have ruined a perfectly good set of tires by being lazy with tire pressure. Cost me a good 20,000 miles of wear. But never again. ;))

*nods* S'what I thought.

I can fill the tires at home when they're cold/been sitting in my driveway all night even though I don't have a compressor, because I do have a small

12V electric tire pump. Only problem is it takes five minutes to put ten PSI in one tire. If the tire is starting from no pressurization at all, clip the hose on it and go have lunch. ;)

That's why I got lazy and went to the gas station.

I know someone who once blew a bicycle tire up real well. . it was pretty low, so he just clipped the compressor hose on it and turned around to talk to his friend. Well, this worked fine for about thirty seconds, at which point the tire exploded. Fortunately nobody was hurt.

I can just imagine what a pressure gauge would have read while that happened. .

"15. . 20. . 30. . 40. . 45. . *KABOOM!* . . 0. ." *g*

--Decimal Cat

There are cheap rechargeable battery-operated or lighter-outlet operated tire compressors you can buy for $50 or $60 or so; I have one that I use for all my car and motorcycle tires, well worth owning. Check Sears for specials.