Tire experts PSI discussion

[GryphonHunter]

Tpms sensors are set to a certain pressure and that setting can be adjusted and re set. So that's not a biggie. Psi is listed on the tires but that's just the hot and cold max pressures. Your supposed to go off the door like was commented. Assuming your using the correct rating tires. Otherwise I'd say just do what years of driving and common knowledge have taught you. If they were 80 max I'd run them at 60 all around and adjust from there depending on what your doing that trip.

I’ve been told the setpoint for TPMS can be adjusted, but have never actually found anyone who can or will do it. Several shops have said it’s not legal for them to change the factory settings. If that’s true there must be a lot of super duty trucks with the warning light on. Anyone know where you could get it adjusted if it is an option?

Good luck finding a legit shop that would monkey with TPMS pressure settings. It’s not worth it for the legal liability for the shop.

The government mandates for TPMS came about after the Firestone/Ford Explorer fiasco. The reality of that whole thing is the majority of those Explorers that had their factory installed firestone tires blowout causing the Explorer to roll over happened in the south (warm climates). From the factory Ford stated that the psi should be set at 26 pounds...WAY too low for that heavy of a vehicle. So of course the inevitable happened.

-Warm climate
-Heavy rig
-passenger rated tires
-Under inflated
-Freeeway speed
Tires becomes overheated from under inflation=catostrophic blowout.

Granted those Firestone’s were cheaply constructed tires, however, you add up all of those additional factors and you’re going to have problems.

A legit tire shop simply isn’t going to take on that liability of messing with TPMS settings. Peoples lives are at stake.

[Badhabit]

Holy cow, I went out this morning to do a cold psi check. Tire shop said they put the fronts to 50PSI and rears to 80, both fronts were at 62.5 according to my digital air gauge and the rears were at 76. I set all 4 at 50PSI. So far they are very quiet on the highway.

[lokidog]

Tire shops always over inflat .
Tire wears out faster that way .Should say right on tire what psi should be.
I always keep all four the same ,unless hauling then 10-15 pounds more in the rear but that's just me.

Needed some air at Costco once, the guy put 30lb in tires rated for much higher, said that's the way it's supposed to be. I added more later to just under max specs....

[Sandberm]

Whats fun is when you have 3 different tire pressure gauges and they all read a different pressure.

Might as well just use one and pretend its the one that reads correctly.  At least you will be consistently wrong...sort of like voting a straight Democrat ticket 

 Or just do the "kick the tire method" and call it good.

[Special T]

Tpms sensors are set to a certain pressure and that setting can be adjusted and re set. So that's not a biggie. Psi is listed on the tires but that's just the hot and cold max pressures. Your supposed to go off the door like was commented. Assuming your using the correct rating tires. Otherwise I'd say just do what years of driving and common knowledge have taught you. If they were 80 max I'd run them at 60 all around and adjust from there depending on what your doing that trip.

I’ve been told the setpoint for TPMS can be adjusted, but have never actually found anyone who can or will do it. Several shops have said it’s not legal for them to change the factory settings. If that’s true there must be a lot of super duty trucks with the warning light on. Anyone know where you could get it adjusted if it is an option?

Good luck finding a legit shop that would monkey with TPMS pressure settings. It’s not worth it for the legal liability for the shop.

The government mandates for TPMS came about after the Firestone/Ford Explorer fiasco. The reality of that whole thing is the majority of those Explorers that had their factory installed firestone tires blowout causing the Explorer to roll over happened in the south (warm climates). From the factory Ford stated that the psi should be set at 26 pounds...WAY too low for that heavy of a vehicle. So of course the inevitable happened.

-Warm climate
-Heavy rig
-passenger rated tires
-Under inflated
-Freeeway speed
Tires becomes overheated from under inflation=catostrophic blowout.

Granted those Firestone’s were cheaply constructed tires, however, you add up all of those additional factors and you’re going to have problems.

A legit tire shop simply isn’t going to take on that liability of messing with TPMS settings. Peoples lives are at stake.

Spot on with one caviate. The PSI was fine  for most climates, and since tire pressure is application specific if they had bumped the pressure up to 32psi they would have been fine. Only thing wrong was the pressure rating on the tire.

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[thinkingman]

Tire shops always over inflat .
Tire wears out faster that way .Should say right on tire what psi should be.
I always keep all four the same ,unless hauling then 10-15 pounds more in the rear but that's just me.

Not sure where this idea comes from.
My local Discount Tire always follows the door sticker and I usually ask for a few lbs more.
Higher pressure, while still within factory specs, does not cause faster wear. 
Tires are engineered and manufactured to operate within certain parameters. 
I just got my first-ever set of LT tires.  I am running all 4 at 38lb and they are smooth and quiet.
If I was doing any heavy hauling, I would go up a few lb.

[skeeter 20i]

I've just worn out my first set of E rated KO2's, I ran them at 50psi all around when not hauling.  I got great life out of them and very even wear at that pressure.  Truck is a 2012 Tundra.

   I am getting great wear out of my 3 year old set at 50psi.  I'll bump it up occasionally if hauling something and sometimes down a bit in the winter but 50 is where I usually run at.  Love these tires..F150

[KFhunter]

My TPMS shows like 33 lbs in my 10 ply Falken WILDPEAK A/T3W    LT265/70R17  on all four corners.

Chevy Colorado, so truck don't weigh much. 


I have Nitto trailgrapplers on my Dodge, I forget the size but around that 31" tall 11.5" wide  16 inch

It depends how much sidewall squish you have to the heat build up.  If your sidewalls are bowed out from low pressure that constant flexion makes heat.  If you had a feather weight truck, you don't need much air, but put a big cast iron diesel block engine over the front tires and your going to need a bunch of air even on the same tires as your smaller light weight truck.  I could put my falkens off the colorado on the dodge and I'd have to air them up past 33psi. 

Diesels are funny in that on my truck (95 12v cummins) I run 60 in the front and 40 in the rear (or less) or it beats me to death on the gravel roads. Also 60-80 psi tire spins like crazy on pavement, gravel, wherever because there's not much footprint or pavement contact on the rear of an empty truck.  You just have a very narrow strip of rubber hitting the road across the bottom of a round tire with an empty truck on the rear.

With a load of hay I'll bump the rear to 80psi and fill the airbags to reduce squat but I pretty much leave the fronts at 60 all the time.  I have a nice 12v air compressor. 


If your going to be empty all the time or just tow a boat you don't need that much air in the rear of your Chevy Duramax

[Magnum_Willys]

Diesels are funny in that on my truck (95 12v cummins) I run 60 in the front and 40 in the rear (or less) or it beats me to death on the gravel roads.

Son has same truck but lifted,  runs 45 front, 25 rear on logging roads to smooth the ride - thats with two leaves taken out in the rear with 35" ko3's

[jstone]

Ok so I am a tire dummy. Don’t you get better mileage if your tire are aired up? Say max is 80 you want like 60 all around for gas mileage and ride? Less on a logging road for better ride?

I have a 2015 Silverado 3500 with lifted 35” tires. 4 door regular box

[Special T]

Ok so I am a tire dummy. Don’t you get better mileage if your tire are aired up? Say max is 80 you want like 60 all around for gas mileage and ride? Less on a logging road for better ride?

I have a 2015 Silverado 3500 with lifted 35” tires. 4 door regular box

yes but only to a point, AND it reduces braking power/traction.  Each vehicle has a sweet spot for mileage, traction and wear. You dont really know unless you play with it. Narrow tires have reduced rolling resistance, A tire like yours that has a larger volume than stock can do more with less air pressure. I knew a guy with a Unimog that ran severely oversized tires and ran on 5psi most of the time and with the valve core out  off road.

[luckyman]

I have an f250 super duty with the 7.3
Empty and light loads I run 60# up front and 50# in the rear. With a heavy load I go 60# all around. It rides better and give even tire wear. 80# in the rear is way too much. Ive done it in the past with this truck and others and besides going through rear tires fast it ride terrible.

[6x6in6]

Ram 3500 SRW, I run 70 in the front and 60 at the rear empty.  Any decent load in the bed or in tow I run the rears up to 70-75.  The camper goes on, the rears go to 80. 

[Grit dog]

06 GMC 2500HD Crewcab 4x4 with the duramax. No sensors 10 Ply load range E.

Id run 50-60psi front and 40-50 psi rear empty.
Anyone who runs their 80 psi truck tires at max pressure unless the load dictates, is not doing themselves or their tires any favors.

[Lefty315]

I have the same truck you have minus the Diesel engine.   I run the same tires.   I keep all four tires around 55psi unless I know I’m going to haul some noticeable weight.  I had an Arctic Fox 811 camper for it that I’d put the rear at 80 and the front at 70 when I had it loaded.   The first set got me 48,000 miles before I replaced them.   Had it been summer I would have ran them a little longer but it was late fall when I replaced them.   55psi seems a decent ride on the highway and not too terrible on the forest service roads.