I talked to someone at tirerack and they told me that with 205/50/15's, I'll need to run 35 psi in each tire in order not to damage the tire or the rim...

can someone elaborate on this a little bit?

 

Take a look at the manufacturers recommended pressure and dont rely on hearsay.

Whether they were from TireRack or not it doesnt make that service advisor infallible. They very well may require 35psi. But they also might not and he could be a n00b

 

I usually just read the max cold psi from the sidewall of the tire. subtract 3 and run that. keep a close eye on tread wear to make sure they aren't over inflated, but I've never had a problem.

 

dang i think thats kind of high. Stock had like 44psi max on the sidewall but recommended 32psi in the manual/door sill sticker. Arent 205/50/15's a lil too small for the accord?


[Modified by TypeSH, 8:54 PM 12/8/2002]

 

Nope, the size is good, but I wouldn't go around saying max pressure less 3 psi either. Especially not in hot weather where pressure rises over 10psi with normal highway driving. Imagine if you start driving it hard... could be a blowout you'd have then.

 

Never go by the max pressure. Read the pressure suggested on the door which is 32 psi and go from there. I personally like 33 psi in the stock 195 60s or for the winter in my 205 55h 15s. In the summer I ran 34 psi in my 205 55 15s. So 35 psi in a 205 50 is probably where you want to be. I have also heard that with lower profile you should increase the air pressure a tad.

 

well i won't say that 35 psi is wrong. it's not. I've run max less 3 - 5 psi for a long time. several different cars and plenty of tires. never had one problem.

max cold psi on the sidwall is for when the tire is cold. it takes into account higher pressures from the tire being in use. If you set it when the tire is hot then you will actually be low on pressure. there is little to no danger of a properly pressurized tire going over the absolute max psi under all but the most extreem conditions, such as road racing in 100 degree temps. Low tire pressures actually create more heat, due to more friction, than higher pressures, just ask ford and firestone. low tire pressure, and heavily loaded vehicles were MAJOR contributing factors in a lot of the rollover accidents.

tire pressure is one of the key factors in load capacity. Higher tire pressure will give you a higher(slightly) load capacity. Obviously the Accord isn't a SUV so thats not a big issue but the point is that right next to the tire pressures on the door is a load rating. that load rating is for those tire pressures. never put anything in the car and you can safely run a lower pressure. drive around with a big *** sub box in your trunk and you should up the rear tire pressures.

Higher tire pressures give a lower rolling resistance, meaning better gas mileage, and better cornering through stiffer sidewalls. lower gives you more traction by slightly increasing the contact patch size, think drag slick.

there are lots of tradeoffs. keep it between the tire manufacutures upper and lower psi reccomendations and you can tune the cars ride and perfomance slightly with it. spend $10 - $15 and buy a good pressure guage. use it at least once a month or more, and whenever there is a drastic change in average ambient temp. Pay attention to tire wear.

I'm just amazed at how many people pay no attention to their tires. if they are round and black thats good enough for most people. A lot of newer tires are built with a stiff enough sidewall that the tire will be dangereously underinflated before it looks low. It's the only thing keeping you on the road. IMHO, you can't pay enough attention to them. I'm not pointing any fingers at anyone here, so don't take it as a slam. I've seen countless cars on the road running around with almost flats, an oblivious driver behind the wheel.

 

Excellent info jweller ! They typically want you to run higher pressure in a lower sidewall tire like a 50 series. The higher pressure lessens sidewall flex so when you hit a pothole or bump the tire (sidewall) will not flex to the point where the rim contacts the road and bends or dents. I always run at max pressure. Lower your tires about 5 PSI and then drive around the block. Raise it back up to to the max pressure (on the side of the tire) and see if you feel a difference. The car feels more responsive due to less rolling resistance. I always feel an immediate change for the better when I top off my tires.
You should use the pressure ratings on the sidewall of the tire if they are not the OEM tires that came with the car. The tire pressure on the door sill/manual are for stock OEM tires. They did not manufacture the new tires you are putting on and do not know what the safe running pressure of these are. I had Goodyear tire that were max 44psi and I ran them at that with no problems. They felt sloppy at 35 PSI.
The whole problems with the Firestone tires were actually Fords fault with a nice coverup/pass the buck. Firestone had supplied OEM tires for Ford SUVs. The engineers at Ford said the ride was too harsh at the recommended psi rating of Firestone's tires. So Ford deliberately underinflated them for a more cushy ride. As jweller said, the lower tire pressure supports less weight and more rolling resistance. That in turn generated more heat (which is why most of the rollovers were on the highway) as the tire moved eventually causing the tire to blowout. Which would cause the SUV to lose control and roll over. The people at Firestone told Ford that the tires were not safe to carry that weight capacity at that pressure but were basically ignored. Due to pressure from the government and consumer groups, Firestone was forced to recall their tires. Good job Ford

 

This is very good advice. I bought a Snap On tire gauge because it wasn't that expensive and you'd be surprised how far off some of those cheap gas station/Pep bOys ones can be. They can vary by 5 PSI depending on if you are holding them upright, sideways, or upside down. SOme will vary if you take 3 readings of the same tire, they can all vary a few PSI. So yes, get a good gauge.

 

I totally agree man. I see so many tires on cars either underinflated or with poor tread. The other thing I hate is retards running their 17s w/ summer tires that have no M+S rating in the winter. This is winter time right now and we are getting snow once a week, these people are such a danger to us on the road. These people should go to jail if they kill someone in an accident.

 

I run 34 psi cold all the way around and 42 psi rear 41 psi front hot, depending on heat temps across the tire at pit-out

wait, we are talking street tires here, that's for R compounds only

I run whatever looks right because I am the ultimate stunnah

 

Put chalk on the sidewalls. Inflate to 32psi. Drive hard. If chalk gets rubbed off, add psi. Repeat until chalk is no longer being rubbed off from sidewalls.

 

I have some 215/40R17 tires, but the recommended pressure for them is 50Psi , I was thinking this was too much...so i put in 35Psi.....should i put it up to 50Psi? That sounds like its a lot of pressure....what pressure do you think i should put in?

 

What kinda tire is that?
I have my 17 205/45/17 with 35psi max
I put 33+-1 psi
is good to get the psi reading after it warm up(right?)
well said everyone, could do any better

 

NO!!

ideally you should take the tires temp when it is at it's coldest, ie, has not been driven on for 4+ hours, and has not been sitting in the sun. heat from sunlight is enough to influence tire pressure.NO!!

ideally you should take the tires temp when it is at it's coldest, ie, has not been driven on for 4+ hours, and has not been sitting in the sun. heat from sunlight is enough to influence tire pressure.

 

i know when i use to work at this audio shop around here, i use to also set up rims and tires and we were always told to put everything 3 less than the max psi... just my .02

 

LOL haha good idea..wait..didnt I already said it? jk
good help