car buffs,
pls  what is the best pressure to inflate ur tyre?,
my manual  says  29psi, while  on the tire  itself, they recommend 44psi,

am thinking i shud follow  whats  written on the tyre?, abi what do u guys  think?

The pressure indicated on the tyre sidewall is the maximum pressure the tyre could take.

The pressures your tyres should set to are those recommended by your car manufacturer.

The pressures are determined by the car's weight, velocity and cornering ability.
So, setting a pressure of 44 psi, because that's inscribed on the tyre, on a car that weighs 980 kgs would cause a very harsh, bouncy ride.

As a rough guide, pressures should be set to 30 psi, if the car's pressure values are not immediately available, and adjusted accordingly once the correct figures are known.

no need to make this any complicated than it is, check on the drivers door wall of your car and u'll see something like this



that is ur recommended tyre pressure by manufacturer and it will allow ur car optimum performance

^^^^ Very true, Area Boy.

But that wouldn't apply if it's an older car, that's had a respray, and the sticker was not replaced.

Not all cars have the values in the door shuts, that is very common among Japanese manufacturers.

But can one bank on the integrity of the pressure guages used by Lagos road-side vulcanisers,those guages look too awkward to take accurate pressure readings.

^^^ Lol.

I suppose you could buy your own combined 12V compressor and gauge.

ok guys good job,
but still think that 29psi is low, thats abt the lowest i hv ever seen on any car, right now, i put them at 35psi,
n who knows where i can buy the presure guage at a good price?

Over here, you can get 12V combined compressor and gauge for as little as £10.

Or a manual foot-operated one for about £5.

I bought a manual foot operated one today and to my amazement all my tires were well above 45psi while the car manufacturers recommended 26psi.

earthrealm:

ok guys good job,
but still think that 29psi is low, thats about the lowest i hv ever seen on any car, right now, i put them at 35psi,
n who knows where i can buy the presure guage at a good price?

If your car manufacturer says 29 psi, then that's correct.

It's all about how the load index on the tyre versus the cars weight were worked out.

To give you an idea, the Mitsubishi Pajero runs 26 psi all round, you'd think it would be a lot more.
But, that's the recommended pressure set by Mitsubishi.

And a lot motor bikes, both power and standard run pressures in excess of 42 psi.

but at 29psi, my tires are a lil bit soft, not hard like a normal tire shud be, anyways, thanks guys 4 ur input, will hv to source 4 n buy the guage, that way i will be sure of my pre, cos most of the local vulcanisers, or rather, fuknisers, as we call dem in naija, hv faulty guages

Siena, lets imagine my car came with 15" factory alloys and the recommended Pressure is say 32psi, i then changed my rims to 18inches and the recommended pressure on my new 18 size tyre says 51psi max, what psi am i to apply on my new tyres, 51, 32 or ,

^^^ As I stated before, always go by the manufacturer's pressure spec.
The pressures shown on tyre sidewalls are the maximum the tyre can accept.
Some much heavier cars will run pressures close to that, but never the maximum. Manufacturer's typically will go up to 46 psi on a 51 psi-rated tyre, to allow for a margin of safety.

If a manufacturer recommends 50 psi for their car, then they'll be looking at tyres with a higher maximum pressure, like 55 psi. Else they'll be running way close to the limit of safety.

The pressures are determined by the cars weight, not the tyre size.
Lets say you fitted an alternative engine, example, replaced an I4 engine with a V6, then the front axle weight will be altered.
In such instances, it'll be prudent to increase the front tyre pressures by about 4 psi over standard.

And decrease the rears by at least 2 psi.

If you inflate your new 18" tyres to 51 psi on a light car, the ride will be bone hard, and the tyres will wear out quite rapidly in the middle, as the car would lack the sheer weight to allow the over-inflated tyres to make contact with the tarmac at the inner and outer edge.

Less road contact in the wet = loss of traction in corners, not safe at all.