Tire Pressure

[Keith01]

Hi all, joined 3 months ago but first post. I had a rear tire tread start to separate and cause an out of round tire. This was a Michelin [oem] tire with about 20k on it. My question on tire pressure is what is your opinion for front and rear pressure with no load in the bed and with a load (towing mostly)? Door jamb shows 45 front and 80 rear. Tire side wall shows 80 for max load rating. Also going through some old papers when I bought the truck in '92, I found a tire pressure chart that recomended for speeds above 65 mph to add 10 psi to the max load psi which contradicts the max of 80 on the tire. Never had a problem when the hwy speeds where 55 but am now curious with the current hwy speeds if anybody is doing things different. Thanks Keith

 

[AlK]

Keith01,

Welcome aboard. You joined a good group that is very helpful and provides a lot of imformation.



I have Michelin XPS tires on my truck and I always run them near the maximum inflation recommended. I have over 80,000 Km on them and so far no problems not even a flat. Pro's for higer inflation - tires run cooler, better mileage and longer life(IMO).

Con's for higer inflation - a harder ride, but then this is a real truck and not a car with a box in the back.

---

Al

 

[WestTN]

The ratings for light truck tires can be confusing. The door plate gives the maximum axle load ratings. The pressures given are the MINIMUM pressure required to carry the MAXIMUM load. If you are not loaded that heavily you can run less air. The trick here is to know what each axle carries for your normal use. This requires a trip to the scales to weigh your truck when loaded to what you normally carry. Then you can visit a tire dealer with your tire size and load rating to learn what pressure will be needed to properly aupport the load.

Hope this helps.

 

[ETOBICOKE]

I run Michelin LTX on the front and XPS on the rear. Usualy have 65-70 psi all around. You can run less in the rear unloaded if you like, it just that you will have to add more air to carry a heavier load. Since I end up running empty and heavily loaded, I found it more practicle not to vary the tire pressure. The best guide is to keep a close eye on your tire wear, run the highest pressure that doesn't wear the center of the tire faster than the edges. This also helps to counter some of the edge wear on the front tires from cornering. As AL stated tires do run cooler and you get better mileage with higher inflation pressure.



Neil

 

[HGeier]

I run Toyo's at 75 lbs all around, 80 lbs on the rear when towing.

Last set of Toyo's replaced after 55,000 miles, but still had a possible 6 to 10 k miles left. Stiff ride when solo, but wife won't ride in truck unless she has to. (to much noise. ) _____________________________________________________89 reg cab. Banks intercooler and power pack, Diamond plate tool box, air bags, trans shift kit on 3 speed auto, pyrometer, boost pressure, trans temp. gauges. K & N filter. 221,000 miles and still going strong.