Accu-Gage Tire Gauge with Pressure Release Valve $2.99 @Sears - Free Ship with ShopYourWayMax or Free Store Pickup

Quote from MeatCatalog : People say this all the time so about a year ago I tested this. I filled my tires to 30pounds after a 15 mile drive. Next morning (on cold tires) I checked tire pressure - still 30 pounds. This massive variablity people speak of regarding heat from driving and when to test is completely bogus. Think about it. If your tires are supposed to be 30psi and you fill them cold and they expand during driving (in theory) then you've over inflated. So ideally you should fill them after driving a bit and they are "hot". Period.

You don't know what you're talking about. The manufacturer recommended tire pressure is for a COOL/COLD tire. If, for example, your tires are supposed to be 34 PSI and you fill them to 34 when they are cold, and then after driving on a hot day for 100 miles they are at 37 PSI, they are NOT overinflated at that point. The manufacture takes that into consideration. I can guarantee you that driving for 100 miles on a 100 degree day, your tire pressure will increase a few PSI versus the beginning of the trip when the tires were cold.

Quote from sadude : I hear you, but short of buying your own tire mounting machine and balancer...how do you ensure this? Tires are the one part of my car where I feel my hands are still tied...i do air pressure my self but not the rest of it...obviously I can rotate my own tires but I always like to have the balance re-checked when i do so

I agree with you. That and trying to do an alignment at home.

Quote from henrybravo : You don't know what you're talking about. The manufacturer recommended tire pressure is for a COOL/COLD tire. If, for example, your tires are supposed to be 34 PSI and you fill them to 34 when they are cold, and then after driving on a hot day for 100 miles they are at 37 PSI, they are NOT overinflated at that point. The manufacture takes that into consideration. I can guarantee you that driving for 100 miles on a 100 degree day, your tire pressure will increase a few PSI versus the beginning of the trip when the tires were cold.

Right. People often drive 100 miles at a time in places that are over 100F.

As I've stated and proven, the difference in tire pressure is negligible after 15 miles. Even if the difference is 1PSI that isn't going to significantly impact your braking ability or your gas mileage.

Enough with this "you must inflate your tires cold" rhetoric. Its tired and inaccurate.

Quote from henrybravo : You don't know what you're talking about. The manufacturer recommended tire pressure is for a COOL/COLD tire. If, for example, your tires are supposed to be 34 PSI and you fill them to 34 when they are cold, and then after driving on a hot day for 100 miles they are at 37 PSI, they are NOT overinflated at that point. The manufacture takes that into consideration. I can guarantee you that driving for 100 miles on a 100 degree day, your tire pressure will increase a few PSI versus the beginning of the trip when the tires were cold.

I don't think you listened to his argument, just reiterated yours using an extreme example.

I personally prefer inflating my tires when they are cold, but I also agree a few minutes drive is not going to make a huge difference.

Quote from MeatCatalog : People say this all the time so about a year ago I tested this. I filled my tires to 30pounds after a 15 mile drive. Next morning (on cold tires) I checked tire pressure - still 30 pounds. This massive variablity people speak of regarding heat from driving and when to test is completely bogus. Think about it. If your tires are supposed to be 30psi and you fill them cold and they expand during driving (in theory) then you've over inflated. So ideally you should fill them after driving a bit and they are "hot". Period.

Well, every single tire and auto manufacturer states the exact opposite of your claim. Different tires also have different temperature ratings, and different driving habits (ie: excess friction from cornering or heavy acceleration/deceleration, or excessive brake heat) - along with different road/weather conditions - all contribute to the temperature of the air inside your tires. The rule of thumb is roughly a 1psi increase for a 10degF increase in internal air temperature and roughly a 1psi decrease for a 10 degF decrease in internal air temperature - however, this varies by the volume of air within the tire. What this means is that while a bicycle tire may not incur a noticeable change, a large truck tire WILL incur a noticeable change - which is why the 1PSI/10degF is a general guideline to follow as a precautionary measure.

Your tires will not be overinflated when filled cold, PERIOD. Tires are filled cold because if your tire becomes under-inflated you have a serious safety hazard on your hands as the tire CAN NOT perform to its rated load capacity - thereby your Ford Exploder has a blow-out and your whole family dies. This is why tire and auto manufacturers state to fill at the coldest point in the "day" (24hr period), when you fill at the cold point and your tires increase in pressure due to rising internal temperature it is not referred to as "over-inflation", it is referred to as thermal expansion which cannot be avoided, and is considered safe until your tires are beyond their rated maximum internal temperature. It will at its most extreme point cause less contact with the road surface - though under-inflation also causes less contact with the road surface due to the loading characteristics of an under-inflated tire and consider significantly less-safe as the tire's performance characteristics are largely unpredictable.

The fact is this: I can install head bolts on an engine out of sequence, not in steps, without a torque wrench, no angle meter, and reuse torque-to-yield bolts. Ya know what? The engine will run as good as any other - but I'm not a scientist, nor is anyone here. Which is why I follow the directions when it comes to something that has had many thousands of hours of research behind it. I'm not saying anyone else needs to follow the directions - but the point is for things to work OPTIMALLY, not MARGINALLY. This is SD, right? I would say the "best deal" is to do things the proper way, because any other way is the incorrect way (technically 100% true) which detracts from overall product value. Flushing value down the toilet.

Quote from MeatCatalog : Right. People often drive 100 miles at a time in places that are over 100F. As I've stated and proven, the difference in tire pressure is negligible after 15 miles. Even if the difference is 1PSI that isn't going to significantly impact your braking ability or your gas mileage. Enough with this "you must inflate your tires cold" rhetoric. Its tired and inaccurate.

Thanks for clarifying, I guess I'm wrong. Since some random guy on a forum did a short little 15 mile test, the laws of physics cease to exist for you. And since you apparently don't ever drive anywhere other than your local mall in the summer, other people and families don't take road trips in the summer (the most popular time of the year to do so). Tens of thousands of people don't drive to the desert every year to see the Grand Canyon or Las Vegas or anything like that. Please stop spreading the misinformation.

Quote from kugel : I don't think you listened to his argument, just reiterated yours using an extreme example. I personally prefer inflating my tires when they are cold, but I also agree a few minutes drive is not going to make a huge difference.

Maybe you should re-read his argument. He said to inflate tires while they are hot, and he said that if the PSI goes above the recommended amount when they are hot, they are overinflated. Both of those statements are terribly incorrect; the tire is to be filled to the recommended PSI when the tire is "cold", and as PV9685 said, if you properly fill your tires when they are cold, they can never be overinflated at any temperature. And I do agree with you that driving a few minutes is not going to make a huge difference in tire PSI, I've witnessed this for myself, and that's clearly not what I was saying. So I don't know what you're getting at.

Good god, the thread crappers are out in force today. Anyone happen to have any comments on the product?

I own one of these I got a few years ago. Hard to get it to seat on the nipple and get a accurate reading but at tis price, it will do. I bought it for a dollar with a coupon i got when i brought in my work car and still have it.

Quote from satanslover : Good god, the thread crappers are out in force today. Anyone happen to have any comments on the product?

will let you know in few days after sears ships it to me.
others have said it is accurate. sears user reviews are also quite good.

dead. $5 now

Ideally, TP should be taken without the tires heated up (driven under 1 mile) so unless DT is right next door to your house, this is probably not a good idea.


Eddie

Quote from Windows7User : If you go to discount tire they will fill all your tires to the right amount for free. It takes like 2 mins total, I have done this for awhile, way better than doing it yourself.

thanks, i'm in

Right before I saw this on FP, my MIL stopped by becasue her Mazda was giving tire warning signal--but it does not give the actual tire pressures of each tire like my Chevy does.

Her stick gauge was way off. I tried the Accu-Gage I had kept in the truck that I haven't used in several years because my truck tells me what the psi's are. I checked the Accu-G against my truck tires and it was spot on with the truck's digital read.

One of her tires was 4# off the others. Filled it with three, drove it around the block, and then they were all within a #.

I'm not going to get into the hoopla of the cold/hot discussion of the last few pages, but in my experience here in TX in the summer the psi raises several pounds from the time I check at startup and the few miles I drive to the gas station to fill up. Its not so much just the heat outside. . .but big tires taking turns, the hot road, and braking.

Cold is the only way to be 100% right unless you are going to take the time to calculate all the variables. . .but usually I only have 1 low tire at a time when I check cold and this is what I do. If the other tires are of proper inflation, and I drive before I can fill up the low tire, I simply fill it up until I get the same level as the "hot" psi of the other tires (or less than 1 # below the others to quasi account for the cold air going in.) Drive around the block and check again. They usually are the same at that point.

The key, though, is trusting either your onboard or handheld gauge. And if this gauge is trustworthy and accurate. And, of course, if it is a good price at $3. . .