Opinions and input (Tire Pressures)

[redhorse]

Input on tire presures: Ford says to run 30 to 35lbs psi. The tire has max psi that say 44 or 51 on the side wall. Some have told me that you need to run the max psi. that is on the tire. What is the opinion here? This is probably a repost but it has come up again.

[Sendero]

You'll get better performance out of a tire closer to its max pressure, but you also can decrease its life. Going lower on the pressue can make it ride better, but it can also make it feel mushy. The same is true on low pressures in regards to decreased tire life there is a middle ground to be had, but it all depends on tire construction and its treadwear rating.

For stiff sidewalled tires, I'd run 5 lbs under max checked hot.

[SvoBrown]

On the Explorer I run them around 42 psi. Rides better and mpg is better.
The svo on the highway about 35 psi but on the autocross it is closer to 22 psi so they heat up faster and more grip on the road.
You want your tire to be flat on the road, you could do the shoe polish on the thread to see how much is touching the road. I do it to see how much roll over I have on the track.

[QWKSNKE]

I am a big believer on running the OEM recommended pressures unless for a track event.

[coupe]

I am a big believer on running the OEM recommended pressures

:werd:

Don't inflate to the max (on tire) unless you're loading down the car/truck.

Ideally, you would weigh all 4-corners with individual scales. That gives you a "pounds" value on each tire. Then, calculate the contact-patch of the tire, that gives you an "area." Divide the pounds by the area (pounds per square inch) and that should give you the perfect balance of tire pressure.

But having big wide tires may end up distributing that weight over too much area, giving you this value in the 15-20 psi range. Good for the tire, but not as safe for the road. That's why having the correct size tires is critical.

Basically, more load on the tire or a narrower tire, means more psi it will require for proper load-carrying capacity (look at the 65psi rating on the tiny spares).