There are several factors that influence how often you should check your tire pressure, including:. If you have a leaky valve or a small puncture, you will lose air pressure much more quickly.
This is one more reason why you should frequently check the tire pressure on all of your tires. Finding out the tire pressure of your tires is incredibly easy. All you need is a pressure gauge click here for additional items you should have in your vehicle. Just make sure that you are checking your tires when they are relatively cold. If you check your tire pressure after a long drive, you will get an inaccurate reading since heat will temporarily increase the tire pressure reading.
Unfortunately, not all pressures gauges are created equal. Some are better than others. We recommend shelling out a couple extra bucks for a digital reader. The pop-up, stick-type versions are notoriously inconsistent and unreliable.
A reliable gauge will be well worth the investment. You can also check your tire pressure at most gas stations or auto repair shops. Discount Tire offers free tire pressure checks and inflation. Remember, just one drop in PSI can lower your gas mileage by about 0. If your tires are flat, then you probably have a leak.
Add air and see if you can drive around without the pressure dropping. Tip: Learn how to use the air pump properly first. When you let go of the handle, a tire pressure gauge will pop out showing you the tire pressure.
At the same time, air will be slowly released. If your air pump has this kind of handle, then you will want to hold down the handle for most of the time, periodically releasing it to check the pressure reading.
Consult your own tire pressure gauge for accuracy. Source: bridgestonetire. Click here for more car maintenance tips. Click here for car winterization tips. Auto Simple wants you to find a vehicle you love at a price you can afford.
Why should you check your tire pressure? The number one reason why you should periodically check your tire pressure is SAFETY, but there are monetary and handling reasons as well: Longer lasting tires Improved handling and control Reduced risk of accidents and blow outs Better fuel economy Reduced carbon footprint Proper tire pressure as recommended by the manufacturer is needed to drive safely and efficiently.
What is the right PSI level? Most car tire pressure recommendations range from PSI. First, we take the Ideal Gas Law equation and apply it to our circumstance:. Given the n and R are both constants, and the gas volume in the tire is also a constant, we can take those constants out of the equation, and suddenly we get this straightforward one:.
Put all that into the equation,. Both overinflation and underinflation affect your tire performance a lot, and serious problems might occur. So how will a bad tire pressure affect driving safety? We will explain in detail below. The grip is mostly associated with the size of the contact patch between the tire and the road.
An over-inflated tire radically decreases the contact patch while an under-inflated tire does the opposite. A larger contact patch gives you more grip, and this is the exact reason why lots of racers will intentionally decrease their tire pressures to create a larger contact patch on a dry race track.
However, despite the fact that an under-inflated tire will cause more fuel consumption and improper tear and wear of the tires, for most daily commuters, it might cause an even scarier problem, which is hydroplaning. Hydroplaning is a hazardous event when a layer of water builds between the wheels and the road surface, leading to a loss of traction that prevents the vehicle from responding to control inputs.
Hydroplaning occurs when the pressure of the tire pushing on the ground is equal to the water pushing back up on that tire. The size of the contact patch, given the force or the weight of the tire, is the same, directly affects the average pressure the tire's putting down on the road. The larger the contact patch by deflating the tires , the less pressure it puts on that same area. So there's a causal relationship between your tire pressure and the possibility of a hydroplaning event.
Here's a more visual explanation of what is happening between a properly-inflated tire and an underinflated tire when driving on a wet road.
Also, check your tires' treads, which make the water flow around the tires more efficiently, and of course, driving slow is always a big plus. The contact patch directly decides the pattern of the tire's wear and tear. You don't want your tires to wear out prematurely just because you have an over or under-inflated tire.
Imagine you are a ball rolling on the ice, there's no friction between the two surfaces, how much extra force do you need to apply to keep the ball moving?
Zero Thanks, Newton. The same applies to your fuel consumption when it comes to driving on the road.
The rolling resistance between your tires and the road significantly affects fuel economy, and by now we should all know the logic behind this, lower tire pressure leads to a larger contact patch, which causes higher rolling resistance, and thus, poor fuel economy. There are of course circumstances where you want to manipulate your tire pressure to meet specific requirements.
Like the aforementioned track race, or if you are driving on sand, mud, etc. However, as a daily commuter, we strongly suggest you regularly check your tire pressure, preferably once a week and anytime you might take a long road trip, and always keep the tires properly inflated!
Tire pressure is always a hot topic regarding driving safety, and it's important to keep an eye on the tire pressure to maximize fuel efficiency and safety. What happens when your tires are overinflate or underinflate? When you drive with over-inflated tires, you risk: Problems with handling and safety. Rapid, uneven tire wear. When you drive with under-inflated tires, you risk: Tire failure and safety. Underinflated tires greatly increase braking distances and can dramatically affect steering and handling.
That friction can lead to overheating, which can cause tread separation and blowouts in extreme cases. Premature wear , reducing your tire life by 15 per cent or more. Under inflation wears your tires on both outside shoulders because the edges are making excessive contact with the road.
Poor gas mileage. Vehicles with underinflated tires see reduced fuel economy because they make your engine work harder: underinflated tires put more tire surface in contact with the road, causing more rolling resistance and friction with the road. The result is poor gas mileage and higher fuel costs — up to 1.
Depending on how often you fill up, that can lead to hundreds of dollars over the space of a single year. How do summer and winter temperatures impact tire pressure? Winter When the temperature drops, air contracts and as the molecules get closer together, the reduction in volume causes tires to lose their pressure.
Summer Just as cold outside air causes the air inside your tires to contract in winter, warm outside air causes the air inside your tires to expand in summer. Was this article helpful? Find a Store.
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