Tuesday, Sep 05, 2017 at 00:24
Tyre Pressures do my head in trying to understand what is right and what I have done in the past and has worked for me.
One that gets me is the 4/6lb rule. I am now running on Toyo Cross Country AT11 tyres and previously Bridgestone Duelers at 250kpa (36 psi) in the front and 250 kpa (36 psi) or 350kpa (50 psi) in the rear depending whether loaded or light..
The rear tyres are wearing down more in the middle which indicates they are over inflated, but the pressure rises to 60/65 depending on the bitumen temperature.
If I pump them up to 64 then they rise by the 4-5 psi which tells me from what I have read is correct.
Running at this pressure will only cause the centers to wear more because of over inflation, and compress my back bone in the process.
Now to the off road side of things. I am still having a trouble determining what
"OFF ROAD" driving is, but coming to the understanding that if it's not bitumen, it is Off Road.
Before I gave up work I used to be a Trackside Safety Officer for the railway. I drove approx 300 klm's a day up and down the side of a railway line over ballast and ungraded tracks. Worse driving conditions than any gazetted dirt road I have driven on.
I did this for 11 years and mainly had Toyota Hilux's. In my tyres on those vehicles I always run 28 in the front and 35 in the back. That covered me for both on the bitumen and along the track. I never had a compressor nor the time to adjust tyre pressures from the rough to the smooth driving conditions even if I wanted to.
The amount of punctures I got was minimal, the chipping was horrible, and the mileage was atrocious. If I got 20,000k out of the rear and 30,000k out of the front tyres I was doing
well, but I put that down to the ballast I was continually driving on.
In my own vehicle which was a Hilux for 7 years, I ran the same pressures and rarely got a
puncture, the wear was ok. Naturally chips out of the tread was what I would expect for the road surfaces I drove on.
I now own a cruiser ute which is heavier and needs a bit more air than the Hilux. Since I have been on this site and others like it with all the talk about adjusting tyre pressures to suit road conditions, I thought I have been doing the wrong thing all my life on dirt roads. So I started lowering pressures for the rough, stoney, rocky and other road conditions accordingly, then pumping back up when getting on a better surface.
In the past 2 years since I have been adjusting pressures, I have had more punctures than I have had in a life time of driving.
I can see the need for a TPMS when driving on these lowered pressures, for it would be hard to tell if you have if your tyre is deflating because you are already driving on a half flat tyre.
So the jury is still out for me with the low pressures that some run on.
What I have said in the above does not relate to driving in the sand as that is a whole different story.
Every one will have a different experience and what is right for one may not be right for others.
If what I have written sounds like BS please don't hold back, let me know as I am always willing to learn.
As my Dad used to say, "you are never to old to learn if you aren't to ignorant to listen".
Cheers
AnswerID:
613531
Follow Up By: Baz - The Landy - Tuesday, Sep 05, 2017 at 07:04
Tuesday, Sep 05, 2017 at 07:04
Hi Blue,
Our experiences are similar.
I posted a response to Sigmund (below) and that gives some more insight to my rationale...
Cheers, Baz
FollowupID:
884028