2002 Toyota Tacoma - Tire pressure

Maintenance/Repairs
1

If air pressure is so important, why am I down on my hands and knees with a magnifying glass and a flashlight trying to read the fine print on the tire? Is there’s some reason why the print is so small?

2 Likes
2

What fine print are you trying to read ? The tire pressure is on a label on the drivers door panel on almost every vehicle .

5 Likes
3

As Volvo_70 said, it is on your door jam and in your owners manual. Do NOT inflate to maximum pressure listed on the tire.
Tire pressure IS important for the safe operation of any vehicle.

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4

Here is asimple guide to checking tire pressure in case you find it helpful.

5

This definitely bears repeating!

6

Because you’re doing it wrong

Because for the end user it’s mostly irrelevant. The number on the tire is not what you should be going by. The proper pressure as determined by the vehicle’s manufacturer will be located on the data plate that typically located on the door jamb, or sometimes on the inside of the glove box or inside of the fuel filler door. The number on tire is the maximum pressure the tire can take without failing. It’s not the pressure the tire should be inflated to. Most passenger tires will have a maximum pressure of around 50 psi. However, the proper pressure will likely be between 30-35 psi.

3 Likes
7

Exactly!
If somebody’s MD states that he/she doesn’t want to see blood pressure that is above 120/80, that doesn’t mean that he/she wants a patient’s blood pressure to be AT that maximum level. There is a significant difference between “maximum” and “desirable”, and the OP needs to learn the difference therein.

8

What they said. Go by the sticker on the truck. You can also do the “chalk test” to determine the best psi for your tires.

9

[quote=“monkarl, post:8, topic:136582, full:true”] ……… You can also do the “chalk test” to determine the best psi for your tires.
[/quote]

By now, many of you have heard my objections to the chalk test - that it assumes the tread has an even pressure distribution when properly inflated. That’s a pretty big assumption and one that has been proven not to always be the case. (This would also apply to the suspension which must also result in a tire perpendicular to the road surface - and we know that’s not true.)

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