What is the Difference Between Overinflated and Underinflated Tires?

I have always heard underinflated tires are more prone to failure problems than overinflated. Me recommended 32, usually go 35.

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In your case, as in mine demonstrated several posts above, 32psi is not under-inflated.

There’s a misconception out there, among the general public and even among some certified mechanics, that the vehicle-specific cold tire pressures result in tires being “under-inflated”.

I just posted all the data, for two our cars, that suggests quite the contrary, for both gross load and dynamic loading(driving).

In my case, letting one or both axles on my Honda drop below 30psi cold is under-inflated, and anything above 33psi is over-inflated.

For the Corolla, 28psi would be underinflated, and 32psi or higher, over-inflated.

Like I said, most car mfgs. have done their homework on this, and modern safety margins are much wider than they were, even 30 years ago.

In the 1950s the bias ply tires of the day were often vastly over inflated for high speed runs.

The speed trials at Dyayona Beach were run on the wet sand below the high tide mark. A very high rolling friction surface. These tires were very susceptible to high speed heat failure and and over inflation kept them cooler. The 1956 Chrysler 300 that ran 139 mph on the sand would have gone much faster on pavement.

No it doesn’t. If the forces don’t change, the wear does not change.

The tires that were supplied to us by the tire manufacturer were prototypes designed to run at 50 psi.

We shall have to respectfully disagree on that point, then. And you can tell the folks on all these search results that tire overinflation (>5psi) is OK for their suspensions also:

Over on AVSForums (Audio-Video Science), dedicated to TV display technologies, calibration, home theatre advice and design, a lot of folks also disagree with me regarding something on modern flat screen TVs called the ‘back-light’ or cell light.

My premise: Leaving, or setting, the backlight on a LCD or LED display set to maximum output can reduce its longevity, along with that of the set itself.

As usual, they disagree with me on that!

Being correct is a tough racket!

I’ll have to take your word for it, unless you have documentation or specs you’d care to share here.

The title of the post makes it a math word question.

Bob has a car. Bob’s car specifies 32 PSI air pressure in the tires.
Bob’s tires are inflated to 36 PSI. What is the difference and is the difference positive or negative. Show your work.

At least the question is not about two trains, leaving two different stations at different times and speeds😀

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36 - 32 = +4psi overinflated.

Other positives:

Mayyybe 1-2mpg improvement in fuel mileage, or extra 10-15 miles per charge.

Negatives(from my experience) :

  1. Steering more, sometimes too, responsive, almost twitchy.
  2. Increased rolling resistance (yes, an overinflated tire can skip across rough roads)
  3. Noiser, rougher ride
  4. Increased risk of skidding, instead of stopping, during situations requiring sudden application of brakes. (ABS is most effective when correct tire pressures are maintained, in case someone decides to mention anti-lock brakes)
  5. Long-term: Increased rate of wear on suspension components (and I don’t give a horse’s V8 who disagrees with me!).

How about a boring many time discusion again.

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A bunch of random people on the internet instead of an engineer that worked as a suspension specialist for a major OEM supplier… OK, sure.

Yes, you will because the data is the property of GM and the tire supplier.

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  1. Depends on the car and the driver’s preference. How big is you sample size? Whatever number you reveal, I can beat that.
  2. Not just wrong, but absolutely wrong. Prove it. Show your data!
  3. Depends on the car and the tire. Again, what is your sample size?
  4. ABS is virtually universal and will prevent skidding during braking
  5. Wrong again, show your data!

Of which one is a dealership, and the other, an oil-change place.

One doesn’t need to be an ‘engineer’ to know that the harsher the vibrations due to stiffer tire carcass over time will accelerate wear at the points where suspension components meet.

It’s just common sense.

But those of you who can still see and read the Horseman just go ahead, inflate the tires in your 33-35psi car to 40-44psi, your suspension will still last 150,000 miles or at least 20 more years with no wear!

Oh, THOSE are the places EVERY car manufacturer goes for engineering advice. :roll_eyes:

I am not an engineer in quotes. I am an actual degreed engineer with decades of experience. And no, this is not common sense, it is about actual data.

You remind me of this quote; “I reject your reality and substitute my own”

We are done here.

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1st off, I only mentioned 2004 ONE time and it was ONLY to let you know that the pic and the year you stated didn’t match.. I mentioned to Twin Turbo that he oopsed his 2018 F-150 with a 2008, I new by the engine/trans that 2008 was wrong, nothing more nothing less…

I was informing you that a manufacture does not ALWAYS do the new model year in July as you stated, it keeps changing, I remember when it was August or September for the new model year, but that was also in the same time frame as the 01/94 Neon that was a 95 Neon, NOT a 94…

I did not insist on calling yours a 2004, only mentioned it once and you corrected that and I until just now NEVER said it was a 2004 again…

The problem is not with Car Talk, it is when you assume and or blow stuff all out of proportion…

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Which is what any human being with emotions might do when they are refuted all the time or told they are wrong all the time. There’s only so much of that anyone can take before they snap, something I’m trying hard to not do.

Now I know why there are a couple of knowledgeable and well-meaning members here who no longer participate directly in the Community threads because they too got fed up with all the egos, ‘office politics’, and other bovine excrement.

Bob’s also the oil guy! We haven’t had a discussion of the proper oil viscosity for a while. Let’s start one! We can hijack this tread and only The Cognesenti will know it’s here!! :winking_face_with_tongue:

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+1
Some people–despite all authoritative evidence to the contrary–think that they are always correct. Never discount the Dunning-Kruger effect.

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I’m going to throw in something on this as far as the suspension goes… No prof only my theory from many years in the field and seeing hundreds of thousands of vehicles over the years easily…

I have never seen a over inflated tire bouncing down the road, that only happens with blown out shocks, it causes a cross swiping pattern..
I have removed many tires for rotate/brake check/new tires/whatever that when dropped to the floor tried to bounce back and hurt you from being over inflated, and confirmed with a gauge…

Now if a tire that is over inflated is NOT bouncing causing excessive movement in the ball joints and such, and an over inflated tire causes less rolling resistance, that means it moves easier across the ground, if it is moving easier across the ground, then would it not turn easier also (less contact patch = less friction), and if it turns easier then is that not easier on the steering and suspension system?? Meaning over inflated = less friction = less wear on parts… Don’t remember doing any steering/suspension work on Prius’s over the years, from normal wear and they were almost all over inflated in my area…
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Now Chris, on the dealer saying over/under inflation stuff, do you not also moan and ■■■■■ about dealers over inflating tires??

You had rather get cancer advise from ME than automotive advise from a Jiffy Lube… I have hired many Jiffy Lube lube techs over the years and had to retrain them to do the job… Never been impressed with them, and I knew Stu Crum who served as the President of Jiffy Lube, he left to ruin our company, he was an idiot and screwed up the company I worked for bad then left it after 3 years…He did not understand the automotive world past changing oil in 10 minutes…

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If it’s been a while and I haven’t checked the tire pressures on my car, the weather’s gotten warmer, or my tires are overinflated for whatever reason, when I hit pot holes or other road imperfections and I hear the loud BANG it makes, I know it must not be good for my suspension, not to mention how it visibly jars the dash, seats, and the trim in the cabin.

After correcting the overinflation, the tires, and the suspension between them and my car body, absorb those road anomalies much more smoothly.

It seems I’m running into more of the pro-over-inflation crowd again, Jesus help them and me.

How? Who?
I am not pro over or under inflation, I adjust them when rotating, so every 5K miles when I still worked, but post retirement only a couple times a year, the over/under part equalizes over time and my tires always wear good… I normally start off a little high and let them drop a little low before adjusting again…

I also don’t remember Mustangman saying he always keeps his tires over inflated, nor any other member other than the Court Jester on here… So again, blowing things out of proportion…

That being said, I had much rather run a tire X psi over than X psi under, since they will loose air over time…Plus a low tire can/will cause sidewall damage (heat/burn ring), as long as you don’t go over the max sidewall psi…

So you can start off high and over time they will lower to the correct psi before dropping below correct psi, but if you start off low, well you are going to stay that way with no temp change of course…

But it is ALWAYS BEST to stay within a couple/few psi of what the vehicle calls for…

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There was a comment earlier about why well-meaning members here no longer participate directly in these Community threads.

What keeps me here are the continual contributions from very skilled folks. It’s clear they gained such skills from current or past experience, either in automotive or related fields.

Who they are and the respect for their contributions is quite evident.

Even though I was in that category decades ago, I know I’m not there now. Hence I always enjoy reading and learning from everything they have to share.

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