k so for the past 2 months.. my car has been slightly going to the right... getting worst every week..... and i would have to hold the steering wheel... which sucked.... so i was like.. k.. time for BALANCING.....

so today as i was drivin to work... i thought i pull over by a PETRO canada which has those new AIR machines that measure the pressure and automatically fill it up to wat u set it to....

so i set it to 35 cuz kris was stating how a lil higher would result in better traction and handling ... (mine are usually set to 32)...... and to my suprise.. guess wat guys....

These were my tire pressures:

Front Left = 23 !!!
Front right = 26
Rear Left = 24
Rear Right = 29


so clearly all my tires were off big time.... and the funny thing was.. i was doing pretty good on my mileage... VERY VERY close to the EPA estimate.... i was usually 10-15KM off for every 20litres... which i think resulted in the tire pressure..

so ya i topped it off to 35PSI... wow... much smoother accelerating..... no more vibrating @ teh streering wheel @ higher speeds, and no more swirling to the right.... soo happy...

right now.. the weather is around -10 celsius average... and windchill gets it down to around -30 at times.... (toronto, ontario) ... so just letting all u guys know.. TIRE PRESSURE MAKES A BIG DIFFERENCE.. and results in a much better ride...

btw, my winter tires are 225/40/18 falken lol..

EDIT: oh and i do CRAZY right turns... (i sometimes pretend i own a bmw...) and most of my turns are usually very sharp and @ higher speeds ..... that would explain why my left tires are much lower then my right tires.

 

Good deal. Also that is why your supposed to check your psi on a constant basis. I would recommend atleast every 2 to every other week

 

yea i catch my tires at a lower psi frequently. it's a good habit to just check them everytime you fill up.

 

I used to always check and add air when needed but by gas station started charging 75cents.

 

what's recommended, 35 psi?

 

32 psi

 

Watch out ... 32psi is recommended for the OEM tires (Michelin MXM4 or whatever they're called). If you go with another model / manufacturer ... it might not be 32 psi.

General rule of thumb: inflate to 80% of max pressure printed on the side wall. Best bet: call tire manufacturer and ask what the recommended pressure is for the tire on your particular car.

 

It's especially important to check your pressures now with the colder weather some people are experiencing.

I forgot the figure with how many PSI your tires drop with a 10 degree difference in temp, but someone who last checked their pressue when it was 70 degrees out, is going to be severly underinflated in the 20 degree temps we have now in NYC, and the colder temps in other places.

Tire pressue should be checked as often or more often that your oil level; dont forget about it.

 

they even recommend every time you fuel up your car.

 

For those without a compressor at home to adjust their tires, a small power inflater run from the 12v power outlet is a worthwhile investment. Something in the 15-20 dollar range is usually good enough to suit our needs.

Even carry it in the Emergency kit in the trunk for out of town trips

Everyone is carrying a Fire Extinguisher, First Aid Kit, Yellow Glow Sticks in their car- right?
I keep one set in the trunk and another in the seatbacks- just in case the trunk is blocked.

I have helped many people with this equipment, the worst feeling is helplessly standing there watching your car burn, I have put out several fires for others - not on the TL

You have to understand my background- many years ago we had an earthquake and the entire 2nd deck of a freeway simply buckled and fell like dominos (not related to the pizza) Huge slabs of concrete crushed down on top of cars, flattening them to the top of the door or lower- some cars just a few feet tall with people trapped in them
They have since removed the entire structure

So now I carry all sorts of personal and rescue gear everywhere I go!!

Keep your tires properly inflated
Drive with Lights on for Life where needed

 

Dayum...

 

An inflatable dingy may also help ... just in case the flood comes.

 

I Agree- A few months ago my car pulled to the right, especially under braking. Adjusted tire pressure and it went away- rides a lot nicer now. Something that only takes 5 minutes and makes a big difference.

 

I have a digital gauge in my glove compartment, so I am on top of my game when its comes to tire pressure, but lately it has been really cold so I havent checked recently. I usually run 35 as well.

 

No I dont carry the inflatable dinghy, not a bad idea though- we do have a levee system said to be more fragile than New Orleans once had

I do keep the camper stocked with supplies in case of earthquake and I have to take refuge outside the house. But it only has basic tv

Paranoid you say.
NOPE
Just someone raised in places with natural disasters and been thru many types!

It really is a good idea to carry a tire guage and fire bottle plus first aid kit
Preparation goes a long way to preventing bad things!

Do a web search for 1989 Oakland earthquake for some dramtic pics of why I stay ready

 

What about the 3rd Gen TL's...? Since winter has come and the temp. on average is around -10 to - 15 degrees my tires look a tad bit lower than what they're suppose to be. Obviously the pressure would seem to drop a bit with the temperature but shouldn't the TPMS note this drop and alert the driver? I wonder how "low" the tire pressure should drop before the TPMS to give an alert? I frequently use to check with my previous car but now i rarely bother due to the TPMS, should i?

 

anyone on here using nitro fill yet? or know of acura dealers using nitrogen instead? the dealer i work @ is finally considering a "nitro fill" station in our shop since a few other dealers in our area started using it. nitrogen filled tires should, in theory, not need to be filled as often. they are hoping that our customers wont have to come in as often b/c of the TPMS light illuminating, causing less headache, especially for something as simple as adding air to tires. just curious.

 

For the $40 some dollars they are charging=I'll continue to check em myself and add good old free air. They offered this to me on my last visit to the Acura Dealer . What a SCAM. Oh, and if they leak any Nitrogen-I have to drive 40 miles back to the dealer to get them adjusted? I don't think so!

 

Costco does nitrogen filling for a reasonable price... don't know but here where I live in Canada, they won't do it for you unless you buy tires from them. And they still charge you extra for the nitrogen filling.

Personally, so as long as you regularly check your pressure (ie at least every 2 weeks or major swing in temperature), you should be fine using plain old compressed air. People always cheap out on crappy tires when they need replacing and/or they never check the pressure. Your car is nothing if it's not gripping the road properly. Ferrari or Pinto ... sample principles here, fellas.

 

good to see an opinion like this. my mgr. was saying that what we might do is replace the valve stem core @ pre delivery on new vehicles & add the nitro fill then. would also see if tire buying customers would like to purchase this service, especially vehicles w/ tpms. from a technician's perspective, the less we would have to see a car in the shop, just for adjusting air pressure the better. but like mentioned above, if the customers HAVE to come in for nitro fill, this wouldnt be benificial to the shop or a customer. since there are few nitro fill stations around the New Orleans / Baton Rouge area, i guess i would just like to hear from other people that DO have this in their tires.