lflorack

I upgraded from the OEM Bridgestones to Michelin Pilot Sport A/S's. I know that the owner's manual say the OEMs needed to be inflated to 32 psi. However, I don't think that psi applies to the A/S's. Currently, I have 37psi in them figuring they are high performance tires. But, I'm not sure and don't know where to find this information.

Can anyone help?

Aegir

There's quite a range of Acura recommendations (F/R) for different setups:

Stock 5AT: 32/32
Stock 6MT: 35/32
"High speed driving": 39/35
18" wheels: 39/36

lflorack

Thanks for your response. Wouldn't the inflation amount be influenced by the tire (type, brand, construction, etc)?

Aegir

Almost certainly. The tire manufacturer may provide some additional recommendations. I started with the stock recommendation (39/36) and tried higher and lower pressures. I didn't like higher. Lower provided smoother ride but some loss of responsiveness. I tried without the stagger but didn't like it as much.

lflorack

Thanks again. I tried the Michelin site but didn't find any advise. I'll look again.

lflorack

I couldn't find any help on the Michelin website regarding what PSI to put in my TL's Michelin Pilot Sport A/S's. So I called a local Michelin dealer. He told me that he "wouldn't go over 40 PSI". Some help but not very detailed. As it turns out, i have 37 PSI in all four tires.

I know there are a LOT of people who replaced the OEM's like I did with the Michelin Pilot Sport A/S's.

SO, what do you all run your tires at?

Ron A

Why do you think high performance tires require so much additional pressure, especially when you are driving them in normal conditions, not racing conditions?

The manufacturer, Michelin, and the tire shops, do not usually have recommendations for tire pressure for each individual vehicle. That is left up to the vehicle manufacturer.

If you have the 5AT transmission, recommended tire pressure is 32/32. I am using 35/35, after much experimentation, on my Bridgestone LS-Z's. I would not go much above 3 psi over the recommended tire pressure. The maximum tire pressure shown on each tire is just that, not a recommendation for inflation.

Also, bear in mind that overinflation will cause the center treads of the tire to wear prematurely, in addition to increasing the chance of failure or damage from potholes or bad road sufaces.

lflorack

I'm not sure where I got the idea from but I always thought that performace tires were generally run with higher a PSI than non-performance tires. When I called the Michelin dealer earlier today, he wasn't much help but led me to beleive that higher pressures for performance tires were actually the norm. Maybe that's not true.

[QUOTE=Ron A]The manufacturer, Michelin, and the tire shops, do not usually have recommendations for tire pressure for each individual vehicle. That is left up to the vehicle manufacturer.[.QUOTE]

Since I can't find any information regarding tire pressures by tire & vehicle, it sounds like you may be right.

That much I knew. The max PSI for these tires is 54 if I remember correctly. SO I'm nowhere near that PSI.

The center treadwear due to over inflation I knew too -- but that's ewhat were discussing. What IS the proper pressure. Well, in any case, I'll look at changing from the 37 that was put in by the Michelin dealer when I bought the tires down to 35 and see what it's like.

Thanks for the feedback.

Ron A

The "proper" tire pressure is what is recommended by Acura: 32/32 for 5AT, 35/32 for 6MT. This can, of course, be adjusted for personal preference or your own particular driving conditions, but it is a good starting point.

I have always used 35psi in radial tires, no matter what kind of car I was driving. But when I got my 95 Accord LS/V6, I tried various pressures and found the factory recommendation worked best, so I kept it there.

With my 2004TL 5AT, as I said above, I am back to running 35psi all around with the LS-Z's, but I didn't do it with the EL-42's, so it is somewhat dependent on the tire, as well as driving conditions.

You will just have to do some experimentation, but again, as previously stated, I wouldn't go more than 3psi above the factory recommendations.

lflorack

Update:

I let some air out so that all four tires were at 35 psi and then took the car out for a test drive. The tires were noticably noisier at all speeds but even more so at 70 and above. Also, the handling suffered. Not a a lot, but enough to make it noticable.

So, tonight, I put the tires back to 37psi all around and again took it out for a test drive. Better handling and quieter tires. I also checked the tires for odd wear (for either over or under inflation) but noticed none. With that in mind, I'll keep them at 37 while I continue to research. BTW, I chacked the MAX psi rating on the tire sidewalls and it's 54.

1FasTL

The reason the tires were "noisier" with the lower pressure is that now there is a larger contact patch with the road.

Any tire manufacturer will recommend only what the vehicle manufacturer placard says. Unless you race or autocross your TL use the recommended pressures or at most 2 psi more. Also make sure you are using an ACCURATE pressure gauge.

canavarro

My dealer replaced the ELs with the Michelin Pilot A/S and has them up to 40 PSI all the way around. I do have 1 question: Even with these tires the car pulls to the left. Is there any I reduced front right tire pressure to 38 from 40 and the pull seems went away. the car is in alignment (5 times) so I know that is not the issue. Is this unequal tire pressure a bad idea?

260 HP

iTrader: (3)

I'd go to a different alignment shop to see why your car is pulling to the left. I'd recommend you to read this alignment article on Tirerack; a lot of good info: http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tirete...eral/align.jsp.

Some of you have 40 psi after your shop install new tires on your cars. It's because they do not adjust the pressure after mounting the tires. Here is why: in order to seat the bead to the wheel properly, new tires have to be inflated to 40 psi during mounting. But after that, they should lower the pressure to the vehicle manufacturer's recommendation. A lot of shops fail to do just that.

As far as tire pressure goes, I'd follow manufacturer's recommendations (32/32 5AT or 35/32 6MT). It is true that higher pressure will give you crisper handling and better gas mileage, only to a point. But it also means less contact patch and uneven tire wear. Additionally, if your tires are overinflated by 6 psi, they are much easier to be damaged by potholes.

Uneven wear due to overinflation is not immediately visible unless you measure the temperature across the tread. If the reading is significantly higher in the center of the tread, you know it's overinflated. Usually, the uneven wear will show after a few hundred miles.

Tire types etc are not significant factors on determining tire pressure. More significant factors are tire size and your driving purpose (drag racing, auto-x, commuting, etc). As long as you keep your stock size, you should follow manufacturer's recommendation.

The Max pressure on the sidewall is just an indication of the maximum pressure the tire can safely hold, measured cold.

Etiedeman

I also have the Michelin Sport A/S Plus tires. I've been running them at 32psi as recommended by Acura. However, there seems to be some extreme wear on the inner and outter edges of the tread. Is this due to low inflation as a result of running these tires at 32 as opposed to 38+?

csmeance

If you are getting wear like that, try bumping it up to 35PSI cold all around. The best thing to do is go to where-ever you got the tires put on (IE Discount tire) and have them filled up to 39-40 PSI. Then leave the car overnight and in the morning fine tune the pressure with the tires cold to 35.

emeka206

I heard +3 is the way to go.
I have mine set to 38psi all around

Yvuru

I have 35F/32R on my tires. After driving around for a good while the temps go up to 41F/36R. Or something around that range.

Anyone else notice a 1 PSI increase on the front driver side tire when driving alone? Compared to front passenger side of course. I use a separate accurate tire gauge along with the TPMS system.

I hate cars

The sun is probably shining on your driver's side for most of the trip.