Tire shops and tire pressure

[Drew99GT]

I have been to quite a few different tire shops, some local but mostly Discount Tire, which I really like. Discount seems to be great about using a lower torque torque stick on their guns and then doing a final tightening with a good ol torque wrench. The other shops I've been to hit the lugs with sometimes up to 130 ft lbs!

But on to tire pressure, these places NEVER get it right. It's usually grossly overinflated. However, just got a rotate and balance on my moms Olds 88 because my folks are high tailing it out of town on a family emergency tomorrow. I let the tires cool to ambient and checked them. All at 25 psi or below

I have never been to a tire shop that correctly set the tire pressure to anywhere near what the door placard says. It's not hard, even if the tires are not cool. Compensate for engine heat in the front: + 1 or 2 psi, (depending on ambient temps) and bump all of them by about 3 psi or so (also depending on ambient). I always try and check/adjust when the tires are stone cold, but in a pinch when the vehicle/tires are warmed up and driven on, I use that above technique. Usually comes out that the tires are all even by + or - 1 psi stone cold (which isn't enough to lose sleep over)

I'm anal about tire pressure, especially after getting them worked on, but 95% of people are not. It's kinda scary really that people leave these places with tire pressures ranging from dangerously underinflated to knock your teeth out overinflated.

Bottom line; never trust em. Always check em.

 

[Axe Man]

Agreed. But once in great while they DO get it right. Recent set of tires installed at Sears. Spec for the Civic was 30 PSI. Each tire was 31 PSI. Close enough, I left them alone.

 

[Drew99GT]

I do remember once where the pressure was about 33 all around. Most times, especially if tires are mounted, it ends up at 40 psi.

 

[WalterMitty]

That's good advice, but it's not just tire places.

I picked up a new Honda motorcycle at a dealership that was "All serviced and ready to go". Riding it home I concluded I had made the biggest mistake of my life because it was an absolute Pig compared to the bike I had just traded in.

Back home my OCP kicked in and I started checking fluids, pressures and torques. Long story short, the front tire had between 11 & 12 lbs, the rear was 23 lbs and the monoshock rear suspension was zero. These were not the recommended pressures as you might imagine. And that's not all I found out of order.

Sometimes there are good reasons/excuses for a problem, but there's no good reasons/excuses for not checking fluids, torques and pressures as soon as you pick a vehicle up and for several days/miles after the repair.

 

[wantin150]

"Do NOT adjust tire pressure" written on my work tickets works for me. If not, the tech will always bleed air, even after I've driven the 10 miles to the shop.

These guys know me well enough now to leave my air alone!

 

[Spector]

Okay, but also bet theat the gauge they use will differ bu several PSI from the one you use. Gauges rarely read the same. I have three and all 3 show slightly different readings so the tire shops may not be entirely off base. I too, for the most part, think they cannot do the job right.

 

[alreadygone]

Mostly, I think it don't make a da mn if they're high or low by up to 4lbs. As long as the set is even. Been airing up customer tires for longer than many here have been alive! My care is much better than most get anywhere else.

Bob

 

[Drew99GT]

You sound like one of the good guys that actually cares about doing the job right Bob! It's rare, especially in the automotive repair business.

 

[bdcardinal]

at my work it prints out all the recommended tire pressures on the workorder (Sears). i check the air pressure with every service, and usually set them to what the door says. i will adjust for heat, usually putting about 2-3over if the car has been recently driven. we get a lot of customers that get upset when i set the tires correctly. especially when the recommended pressures are lets say 33/29 F/R. ive had people come in with minivans, mostly older gentleman who hate buying radials, who insist that i put their tires at 45psi. i set them to the door pressure and tell them to set it to whatever they want themselves. ive had alignments come back into spec once the tire pressures are set without making any suspension adjustments.

 

[Drew99GT]

good man cardinal!

 

[Ramblin Fever]

What annoys me is when they don't set each tire at the end of axle the same pressure; had one front at 38psi and the other at 32psi.

 

[Auto-Union]

Shop gauges are what they call "millitary" type. Those huge brass ones see to read high as I almost universially find my new tires underinflated, at 25lbs. I confirmed set pressure with one place and it seemed their "millitary" gauge read higher than my trusty dial guage.

 

[ewetho]

I have found my gage/inflator actually reads high unless I take it off and reapply it. Then it is within about a pound or so of any accurate gage I have found.

Can be a problem if they just fill up and see what the gage reads. Sometimes traps air between the gage and stem somewhere. Weird but true. Take it off and recheck will be lower until pressure near 60. But repeated checks will remain constant once checked in this fashion. Noted this on many different gages since figuring it out.

 

[fitzz47]

Costco has always done mine right(with nitrogen)

 

[gedcruise]

Had tires put on the Aero the week before Thanksgiving. Thought we might drive it out of town. Took a Honda instead.
Anyway, I at first thought that the new tires rode far softer than the old ones. This ended when I corrected the pressures.

 

[RTexasF]

After all the hubub concerning proper tire pressure (Ford & Firestone come to mind) you would think this would be a very high priority with any & every place that sells/repairs tires.

 

[williar]

Even when I specifically ask that the tires be inflated to a certain pressure, say 40 psi, and even though this is noted on the work order, the tires are rarely inflated as asked. Nor are they inflated uniformly. One might be at 30 psi and the next one at 50 psi. Usually, only when I stand there and watch the guy inflate the tires is the job done correctly.

 

[bdcardinal]

i specifically ignore customer tire pressure requests. i put the tires at the correct door level, sometimes 1 or 2 lbs above as stated earlier. i do this because on a car that i will align, i have to have the pressure at the factory setting. it creates too many extra variables when i have tire pressures higher than stock. i will usually write in our tech notes section on a work order that the customer is free to modify the factory tire pressures after work is completed.

 

[Trucku]

So far every time I go to dealer or shop they try to set me to 30 all around.
My truck recommends 30/35 F/R which I feelis somehow mixed up. That makes the steering is slugish and I get lots of roll on the front end. I run with 38lbs in front and 35 in back. Tires wear perfectly.

Last time I went in for inspection they lowered my pressures to 30 and proceeded to tell me how I will get a blow out on highway with anything higher.

 

[Pbert25]

Discount is good when it comes to the PSI that the Tire manufacter wants. It seems to range from 32-35 PSI. The manufacters(Pontiac) recommendations for 30 PSI is all that good for these tires.