[HOW TO CHECK TIRE PRESSURE FOR TRACTION, HANDLING & COMFORT]
Hi there smart drivers, Rick with Smart
Drive Test talking to you today about
tire pressure. Tire pressure is important,
especially in the wintertime because you
get drastic changes in temperature and
those drastic changes in temperature can
negatively affect the tires' pressure. Tire
pressure is important for handling of
the vehicle, especially when you have
winter tires on, it will maximize your grip
and keep you on the road as you're going
around corners. So it's important to make
sure that you have the correct tire
pressure. Every vehicle, every driver
should have one of these in their
vehicle - it's a tire pressure gauge. Pick
one of these up for less than $25. Not only will
it maximize the handling of your vehicle
for optimum performance, but as well, it
will increase your fuel mileage, and it
will increase the life of your tires. So
today we're going to talk to you about
tire pressure. We'll be right back with that
information -
stick around.
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Hi there smart drivers, welcome back. Rick
with Smart Drive Test, talking to you
today about tire pressure. It is
important to have the correct tire
pressure because it affects handling of
your vehicle, particularly in the winter
time when there are drastic temperature
changes. It will affect the tire pressure
inside your tires. If you're tire pressure is too
low, it's going to increase fuel
consumption and as well it's going to
reduce the life of your tires and cost
you money.
The other thing that low tire pressure
or too high tire pressure is going to do -
it's going to affect the handling of the
vehicle. In the wintertime, this can be
dangerous because it could potentially
put you in the ditch -
worse yet, you could have a crash. So
correct tire pressure - you should check
the tire pressure at least once a month or
anytime there is a drastic temperature changes.
And every vehicle should have a tire
pressure gauge in it. You can pick up a
tire pressure gauge at your local auto
parts shop or maybe some of the hardware
stores will carry these. And a tire pressure gauge sells for about $25 - actually for
$25 you can get a pretty good tire gauge. So
have a tire gauge, check the tire
pressure and always check the tire
pressure when the tires are cold. In
other words, don't drive the vehicle and
then check the tire pressure because you'll
get an incorrect reading. So always check
the tires when the tires are cold and
you haven't driven the vehicle. So where
do you find the correct tire pressure
for your vehicle? The first place and the most
easily found place is on the door sill of
the driver's side. You can find the tire
pressure there on the little sticker
that's down beside the driver's seat. The
next place you can find the tire
pressure and how to inflate the tires
for your vehicle or the tire size is the
owner's manual. And the owner's manual comes
in book form, comes in electronic form, or
if you have a newer vehicle it'll be
telematics, and you can find it on the menu
on the screen on the dash. The owner's
manual--
I know--is less read than my PhD
dissertation! But there's a lot of really
great information in an owner's manual
about your vehicle. So have a look in the
owner's manual for the correct tire
pressure. Now on this vehicle here, it's
26 pounds per square inch. In North
America we measure in pounds per square
inch. The metric unit for pressure is
kilopascals. We don't use
kilopascals because it gives you really
odd number, so we still tend to use
pounds per square inch. So on
this vehicle it is 26 pounds is the
recommended tire pressure.
However every time I've gotten this
vehicle back from the tire shop, they've
put in 32 pounds in it. And when I was a kid
working in the garage with my
Dad,
we always put 32 pounds in the tires. And I tend
to like 32 pounds - I find it handles
a little bit better, so I run 32 pounds
and as well I get a bit
better fuel economy. So talk to your
local tire shop, talk to a mechanic about
that if you want to run a little bit more air
pressure in your tires. As
well
the other point about tire pressure is:
it's according to the vehicle
manufacturer, not the tire manufacturer.
So you won't find it on the side
of the tire and that maybe a question on
your license test. One other point about
tire pressure, if you're running a lot of
weight on your vehicle or you're pulling
a trailer or something like that, you
might also want to compensate your tire
pressure. Again consult a technician
about that information.
The other thing about tire pressure on
vehicle - if you have green valve stem
caps on your tires
it means the tire shop has put nitrogen
in your tires. Nitrogen has a couple of
benefits. First it has less water content than regular air
and because it has less water content
the air pressure inside your tires is
going to fluctuate less with temperature
change. So that's your first benefit. The
next benefit about nitrogen is
the process of osmosis, where gas moves
through a membrane, i.e. the tire in this
case. There is going to be less movement of gas
through the membrane. So therefore, over a
long period of time you're going to
maintain a more constant tire pressure
with nitrogen inside your tires. Now you
can put regular air in your tires if you
have nitrogen and it's not going to
negate any of the benefits. So you can
put regular air. And where you get
regular air, if you find out your tire
pressures low, go to a gas station--
they'll charge you a dollar--or you can
take it to a tire shop and they will
check your tire pressure as well. So
quick review - tire pressure: check it at
least once a month or
anytime you have drastic temperature
changes. Pick up a tire pressure gauge -
you can check the tire pressure quickly -
less than a couple of minutes for the
whole vehicle. And make sure that you
have constant tire pressure. This good inflation will
increase your fuel economy, it will
extend the life of your tires, and give
you good handling,
especially in the wintertime it is
particularly important for handling, so
you stay safe. Question for my smart drivers: do you check
your tire pressure on a regular basis?
Leave a comment down in the comment
section there. All that helps out the
new drivers and drivers wanting to know
a little bit more about their vehicles.
I'm Rick with Smart Drive Test. Thanks
very much for watching. If you like what
you see here share, subscribe, leave a
comment down in the comment section. As
well, hit that thumbs up button. Check out
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links to all of the great information
here on the channel. Thanks again for
watching. Good luck on your road test and
remember, pick the best answer not
necessarily the right answer.
Have a great day. Bye now!
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