Tire pressure question.

[roger longman]

Hi all, Mine's an '88 vette with 245x50x16 tires. Can anyone tell me what pressures I should be running for fairly spirited driving, I'm seeing everything from 26 to 36 PSI ? Thank you. Roger.

 

[dogfish246]

What does the sticker in the door jam say? Mine is on the drivers side door, look at that and follow... I just talked to Hib about this and he told me to run at around 32psi... Since I got the Vette I have been running at 41psi, and I just got new tires so I got advice... Im going to lower the psi on mine to 35...

 

[Tuna]

The door sticker tire pressure is a good starting point for daily driving even with some spirited driving thrown in - I remember the 275/40/17 in the later C4 recommended 30 psi. If you're talking about autocrossing or track time driving, consider bumping the pressures up to 38-40 to keep the side wall flex to a minimum to increase turn-in response.

 

[roger longman]

Hi dogfish, Tuna, There is no sticker on mine. I'm trying to find the pressure specifically for my tyre size. There still seems to be a variance of opinion. "Hib told me to run about 32 psi so I'm going to lower the psi on mine to 35". "275/40/17 in the later C4 recommended 30 psi". I'm trying to learn how to drive at a 'high rate of speed' but at the moment I'm just 'quick'. As an ex moto crosser, in England, I couln't dream of putting her through the rigours of autocross. I'll run at 32 PSI for now. Anyone? Thanks for the input. Roger.

 

[Hib Halverson]

There is a difference between the recommended pressure when the car is carrying its maximum load (that's the one on the door post sticker) and the best pressure to run for aggressive street driving or racing.

To get the best handing for performance driving, I'd start at 30 psi cold, start running the car hard and once the tires get hot, I'd check the pressure again. Then I'd vary the pressure somewhat while subjectively or objectively testing the car's handling. The optimal pressure may vary front to rear and probably will fall between 32 and 38 psi.

Bottom line, for aggressive driving there is no set pressure good for all situations.

 

[roger longman]

There is a difference between the recommended pressure when the car is carrying its maximum load (that's the one on the door post sticker) and the best pressure to run for aggressive street driving or racing.

To get the best handing for performance driving, I'd start at 30 psi cold, start running the car hard and once the tires get hot, I'd check the pressure again. Then I'd vary the pressure somewhat while subjectively or objectively testing the car's handling. The optimal pressure may vary front to rear and probably will fall between 32 and 38 psi.

Bottom line, for aggressive driving there is no set pressure good for all situations.

Thanks Hib, That's what I've been doing but she"s pretty skittish at all pressures. In the dry ! There is no sticker on the door post. Guess I need to try new shocks. Thanks again. Roger.