Air pressure?

[Gabriel Simpson]

i have 31 x 1050 goodyear trackers on my 95 xlt. i ride on the beach in cape hatterus and nags head. i hadnt had any problems going from street to sand at 40lbs until the other day. the sand was turned up more so i dropped the pressure to about 30lbs. will running the tire at 30lbs on the nighway wear down the tread faster? or make a difference in gas mileage? i left them at 30lbs but have been offroading so gas mileage is not consistent with normal driving conditions. today i found a new trail about 5 miles from my house and is so sweet. it is only about a mile long but it has some nice ravines and obsticles. i dont want to destroy my tires but im not sure how much air pressure i shoul dhave in them.

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[Gabriel Simpson]

You rock! thanks for the quick reply with the helpful info. that will help my back. when i i got the tires mounted the dealer had them inflated at 44lbs! he said that i would get better gas mileage. boy i feel like i dupe.
thanks again!
gabe

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[bachelor25]

Hey Gabe,

No worries man, glad to help out. That's what this board is all about!

And don't feel bad about being "duped". My tire shop does the same thing when I get new tires put on. I've blown tires twice, and the new one always is filled with 40psi!! Grrrr...

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Cheers,

Andrew B.
1996 Ford Explorer 4x4 (slightly modified)
BC, Canada

 

[bachelor25]

Gabriel,

I also have 31s on my '96 Explorer, and I can tell you that if you're concerned about premature wear, then 40psi is NOT where you want the tires inflated. You will certainly be "crowning" the tires, causing premature wear of the center of the tread, not to mention feeling like you're riding on flintstone tires!

You should have noticed a MUCH better ride when you reduced the pressure to 30psi, as that's approximately where they should be inflated. I run mine at 28psi on the street, and 15psi on the trail. The desired effect is to have the correct contact patch on the ground. You can check this by wetting your tires then driving over dry pavement. Try this at 40psi and then 30psi and you will see the difference in contact patch. Also when you have the correct contact patch, you spread the load evenly across the tread, thus reducing wear.

Just because a tire says that it can be inflated to 35psi or 40psi or whatever, this is just the MAXIMUM cold tire pressure for that tire's load carrying capacity. Your Explorer is no where near the weight of the tires maximum capacity, so you don't need to be at the maximum pressure.

Just my $.02

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Cheers,

Andrew B.
1996 Ford Explorer 4x4 (slightly modified)
BC, Canada

 

[renner99]

IF YOU DON'T RUN OFF-ROAD, GET THOSE FIRESTONES OFF AND PUT ON AN ALL SEASON MICHELIN SERIES. I DID AND IT MADE BIG DIFFERENCES IN HANDLING, ROAD NOISE AND TIRE LIFE. SNOW IN 4X4 WAS NOT A PROBLEM EITHER.

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[DuaneD]

I have the Firestone P235/75R15 105 S M/S tires on my 94XLT. What is the best air pressure to run in them for interstate driving?

 

[Lobo]

Am I correct in saying that the BFG AT TA 31"x10.5" tires that have a maximum of 50 PSI should probably be filled to ~30 PSI on a Ford Explorer? Let me know. Thanks!

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-Lobo
An Explorer Blessing:
May you not see your A4LD in your rear-view mirror and
your radius arm bushings stay silent on the trail.

 

[Jordan714]

Hey Guys,

I have a 98 XLT running 31x10.5 Savero Swampers, raised my torsions up about 2" in the front and rear is stock. I have noticed that my gas mileage is TERRIBLE lately. On a full tank of gas I was going about 290 to 295 miles and now I am going about 250 to 260 miles per tank. Whats wrong?

Thanks for helping,

Jordan
98 XLT