Popular mechanics is not making a profit; they're just stupid, and I demonstrated why. They performed an uncontrolled experiment and didn't account for all variables. Their testing is invalid, and as a result, they're misleading people.
I don't want to be rude, but we don't live in a perfect world. We live in a world where if your clutch on your Cruze Eco fails, GM will do anything in its power to not replace it and call it a wear item. See the general section of this forum. We live in a world where Toyota has been hiding their random acceleration and sticky pedal problems since 2002, leading up to I think 11 current and open federal investigations. Money is king and you and I both know that. Any company that manufactures and sell tires will recommend want you to come back for another set, and the guys at cleanmpg.com forums have demonstrated time and time again, with no discrepancies, that your tire life is significantly extended by running maximum sidewall pressure and that the
radial tires wear evenly.
Show me a single test that's actually been done by an organization that indicates you wear tires SOONER using "over-inflated" tires than with the manufacturer recommendation. You won't find it because its not true. Nobody actually tests this crap, they just tell it to you to keep you from doing it for obvious reasons. Plenty of people here know that's the honest truth and I'm surprised you still think tire manufacturers act in your best interest.
The best tire pressure to run is that which meets your needs, not that which your car's manufacturer recommended. The Cruze Eco tires are designed to run up to 51psi safely. There is absolutely NO basis in telling people that they cannot do so.
Don't bring engineers into this unless you can bring an actual engineer into this. Don't speak on their behalf as if you know exactly why they made their decisions. I can guarantee you they didn't tell us to run 35PSI on our Eco tires to maximize tire wear over higher pressures. I and everyone else here know as a fact, they did it as a best compromise for ride quality. I will admit that running tires at 50psi like I do leads to a notable increase in road variations transmitted into the vehicle. The tires simply don't absorb smaller impacts anymore.
I don 't think a lot people understand how much force you are talking about, think about it this way. Imagine 35 pounds of weight and on your hand. Now imagine 50 pounds of weight on your hand (or do it if you choose) Imagine the difference there. That is what your tire is doing in every square inch. Say (for giggles) the tire is 8 inches wide and 48 inches around.
8X48= 384 square inches
384X35PSI=13,440 pounds of pressure in that tire
384X50PSI+19,200 pounds of pressure in that tire
Starting to get it? and that is just the tread size, that same pressure is on the sidewall at the same PSI so the numbers are actually even higher than that. There is A LOT of potential energy in an inflated tire
I don't think you understand that tire manufacturers are bound by the NHTSA to post VALID numbers on the tire sidewall. Regardless of your calculations, the tire manufacture rates that tire for that specific pressure SAFELY and with at least a 200% safety margin. 51psi max on the Eco tires is a cold pressure. They know that if you inflate at 51psi at 68 degrees F, and you drive down a Las Vegas highway in the summer with 110 blazing heat that the pressure will expand, and they've accounted for that and much more for liability reasons.
What PSI do truck tires run? Just because there's potential energy, doesn't mean there's potential disaster. The real fact is that increasing pressure reduces rolling resistance, which in fact reduces heat created and reduces the variation in pressure. Reduction in heat reduces to less likelihood for a blowout and helps prolong dry rot.
I generally inflate to 110% of recommended inflation pressure. Any more than that I find the ride quality suffers too much.
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That's 100% fine. You tried it and you noticed the difference. It works for you, and neither I nor anyone else can tell you its not right. You value your ride quality, and that's great. You've found the pressure that works best for you.
I'm recommending everyone do the same as you did, and I'm telling them its safe to go to the max sidewall rating if they don't have ride quality in mind.
40-42 psi since day one and that's all I have to say about that!!!
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