What You MUST Know about Air-Pressure in a Tire

The majority of drivers are aware of the fact the carrying capacity of a tire is determined by its size and pressure. The bigger the tire is and the higher the pressure inside it is the bigger the carrying capacity is. And vice vesra, the smaller the tire is and the lower the pressure is the less the capacity is.

The insufficiently pumped tire wears out the shoulder zone faster than the middle of the protector. The correctly pumped tire distributes the air-pressure throughout so that the structure of the tire remains stable. And although the majority of drivers know that is affects the deterioration of the tire, only a few understand the reduction of the pressure affects the tire resistance towards aquagliding and control on a wet road.

Physics says that a gas is easily compressed and transferred, and a liquid is impossible to compress, and even a slight transfer of it requires energy consumption. When the road is wet, the ability to cope with aquagliding is determined by the speed and the weight of the vehicle, the design of the protector and the uniformity of load distribution.

One of the means of examining the ability to resist aquaglining is running a car through a glass capacity with a torque water level. For better visibility the water is painted and the whole process is shot with the help of high-speed cameras. The shots feature all-season premium-class Michelin HydroEdge tire:

In the first photo the tire stands in the water on glass surface. The pressure is as required 35psi. The size and the shape of the contact are clearly visible. Black color corresponds to the zone of full contact between the tire and surface. The green color corresponds to the water in canals. Properly pumped tire doesn’t allow the central part of the protector collapse inside.

The second shot features the same tire with the pressure of 35 psi moving on the same surface at 95 k.p.h. If the glass was dry the shot would have coincided with the first one. But when a tire is moving at 26.6 meters per second on the glass totally covered in water the canals must be able to remove it from the zone of contact. Pay your attention to the fact that the protector still has good contact with the surface.

This photo shows the tire with 30 psi. The speed is the same 96 k.p.h. The protector unsuccessfully tries to remove water and its central part rises. The shot shows that the protector hardly touches the surface and the zone of contact is noticeably smaller then that of a properly pumped tire.

At lower pressure the central part of the tire sags inside and water is not removed through the canals and accumulates under the tire.

The last picture shows the tire with only 1.7 psi at 98 k.p.h. At the tire’s passing the capacity, the water raises the front part of the protector. It is evident that the zone of contact is practically absent.

The investigators tested Michelin tires on wet roads. The drivers compared the behavior of two tires: 35 psi and 25 psi.

On wet surfaces it is much harder to control the car in critical modes, but it the tires are properly pumped the behavior is still predictable. It turned out to be much harder to drive a car with the rear tires drained, the drivers has to brake to gain control over the vehicle.

The tire manufacturers produce models with the great figures of aquagliding resistance, but it they are not properly pumped all the technologies are in vain.

Conclusion:

Pay great attention to the air-pressure in your tires, check it not rarer than once a month and before long trips.

The Secret of Rain Tires and Aquagliding

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