You Should Know

This is one of my pet peaves. I work at a fire department and I can't tell you how many times I catch the new guy airing the tires to like a billion psi because that's what it said on the sidewall. EVERYTHING HAS A TIRE PLACARD, the sidewall is the max for the tire, if the placard says more than the sidewall says then you have the wrong tires.

Some cars also have tire pressure info on the inside of the gas cap cover, in case you can't find it anywhere else.

My cars all had this info under the gas cap. With details about number of people/load/comfort/economy.

YSAK that getting new tires doesn't always line up with the PSI rated by the vehicle manufacturer and will have the rated PSI listed on the wall of the tire. You can also request the documentation on the tires purchased from the shop you got them from.

Edit: As rightfully pointed out in replies to this, yes the markings on the tire wall as typically the safety ratings for the tire itself and the correct PSI is a more complicated relationship between the vehicle, the size of the wheels/tires, and contact area of the tire for optimal traction and fuel economy. The vehicle placard will be a good value in most cases, except when the tire marks a max pressure lower than your vehicle's recommendation. Always consult with the shop if you have concerns.

It isn’t always on the drivers side. It can be on the passenger side, sometimes front, sometimes rear… sometimes they put it in the glovebox - depends on the car manufacturer.

Source: used to work in tire shop.

So many people incorrectly think they should go by the number on the tire, not knowing that that number is the max that tire can hold, not the recommended pressure. Putting the max amount in prevents the tread from contacting the road flat, which will cause the middle of the tread to wear quicker than the rest. Same for too little pressure, but in this case the edges wear quicker than the middle. Using the recommended pressure for your vehicle ensures the tread is contacting the road evenly all the way across the width of the tread, and gets you the best gas mileage and treat wear.

Also if your car is German and the country you're in is not, you may find yourself in a situation where your car is bitching about tyre pressure but the only pump you can find at a petrol station is in PSI and the label is in Bar, and the only way you can convert those is to desperately wave your phone around like a madman trying to get some working internet while freezing cold in the rain. You might be well served by doing that conversion up front and writing it down somewhere.

Totally hypothetical situation, of course.

I was driving the other week and my low tire pressure light went on. I opened the error page in the infotainment screen and sure enough it said "low tire pressure".

I went to measure it and it was actually high tire pressure due to the hot weather. I let out some pressure and it went away.

So YSK that apparently cars will falsely report high tire pressure as "low" tire pressure and to always measure it before going to fill up.

You should also know that normal driving will raise the temperature and therefore the pressure of your tires. This means if you've been driving for a while and set your your pressure to exactly what that placard says, you're most likely going to have low pressure the next morning. Tire pressure should be set when cold. If that's not possible, add about 4 psi more when you're at the pump. The next morning you can use any cheap pressure gauge to check and let some air out to correct if necessary.

Also be aware many spare tires (those thinner ones you find in the car) have larger pressure

Does anybody adjust the tyre pressure due to weight in the car? Surely driving with larger weight in the boot would require a difficult psi/bar for the tyres?

Edit: great ysk post!

I always read about what's printed on tires. 🤷

Could you please add a "Why YSK:"? It's rule #2. Thank you. :)

And that's good info you're adding BTW.

My car's plaque has columns with different values depending on how many people are in the car.

Does it mean people in the car while you're airing the tires, or people usually in the car, or max people you intende to put in the car eventually?

My friend had a tire that was almost completely flat the other day and this tip always comes in handy.

If you ever change your wheels or tires, is this sticker supposed to be changed or updated?

I learned recently there is usually a sticker under the hood with the weight of refrigerant and oil to be put into the ac as well (really helped me in properly using a manifold gauge and pump on my truck)

I went to a car show today and noticed a lot of text on the frame of a Lamborghini Aventador. I wondered what that was. Now I know.

This is just plain wrong!!1!1! You should always fill it to 100! Its 100% or nothing when it comes to tires.

(/s obviously)

"Cold pressure". If you've driven the car, as you would to go get the tire pressure checked, the tires are no longer cold and you need to add 4 lbs to the pressure listed.

More pressure is better!!!!!

/s