Support VWWC

Page 2 of 2 FirstFirst 12
Results 11 to 15 of 15

Thread: R36 Wheel Alignment issues

  1. #11

    That maybe the case.

    Off the top of my head (have the Golf at work today) we fitted the 235/40 zr18s 95Y.

    Am happy with them so far.

    Going down to Batesman Bay on Thursday so be interesting to see how they go down the mountain.

    Regards

  2. #12
    Join Date
    Sep 2008
    Location
    Melbourne
    Posts
    365
    Quote Originally Posted by qsilverza View Post
    44 PSI !!! Thats way to high. You should probably be around 36 PSI. I drove with my tyres quite high and they were exhibiting outside edge wear.
    I've kept tyres on all my cars for the last 10 years at the highest pressure allowed by the tyre maker - usually 44PSI, occasionally (as on my Passat now) up to 51PSI.

    Advantages:
    Better grip (especially in the wet).
    Less tyre wall flex and heating.
    Longer tyre life.
    Better fuel economy.
    Better ride (I reckon, it forces the suspension to work more).

    Disadvantages:
    Lighter steering and loss of feel (mainly at low speed anyway)
    Can give harsher ride, especially on small bumps and cats-eyes.
    Increased wear in the centre portion of the tyre.

    The thing with tyre pressures, as I see it, is that most manufacturers recommend a value that's set for ride comfort above all other factors - but again, the emphasis is that it's a recommendation.

    In the past, my tyres regularly lasted 40,000-45,000km.

  3. #13
    Join Date
    Sep 2008
    Location
    Melbourne, Victoria
    Posts
    56
    Quote Originally Posted by passatpout View Post
    I've kept tyres on all my cars for the last 10 years at the highest pressure allowed by the tyre maker - usually 44PSI, occasionally (as on my Passat now) up to 51PSI.

    Advantages:
    Better grip (especially in the wet).
    Less tyre wall flex and heating.
    Longer tyre life.
    Better fuel economy.
    Better ride (I reckon, it forces the suspension to work more).

    Disadvantages:
    Lighter steering and loss of feel (mainly at low speed anyway)
    Can give harsher ride, especially on small bumps and cats-eyes.
    Increased wear in the centre portion of the tyre.

    The thing with tyre pressures, as I see it, is that most manufacturers recommend a value that's set for ride comfort above all other factors - but again, the emphasis is that it's a recommendation.

    In the past, my tyres regularly lasted 40,000-45,000km.


    Tyres work like a balloon pressed against a a hard surface. High pressure means that only the centre will contact the surface. Medium Pressure will mean the maximum contact patch and low pressure means that the outside will contact and the centre will bow upwards for less contact and close the water channels.

    Having the pressure that high (50psi) will also decrease your grip as the contact patch is limited to the centre of the tyre and the rubber is being pushed outwards.

    When I used to race, we would always pump up the tyres to maximum in the wet as they increased the width of the channels, so dissapated more water.
    However you also get less rubber contacting the road. When cornering, the shoulders do most of the work and at high pressure the shoulders also have less contact with the road. (hence the lack of feel)
    IMHO 35-40psi is more than enough in the dry and best for overall performance

  4. #14
    Join Date
    Feb 2008
    Location
    NSW
    Posts
    341
    Users Country Flag
    Quote Originally Posted by Gipper View Post
    Tyres work like a balloon pressed against a a hard surface. High pressure means that only the centre will contact the surface. Medium Pressure will mean the maximum contact patch and low pressure means that the outside will contact and the centre will bow upwards for less contact and close the water channels.

    Having the pressure that high (50psi) will also decrease your grip as the contact patch is limited to the centre of the tyre and the rubber is being pushed outwards.

    When I used to race, we would always pump up the tyres to maximum in the wet as they increased the width of the channels, so dissapated more water.
    However you also get less rubber contacting the road. When cornering, the shoulders do most of the work and at high pressure the shoulders also have less contact with the road. (hence the lack of feel)
    IMHO 35-40psi is more than enough in the dry and best for overall performance
    Seconded - Agree with Gipper. Too High Pressure is not good, and I reckon the ride would be unbearable - like driving round on solid rubber!
    Confirmed Global Warming Sceptic. No Longer a VW Owner -Loving my new 2011 Range Rover Sport - bought as VW unable to provide info on the new Toureg despite it being released overseas 12 mths ago. 2008 R36 Wagon, 2006 GTI and 2004 R32 - Gone. Sorry VW, you make great cars but until you improve your customers' experiences you will lose customers

  5. #15
    Join Date
    Sep 2008
    Location
    Melbourne
    Posts
    365

    Ah well, I had it on the dealer-supplied pressures for a month (about 36PSI), pumped them up on the weekend, and much prefer the higher pressures. Give it a go for a week.

Page 2 of 2 FirstFirst 12

Bookmarks

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •  
| |