School me on E rated tire pressures

wayoflife said:

35 psi is what is recommend for tires of that size and at that psi, you will get an okay ride and best MPG. Problem is, Range E tires have really thick sidewalls and your ride quality will be on the harsh side at that psi and, depending on the width of your wheels, your tread will most likely not have full contact with the ground. Typically, people run 28 psi as it helps to solve both ride comfort and tread to ground contact on most common wheels.

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wayoflife said:

35 psi is what is recommend for tires of that size and at that psi, you will get an okay ride and best MPG. Problem is, Range E tires have really thick sidewalls and your ride quality will be on the harsh side at that psi and, depending on the width of your wheels, your tread will most likely not have full contact with the ground. Typically, people run 28 psi as it helps to solve both ride comfort and tread to ground contact on most common wheels.

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NFRs2000NYC said:

Thats what I figured. I guess my question was is it ok to run this tire at 28-30psi for local driving (I'd pump em up to 35-37 for a cross country drive for ideal MPG) and local highway driving without the tire exploding and sending me into through the pearly gates on fire. Sounds like I should be ok then.

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CaliCrusher said:

So what's the "cheat code" to turn off the low tire pressure light? Mine comes on around <37 psi.

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Army_Vet said:

What I have learned.... the steel belts in your tires when run at extreme low pressures will flex more than designed. This will contribute to tire failure due to the snapping of the steel belts. Just an example to illustrate. A paper clip; if you bend it more than its designed to bend, it will weaken and break only after a few bends. However if you bend it slightly within its limits you can bend it back and forth forever.
Now I understand the steel belts are not made of the same metal that paper clips are made from; this was just an example to illustrate the point.

Tire companies employ guys in white lab coats to find the failure points of all these things; and this is what they have found.

Any body care to know why it is not recommended to plug a tire?

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wayoflife said:

I personally run Range E Toyos and Nittos at 28 psi all the time and everywhere regardless of how far I need to go. It's never been a problem for me. For what it's worth, depending on the trip (something like JKX where you are on dirt and pavement on and off a lot), I've run them at 10-15 psi at highway speeds for hundreds of miles on end and without any problems. Once, I was unaware that one of my tires was completely flat and I wheeled all of Black Bear Pass like that and once, I drove over 40 miles like that on my way back from Fordyce to South Lake Tahoe in the middle of the night. Not the best thing in the world to do and not something I would recommend but, my point is that they held up just fine.

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NFRs2000NYC said:

Ive been plugging tires for ages, including race tires. If they hold up on a racetrack, they sure as hell will hold up on a Jeep.

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Army_Vet said:

Yes so have I(except race cars).... I was not at all saying I wouldnt. Just asking if you(or anyone) were interested in knowing what the White lab coat guys found....

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NFRs2000NYC said:

Oh sure, Ive never heard about plugging tires and side effects...other than the tire companies wanting to sell you a new tire everytime you run over a staple. If they have a legit reason, I'd be curious to hear it.

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Army_Vet said:

Besides the one or few cords that can be broken from the puncture, and then reaming tool. The opening in the rubber will allow rust/corrosion to creep in and infect the rest of the cords.

With that being said, I think it should be know that it would take years for a tire to fail from this cause.

Tire companies do plug tires. but they do it properly; and seal the damaged area.

This does not mean manufactures will recommend plugging tires, but tire service companies will if state laws allow.

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wayoflife said:

You need a Superchips FlashCal, Flashpaq or AEV ProCal to turn it off.

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CaliCrusher said:

I just read another reply you posted about the increased performance that the FlashCal offers automatic 3.8L JKs (but not manual trannys.) Does it offer the same upgraded performance for the automatic 3.6L Jeeps?

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NFRs2000NYC said:

Thats a plausible reason actually, but like you said, it would take years to rot away the steel...generally the tire will wear faster than that. I have my personal trick to plugging tires that has worked very well over the years. Ream the hole, stick plug onto tool and soak in rubber cement. Insert plug. Remove tool and add more rubber cement on top. (That stuff is done with the tire completely flat.) Then, I light the rubber cement on fire, and start inflating the tire. While its burning, the rubber melts and the air pressure from being pumped up pushes the plug tighter into the rubber and the slightly melted cement bonds it all together. I have never EVER had a single plug/tire failure with the above method. "100% of the time, it works everytime."

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