Did I ruin my tires?

[Naio]

I got some BFG TA/KOs last summer.

Then, in the winter, when I was having all the suspension problems, I thought part of the issue was the tire shop had only put 35 psi in them. I read about the importance of having max or near-max pressure when carrying near-max load.

I tried to read on the sidewall what the max pressure was. It is VERY hard to read. I got second opinions from friends. I googled. Finally I decided it said 80. I put 70 in, and drove 1000 miles, mostly freeway. The van did handle a lot better.

Lo, the max is supposed to be 50. That 8 is a 5. The pressure is at 50 now. But have I stressed my tires and are they going to blow out on me?

[Dr_Quick]

My questions would be, what size van did you have, and MFG. tire pressure recommendation on the drivers door jamb?
I work on all kinds of vehicles, and 35 PSI is not uncommon for say for some older 1/2 pickups. Or even the full size 1/2 vans too.

[Naio]

Thank you, guys 🙂

[naturist]

While you were running overinflated, you were wearing them unevenly, but not enough for that short a haul to be noticeable. You were also under an increased risk of blowout due to hitting a pothole, but that didn't happen. I wouldn't worry about it. Drive more, worry less.

[ScottG]

If I understand correctly what you wrote, the max is supposed to be 50 and you put in 70.
My nephew did the same thing with his tires. Tire shop dismounted them for inspection and showed him all the cracks that had developed. They looked fine on the outside but it was clear they were destroyed.
So I would have at least a couple of them dismounted for inspection.

[mgirardo]

Unless you ran the tires at 80 PSI at the maximum weight rating, you probably didn't do any damage to the tire.

-Michael

[wa8yxm]

Naio wrote:
ILo, the max is supposed to be 50. That 8 is a 5. The pressure is at 50 now. But have I stressed my tires and are they going to blow out on me?

Short answer: NO you are ok

Long answer:

The problem with high pressure is you wear out the center of the tread and not the sides.. You also have less control epically under adverse conditions.

Finally if it gets really hot.. Pressure can increase to the point of BOOM,, explosive decompression (Flat).

Since they have not (yet) gone BOOM.. the odds are they will be ok (Like 99.99999%)

You have shortned the tire life by a few weeks,,but likely not long enough for you to notice.

Now.. compare that to LOW pressure

Lwo pressure the tires wear on the edges of the tread same as high does the center

Sidewalls flex far more than they are designed to,, This can damage steel belts, and cause excessive heating and explosive sidewall failure (Think Ford Roll-a-amatic) and that is a major problem.

But you did not run low.

Last time I chanced a low tire it cost me around 300 dollars

100 for a new tire 200 for a new cell phone (Old one got wet in the rain).

[RJsfishin]

Long term overpressure could cause excessive center treadwear.
Short term, won't hurt a thing. In fact, if you must ever overload a tire, such as hauling a load of fire wood, or a load of bagged cement, over pressure could be a very good thing.

[lawrosa]

The van did handle a lot better.

Because the side wall was stiffer. I run my KO's at 50 psi when towing. big difference from 40... Reduces sway...

Tires were not damaged IMO.... Your fine...

[Ductape]

No.

Good news is now you know why the van handled poorly.