Tire Air-Presure Preparation: timing
Silly question: We are getting ready for a short journey tomorrow afternoon; is it okay to check and fill the air in the trailer tires today; or, should I wait until tomorrow? Does it really matter?
Forum Discussion
Allow me to tell what I know about the 15% reserve capacity.
Remember the Ford/Firestone controversy some years back? Shortly after the recall was announced, the Feds turned their attention to the rest of the industry and asked some very probing questions. The company I worked for had a large database of tire returns. I was one of the guys who did the data analysis - and among the things we discovered was that the greater the reserve capacity, the fewer the tire failures - and 15% seemed to be the point where no failures were reported.
We adopted the stance that, in the OE market, we would not supply tires to any vehicle that didn't have a 15% reserve capacity. When we announced that to Ford, GM, Toyota, etc., their response was that other tire manufacturers had found similar things, and that they were taking that under consideration - which they (the vehicle manufacturers) by and large did. Today you will find that the GAWRS for their pickups and SUV's are at about 85% of the load carrying capacity of the tires at the pressure specified. This started about 2008.
That's where I think that 15% came from. I also think trailer manufacturers - who weren't subjected to the intense strutiny in that time frame - didn't pick up on the message. Certainly, there is a disconnect between the tire manufacturers and the trailer manufacturers, unlike car and truck manfacturers.
Remember the Ford/Firestone controversy some years back? Shortly after the recall was announced, the Feds turned their attention to the rest of the industry and asked some very probing questions. The company I worked for had a large database of tire returns. I was one of the guys who did the data analysis - and among the things we discovered was that the greater the reserve capacity, the fewer the tire failures - and 15% seemed to be the point where no failures were reported.
We adopted the stance that, in the OE market, we would not supply tires to any vehicle that didn't have a 15% reserve capacity. When we announced that to Ford, GM, Toyota, etc., their response was that other tire manufacturers had found similar things, and that they were taking that under consideration - which they (the vehicle manufacturers) by and large did. Today you will find that the GAWRS for their pickups and SUV's are at about 85% of the load carrying capacity of the tires at the pressure specified. This started about 2008.
That's where I think that 15% came from. I also think trailer manufacturers - who weren't subjected to the intense strutiny in that time frame - didn't pick up on the message. Certainly, there is a disconnect between the tire manufacturers and the trailer manufacturers, unlike car and truck manfacturers.
