What tire pressure?

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Oct 19, 2005 | 06:53 PM

A4Grover

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What tire pressure?

I've got an 05 A4 2.0T 6MT with the sport package (17" rims, Pirelli tires). What tire pressure should I be running for best street performance? The door jam says 32 - 34, teh dealer set it at 28 (which looks waaaayyy too low).

Any suggestions?

Thanks in advanced!

Oct 19, 2005 | 07:09 PM

bhvrdr

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Several things to take into consideration...

The door jams list a range for several reasons. Tire pressure will depend on load and the manufacturer of the tire and the driving conditions. I would start with the middle of the door jam rating if you have the factory tires. I would start at 36psi otherwise. Then you want to look at the triangles on the edge of your tire tread. They are there to tell you what to do with your pressure. Remembering to always keep the tire pressure below the maximum PSI indicated on the label of your tire's sidewall, you can adjust safely based upon those triangles. If you are rolling over the triangles during your turns, time to add some pressure. If you are noting no wear at all except for the center of the tire, time to lose some pressure. For racing, you can run perfectly up to those triangle up front, but adjust the rears so you are only using the center of the tire thereby reducing traction to the rear and gaining some understeer. For the streets you may want both the front and rear wearing right up to those indicators. cheers! Mike

Oct 19, 2005 | 08:57 PM

JStrauss

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Here's what I always do...

Look at the tire sidewall and note the max psi rating. For instance, Dunlop SP Sport Maxx tires are 51 psi max.

I just subtract 12 psi from that max. for the front, and set the rear about 2 psi lower. Thus, 38 front and 36 rear. Then, if necessary, I can adjust the pressure as desired.

This method, plus rotation every 5-10k miles has always resulted in even tire wear for me.

Oct 19, 2005 | 09:03 PM

A4Grover

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Excellent info

Thanks a lot! Appreciate the in-depth info. I'm still running factory rubber, so the door jam numbers are still applicable. At 28lbs, the fronts feel too loose, as is too soft.

I've heard about using chalk on the thread to determine if there's enough / too much air. I think I'll go to 36 and then verify the whole tread is on the ground.

Thanks again!

Oct 19, 2005 | 09:14 PM

JStrauss

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I've always found the "factory recommendations" in the door jamb to be way too low.

Oct 20, 2005 | 05:01 AM

RichAA

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Depends

It depends on what your goals are. The door jamb rating is Audi's spec and it's there to optimize the ride. Remember that they use a few different tire makes and types that vary quite a bit, and it's not clear whether that sticker pertains to options on that particular car (17", 18", perf tires vs. all-season, etc.).

I don't care as much as some about the ride quality and I run higher pressure than recommended (I run 34 in the P6 fourseasons and 44 hot in my Continentals).