Overinflated tires: What does it mean?

By Admin Reading time: 8 min read Published on: 22 / 07 / 2022
blog image

The air in a car tire is essential to running smoothly and safely. When the air in your tires gets too low or too high, you put yourself and others at risk. The air in tires is made up of a mixture of gases including helium, nitrogen, and oxygen. One of the most common types of air in a tire is Nitrogen, which comprises over 97% of the gas in tires, and makes the tire both lighter and more durable.

The tires on your car use air to keep you moving. Most tires are filled with a rubber compound and a small amount of air. When you drive your car, the air in your tires helps your vehicle move smoothly. The air in your tires also keeps your tires inflated, which means they are firm enough to keep your vehicle driving straight and far enough apart so that other vehicles can pass safely. Overinflated tires can cause a variety of problems, including reduced tire life and increased fuel consumption. Tyre overinflation can also cause tires to wear unevenly, which can increase the risk of a crash.  When a vehicle’s tires are overinflated, they lose pressure over time. This can cause a vehicle to lose traction and performance. Overinflated tires cause accidents and increase fuel consumption.

Over inflated tires symptoms

Four major indicators of an overinflated tire are the following:

  1. Lack Of Traction

The engine's energy is transferred to the pavement via traction, which gets your vehicle moving. Poor mileage is caused by a lack of reliable traction. The contact patch on your tires is not optimized when you overinflate them, so you lose traction. In most cases, the tire's centre area makes contact with the road. This makes it difficult for the tire to provide excellent traction.

  1. Excessive Center Tread Wear

You already know that a tire is overinflated since that is the part of it that touches the road.  This is why this part of the tire wears out first.

  1. Uncomfortable ride

A problem with your vehicle either results in you losing control or in your car vibrating constantly. On a rough or bumpy road, driving with overinflated tire results in a solid vibration. It is hard to ignore. This is caused by the tire being stiff and therefore unable to adjust to the uneven surface.

Overinflating your tires is what causes blowouts, which are the worst thing that can happen. You and your passengers are at risk when your tire blows out because it can substantially cause accidents. In addition, your tires become more vulnerable to road hazards like potholes, curbs, and cracks if you put too much air in them. This can lead to serious problems such as flat tires and blowouts. However, you can also get a flat tire anywhere.

How to fix overinflated tires?

As much serious as this problem seems, fixing this is quite simple and easy. You can implement the steps listed below when your tires are cool either before you run the car or you can do it even after using the car but a few hours after it rests. To get proper inflation and pressure results make sure that the tires are cold. Read on these quick ways:

  1. On your tire, add the valve stem. Remove the cap from it and then add the metal pin.
  2. There is a small niple on the back of the air pressure tool that serves as a release valve. Use this, or a similar tool, to press down firmly on the pin to let the air out of the tire.
  3. When you are releasing the air make sure to simultaneously check the tire pressure till you hit the proper PSI (pounds per square inch)
  4. However, it is also important to keep in mind that daily use of tires can result in loss of tire pressure so make sure to daily check the air pressure of your tires.

What is the recommended tire pressure?

Finding the right tire pressure for your car’s tire can be done in three different ways:
  1. Using an online tire pressure monitoring tool
  2. Car’s vehicle manual
  3. You can find this information on labels posted at the fuel door, glove box, or drivers side door

Manufacturers calculate the recommended tire pressure for your vehicle based on its total weight and size, its towing and payload capacity, and its recommended tire size. It is very crucial to stick to the recommended air pressure value since it will allow your tires to perform accurately and even extend their lifespan.

Maintaining the correct air pressure in a tire might seem not a big task but it is very important. Proper tire pressure can help you have a safe ride on the road and also ensure a good healthy condition of your tires. Your and all passengers' safety is important so keep a practice of daily checking the tire pressure.

Read More:
  1. An Overview of Tubeless Tyres
  2. Car Tyres: Myths & Facts
  3. How To Choose The Right Car Tyre?

FEATURED ARTICLES