Tire Pressure

[j.roffel]

I was thinking about lowering the pressure a bit in my rear 265 revos for some extra traction in the snow. Is this a bad idea? I've heard of this done in the desert, any opinions? Whats the lowest would you go?

[iminaquagmire]

I wouldn't do it. Skinnier tires will cut through the snow down to the pavement below. Airing down will make the tires wider and ride on top of the snow. It may also affect the way the tread clears the snow.

[j.roffel]

Thats why I love this place, always someone thinking better than me.

[ujtruck]

I wouldn't do it. Skinnier tires will cut through the snow down to the pavement below. Airing down will make the tires wider and ride on top of the snow. It may also affect the way the tread clears the snow.

 

I am driving mostly on snow and black ice, so should I increase my tire pressure from 240 to 260 or more ?

 

will it bounce the truck all over the road ?

[pm26]

For military trucks, like deuce and a half 6X6, the recommended tire pressure for hard pavement is 50 psi in all tires. For off -road driving in difficult terrain, such as mud and snow they recommend reducing the tire pressure to as low as 15 psi. Below that, there is a risk of tires slipping on the rims, tearing up the inner tubes (not a concern for tubeless tires, except they may slide off the rim entirely). More modern military vehicles have an automatic tire inflation system , which enables the driver to change the pressure in all tires from the cab. The old deuce and a half only has an engine mounted compressor and pressure fitting for an air hose inside the cab. So you have to inflate the tires manually.

 

So the answer is yes: reducing tire pressure increases the tire footprint, thereby reducing the ground pressure, and increases traction in snow and mud and sand.

 

There is a good reason why tracked vehicles with wider tracks perform a lot better in mud and snow. Russian T34 tanks had wide tracks and performed better in deep snow than German Tigers in WW II.

[pm26]

I wouldn't do it. Skinnier tires will cut through the snow down to the pavement below. Airing down will make the tires wider and ride on top of the snow. It may also affect the way the tread clears the snow.

 

I am driving mostly on snow and black ice, so should I increase my tire pressure from 240 to 260 or more ?

 

will it bounce the truck all over the road ?

 

 

I assume that your specified tire pressure is in kiloPascals (kPa), or kiloNewtons/square meter (kN/m2), as no other unit in this range would make sense. 1 atm =14.7 psi =101.5 kPA. So, 240 kPA = approx 35 psi and 260 kPa =approx 38 psi

 

 

If you get stuck in deep mud or deep snow or sand, lowering the tire pressure to about 15 psi in all tires may get you out. Only do this temporarily and only in an emergency.

 

And for driving in snow you want to decrease the tire pressure, not increase it. Try 30 psi or 207 kPa

[ujtruck]

I wouldn't do it. Skinnier tires will cut through the snow down to the pavement below. Airing down will make the tires wider and ride on top of the snow. It may also affect the way the tread clears the snow.

 

I am driving mostly on snow and black ice, so should I increase my tire pressure from 240 to 260 or more ?

 

will it bounce the truck all over the road ?

 

 

I assume that your specified tire pressure is in kiloPascals (kPa), or kiloNewtons/square meter (kN/m2), as no other unit in this range would make sense. 1 atm =14.7 psi =101.5 kPA. So, 240 kPA = approx 35 psi and 260 kPa =approx 38 psi

 

 

If you get stuck in deep mud or deep snow or sand, lowering the tire pressure to about 15 psi in all tires may get you out. Only do this temporarily and only in an emergency.

 

And for driving in snow you want to decrease the tire pressure, not increase it. Try 30 psi or 207 kPa

 

 

 

Thanks Pete, I will decrease them tomorrow. Yes at the moment they are @ 35psi = 240 KPA

[iminaquagmire]

Whatever. Do a google search if you like. Skinny tires cut through snow and provide better performance than wide tires. Lowering the psi in effect makes the tires wider.

[Genuinefine409]

Whatever. Do a google search if you like. Skinny tires cut through snow and provide better performance than wide tires. Lowering the psi in effect makes the tires wider.

 

 

I agree, just go to tirerack.com and look for snow tires for your truck, they will be tall and skinny. a tall skinny BFG all terrian is about the best thing in snow. to replace the factory 245/75/16 for a winter tire they recommend 235/85/16. in mud and sand, the more tire is more to bite. in snow and ice, its all the more to slip. Also, if you lower your air in you tires, especialy BFG's adn other good all terrains, they will not clean out right if at all and they could pack up like a slick unless you get some serious wheel speed to whip it out. I would throw a few hunded pounds of snow in the bed before i'd ever let air out of the tires.

 

Tracked vehicles can't even be compared to tires. it's not the footprint that makes a tracked vehicle go so good, its the weight and the fact that its a track and not a smooth round tire.

[shedberg]

Where I live, we get A LOT of snow. A 3 foot dump overnight is not out of the ordinary. Trust me when I say DO NOT LET THE AIR OUT OF YOUR TIRES. Wide tires with snow = BAD BAD BAD. Narrow tires are the way to go, the weight from the truck is focussed more and it allows the tire to cut through the snow to gain traction on the pavement below. I've driven in snow with wide tires, you don't ever want to do it.

 

The desert is different than snow, because there is no pavement under the sand to drive on. If the snow was 100ft deep, letting the air out of your tires would make sense, but on roads you don't want to drive on top of the snow, you want to drive on the pavement.

 

If you DO decide to let the air out of your tires though... post pictures of the accident for us to see.

[akfireman]

While this argument would be plausible off-road, on the road you would just cause excess wear and tear on the tire. When you lower your tire pressure in the sand for better traction it is for a limited amount of driving, not everyday use and lots of miles.

[08 Sierra Z71]

I was thinking about lowering the pressure a bit in my rear 265 revos for some extra traction in the snow. Is this a bad idea? I've heard of this done in the desert, any opinions? Whats the lowest would you go?

 

I do a lot of hunting in West Texas. The terrain is very rocky. Back in 1986, I made the mistake of driving a brand new Ford Bronco with factory all season tires to West Texas. We had thirteen flats in less than a week. I have been running BFG's on my trucks ever since and haven't had a flat. We tend to over inflate the tires to protect the sidewalls from rock punctures. Lowering tire pressure would cause the sidewalls to bulge, exposing more area to possible damage. The only reason I could think of lowering tire pressure in a desert environment would be for 4X4 rock climbing.