The problem with any forecourt or public access gauge is the public have access. Having witnessed some of the clumsiness metered out to inanimate objects by the great unwashed, the gauge can be perfect in the morning and bust by lunchtime. Most of the local garages removed the free ones and replaced them with coin op ones years ago. Now they are just removing them, the local BP has been broken for 18 months that I know to.

I bought a digital one that slips in easily to the seat back stowage. £4.99 along with other clutter from lidl. Not sure how accurate it is, but the tyres feel firm to the toe after being ministered to.

Are we allowed to finish sentences with "to"? That's three times in one post. Along with all the other errors to which I am prone.

It's actually two "to"s because the last one should be a too

Although there are some errors up with which I will not put, arbitrary grammatical 'rules' can result in a rather pompous style.

Yup missed that, but what is the answer? To "to" or not "to", end wise.

Most drivers never check their tyre pressures from one month to the next,or even between services.

They drive in blissful ignorance with tyre pressures probably well below 28 psi.

I see nothing wrong with 28 psi on a 1.2 Yeti with no rear load.

Why not experiment and try 29/30 psi,etc,and see when the skittishness goes?

( Stands well back before being shot down in flames. )

The electonic Michelin ones always seem to get excellent reports, but aren't cheap.

The Michelin gauges get good reports for their features, but a lot of people say they are difficult to fit onto the tyre valve without allowing air to escape.

In the family we have digital gauges and pop-up gauges, but we also have two of these and they are better than anything else we've had: http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/accessories-tyres/41960/race-x-professional-tyre-gauge

Just thought I'd put in my two bob's worth.

I run 225/50/17 Pirellis, (62 plate 170 TDi Elegance) in good weather & have a full set of Superb 16" steels with Nokian winter tyres, in use right now.

Like almost everyone else, I've used the same pressure (2.2 bar) all round, but have had both sets filled with Nitrogen.

The local guy who did them for me reckons that fuel consumption & tyre wear will both improve compared to the usual air-fill.

As I've only done a total of 5k miles yet, still a bit early to judge. Average fuel cons so far is 42.3, but I expect that to improve as the miles clock up, whether that's due to the engine loosening up or the tyres, time will tell.

The only difference I've noticed so far is a harder ride & as the state of the roads continues to deteriorate, this may be a crucial factor in persuading me to change back to air. The cost of a Nitrogen fill is only £2.50 per corner, so not extortionate.

I'll continue to monitor & report as & when.

Anyone else had a Nitrogen fill & noticed any difference, I'd be interested to know.

Cheers the noo from the frosty Scottish Borders.

I fail to see how the "gas" content of a tyre can affect the fuel consumption. All it is doing is filling the tyre.

And guess how much nitrogen there is in normal air?

Answer 78%!!

I fail to see how the "gas" content of a tyre can affect the fuel consumption. All it is doing is filling the tyre.

And guess how much nitrogen there is in normal air?

Answer 78%!!

It doesn't directly. However, if nitrogen leakage is slower than air leakage, as claimed, then tyres retain pressure for longer, so if you don't check your tyres, you are less likely to be running under-inflated, hence your fuel consumption is likely to be better. My guess, anyway!

Although I am not a huge fan of the AA, this page on nitrogen inflation seems to reach a sensible conclusion: http://www.theaa.com...h-nitrogen.html

This is a bit more controversial but I see little reason to disagree: http://www.tyresave.co.uk/nitrogen.html

Edited 13 March, 201313 yr by r999

It doesn't directly. However, if nitrogen leakage is slower than air leakage, as claimed, then tyres retain pressure for longer, so if you don't check your tyres, you are less likely to be running under-inflated, hence your fuel consumption is likely to be better. My guess, anyway!

Correct.

Oxygen molecules are smaller than nitrogen molecules ,so over a very long period of time ,will leak away faster than nitrogen alone.

5th Gears Tiff Needell tested nitrogen filled tyres on the last program ( currently running on Discovery channel )

Their conclusion was it made no discernable difference.

Quite!!

There is 21% oxygen in the normal air in your tyres and 78% nitrogen, so even if there is a small amount of "leakage" of the 02 through the tyre it isn't going to make much difference to the normal driver.

I believe the old term was "snake oil".

+1

Also, I'd certainly not pay for the privilege of having my tyres inflated with oxygen depleted air! :think:

Fred

As per original post, I'll monitor & report.

Yes, I'm well aware of the constituents of atmospheric air, as a Chief Engineer who has worked on oil tankers all my working life,it's something very important to me & I deal with it every working day of every working week !!!

My query was aimed at other owners who have had their tyres filled with Nitrogen to see if they had experienced any long term effects relating to tyre wear & fuel cons, so, please, no more lectures on chemistry. Thanks.

Could red be reserved for the odd word or two of extreme importance or emphasis? It does rather jump out. JMO

And the nature of a Forum is that as a DISCUSSION medium sometimes the subject moves around a bit, which us exactly what has happened here.

Quite!!

There is 21% oxygen in the normal air in your tyres and 78% nitrogen, so even if there is a small amount of "leakage" of the 02 through the tyre it isn't going to make much difference to the normal driver.

Ah... This will explain why my tyres lose some of their filling, but not all... they seem to go down to 1.716 bar and no lower, at that point there is just nitrogen left as its too big to escape..

What is the cost of having Nitrogen added to your tyres, and does this offset any possibilities of fuel saving costs, I doubt it, but would be interested to know. Finally do you need to keep going back to tyre dealers to have a top up or do you just dilute it with normal air when the pressure drops

Sorry about that just noticed the £2.50 per wheel, answers to the second question would be appreciated

No, you are supposed to keep topping it up with nitrogen.

No, you are supposed to keep topping it up with nitrogen.

I personally cannot see an advantage then as you may need a top up every three months which would entail shelling out £40 per year alone. I can't see £40 being saved via fuel unless I am totally mistaken. It's an interesting subject anyone who has Nitrogen on board any comments?

Jon, I think the consensus has been that it isn't proven to make any difference for the general public and that no-one has come forward to disprove otherwise.

I had it for a while in my previous Seat Leon fr. It was 6% more convincing. The suspension was 7.8% improved and 97% more reassuring.

I had a set of tyres fitted and I wasn't charged extra so for a 0% increase I calculated an infinite benefit for every extra pound spent.

(76% of all statistics are made up)

I had it for a while in my previous Seat Leon fr. It was 6% more convincing. The suspension was 7.8% improved and 97% more reassuring.

I had a set of tyres fitted and I wasn't charged extra so for a 0% increase I calculated an infinite benefit for every extra pound spent.

(76% of all statistics are made up)

78% convinced that you made me spill my tea, s******.

JeZ

I had it for a while in my previous Seat Leon fr. It was 6% more convincing. The suspension was 7.8% improved and 97% more reassuring.

I had a set of tyres fitted and I wasn't charged extra so for a 0% increase I calculated an infinite benefit for every extra pound spent.

(90% of all statistics are made up)

Editted for accuracy!!

I think I'll try helium in mine so I can 'float' over the bumps!

:think:

For jonceebee, I've only done 5k miles with the Nitrogen fill & not needed a top-up yet, on the Pirellis. I've done more than 8k miles in total on the Nokian winter boots (this Yeti & previous one, owned 2 years & 24k miles) & not needed anything there either. One thing I have noticed is that the pressures remain constant whatever the season, this checked using the very good digital gauge used by the guy who did the Nitrogen filling. He's a local independent garage who also fits tyres under a franchise with one of the major on-line suppliers, through whom I sourced the Nokians.

Cheers.