At the conclusion of the second week of ownership of my Fabia, I checked out tyre pressures. The tyres are Firestone F-590's and are quite new, with lots of wear left. However the pressures are lower than what I expected: 1.6 bar for the front wheels, 1.7 for the back wheels.

I have the Haynes manual and, as I'm sure you know, it says that normal tyre pressure is 2 bar for front tyres and 2.2 for the back tyres, but it also adds, and this is important, that recommended pressures vary with the brand and model of tyre fitted. So I Googled a bit but found no reference to dfferent pressures for different tyres. Strange!

So, what do I make of my readings? Too low, as I expect? Normal?

The tyre manufacter dont know what weight of car the tyre is going on, so I can only imagine they give thier recommended pressures on an average.

But I do think that given two manufacters they will be designed to run at different pressures. It also depends on your driving style.

I tend to stick to about 30-34psi. Which is ~2-2.4 bar.

The tyre manufacter dont know what weight of car the tyre is going on, so I can only imagine they give thier recommended pressures on an average.

Well, maybe, but the fact is, I didn't find anything at all about using different pressures for different brands, not even on the manufacturer's website, apart from a vague mention in the Haynes manual. Consider me confused! :confused:

With radial tyres its recommended to have too much pressure then too little. With underpressure your tires will wear too fast but with overpressure they will wear normally.

I my self use 2.7bar (205/40 17) because of smaller rolling resistance... i dont need all that grip that i could have with less pressure.

With fabia all pressures between 2-3bar can by used IMO. In fuelcap you can find skodas recommanded pressure...

Tyre pressures are primarily down to the weight of the car, hence why your pressures remain the same if you change tyre type, size or wheel size. A car on 15's with 185/55/15 rubber should use the same pressures if the owner buys 17's with 215/40/17 rubber. As stated above, the tyre manufacturers can give ball park guidelines for pressures, but as the same tyre can go on so many different cars of indeterminate weight they will only be a rough guide. Personal preference and indivivdual tyre characteristics can be a secondary concern, for example, my g/f's Furby has Continental tyres with ridiculously soft sidewalls so we run them at 36f/33r but when we've shredded them we'll get a better tyre and go back to 33/31 or so.