Tuesday, May 23, 2006
Vary Your Tyre Pressure - To Suit the Conditions - It Works Better…
Australian manufacturer, AIR CTI makes the best Central Tyre Inflation System (CTI) available, at the best price. But what is CTI, and why should you have it?
Conventional tyre pressures that we have all used is, in reality, the correct pressure for one, and I mean only one condition. That condition is for a fully loaded vehicle, operating on paved roads, at high speed. On any gravel road, track, city street, or when driving alone, this pressure is too high. And, on wet, rainy days, a higher pressure will be better. The correct tyre pressure depends on the weight of the vehicle, the speed traveled, the road type, the soil type if off road, and the job at hand. If you change the tyre size, pressure requirements also change.
For instance, the AIR CTI test vehicle, a Suzuki Vitara, with standard tyres, is specified for 28 psi. “With slightly larger tyres, we use 22 psi on the highway when empty, 28 to 34 if it rains, or on windy roads. On gravel roads, we drop pressures to 12 to 15 psi, depending upon the surface, and on difficult tracks, or sand, we go down to 6 psi.” says Chet Cline, the owner of AIR CTI. “Twelve psi on our gravel tracks around Walhalla makes the little Suzi handle like a rally car. It’s unbelievable.” he says. “Traction on tough, rocky tracks is just amazing at 6 psi.”
On our F350 4x4 tray, with 33 inch tyres, we use 32 psi in the front, and only 18 to 20 psi in the rear when operating on highways, when empty. We recently supported the High Plains Cattlemen protest through Wonnangatta, carrying 800 kilos of portable cattle yards. We used 45 psi in the rear tyres on the highway, and 18 psi throughout the Wonnangatta. Performance was awesome.
A Hi Lux with a full load may need 60 psi in the back tyres. Take the load off, and the tyre pressure should be drastically reduced. If not, it’ll ride like a truck. And tyre wear will be poor, braking will be poor. Handling, especially on bumpy corners may be disastrous.
AIR CTI makes systems for any vehicle, from Log Trucks and Road Trains to Tractors and Fertilizer Spreaders, to standard 4 x 4’s. Check out their web site at www.aircti.com, or ring Chet at 03 5127 6128. Australian made, and proud of it.
Conventional tyre pressures that we have all used is, in reality, the correct pressure for one, and I mean only one condition. That condition is for a fully loaded vehicle, operating on paved roads, at high speed. On any gravel road, track, city street, or when driving alone, this pressure is too high. And, on wet, rainy days, a higher pressure will be better. The correct tyre pressure depends on the weight of the vehicle, the speed traveled, the road type, the soil type if off road, and the job at hand. If you change the tyre size, pressure requirements also change.
For instance, the AIR CTI test vehicle, a Suzuki Vitara, with standard tyres, is specified for 28 psi. “With slightly larger tyres, we use 22 psi on the highway when empty, 28 to 34 if it rains, or on windy roads. On gravel roads, we drop pressures to 12 to 15 psi, depending upon the surface, and on difficult tracks, or sand, we go down to 6 psi.” says Chet Cline, the owner of AIR CTI. “Twelve psi on our gravel tracks around Walhalla makes the little Suzi handle like a rally car. It’s unbelievable.” he says. “Traction on tough, rocky tracks is just amazing at 6 psi.”
On our F350 4x4 tray, with 33 inch tyres, we use 32 psi in the front, and only 18 to 20 psi in the rear when operating on highways, when empty. We recently supported the High Plains Cattlemen protest through Wonnangatta, carrying 800 kilos of portable cattle yards. We used 45 psi in the rear tyres on the highway, and 18 psi throughout the Wonnangatta. Performance was awesome.
A Hi Lux with a full load may need 60 psi in the back tyres. Take the load off, and the tyre pressure should be drastically reduced. If not, it’ll ride like a truck. And tyre wear will be poor, braking will be poor. Handling, especially on bumpy corners may be disastrous.
AIR CTI makes systems for any vehicle, from Log Trucks and Road Trains to Tractors and Fertilizer Spreaders, to standard 4 x 4’s. Check out their web site at www.aircti.com, or ring Chet at 03 5127 6128. Australian made, and proud of it.
