I checked the tires at 500 miles and was shocked to see that it was at about 52psi while the tires were hot. All four tires were in the low 50s. I was using a digital guage. My friend thought it was high because they were hot. Well, I thought those numbers was really high for some hot tires.

At 700 miles now, I remembered to check them again, and was still shocked! The front tires read at about 46psi, while the rear were around 48psi. This time I checked them while the car and tires were cold, in the late evening and also with an analog guage.

Can anyone help me figure out the recommended tire pressure I'm suppose to have? They're Bridgestone. I must be blind because I don't see it on the tire wall. I'm assuming they're suppose to be 35psi.

Look inside the drivers door and you will see a small sticker with tire pressure recomendations.
Or you could just call your local dealer and ask for the service dept. and ask them what Mazda recomends. It even says in the owners manual.

In other words Get Busy.



Prepare yourself :flamed:

http://www.playafoot.com/photos/burningman/2005/271_8799.jpg

^ +1. i hope your next thread isnt title'd "what does renesis stand for?".

^ haha

:pokeowned

Thanks guys!

when they were at 56 was there a light on your dash like a flattened tire?

32 PSI front, 32 PSI rear per the door sticker.

when they were at 56 was there a light on your dash like a flattened tire?

Nope, didn't see anything like that on the dash. Although, I wasn't paying too much attention to the little lights on the dash, but almost for sure I didn't see a flattened tire light.

I can't believe the dealer didn't check the tire pressure along with all the other things they check before giving to me. Oh well, time to check the oil. I didn't check it since I got it, sigh...

They should be 32 PSI when cold. When they're heated up they can show several pounds higher - that's normal.

In fairness, my door pillar sticker has no entry for tire pressure. First car I've owned where the info wasn't there. Someone missed something!
But yes, 32/32 Summer-cold is the recommended.

In fairness, my door pillar sticker has no entry for tire pressure. First car I've owned where the info wasn't there. Someone missed something!
But yes, 32/32 Summer-cold is the recommended.

There are two stickers with info... One is in the door pillar, the other one (tire info) is on the door itself. :Peace:

No sticker? That's odd. I think you HAVE to have the sticker on the car, someplace...

when they were at 56 was there a light on your dash like a flattened tire?
I believe my mechanic saw somewhere that the imPotenzas have a psi range up to 50?. I'll have to check, as I may be thinking of the torque range on the lugs. But that was like 68-80something, right? hmmm. I feel as though I'm rambling. Need more coffee . . .

I believe my mechanic saw somewhere that the imPotenzas have a psi range up to 50?. I'll have to check, as I may be thinking of the torque range on the lugs. But that was like 68-80something, right? hmmm. I feel as though I'm rambling. Need more coffee . . .

I believe the tire max psi is like 52 or something. And I also think that whoever at the dealership inflated the tires probably read the max psi rating indicated on the tire. He/she definately didn't know what 'da heck was doing...

So maybe there was no indicator light b/c the digital gauge was slightly innacurate, and the pressure wasn't high enough to trip the TPMS? Or is that only for low pressure?

I believe the tire max psi is like 52 or something. And I also think that whoever at the dealership inflated the tires probably read the max psi rating indicated on the tire. He/she definately didn't know what 'da heck was doing...

Oh no, the max it said on the tire wall is 40psi.

when tires are hot you're supposed to subtract 4 psi from the number you get off the reader and you'll have your cold pressure, so 50 was horribly wrong

So maybe there was no indicator light b/c the digital gauge was slightly innacurate, and the pressure wasn't high enough to trip the TPMS? Or is that only for low pressure?

Not sure how TPMS works, but I would guess indicator would light up if the pressure is too low or too high. But I guess in my situation, it didn't light up at all.

Oh no, the max it said on the tire wall is 40psi.

Oh... My tires say a max psi of 52....

Oh... My tires say a max psi of 52....

You have the Dunlop stock tires, right? That could be why yours and mine are different since I have the Bridgestone.

You have the Dunlop stock tires, right? That could be why yours and mine are different since I have the Bridgestone.

Yes. That must be why.....

Just inflate them to 32 front and 32 rear (per mazda's recomendation) and see how it works out....

Some people use slightly different psi depending on the usage.... (i.e. some feel better handling at slightly higher psi like 38 or something)...

Mine are the Potenzas - up to 52psi? I'm off to the store, so I'll check them.

I have the placard, but it's not filled in with the tire pressure data. Really surprised me, what with Mazda's renowned factory QA. ;)

No sticker? That's odd. I think you HAVE to have the sticker on the car, someplace...

I have the placard, but it's not filled in with the tire pressure data. Really surprised me, what with Mazda's renowned factory QA. ;)

The dealer can get you one with the tire pressures on it.
They told me that cause our car ain't got it neither.

I have the placard, but it's not filled in with the tire pressure data. Really surprised me, what with Mazda's renowned factory QA.

Same on my Shinka, I had to look in the manual.

It's really easy to fix this problem nino. Just stick your pressure checker on the tire, and allow some air to leak out. Let go - take a measurement, and repeat.

Last time i was in Austin, my friend was going on a spirited drive. He was told before the drive that he should inflate his tires to something like 50psi before the drive, to help protect the tires or something. This seemed suspect to me, and even dangerous especially as on a spirited drive the tire pressure would go even higher. He thought so too. What tire pressure do you guys use if you're going on the track? If you're heading out for a run on the twisties?

Majority opinion I've noted at the track says shoot for about 40 PSI while hot. At VIR in June, that meant (for my setup/tires) I set them to 34 PSI when cold, since they increased about 6 PSI when they warmed up. This differs in each situation. Last fall at Summit Point / Shenandoah, my tires increased about 10 PSI when they warmed up, partially since Shenandoah is a much tighter track.

Setting them to 50 PSI cold before a spirited drive sounds way too high, IMO.

32 PSI in all 4 when cold, end of story.

The car rides way too stiff when you have the tire pressures @ 40+. Last autocross I didn't deflate the tires after my runs and they were around 40 psi hot all around, the car felt like I was riding a horse on the drive home.

He was told before the drive that he should inflate his tires to something like 50psi before the drive, to help protect the tires or something. This seemed suspect to me, and even dangerous especially as on a spirited drive the tire pressure would go even higher.

Low tire pressures on "spirited drives" can lead to the tires rolling off the rims under hard cornering. I've seen it happen on tracks. Most track tires I've seen are run at relatively high pressure both for this reason and to stiffen up the sidewall (stiff sidewall = more responsive tire). While it is true that lower pressure will increase your contact patch, if the tire is all sloppy that is usually much worse.

The "cold pressure" on the side of the tire is usually a max for cold tires. The tire pressure will increase as the tire warms up, and it going beyond this value is okay when the tire is warm. Just don't exceed it when cold.

Manufacturers and dealers are in tune with their customers when setting tire pressure. Lower pressures (~30 psi) make a more supple ride, but also less responsive. This appeals to 99% of the drivers in this world. If you are in the 1%, then the "dealer recommendations" may not be right for you. You should be able to safely run cold tire pressure anywhere between the dealer recommended value and the max pressure on the side of the tire.

If your pressure is too high, you will see excess wear in the center tread blocks. Short of that, it is whatever feels comfortable, within the range mentioned above.

In my daily driving, I am only getting a 3 degree rise, even on hot days (Hot for Maine is 85 btw), so I have been using 35psi as a cold pressure. Very little loss of ride quality with much crisper steering response and better feedback.

I'll run the tires at 40 for a long trip to save on gas, but cruse at 32

I am used to seeing recommended pressures up to 10 psi below the max. But the Bridgstone Potenza's max. is 51 psi and the recommended pressure is only 32. That seems like a ridiculously high difference. Is anyone out there familiar with a standard practice of running tires so far below the max?

I checked the tires at 500 miles and was shocked to see that it was at about 52psi while the tires were hot. All four tires were in the low 50s. I was using a digital guage. My friend thought it was high because they were hot. Well, I thought those numbers was really high for some hot tires.

At 700 miles now, I remembered to check them again, and was still shocked! The front tires read at about 46psi, while the rear were around 48psi. This time I checked them while the car and tires were cold, in the late evening and also with an analog guage.

Can anyone help me figure out the recommended tire pressure I'm suppose to have? They're Bridgestone. I must be blind because I don't see it on the tire wall. I'm assuming they're suppose to be 35psi.


Mine were the same way when I bought the car new. Came from the dealer this way! I don't know if they increase the pressures for transport or what.

Same on my Shinka, I had to look in the manual.


I thought that at first too and then I realized that there are two stickers. One is on the front door and one is on the back door but only one of them has the tire pressures on it.

You are not supposed to drive with your pressures at the maximum tire pressure. This is just a rating for the tire. You will find best grip and stability is between 35-45 psi. This is a large range of pressure, but the best pressure for performance depends on the tire type, ambient temperature and how hard you are cornering. Street driving will not warm the tire very much, but a track day will really cause your pressure to increase while lapping and you don't want to exceed 45psi when hot.

Sometimes a tire installer will inflate a tire to a very high pressure to seat the bead. I'm not sure if that's proper practice or not (don't think so, but I've never mounted car tires), but if they do it they're supposed to drop it back to the right pressure.

Some years ago I bought a set of tires for my Accord, and when I got home I found they were up around 40 psi - rather than either the "normal" 26 psi or "max load" 32 psi. That was at a Goodyear store - one that was soon converted to a "Just Tires".

Ken

Good point ken-x8,
I always pick up my car with 42 psi too, and it is probably becuase of the reasons you mention. On the other hand, tires should bead at a certain pressure (about 40-45psi I think). If they do not bead at that pressure, then you should not keep increasing the pressure until they do, something is wrong.

I'd rather pickup my car with too much pressure and leak it out... than have to pump them up again becuase they only put 32 psi in them...

Sorry to wake up this old thread, but I just got my car back from the dealer. On the way in for service, on the first chilly morning of September, my TPMS light was on, and it went off once I got the tires warmed up. Along with everything I needed them to do, I asked them to please fill the tires.

They filled them to 38 PSI cold.

I told the service guy I thought that 32 was the recommendation, and he assured me that Mazda recommends 38. I was in a hurry, but when I got home, I checked the sticker and the book... 32 PSI.

Now, here's the thing... I like the way the car rides at the higher pressure much better. The TPMS, which according to the manual is supposed to detect pressure too high, is not lit. I had tire noise at 32 PSI which doesn't seem to be there at 38.

So... is my dealer just plain wrong? Did Mazda change the recommendation due to tire noise complaints? I have a 2004 with the stock Bridgestones - is there a different recommended pressure for the Dunlops? Any input would be helpful.

Sorry to wake up this old thread, but I just got my car back from the dealer. On the way in for service, on the first chilly morning of September, my TPMS light was on, and it went off once I got the tires warmed up. Along with everything I needed them to do, I asked them to please fill the tires.

They filled them to 38 PSI cold.

I told the service guy I thought that 32 was the recommendation, and he assured me that Mazda recommends 38. I was in a hurry, but when I got home, I checked the sticker and the book… 32 PSI.

Now, here's the thing… I like the way the car rides at the higher pressure much better. The TPMS, which according to the manual is supposed to detect pressure too high, is not lit. I had tire noise at 32 PSI which doesn't seem to be there at 38.

So… is my dealer just plain wrong? Did Mazda change the recommendation due to tire noise complaints? I have a 2004 with the stock Bridgestones - is there a different recommended pressure for the Dunlops? Any input would be helpful.I'm certain Mazda didn't change the recommended tire pressure, which is 32psi, as you say. But here's a thought… maybe Mazda unofficially recommends that dealers overinflate the tires to 38psi to compensate for dramatic seasonal or day/night temperature differences. In other words, yesterday it reached 80ºF here in NYC. But just 3 weeks from now it might get down to 30º one night in nearby Danbury, CT—which means, checking tire pressures monthly, I'll now add an extra 5 lbs (one pound for each 10º drop in temperature) to compensate for the coming cold. Maybe that's why he said Mazda "recommends" the higher pressure. (Just a guess.)

No idea what Mazda recommends, or if they even make recommendations for pressure. The dealers may know that, based on your location, a higher pressure is best.

I run mine ~40.