Tire Pressures and hypermiling

[burningmay]

Hello
Has anyone tried to bump up the tire pressure 'a little' to help extend the range.
Thanks

 

[pchilds]

I'm running 50 psi, the sidewall calls for 44 psi max. I don't know if it helps, but I am usually in the top 10 for m/kWh, averaging 3.8.

 

[mark_rivers19]

Hello
Has anyone tried to bump up the tire pressure 'a little' to help extend the range.
Thanks

How many miles do you drive a day?
I do a minimum of 80 ( round trip) and i get home with 12-17 left on the GOM.
Standard charging ONLY.
35 psi on all 4s.

I used to hypermile with our Prius.
Tried doing it on the RAV4 EV at 44.

Bottomline, i don't like the harsher/ stiffer ride and the lack of grip from the tires especially at freeway speed of 70 and up.
It's just not worth it.

 

[rickrides]

I've had my Rav4 13 days and decided to check the tires...48 lbs in all 4. Tried a second gauge and read 47 lbs. I lowered them to 40 lbs. I usually have to add a few lbs when I check my tires on most my cars. At least it was easier than getting out my compressor.

 

[miimura]

I've had my Rav4 13 days and decided to check the tires...48 lbs in all 4. Tried a second gauge and read 47 lbs. I lowered them to 40 lbs. I usually have to add a few lbs when I check my tires on most my cars. At least it was easier than getting out my compressor.

Check them again in the morning when they're "cold".

 

[drmanny3]

Boosting the pressure beyond the tire manufacturer's recommendation is not a good idea. I think the few extra miles you might get are not worth the tradeoff with poorer handling as well as a rougher ride. When the car is running on the freeway that 50 lbs. of pressure is going to go up a bit. While I have never heard of someone having a tire blow because of over inflating the sheer roughness is enough to deter me. I too use to over fill the Prius tires but then backed off when I began to see the center section wear more quickly than the outer edges. I think the trick is to insure that you have the right amount of air and keep it at that level. Use 100% Nitrogen and you will see more stable pressure. Costco will let you top off your tires with their N2 for free
Manny

 

[DevinL]

I wouldn't exceed the maximum sidewall pressure (44) either. Not worth the risk.

I did my recent Utah trip with tires set at 42psi and it worked out fine. Other hypermiling techniques will get you greater benefits anyway, such as using D, B, and N dynamically based on current and upcoming terrain.

 

[rickrides]

I've had my Rav4 13 days and decided to check the tires...48 lbs in all 4. Tried a second gauge and read 47 lbs. I lowered them to 40 lbs. I usually have to add a few lbs when I check my tires on most my cars. At least it was easier than getting out my compressor.

Check them again in the morning when they're "cold".

They were cold.

 

[miimura]

I've had my Rav4 13 days and decided to check the tires...48 lbs in all 4. Tried a second gauge and read 47 lbs. I lowered them to 40 lbs. I usually have to add a few lbs when I check my tires on most my cars. At least it was easier than getting out my compressor.

Check them again in the morning when they're "cold".

They were cold.

Who last put air in your tires? The dealer? When I take mine in for 5k service interval they set the pressure to 32psi. That's why I assumed that the tires were not cold, as it's unusual for the pressure to be that high unless they were hot or you did it yourself on purpose.

 

[GlennD]

Many years ago I purchased a trooper that rode like a rock! It turns out that they fill the tires to very high values to prevent flat spotting during transport. The dealer is supposed to set them to normal values during dealer prep. The vehicle I received still had 60# in the tires.

 

[burningmay]

I wouldn't exceed the maximum sidewall pressure (44) either. Not worth the risk.

Other hypermiling techniques will get you greater benefits anyway, such as using D, B, and N dynamically based on current and upcoming terrain.

Devin

Could you share a little more about that, or at least how you do it.

Thanks much.

 

[mark_rivers19]

^ i use the same technique to hypermile.
Using B mode instead of the brakes, which means foot of the pedal a few blocks before the stop light.
Pulse and glide is another technique, you accelerate rapidly and then let the RAV4 EV do its thing. Very helpful especially when coming downhill.
Combine this with B mode and you get additional Re generation.

As ive said on my previous post, im able to do close to 103 miles on standard charging with 1-2 bars left on the GOM.

 

[rickrides]

They were cold.[/quote]Who last put air in your tires? The dealer? When I take mine in for 5k service interval they set the pressure to 32psi. That's why I assumed that the tires were not cold, as it's unusual for the pressure to be that high unless they were hot or you did it yourself on purpose.[/quote]

The car came from the dealer with 48 lbs pressure in the tires. All I know is I didn't do it and I'm the only driver. I was planning to set them at 36 lbs but left them at 40 for now.