proper tire pressure on vans?

guido4475 · May 18, 2009

I was at the tire shop this morning getting my new tires re-balanced because of a slight vibration.The side of the tire says 80 psi, but yet the tire shop told me to follow the factory sticker on the door jamb,from my 03 e-350, which says 80 psi rear,60 psi front. So who is right? I remember ford/firestone having a problem with the tires which resulted in a recall some time ago.My freind kept his at the tire pressure on the tire,on his pickup, and he got 60,000 out of them.No problems.The tire guy also says to torque the lugnuts at 120 ft/lbs, which I agree with.Any input/advice/help would be greatly appreciated.Thanks in advance.

greg334 · May 18, 2009

It's a toss up, I ran mine at 80/80 but when I got new tires I ran 65/80 for a better ride. Try the sticker first and if that works for you, great. But I assume these are LT tires, which are always higher pressure.

I always use the torque specs in the owners manual or the shop manual. 120 ft/lbs sounds a bit high but may be right. But again I yell at the guys who use an impact wrench on the things because I can't get them off on the side of the road when they are 350 ft/lbs.

highway star · May 18, 2009

I ran 75/75 on my van and always got 200k, or very close to it, out of a set.

guido4475 · May 18, 2009

I appreciate all of this info.Yes, they are LT tires. I do prefer the ride of having 80 psi in the front tires. 60 seems to give it a squrrly kind of feeling in the front. And youre right, greg,nothing worse than being on the side of the road and not being able to get the lug nuts off .That is why I bought a 28" long breaker bar just for the van, just in case.Who knows, I may snap off the studs instead.

piper1 · May 18, 2009

I've always ran my tires (trucks, vans pickups, cars, Trailers) at whatever was stamped on the tire. Longer life and better fuel mileage. A tire that flexes is one that is using energy, if the tire will handle 80, run it. Michelin XPS Ribs I had on the front of one pickup went 264,000 miles, pulled them due to a bead flap issue, they still had 7/32". Tires on the Sprinter are 80 all round. 1/32 of wear in 26,000 miles so far.

chefdennis · May 19, 2009

80/80 keep the front end aligned and tires balances, shocks replaced as needed and ROTATE the tires at 15,000 miles

I am hard on tires and the van in general, so paying attention to the alignment and other tire maintainance is almost a necessity for me, or my tires wouldn't last 50,000 miles....i have had 4 alignment in 10 months.........only because it was needed, as i said, i am hard on tires........

guido4475 · May 19, 2009

Yes, I appreciatte that.I'm going to run all the tires at 80 psi, what is stamped on the tire.I'm at ryder now, and they are trying to find out what is making that whirring noise (kinda like a low -fluid power-steering pump noise).they just replaced the power steering pump,and it is still doing it.I guess they will replace the air pump next.so far, they have been pretty cool.

chefdennis · May 19, 2009

Make sure they check the clutch hub bearing on the AC Compressor.......

Moot · May 19, 2009

Chevy 3500. The factory placard states 50 psi front/80 psi rear. I run 70 psi front and 80 psi rear.

60MPH · May 19, 2009

06 3500 Chevy with D-max door states 50/80 I run mine at 65/80 I found that in this van if I go above 65psi in the front it feels like it hydroplanes in heavy down pours. So I keep it at 65 year round and rotate and align every 30k. I have a life time tire rotate/align deal with my garage.

guido4475 · May 19, 2009

Ryder replaced the power steering pump and that wasnt the problem, then they said the checkbook is officially closed for this van.I think I squeezed enough blood out of this turnip.It was only a 30-day warranty.It ended saturday. now it is time to put it to work, I hope.

kg · May 19, 2009

80 rear,70 front, diesel engine, I keep the conventional treads in front,100,000 plus miles, and run Firestone snow tread in rear. 80 psi in front makes the van jump around.

greg334 · May 19, 2009

Whirrling noise?

OK, when?

standing still?

Transmission (pump) will cause a cavitation sound.

Air Pump? Maybe

A/C bearing? Maybe

Idler pulley bearing? It happens, it is happening on my truck right now.

Water pump? Yep, a bad bearing can cause the noise.

While driving?

wheel bearings.

bad tires

Even the Anti-lock brake reluctor can make a whirring noise but without actually hearing it in person, it is hard to guess. A good mechanic can figure it out quickly.

P51bombay · May 20, 2009

If you do or are going to load to gross then the tires need to be at the figure on the tire - that is the pressure for maximum loading.

guido4475 · May 20, 2009

greg334 said:
Whirrling noise?

OK, when?

standing still?

Transmission (pump) will cause a cavitation sound.

Air Pump? Maybe

A/C bearing? Maybe

Idler pulley bearing? It happens, it is happening on my truck right now.

Water pump? Yep, a bad bearing can cause the noise.

While driving?

wheel bearings.

bad tires

Even the Anti-lock brake reluctor can make a whirring noise but without actually hearing it in person, it is hard to guess. A good mechanic can figure it out quickly.

Good afternoon, Greg. It is a noise caused by an engine accessory.The noise sound level increases with the engine rpm's.The idler pulley/idler was replaced a month ago, and it still did it.power steering pump was just replaced, and it still does it. I am putting money on the air/vacuum pump, since it is the oldest and the only belt-drive accessory that is original.It is $98.00 new.If it is not that,then i will replace the a/c clutch, even thought the clutch and compressor were replaced about 30,000 miles ago. water pump has about 50k on it.The noise seems to be coming from the drivers side of the engine compartment.I have had this to several reputable mechanics and no one can really pin-point it.This really surprises me.

aileron · May 20, 2009

I also am a member of the 'max pressure written on the tire' club. I run 80 psi in all tires on my sprinter, first set of Michelin LTX A/S lasted around 170k if I remember correctly. I have 105k on the second set.

RLENT · May 20, 2009

Ditto - max pressure here (80 psi), all the way around on our Sprinter as well, I replaced my 1st set of tires (Michelin LTX A/S) at 123K with a set of Michelin LTX M/S.

Have about 63K miles on the LTX's currently .... seemed to have developed an issue with wear on the tire edges (both inboard and outboard) ..... with the low points in tread depth on the edges being 2/32nds to 4/32nds lower than the center of the tread.

I'm hoping it's the ball-joints - I pulled everything apart on the driver's side and the stud in the ball-joint is very loose, with perhaps as much as 1/4" of vertical play between the stud and the casting. The outer tie-rod ends seem pretty tight/stiff.