Nitrogen inflation and TPMS
-
- Posts: 10
- Joined: Sun Sep 14, 2014 11:45 am
I am considering a Ni fill for my current car and wondered if anyone has experience with this and the TPMS ? AWD V8 specd in the negotiation phase now, given Autocar article of recent regarding SVR F Type Coupe for the LA Show, this may be somewhat premature but thought the NI and TPMS question worth asking.
-
- Posts: 21
- Joined: Fri Jan 15, 2016 1:50 pm
I currently use Nitrogen in my V6S Coupe and have not found any issues. On the plus side my tire pressures have been more stable and therefore not required contact topping up.
I did the same with my previous car a C63 amg which is notoriously hard on rear tyres and got 10,000 -12,000 miles. I also had my wheel alignment done once a year which also helped.
Air is (mostly) nitrogen and oxygen. Atmospheric air also contains water vapour. Oxygen diffuses through the tyre casing faster than nitrogen so removing the oxygen means that the pressure in the tyre drops slightly slower over time. Slightly. Temperature effects are far more pronounced. Nitrogen is inert for all practical purposes. Oxygen under pressure, especially if combined with water vapour, is corrosive if the water vapour condenses. I’ve not seen an alloy wheel with internal corrosion for many years, and the TPMS will be suitably sealed. Applications where maintaining a fixed pressure is critical (racing cars, aircraft, construction equipment) may benefit from the reduced pressure adjustment frequency resulting from nitrogen fill. For the rest of us, just checking the tyre pressure and topping up/bleeding off with air as the ambient temperature changes (and do it on shaded tyres, not tyres soaking up direct solar energy) must surely be perfectly adequate, especially as we can read pressures in the car. There might be a case for using the heavier inert gases such as argon which could possibly offer some convective heat transmission effects but this is esoteric stuff for anything but world speed record attempts.
The most important thing is just to have the right tyre pressure for the conditions on the day. What’s in the tyre is pretty irrelevant, so long as it remains a mostly inert compressible gas; chlorine is likely to be a bad idea . A liquid might be interesting but wouldn’t do much for unsprung weight and ride might be, well, a little harsh, though I’d like to try a freon or similar gas that liquefies at low pressure, just to see what happens. Could even use propane but the flammability is a bit of an issue.
The whole discussion will soon be academic anyway as we move to airless tyres like the Michelin UPTIS which is due on the market in 2024.
The most important thing is just to have the right tyre pressure for the conditions on the day. What’s in the tyre is pretty irrelevant, so long as it remains a mostly inert compressible gas; chlorine is likely to be a bad idea . A liquid might be interesting but wouldn’t do much for unsprung weight and ride might be, well, a little harsh, though I’d like to try a freon or similar gas that liquefies at low pressure, just to see what happens. Could even use propane but the flammability is a bit of an issue.
The whole discussion will soon be academic anyway as we move to airless tyres like the Michelin UPTIS which is due on the market in 2024.
I was recently looking at nitrogen inflation and noticed that ATS charges £2 per tyre for this!
I was put off by the following information on their website.... https://www.atseuromaster.co.uk/consume ... 030314item
“Once you have nitrogen in your tyres, ideally you should keep the pressure topped up using nitrogen to a minimum of 95%. If you need to top up using compressed air, this is fine but it will dilute the nitrogen content in the tyres.”
“In order to get the optimum performance from your tyres, the nitrogen content in your tyres should be above 95%.”
I check my tyre pressures regularly and it’s not very often that they need inflating. I’ll be sticking to my normal method of inflating the tyres with a digital tyre inflator via the centre console plug in socket (I use the one in the cubby box). Once done, I do a further check with a separate digital tyre pressure gauge which is very accurate and corresponds with the tyre pressure figures which can be accessed via the instrument panel 'Vehicle Information' menu.
I was put off by the following information on their website.... https://www.atseuromaster.co.uk/consume ... 030314item
“Once you have nitrogen in your tyres, ideally you should keep the pressure topped up using nitrogen to a minimum of 95%. If you need to top up using compressed air, this is fine but it will dilute the nitrogen content in the tyres.”
“In order to get the optimum performance from your tyres, the nitrogen content in your tyres should be above 95%.”
I check my tyre pressures regularly and it’s not very often that they need inflating. I’ll be sticking to my normal method of inflating the tyres with a digital tyre inflator via the centre console plug in socket (I use the one in the cubby box). Once done, I do a further check with a separate digital tyre pressure gauge which is very accurate and corresponds with the tyre pressure figures which can be accessed via the instrument panel 'Vehicle Information' menu.
2016MY V6S Coupe RWD Auto 380PS Supercharged
Rhodium Silver
Panoramic Glass Roof
Sports Seats (heated) in Jet Leather
Seat Memory Pack 2 (14x14 way)
Powered Tailgate (open & close)
Reverse Park Camera with Guidance
Front Parking Aid
Rhodium Silver
Panoramic Glass Roof
Sports Seats (heated) in Jet Leather
Seat Memory Pack 2 (14x14 way)
Powered Tailgate (open & close)
Reverse Park Camera with Guidance
Front Parking Aid
-
- Posts: 1932
- Joined: Sat Apr 15, 2017 8:37 pm
Seems a total waste of time to me when air is already 78% nitrogen and onsite generation gets you typically to 95% (theoretical 99%, but everything needs to be right and I cannot imagine that in a tyre shop )
Even assuming the supply was pure (100%) to start with, the tyres already have air in them, let's say 10% of final inflated volume, so inflating with nitrogen may also get you to 90%.
Combine the above and I doubt as you drive out of a tyre shop you have more than 85% nitrogen, so paying £8 for and incremental 7% nitrogen.
If it's offered free at a tyre change then fine by me, but I'll keep my £8 for a few litres of premium fuel
Note that this is a tongue in cheek look at selling snake oil, but if anyone is expert enough to run the whole thing through Boyle's law and Charles' law or combined gas law, I'll be delighted to read it
Even assuming the supply was pure (100%) to start with, the tyres already have air in them, let's say 10% of final inflated volume, so inflating with nitrogen may also get you to 90%.
Combine the above and I doubt as you drive out of a tyre shop you have more than 85% nitrogen, so paying £8 for and incremental 7% nitrogen.
If it's offered free at a tyre change then fine by me, but I'll keep my £8 for a few litres of premium fuel
Note that this is a tongue in cheek look at selling snake oil, but if anyone is expert enough to run the whole thing through Boyle's law and Charles' law or combined gas law, I'll be delighted to read it
2014 MY 3.0 V6S Roadster
Subtle enhancements to create the car I wanted from SVR nose cone, 400 series side skirts & customised 'design' rear bumper, to heated SVR steering wheel and more
Subtle enhancements to create the car I wanted from SVR nose cone, 400 series side skirts & customised 'design' rear bumper, to heated SVR steering wheel and more
-
- You may also be interested in...
- Replies
- Views
- Last post
-
- 7 Replies
- 2274 Views
-
Last post by mickjaguar
-
- 13 Replies
- 13866 Views
-
Last post by Pilot Pete