Tire temp range for summer driving - Luxury Coach Lifestyles
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Old 07-29-2009, 02:57 PM   #1
jmacstack
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Default Tire temp range for summer driving

My Co-pilot, Maren and I are leaving Montana, headed across the country to Northern NH for a few weeks, leaving this Saturday. I'm busy getting the coach ready and was wondering about tire temps and what I should be aware of. I have an infrared thermometer. What kind of tire temps can I expect and what are the numbers I want to be aware of? I run 125 psi in the steerers and 110 in the tag and the drivers. I'm wondering if I should increase the steerers to 130 psi? We are headed across Rt 2 through Montana and N. Dakota and on through Upper Peninsula of Michigan to Sault Ste Marie into Canada and through Montreal into NH. Any advice would be helpful as it always is here in this forum!

Thanks, Jennifer
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Old 07-29-2009, 07:51 PM   #2
Wally Arntzen
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On my 88 coach I was told at Newell to inflate the front tires to 120, drive 100 and tag 85. I have kept them that way for five years now and have had no problems and the tires are wearing very well.
Have and safe and fun trip accross country, it sounds like a great trip.
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Old 07-29-2009, 07:54 PM   #3
Wally Arntzen
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I forgot to add that I do not change the air preasure acording to the ambient temperature. I use my coach in temperatures well below zero and in the high 90's and above. Some of the other owners may have different ideas on this subject but thats my thoughts and I'm sticking with them.
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Old 07-29-2009, 08:15 PM   #4
zcasa
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Jennifer, I run #303 and it is 45,000 GWR whatever, I have 120 in steer, 110 in drive and 100 in tag. I drive at approx. 62 mph and try and get off the road by 2PM before the usual heat of the day. I am with Wally on the tire temperature. Maybe I should pay more attention. I do change the steer tires every three years with DOT stamp of no more than six mo old. The drive and steer are every 5 years. So far so good. Also good idea to weigh coach to determine allocation of cargo and weight/stress on each axle before you travel.

Enjoy your travels.

David
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Old 07-30-2009, 02:15 AM   #5
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Tire pressure is a function of the weight on each wheel position and the tire(s) on that position. There are weight pressure charts available for most of the major truck tire brands on the internet. If you don't have those for your tires, post the size and brand and I will see if I can find a link for you. Your coach probably came with Bridgestone 11R24.5" tires.

Without knowing the weight on each wheel position you are shooting in the dark. If you don't know the weight, use the Newell recommended tire pressure for each axle. The GAWR's are probably 13,200 front, 22,000 drive and 10,000 tag. If you are running Load Range H tires and you are within the GAWR's Bridgestones' chart shows a MINIMUM of 105 psi in the front tires, 100 in the drive axle tires and 85 in the tag. That assumes that the load is equally balanced between the right and left tires. I suspect that Newell recommended greater pressures than that. Newell recommendations for mine are 120, 110, 100 respectively and that is what I run.
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Old 07-30-2009, 01:34 PM   #6
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Michael is correct; the tire pressure should be a function of the weight that each tire is supporting. It is very important to know how much your coach weighs on each axle. Always use the higher of the two weights on a specific axle: i.e. left tire of steer axle weighs 6600# and the right tire weighs 6200# - you should use the 6600# corresponding chart psi on both tires!

With regard to temperatures; I have the Smartire system on my front tires only. Smartire shows the actual tire pressure and TEMPERATURE while driving down the road. I run 130# in my steer axle tires (as per Newell's recommendation). I had Newell weigh my coach and according to the charts I should be running 125 psi. The temperature in these tires during the summer (ambient temps of 95) will reach 165 degrees inside the tire! Amazing as it may seem, the tires feel normal to the touch when I stop.

You never want to run too low of a tire pressure. A tire that is run at 20% below its chart psi is considered a flat tire by the tire manufacturers! So if the chart indicates a proper inflation of 120 psi and you run that tire at 96 psi for any signiciant length of time >> that tire is ruined and should be replaced. The reason is because the integrity of the sidewalls of the tire is compromised. Also, the heat builds up to very high temps inside the tire when it is run with too low of pressure.

Tires should be checked when cold and air should be added or released based on ambient temperatures. I know it is a pain to add air each morning when you are traveling due to changing climates, but I feel (and the tire manufacturers support this theroy) it is very important.
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Old 07-30-2009, 07:16 PM   #7
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Great info thanks! What will I be seeing in tire temperatures while traveling? I know it depends on outside temps, air pressure in the tires as well as coach weight. What temps do I need to avoid? What is considered a dangerous temp for tires? I am running Michelins and I'm not sure of the size right now because I'm down in MIssoula. My coach is up at my house which is 25 miles out of Missoula. Thanks again for your input. Should be a great drive, I've done it a bunch in my pick-up and looking forward to traveling by coach! Jennifer
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2012 AWD 4-door Mini-Cooper
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Old 07-30-2009, 08:09 PM   #8
Wally Arntzen
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Jennifer, I have been driving motor homes for about 20 years and motor coaches for the last 10 years and have never checked the temperature of my tires and I don't know how necessary it is to do it.
If you have good tires and drive less that 65mph I don't know why you would have to be concerned.
I generally drive 68 to 70mph and know that my coach is probably overloaded beause I am a fulltimer. I do check my air preassure before I leave for a trip and if I am driving more that 2 days I check again. I have never had to add any air during a trip but usually have to add some before I leave.
We have a lot of guys on this site who are engineers and have a natural tendency to over study all aspects of the coaches because that's part or their nature. I have great respect for all of them as fellow Newell owners but I take a lot of their remarks with a grain of salt.
Some of the discussions scare a lot of the less mechanical people and they are afraid to drive and enjoy their coaches worrying about something breaking down.

If you have good tires and the proper air preasure you should be good to go and enjoy your trip.

I apologize to my good engineer friends in advance if I hurt any of your feelings.
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Old 07-30-2009, 10:37 PM   #9
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Jennifer,

I agree with Wally; the temperature of the tires is a function of the amount of air in the tire. If the tires are properly inflated for the load that they are carrying the temperature will be within the limits of the tire and you don't have to be concerned.

It is of paramount importance to check the pressure of each tire often (I recommend every morning before you start your day of driving). And don't forget to check the tire pressure of your tow vehicle too. TIRES WILL BLOW OUT IF THEY ARE SEVERELY UNDER INFLATED!

Another advantage of checking your tires before each day of driving is this: if you have to add air to one certain tire every morning this may indicate that you have a nail or an air valve leak. Of course you want to have this taken care of immediately.

This brings up another little bit of information: not all truck stops fix flats. I had a nail in one of my tag axle tires one time and I went to 3 truck stops before I found a place that would fix it. Flying J didn't fix flats, Petrol Truck Stop didn't fix flats, and finally Total America Truck stop fixed it. So if you pick up a nail look for a TA (Total America) truck stop.
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Old 07-30-2009, 11:03 PM   #10
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OK, here is an Engineer type answer:

According to Bridgestone Tire Company in response to a question about tire temp sensors installed in aluminum wheels: "a general rule of thumb is that a properly inflated/loaded timre, when up to operating temperature - one hour or more of operation - will typically run about 60 degrees F hotter than the ambient temperature. Anything above 200 degrees F could lead to tire degradation and you need to investigate for a problem." Bridgestone Tire Company also says the following regarding surface/tread temperature (which you would see if you use an infrared thermometer): "While there are many factors, such as ambient temperature, load, speed, air pressure, wheel position and tire pattern that will determine the tread temperature of a truck tire in normal operating conditions, we normally experience surface tread temperatures in the range of 150 to 180 degrees F." They also note that the ribs will be cooler than the grooves and the center will be cooler than the shoulders.
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Old 07-31-2009, 01:20 AM   #11
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first, to my dear friend wally,.....i resemble that remark.....i overengineer everything. that said, i can hardly keep up with your preventative maintenance plan and how much you have upgraded your systems....you are my idol. your coach is probably better now than when it rolled off the production line.

i dont check my temps either. i just check the air pressure and i use the pressure pro tire pressure monitoring system on all wheels. it is great as i can check my pressures while driving.

thats my 2 cents worth and i am sticking to it.

later

tom
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Old 07-31-2009, 04:17 AM   #12
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Tom, you are the greatest engineer friend I have, enjoy your trip
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