Anyone filling tires with Nitrogen? Does it make any difference in MPG and/or ride?

 

I would not expect any effect since air has 78% nitrogen

 

Yes. No.

yes, 'cause it's free at Costco. Doesn't make difference in mpg . . . and shouldn't. Properly inflated tires (air or nitrogen) will give you same mpg.

There are several threads discussing use of nitrogen.

 

yes, and yes (the difference being the normal tire heat build up does not have the water found in air to escape causing you to need to fill up the tires every month.)

My experience has been Nitrogen will go 3 or more months before you need to check the tires, and I made many less trips when I did. I went back to air because I got tired of the grease monkey's at the tire shop getting anywhere near my precious MCS

 

If you keep your tires properly inflated anyway, you will see no difference in MPG. Benefit would be less pressure build up when tracking or on a long trip slightly better ride.

 

Nitrogen filled tires:

 

When I was working at a dealership, an incredibly attractive woman brought her car in for an oil change. The service manager was hitting on her, so when her car wasn't done in 20min, he told her he was rotating the air in her tires, free of charge. She believed it.

While not nitrogen, this story seems to fit here. =P

D

 

...not this again...
it's not done at the race track, either!

 

While I wouldn't pay anything for nitrogen, there are numerous NASCAR teams, among others, running on nitrogen. I realize that my commute does not expose the tires to the same conditions -- which is why I think nitrogen in passenger cars is only a marketing exercise -- but there are some racing teams running on nitrogen . . . even if the average joe doesn't use it on the track.

. . . and as an aside -- military aircraft and helicopters use it. If the space shuttle needs nitrogen tires . . . so does my MINI

 

All compressed air requirements on military aircraft are done with nitrogen, Nitrogen is more stable(thermal expansion), larger molecule, 100% dry, and its really cool to tell people your tires are filled with it. and its free at costco.

 

I tryed Nitrogen in my Auto-x tires ...
Usually I would see a 2 or 3 pound increse in the front tires and maybe 1 pound increse in the rear, after a 45 second 1st run.
With Nitrogen the rears showed NO increse and about 1 pound increse in the fronts.

It does work and, to fill with Nitrogen it is a cycling fill (fill, release, fill release, fill) My Rims even have 2 stems to aid in the fill and bleed.
As I rotate and am always playing a bit with pressure up or down ,,, AND not able to then pressure up at the track with Nitrogen ... It becomes "diluted" and then back to airing down each run.

I will look for the procidures that F1 uses to mount and air tires. VERY interesting read

 

Just be sure to remind the costco employees that you want your metal caps back -- otherwise they'll replace with those tacky, plastic, bright green caps

 

Look at tire volume... there's one "atmosphere" of regular old "air" in the tires before the Nitrogen is introduced. You're adding two atmospheres (at about 14.7 psi each, actually about 2.3 atm) when you fill to recommended pressure. That means you're about 23% "regular air", about 77% "pure nitrogen" ("n2"), with a standard fill. That WILL, however, cut the moisture in the gas mixture in the tire by 77%.

Pressurizing with n2, then flatting the tire, then repressurizing with n2 brings the "pure n2" percentage from 77% to about 95% (actually a little more), with the remainder being "air" (note that "air" is 78% n2 anyway) - reducing the moisture in the tire gas by 95%...

There may be benefits, but you likely won't save as much gas as you'll burn going out of your way to Costco (unless you're there anyway, and even then the drive into the service center and back out to the parking space will burn some!). Rubber simply doesn't oxidize that fast, and unless you're filling the tires on a humid/raining summer day - from a compressor that doesn't have a water removal system, the moisture content isn't that big a deal.

Of course, there are also other threads on this...

 

But i'm already there every weekend . . . that gallon of mayo isn't enough to last 2 weeks.

 

Quite a few race teams will use Nitrogen, here's why.

Many teams do no haul a compressor to the track but do haul a bottle of nitrogen mostly to power air tools. Since they already have a ready source they use it adjust tire pressures.

 

Yeah. All the theory is great. But, putting nitro in your Mini has about as much real impact as 21" alloy wheels on an Escalade. Maybe even less.

 

do you have a picture of the two stem wheels? I'm very curious now.

 

Here's one. There's a valve hole at the top and at the bottom.
http://www.tirerack.com/upgrade_gara...t+Grey+Painted

 

learned something new today I was curious as to the valve stem arrangement. makes sense that they are on opposite end of each other

 

A great big hoax, I tells ya!

Air is almost 80% nitrogen, (and, by the way is completely free). Anyone who pays for nitrogen in their tires is being taken.

Go ahead and believe everything that you read on the internet. Believe the hype that this race series or that racing team uses nitrogen, and then go ahead and spend the extra money for nitrogen. Go ahead!

Seems downright silly to me.

 

How about helium?

 

We use nitrogen on our karts. Helps keep air pressures from changing too much from heat buildup. Fill a kart tire to 12 psi with just air and it can rise to as much as 16psi with heat buildup, do the same with nitrogen and it will only go as high as 13.5 psi with temp changes. Its also much easier to carry around a tank of nitrogen then a air compressor. I dont see a big point to use it in my car tires unless im racing.

 

Nah, then your tires would be flat the next morning.

 

um if you are loosing air that fast id look at your wheels i check my pressure monthly and have only added air like 1 time in a 2 year period

 

I say fill them with hydrogen could be intresting especialy doing burnouts LOL