Tyre Pressure?

[Monty]

Are you on low profiles with 16" wheels? I have 15" wheels and it's just road use for this car, mostly motorway, 28 psi drags a bit; the tyres are softies.

The 16" run on 45`s, if i do any distance driving ie motorways i`d put 30 psi, normal run about maybe leave it at 28 and if i go for a spirited drive (which i`ve not done for a long time besides trackdays ) maybe go to 26psi.

Like you said if the tyre walls are soft you may need to increase but to much pressure and you`ll suffer more understeer.

When i`m on track i`m aiming for 26 to 28 psi hot but that also depends on the track and types of corners, the elan doesn`t really like hairpins But tyre pessure absolutely do my head in as there so many variables

[Rambo]

IMHO 35psi+ is way to high, i don't even put that in the van

That's what I thought Monty - and for the record I only put 32/33 psi in my Escort van unless I'm carrying huge loads in the back

[MattDon]

Just for the record,
It's in Technical data at the back of the manual and referrers only to the tyres the car was fitted with originally.

i thought tyre pressure had more to do with the car than the tyre, surely if you had the same wheel/tyre on a heavier car it would need more psi and our lightweight elans need less!?

useful link below

http://www.carbibles.com/tyre_bible_pg2.html

[RayD]

When doing a trackday i've been down to 19psi cause i can get 8 to 10 psi increase as the tyres warm up

You’ll know what you doing Monty I’m sure, but the idea of starting at 19 with a view to them warming up to 28 is a bit of a novelty. Presumably a lot of the heat will occur because they only have 19psi in them.

Ray

[Monty]

When doing a trackday i've been down to 19psi cause i can get 8 to 10 psi increase as the tyres warm up

You’ll know what you doing Monty I’m sure, but the idea of starting at 19 with a view to them warming up to 28 is a bit of a novelty. Presumably a lot of the heat will occur because they only have 19psi in them.

Ray

Nope i never no what i`m doing lol i seem to learn the hard way

I`ve tried different pressures, some peeps where saying to put 30 to stiffen the sidewalls but i was getting IIRC 38psi hot and thats after a cooling down lap + i was suffering more understeer I also wrecked trackday tyres cause of to much pressure

Got some good advice from a guy when i was in france he was tracking a race prepped Porker.
He said the best way to start is to run the tyres hot at the pressure you would run on a normal road
So road i may run 28psi
you know that tyre pressure is going to increase on track so maybe drop the pressure to 22psi and do a run.
Come in, recheck and you may find them at 30psi so adjust them to 28psi, you`ll also find that one of the tyres has increased more than the others as it`s working harder but your still aiming for that 28psi. Once you get to that stage it`s a case of adjusting pressure up or down for grip.

But obviously it`s never straight forward, you`ve got the weather, is the track dry damp or wet. Air temp and then type of circuit you are doing ie is tight twisty or a fast flowing cicuit.

[RayD]

Monty,

Your modesty becomes you.

I shouldn’t be talking on this subject as I haven’t had opportunity to drive an Élan quickly. Can I have a go in yours!

Up until now I’d imagined the tyre people were relating everything to cold tyre pressures when they were passing on their knowledge – including the recommended road setting and the max pressure stamped on the side wall.

If the pressure rises by as much as 10psi when hot and it says a maximum of 50 on the tyre wall, it presumably means its safe up to 60, and a bit more besides.

Likewise with the road pressures, if they say 28 all round – they may think they need to be at their “elevated temperature pressure” when being driven quickly.

I mentioned on another post it might be a good idea to have the fronts slightly higher than the rears – it’s possible with a front wheel drive Élan, this may be happening automatically – you start off with 28 all round, and end up with 34 and 32.

Ray

[Monty]

Ray,

I`m not being modest, since there`s not many M100 out on track it`s difficult to gather information so i`ve had to learn by trail and error and if u`ve seen my vids you can tell It`s been a good learning curve

Your always welcome to a passanger ride.

Thinking about since i`m talking about tyre pressure for trackdays maybe i should of started a new topic in the Trackday section

[surfboardfiller]

Just for the record,
It's in Technical data at the back of the manual and referrers only to the tyres the car was fitted with originally.

i thought tyre pressure had more to do with the car than the tyre, surely if you had the same wheel/tyre on a heavier car it would need more psi and our lightweight elans need less!?

useful link below

http://www.carbibles.com/tyre_bible_pg2.html

lightweight are we talking about the same Elan? Seriously though, tyre pressure depends on a lot of factors, the manual is referring to a particular tyre, that was my point, I don't really know why I am being quoted so much.

Tyre pressure too low, will cause the tyre to wobble/vibrate and cause un due wear through friction; heating up the tyre and raising the air pressure. Low pressure gives sloppy handling and drag. Check the tyre for max psi, some give a kg load/ pressure guideline some give nothing at all. I thought everyone knew this.

I could not possibly comment on track tyres as I don't know anything about them.