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[hookah66]

I have been filling my tires with nitrogen gas and found that it makes the tires more compliant. I believe PriceCostco does provide nitrogen for their mounted tires, they put a green cap. This has been the practice in the aviation industry as well as in the military specifications. One of the advantage is that nitrogen got lower water saturation thus will prolong rubber life, and it makes the wheels more compliant, theoretically it is lighter than air. Anyone out there would like to comment on this topic?

[hookah66]

thanks for the hint...just curious why it is a waste? if it is a waste what is motive behind Costco in providing to their customers? You seemed to be very negatively opinionated on this, from little I know on this subject, it got tremendous advantages... perhaps you may not agree but I do see less adiabatic variations due to differentials in ambient temperatures which result in less pressure fluctuations.

[Tom K.]

Originally Posted by hookah66

thanks for the hint...just curious why it is a waste? if it is a waste what is motive behind Costco in providing to their customers?

When they put the nitrogen in your tires, how did they manage to purge all of the existing air?

And when they got all of the air replaced, did they tell you it already had 78% nitrogen in it?

For normal use, it's a commercial gimmick - designed to get you into their shop.

Tom

[hookah66]

Sorry, I did not make myself clear. I do it myself in my fleet garage. I purge it first by fully deflating a mounted tire, then I re-fill it from a nitrogen bottle, and you do stand correct that it won't be 100% filled with pure nitrogen gas, but whatever air volume is in the deflated tire at atmospheric pressure will be compressed when the tire gets inflated to the operating pressure typically at around 41 psia or so. Nevertheless the confines within the tire walls are then predominantly rich in an nitrogen saturated environment which is a lot less drier than compressed air which is laden with moisture which is conducive to rubber dry rot. I fully understand and respect your opinion and trying not to be argumentative.

[cb1111]

Uhhh - most dry rot starts (and finishes) on the outside.

In theory, you are correct, but in real life it makes not a bit of difference - the green cap does look nice though

Also, in theory, because of the size of the molecules, nitrogen filled tires will lose less pressure over time. In reality - see my sentence above.

Nitrogen filled tires are a marketing gimmick.

[hookah66]

ha ha ha.... I got the gist...thanks for your feedback..

[cb1111]

Originally Posted by TrackRat

I'm not negative at all. That's why I suggested you read the other threads for details. The only tangible benefit to nitrogen over oxygen which is ~78% nitrogen, is reduced water vapor and less change in tire pressure with heat - due to the lack of water vapor. If you use dry air to inflate your tires there is zero advantage to nitrogen for pass car use. This has all been discussed in the other threads. Unless the nitrogen is free it's simply not worth the trouble. If it makes you happy to use it, cool. Enjoy!

This is one of the few mods that has no up-side and no down-side.

[hookah66]

Our agency's fleet has been using nitrogen filled tires, and we have noticed an overall improvement in the longetivity of the tires. There is also less tire pressure fluctuations between hot and cold ambient temperatures. From my personal perspective, I was enraged by the harshness of the Yokohama run flats, complained and the factory swapped (yes it was the BMW not the dealership) with a set of Continentals, which was a great improvement over the Yokohama's. Still not satisfied, I decided to purge the air and re-filled with nitrogen, then I did notice a significant improvement on harshness and noise. What is significant? This is a rather subjective assessment, but it was enough to extract a complimentary comment from my wife who has no idea of what is what, and indeed she did noticed the smoothness. I drive on the same pot filled and rutted route daily, and I have felt the nitrogen filled tires to be more compliant and quieter. So I am a firm believer that nitrogen filled tires is superior to air filled tires contrary to other postings in this thread. Some of other entities that uses nitrogen filled tires are fleet operators of trucks, branches of the US & UK military; curisouly at retail level we got the Price Costco discount tire re-seller, which actually will install green stem caps on tires which they have mounted. I disagree about the negativism expressed in the use of nitrogen filled tires. I have used nitrogen for the last twenty years and I will continue to use it.

[cb1111]

Originally Posted by hookah66

Our agency's fleet has been using nitrogen filled tires, and we have noticed an overall improvement in the longetivity of the tires. There is also less tire pressure fluctuations between hot and cold ambient temperatures. From my personal perspective, I was enraged by the harshness of the Yokohama run flats, complained and the factory swapped (yes it was the BMW not the dealership) with a set of Continentals, which was a great improvement over the Yokohama's. Still not satisfied, I decided to purge the air and re-filled with nitrogen, then I did notice a significant improvement on harshness and noise. What is significant? This is a rather subjective assessment, but it was enough to extract a complimentary comment from my wife who has no idea of what is what, and indeed she did noticed the smoothness. I drive on the same pot filled and rutted route daily, and I have felt the nitrogen filled tires to be more compliant and quieter. So I am a firm believer that nitrogen filled tires is superior to air filled tires contrary to other postings in this thread. Some of other entities that uses nitrogen filled tires are fleet operators of trucks, branches of the US & UK military; curisouly at retail level we got the Price Costco discount tire re-seller, which actually will install green stem caps on tires which they have mounted. I disagree about the negativism expressed in the use of nitrogen filled tires. I have used nitrogen for the last twenty years and I will continue to use it.

You asked for our comments in your initial post and you got them. Sorry that they didn't jive with your thoughts.

BTW, your "observations" do not match any scientific evidence but they do prove that you can talk yourself into believing anything.

[hookah66]

Have you tried it?...I did not believe at all until I started to experiment with it. If you got already a smooth riding tire, the difference is not that much, but I got those teeth grinding run flats and they are plain horrible. I am not trying to pass judgment but to share what I have experienced. I came upon this nitrogen business when I read it in technical specifications and when I was reviewing bidding documents for fleet vehicle procurement. That is all.... c'est la vive...

[chromisdesigns]

I'm gonna try freon -- sure, it's expensive, but it will keep the tires cooler, especially at the track.

[cb1111]

Natural gas would be another good choice. At your destination, you could hook your gas grill up to your tires and grill some burgers, chicken or hot dogs. You can't do that with nitrogen.

[hookah66]

thanks for the lighter side of this thread it is getting funny ...

[Outlaw 06]

Originally Posted by cb1111

This is one of the few mods that has no up-side and no down-side.

Sure there's a downside. 100% dry Nitrogen isn't free like air is (which is 78% Nitrogen anyway).

[The_DDub]

I just got back from the tire shop that put argon on my tires. Now my valve stems are NEON! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Argon

[mike-y]

I keep a small 12v air compressor in my trunk, so I can fill my tires to the proper level anytime I notice one might be low. Using nitrogen just seems like a lot of extra hassle, since I'd have to take my car to a place that has it (and possibly have to make an appointment), just to top off.

Right now I can check and fill my tires in a couple of minutes without going anywhere.

[Gary@TireRack]

The Placebo Effect can be a powerful one...

[hookah66]

Originally Posted by mike-y

I keep a small 12v air compressor in my trunk, so I can fill my tires to the proper level anytime I notice one might be low. Using nitrogen just seems like a lot of extra hassle, since I'd have to take my car to a place that has it (and possibly have to make an appointment), just to top off.

Right now I can check and fill my tires in a couple of minutes without going anywhere.

I made a contraption with a nozzle enema at one end of this tube and the other end is a tire chuck. When my tires gets low I collect my own waste gas and re-use it....