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Thread: Nitrogen instead of air in your tyres.

  1. #1
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    Default Nitrogen instead of air in your tyres.

    Hi guys, I took my car to Bob Janes thismorning for a wheel balance and at the same time had the normal air taken out of the tyres and replaced with nitrogen.{$6
    a tyre}. Although I had the normal pressure put in the tyres I found the ride to be slightly softer and they replaced the black dust caps with green ones. I suppose this is to signify that there is nitrogen in the tyres. Anyone else run with nitrogen in their tyres and what are your thoughts?

  2. #2
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    Ive been considering doing this myself, costs bugger all and if it improves tyre life then its a no brainer.

  3. #3
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    Apparantly it offers less roll resistance and you don't get a loss of nitrogen compared to loss of air. In fact the guy at Bob Jane suggested to check my tyre pressures in about 3 months time!

  4. #4
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    Air:
    -78% Nitrogen.
    -21% Oxygen.
    -1% Other.

    It's predominantly the Oxygen and Other that seep through the porous rubber compound of your tyres. I highly doubt some of the claims and gains people make in regards to Nitrogen in tyres.

  5. #5

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    Im not sure where all the claims that are made come from.. I know that we use nitrogen in tyres in the aviation industry and I guess racing would use it for the same reasons. Nitrogen is an inert gas ie its non flammable. therefore in a crash the air in the tyres doesnt help fuel the fire.
    I cant see how having nitrogen in you tyre rather than air can increase the life of your tyre of make the ride smoother.

  6. #6
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    I use it Alan but I have red dust caps.. Would never go back to normal air, check my pressure every 5 to 6 months and if it needs pressure they add more in for nothing for the life of the tyres unless you get a flat tyre of course...


    *************************http://www.ozmpsclub.com/forum/handl...ighlight=nitro***************************
    Last edited by 240MPS; 14-12-2010 at 02:12 PM.

  7. #7
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    Nitrogen expands and contracts less under different operating conditions. Mates at the track have had their road tyres go from 30PSI to over 40 after a solid session on the track. When the daily temperature and operating conditions cause the tyre to expand and contract this much it can change how the tread wears considerably.

    Added to the fact that it costs next to nothing, even if it offerred no measureable benefit, at least you can tell people your cars tyres are filled with ****ing nitrogen, bitch.

  8. #8
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    Quote Originally Posted by Reedy View Post

    Added to the fact that it costs next to nothing, even if it offerred no measureable benefit, at least you can tell people your cars tyres are filled with ****ing nitrogen, bitch.
    Worth the $6 easy

  9. #9
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    My tyres are filled with 78% Nitrogen too, and it costs me absolutely nothing

  10. #10

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    Had nitrogen in mine, its probably a mix of both now, coz the times ive had to fill the pressure up again have been after hrs and the servo was the only option
    I dont know if it was me "imagining" things but the car does feel "smoother" but i am running 18's, low profile and tien coilovers as well

  11. #11

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    The relevant and oft-cited principle is that "the N2 molecule is bigger than the O2 molecule and the improved tyre pressure retention arises by virtue of the fact that the larger N2 molecules don't migrate through the porous rubber so easily". The fact that N2 molecules still migrate means that this sought after advantage plainly only applies to the ~21% of the air in your tyre that isn't N2 (e.g, the O2 component).

    I still have trouble with this assertion, as the empirically measured covalent radii for the two elements in picometers (pm, where 100pm = 1 Angstrom), with an accuracy of about 5 pm, are 65pm for N and 60 for O (i.e damn near identical within the limits of error), but in fact the N-N bond distance is actually smaller at 109.76pm while O-O bond distance is 120.74pm , although bond distances expressed thus can be misleading due to differences in bond strength.

    Whatever the rationale, in my view, unless it is for very specialist purposes, such as aircraft (and both my planes ran normal air in their tyres), and assuming you are normally handy to a service station to routinely check your tyre pressures, as you should, stressing over such a tiny advantage is a waste of time and money and merely a selling gimmick to certain tyre dealers exploiting tuners. The only possible useful differences some might care to mention are slight differences in coefficient of thermal expansion between the two gases with changes in temperature, almost certainly irrelevant and not easily compared considering all the other heat influences unless you are on a racetrack, while thermal conductivities of the two gases are the same at 0.015 W/m/degree C.

    And plainly, with pressure acting universally and equally in all directions against the constraints of the void it occupies, it doesn't matter what the hell gas your tyres are filled with (whether it is oxygen 02, nitrogen N2, hydrogen H2, methane CH3 or Uranium Hexafluoride UF6 or any other gas), and assuming equal set pressures and all else being equal, it is only in your head if you think the ride feel or roll resistance is any different to that achieved with straight air.

    Saving the $6/tyre will buy you a coffee and cake!
    Last edited by Doug_MPS6; 14-12-2010 at 04:56 PM.
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  12. #12

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    Quote Originally Posted by Doug_MPS6 View Post
    The relevant principle is that the N2 molecule is bigger than the O2 molecule and the improved tyre pressure retention arises by virtue of the fact that the larger N2 molecules don't migrate through the porous rubber so easily. The fact that N2 molecules still migrate means that this sought after advantage plainly only applies to the ~21% of the air in your tyre that isn't N2 (e.g, the O2 component).

    In my view, unless it is for specialist purposes, such as aircraft (and both my planes ran normal air in their tyres), and assuming you are normally handy to a service station to routinely check your tyre pressures, as you should, stressing over this tiny advantage is a waste of time and money and merely a selling gimmick to tyre certain dealers exploiting tuners.

    And pressure being pressure, and acting universally and equally in all directions against the constraints of the void it occupies, it doesn't matter what gas your tyres are filled with, and assuming equal set pressures and all else being equal, it is only in your head if you think the ride feel or roll resistance is any different to that achieved with straight air.
    well said Doug, i agree. Its about certain companies trying to exploit $$
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  13. #13
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jeev View Post
    My tyres are filled with 78% Nitrogen too, and it costs me absolutely nothing
    Same here...free air is good air
    Not Gone...just "busy"
    Quote Originally Posted by Street Road Laino
    It's not blue screen of death Kent, it's Auora Blue screen of death

  14. #14

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    i would only worry about this on a dedicated race car. even then you'd want to be in a serious class of racing.
    The reason you'd use it is because it will stay at the pressure you've set them for longer under extreme circumstances.
    If you set them to say 35 with air for example, and were in a 10 lap race, they might be at 40 or so by the end. Therefore changing the way the car behaves.
    This is the reason race cars will use it. But i also use to work with a bunch of guys that have been racing for 20 odd years (historic racing, XY falcons and such) and they didnt even use it.

  15. #15

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    i have raced motorbikes for years now and hang round some of the best bike racers in australia at the moment both on and off road and have never heard of one of them running nitrogen in there tyres, on a bike the tyre pressure is a big deal but still not one of them run it....

    so i cant really see the need to put it in road car tyres other than the mental aspect of it... that said if anyone wants it in theres i am more than happy to take $6 a tyre from them and tell them that there is nitrogen in there

  16. #16
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    Well I know of 3 women who now run nitro saving thousands of dollars for the sake of $20, their not changing tyres every 6 months now because they never checked their tyre pressures, I use it because my tyre temps are constant for long trips and track work and helps wear, since I have started using it in the last 4 or 5 years I've noticed long life out of my tyres and even wear across the tyre to my previous 24 to 25 years using normally pump air You never know if you don't try and I was one who didn't believe in it for 24 years or so.... Maybe the people who only get 15,000k's to 20,000k's try it with Nitro who knows........

  17. #17

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    I had nitrogen put in my new tyres simply because a) It means I dont have to top them up as often, which is good in a fwd car where you can feel 1psi variance, and b) because it seemed like a good idea at the time lol.

  18. #18
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    That's it, I'm going to start filling people's tyres with Radon for $10ea.

  19. #19

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    never used it and I still get about 40K outta my tyres, but dont be lazy and check your tyres every week

    Happy Motoring
    duglet

  20. #20
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    Put helium in there to reduce unsprung weight

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