Hooper Discount Tire Did the Homework For You

When tire inflation pressure gets low, most of us simply drive up to the air pump and inflate with air, right? Filling tires with nitrogen has many mixed reviews. Some say it’s a huge advancement; others think it’s a total waste of money. Here is some information that will be helpful in deciding. 

Cost Factor

Cost can be an issue. Nitrogen is not very widely available and where it is, the cost is around $6 to fill each tire. If you want to convert your air-filled tires to nitrogen, each tire has to be filled and deflated with nitrogen several times to be sure there is 93-95% nitrogen. If your tires deflate while on the road and there is no nitrogen to be found, you can fill up with air, but then you may have to go through the process all over again. 

Tire Pressure

Consumer Reports did a study to find out if nitrogen is worth the extra cost. The average loss in psi of tires filled with air was 3.5 psi while the nitrogen-filled tires lost an average of 2.2 psi - a 1.3 psi difference over an entire year. Nitrogen molecules are bigger than air so yes, it’s harder for them to leak out. However, if you’re among the 15% of Americans who check their tire pressures regularly each month, you’ll know to inflate them and there won’t be the extra cost of nitrogen. Even in colder temps, you will still lose around 2% pressure in nitrogen-filled tires for every 10 degrees F drop. 

Fuel Economy

“Contact patch” is the actual area of tire that is in contact with the road surface, generally no larger than the size of a hand. The proper tire pressure helps to keep the manufacturer’s recommended contact patch. As a result, fuel efficiency is heightened. 

Tire Aging and Wheel Corrosion

With air being 21% oxygen, it can retain moisture in your car tires causing damage to the internal wall. This causes the tire to age. Consumer Reports cited that The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has seen no wheel corrosion and reduced aging of tires filled with nitrogen because it has no moisture. 

In summary, nitrogen has a few advantages over air. How you use your car will answer whether or not those advantages will be useful to you. We suggest you use nitrogen if you don’t drive very often or when you put your car in storage over the winter months. 


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