Ok YOU CLEVER LOT' ANSWER PLEASE

[michele]

How do you convert BARS To 1lbs Front tyres 5.5 Back tyres 5.5 help please Thanking you

[Basil]

Multiply by 14.5. 14.5034 to use normal accepted multiple. or go to http://www.dragsource.com/index.php?navselect=calculators&calctoview=8

[michele]

thankyou is that all..................................?

[michele]

80lbs is that not to much ?

[Basil]

79.771 to be exact. Don't know if that is too much or not, but if your data says that is what it is then Isuppose that is what it is.

[michele]

Thank you basil , (lol)

[Guest starspirit]

It will bounce all over the option and shake your false teeth out at 80lbs. I run my starspirit on 55 front and 60 rear which is abit more than the 50 / 55 the man from Michelin suggested but it does give a good compromise between ride comfort and handling - if handling is the right word for a motorhome on twisty roads? It does not seem to be a precise science on motor homes as everyone has their own ideas and the converters are no help whatsoever.

[michele]

Richard, Dont confuse me? (that's not hard) fully loaded shopping 6 on board albeit 4 kids . clothes nappies kitchen sink chairs . all the usual crap ....... what's a girl to do........................... oh mad dog and 10 bottles of pills................nearly forgot the pills

[Guest starspirit]

OK then. Try this. My starspirit is on a mwb chassis (medium wheelbase) It has an MTPLM (maximum all up weight) of 3400 kg and is just over 20' or 6.12 meters long. If your van is broadly similar in dimensions and your tyres Michelin Camping car 55 / 60 should be a good starting point. If your van is bigger / heavier / longer try a few more pounds or a few less if it is smaller. If your tyres are a different make ask the makers but don't be surprised if they refuse to help. I seem to recall Michelin advising another member to use less pressure on his Nuevo which is shorter and on a swb even though the total weight is somewhat similar to mine. I'll look back through the tyre threads and see what I can find.

[BrianR]

A girl should take her 'van, fully loaded as stated, to a public weighbridge and get it weighed, front and back axles separately. This will only cost around £10 or less. Then send these weights to your tyre manufacturer together with details of your tyres, and they will give you the correct tyre pressures. Contrary to "Regular" suggestion that it is not a precise science, the manufaturer of a tyre knows what should be the correct pressure, even for motorhomes. In fact, the type of vehicle makes no difference to the correct pressure. Brian

[michele]

thank you richard & brian & basil

[Guest starspirit]

I agree the weighbridge idea but without your tyre maker being willing to advise on pressures the whole thing only serves to tell you how close to you MTPLM you are so pressure wise you are not a lot further forward. I'm not an expert on tyres and am happy to be corrected by one who is but to my mind the type of vehicle makes a huge difference to the type of tyre and, it follows, the pressures. You won't find camping car tyres on a heavy duty goods van neither should you find car tyres on a camper for example. Michelin are the exception in that they will help with pressure advice whereas most makers that I have tried in the past will not advise - unless things have changed?

[michele]

Thanks for looking and telling me .......The back tyre's look like they need air .I wanted to know what the max the tyre could take ....it does need air, but we will stay lower than the max and see how it handles ....... Might knock out more than me false teeth.

[Guest starspirit]

I don't like the sound of your tyres needing air Michele. The bit about tyre pressures was about Terrytraveller's Nuevo which Michelin suggested 45 / 55 lbs for but he runs at 50 / 60 lbs as it feels better. If in doubt try 60 / 65 as a kicking off point and see how it feels. Better to err on the hard side especially on a long run in hot weather.

[michele]

Richard, Thanks this is a Bessacarr.24ft long they are Michelin 215/75/r16c fiat's hand book states 5.5 front & back Loaded ......but like you say we will err on the lower than that 80lbs 79.777 just to be safe and see how it feel's .. Oohhhhhhhhhhhh Be like driving an old RML /RT for LRT again loaded ... with no power steering . Without the B****dy passengers ringing the bell's Them Bells them Bells...........used to drive home at night and stop at B*****dy Bus Stop's ...........

[Brian Kirby]

[QUOTE]michele - 2006-08-06 10:29 PM Richard, Thanks this is a Bessacarr.24ft long they are Michelin 215/75/r16c fiat's hand book states 5.5 front & back Loaded ......but like you say we will err on the lower than that 80lbs 79.777 just to be safe and see how it feel's .. Oohhhhhhhhhhhh Be like driving an old RML /RT for LRT again loaded ... with no power steering . Without the B****dy passengers ringing the bell's Them Bells them Bells...........used to drive home at night and stop at B*****dy Bus Stop's ...........[/QUOTE]

Michele

You will not be erring on the safe side if you adopt any pressure lower that the manufactirer's recommended pressure - unless you get the van, fully laden, to a weighbridge and get it weighed as advised, and then obtain the tyre manufacturer's recommendation as to the correct tyre pressures for the axle loads you report.  However, it must be fully laden: i.e. nothing missing which means all passengers on board as well as dog, water, clothing, food etc etc.

If you are unsure about doing this, stick to the manufacturers pressures, since you won't know how heavy your van avtually is and risk underinflating the tyres, which is dangerous.  Too much air makes the ride harder, but it won't kill you!

[michele]

Ok have taken onboard what you say. Brian we have a weigh bridge litrally at the top of the Road junction 7 M11 I will do that as you suggest... I thank you all for all the kind words of wisdom and the knowledge you all have ......I only hope it is open because someday's it is only used to pull in lorries by them men in yellow jackets forgot what they are called SORN Dep Transport......but I will go up there . Thank you once again.......

[davoscar]

Michele Brian and I have been chatting about this very subject on another thread 'Tyre Valves' , my Van had nearly 80 psi all round and whilst no doubt that was safe it gave a very hard and uncomfortable ride .. the only way is to follow the advice given and get weighed at a weighbridge ( both axles but I wish you luck with that as I had to haggle to get them to do it!) When you have this information an email to Michelin off their website gets a reply in a couple of days. I have been delighted with the ride since using the pressures they gave me; much less teeth jarring and some feel in the steering... Brian is quite right though Safety is paramount and not enough pressure is dangerous; hence the need to ask the experts at Michelin. All the best David

[Guest starspirit]

All that has been said before accepted, but unless your van exceeds 3500 kg MTPLM it is unlikely to need 80lbs. I find that about 5lbs less in the front than the back aids handling by cutting down on oversteer created by the large body (not the driver) rolling on bends. A good place to start is by looking at the tyres to see whether they are obviously under inflated by being to bulbous at the contact point or similarly not deflected enough at the contact point.

[david lloyd]

Hi michelle I went through all this with our new van just recently. My tyres were set by the manufacturer/dealer at 80 psi frfon tand back and, after following similar advice, I had the van weighed in running order then rang michelin who gave an answer straight away. The micheling technical dept number is 01782 402000. Give them a ring with details of the gross weight, front and rear axle weights and tyre sizes and they will give you the correct tyre pressure. I was also told that it is safe to use them at +/- 5 psi. Regards, david

[Brian Kirby]

[QUOTE]starspirit - 2006-08-07 10:26 AM All that has been said before accepted, but unless your van exceeds 3500 kg MTPLM it is unlikely to need 80lbs. I find that about 5lbs less in the front than the back aids handling by cutting down on oversteer created by the large body (not the driver) rolling on bends. A good place to start is by looking at the tyres to see whether they are obviously under inflated by being to bulbous at the contact point or similarly not deflected enough at the contact point.[/QUOTE]

For the tyre size Michele was quoting, the van is almost certainly on a 3,850Kg rated chassis.  The 3,400Kg chassis, and below, tend to have 15" and not 16", wheels.  This als co-incides with the manufacturer's recommended tyre pressures of 5.5 bar front and rear, whereas the recommended pressures for the 15" wheels tend to be 5 bar.  This is why it is unwise to suggest anyone adopts alternative tyre pressures before all the facts are known.

Brian

[Brian Kirby]

[QUOTE]david lloyd - 2006-08-07 10:38 AM Hi michelle I went through all this with our new van just recently. My tyres were set by the manufacturer/dealer at 80 psi frfon tand back and, after following similar advice, I had the van weighed in running order then rang michelin who gave an answer straight away. The micheling technical dept number is 01782 402000. Give them a ring with details of the gross weight, front and rear axle weights and tyre sizes and they will give you the correct tyre pressure. I was also told that it is safe to use them at +/- 5 psi. Regards, david[/QUOTE]

Better still, e-mail them with the weights.  Then you get written confirmation that it is Michelin, and not Joe Soap, who said the lower pressures are appropriate!

You then will have (and should carry), a weighbridge certificate as proof of the weight, and an tyre manufacturer's recommendation for appropriate pressures.  Then whatever arises, you can prove why you aren't runing at the pressures recommended in both the base vehicle manufacturer's, and the converter's,  handbooks.

[Brian Kirby]

[QUOTE]michele - 2006-08-06 10:51 PM Ok have taken onboard what you say. Brian we have a weigh bridge litrally at the top of the Road junction 7 M11 I will do that as you suggest... I thank you all for all the kind words of wisdom and the knowledge you all have ......I only hope it is open because someday's it is only used to pull in lorries by them men in yellow jackets forgot what they are called SORN Dep Transport......but I will go up there . Thank you once again.......[/QUOTE]

Michele

What you need is a public weighbridge.  I think the one you've seen is a roadside weighbridge used by the police to check for overweight vehicles.  I doubt they'll give you what you need.  Contact your local Trading Standards, and ask them where is the nearest public weighbridge to where you live.  (They tend to be in builder's merchants, quarries, scrap yards etc.)  Then ring the yard, explain what you want, and ask them when would be a good time: you won't necessarily want to get mixed up with a queue of 42 tonners waiting to load/unload and they won't welcome you at such times!  Tell them you need a weighbridge certificate with the weights on it, as some assume you only want to drive over and satisfy your curiosity and don't expect to have to print the cert.  It means someone has to be in the cabin to set up the machine to print what you need.

Good luck

[Guest starspirit]

If you take a pencil and paper you don't need a written certificate. Quite often, but not always, the operator will just tell you the weights verbally in exchange for a small cash donation to his favourite charity - himself - saving you maybe a few quid. Every little helps in the fight against 'Rip Off UK PLC'

[michele]

Funny you should say that . A neighbour to the back of me had his tree chopped ? I said how much £70.well that seem's cheap . He digs out the guy's number I phoned him last week he came Same house set out until, he see's that mine has a rather large extention and he see's the wet room going in for the kid's £130......You can guess where I told him to go.........cheeky git double.........hello I don't think so