KymcoForum.com

Kneeslider is absolutely correct. What's on the sidewall is the max pressure the tire can be safely inflated to. The vehicle's manufacturer's recommendation is a compromise, taking into account weight loading, ride comfort, grip and the speed rating on the tire. You should always go with the recommended pressure and not what is on the sidewall.

You can safely inflate tires to 25-30% higher pressure than printed on the side wall. But that would not give you any positiv effects. And it would be pointless, because it would be overinflated. And loose most of it's grip and comfort. The shops that mount tires for you often inflate tires to 75-80 psi to seat the beads. No problem.

But let me ask you a question: Look at my calculations above. If I choose to have a passenger on my scooter, I would easily put 280 kg on my rear tire total. The manufacturer says that I can have max 231 kg on my rear tire. So I do something unlegal, but I do it anyway. (And I think that goes for most scooter drivers). My rear tire can carry 280 kg, but at a pressure of 38 psi.

If I follow Kymco, and put 32 psi in my tire, will I have the correct pressure for the actual load on that tire, or will i be under inflated?

Here is a link for further reading.

http://www.dunlopmotorcycletires.com/care/

Thank you. That link showes just what I am talking about 

 It says clearly:  Maximum loads and the corresponding pressures are indicated on the sidewall of all Dunlop street tires.

And Dunlop says the same thing that I say when it comes to pressure: Keep in mind that hard cornering, passengers, heavy loads and sustained high speeds will require higher pressures (up to that indicated on the sidewall).

This is great.  I am going to copy and paste this for my records.  I  recently had that back tire put on and yesterday I thought gosh I should check the pressure that they put into this tire.  It was only at about 23psi! Geeez!  I put it up to what the book said 32psi but on the tire itself it say's 40psi.

With 23 psi you would soon have a worn tire. Think about all the people that trust the shops and don't see for themselves.

I would have put in 38 psi in your tire, but that's me    If you usually drive alone with not much luggage, maybe try 36 psi. That should give you some more km on the tire. 

Jalmar, I love your 2 cents!! My book say's 32 psi and my tire itself says 40psi.  What do I do?

I expect to get at least 10K km out of a rear tire. If I get more, I see it as a bonus. If I get less, I look for errors... I got 6K km out of the factory rear tire. I changed it because I didn't like it so much. I changed it for a Metzler Feel Free. I think the factory tire could have lasted maybe 8K. Now I have 3K on the Metzler, and it is doing good 

On the factory tire I used 36 psi pressure. Thats 10% up from what is recommended. On the Metzler I use 39 psi. I have never experienced any change in roadholding with 39 psi, so I think that's OK. After 3K km in all kind of traffic, it holds the profile nice and round.

This is what I do. I am no tire specialist. I just do what Metzler recommended on my touring bikes long ago. And I have used that trick for many years with no problems. 

Another thing that often is overlooked is the gauge. Is your pressure gauge correct? I am so lucky that I can get my gauge measured every now and then, so I know that it is correct. I have tested many different gauges, and found that there are many bad ones out there. Up to 25-30% wrong readings on the cheap ones. So maybe you think you have the right pressure, but have to low because of a bad gauge?

Tire shops should have correct gauges, so you can check your own if you check the pressure with your gauge right after they have filled the tire. Gas station gauges are not that good usually. At least here in Norway.

Another thing I do when I get on new tires, is that I measure the tread depth in several places around the tire. I measure where the tread wear indicators are so I'm sure to remember where I measured. After 1K km I measure again in the same places. Then I know how much tread wear it has been in 1K km, and I can calculate how long the tire is going to last. And it is surprising how accurate that has been for my tires. Actually I do this for every 1K km on a tire just for the fun of it. But I am an old geek and love to keep track of things 
(This method is not a scientific correct method. Just for fun.)

 

Off course I can post pictures.

Brand new:






At home for the first time:





Out in the forests in Sweeden:




On gravel road in Norway:




With the new top box:




Front of the seat and a new back pack that fits in front of the seat:




I find that I tend to slide back in the seat agains the back support, so the seat is higher in front. You sit in a well so to speak.

Mine is the black version. You can get it in a special edition with green stripes.

I hope Nireen999 excuse me for posting pictures of my bike in her tread