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Re: modern tyres/pressures

To: "Gordie's Garage" <mg_garage@ameritech.net>, <mgs@autox.team.net>
Subject: Re: modern tyres/pressures
From: Barney Gaylord <barneymg@ntsource.com>
Date: Sat, 08 Jun 2002 13:21:01 -0500
At 05:43 AM 6/8/02 -0400, Gordie's Garage wrote:
>My MGA shop manual shows 24psi front and 27psi rear.  This is for 5.60-15 
>Gold Seal nylon tubed tyres.

Maybe my book has a misprint, but mine says 17 psi front and 20 psi rear 
(which I could never get to work).  Your numbers look a lot better.

>   Now that I am using modern radials mounted tubeless on Minilites, 
> should I increase my tyre pressure?

Maybe.  For daily road cruising I use 25 psi all around for a cushy ride, 
and don't get too picky about the handling.  But then I happen to like a 
little oversteer, and I also have a LARGE front anti-sway bar.  If you want 
to damp out a little oversteer, add a few PSI to the rear tires.  (But I 
never had that problem with a stock MGA).  For trailer towing I add a 
couple psi to the rear tires to resist the tendendance for the tail to wag 
the dog.  For mild competition use (occasional autocross) on street tires I 
use 36-35 psi in the front tires to keep them from rolling over on the 
sidewalls, and 30-26 in the rear depending on how much oversteer I'm trying 
to tune in.  A tight track wants more oversteer, while a fast track won't 
tolerate it.

For a beter understanding of what happens with changes in tire pressure, 
check here:
http://users.ntsource.com/~barneymg/mgtech/tires/tire1.htm

Barney Gaylord
1958 MGA with an attitude
http://www.ntsource.com/~barneymg

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