Nitrogen?

[grex]

I just realized that there is a little sticker above my first maintenance sticker on the top left of my windshield that says "these tires are filled with nitrogen" or something along those lines.

wtf mate?

I have no idea how this nitrogen stuff works and kinda wish I just had 'regular' air?

does this mean i cant fill up my tires at home with my compressor?

Honda tried to sell this to my aunt and she said that they charge like 45$ a tire to fill with air...can I drain this stuff out and put air in???

[aris]

Why not leave it if you got no issues??

A green vavle stem cap means that's filled with nitogen

[grex]

well what concerns me is that i wont be able put a little air in if say the day before I head up to the cottage I check my pressure and ones a little low.

[alco]

keep it, it's expensive to switch from one to another, nitrogen is the new way to go, the pressure in tires does not alternate like in air, so you don't have to worry about ever adding more. Search up online how long it can last you and the maintenance of it.

Cheers.

[stevenma188]

Just add normal air to it, There was a thread on here before about mixing the 2 and theres no problems doing so.

[mazdabetty]

Do you have winter tires on? Most winter tires are filled with nitrogen. You won't have to worry about filling them as often. In fact you can probably go the entire winter without touching them as they retain their pressure longer than air.

Do a search, there's lots of information about nitrogen (but there's also a lot of misinformation out there too). Some people say it's just a gimmick, and some people swear by it (like me).

And like I've said in other threads regarding nitrogen, I've never had to pay to fill them once. When you get your oil changes they should just top it up free of charge (doesn't cost them anything extra really to do it). Not sure where you got $45 from, that's outrageous and completely untrue. More like $15 at the MOST. And as stated above, there is no harm in mixing the two if you reeeeally need to put air in.

[el_rodento]

Honda tried to sell this to my aunt and she said that they charge like 45$ a tire to fill with air...can I drain this stuff out and put air in???

I had the same experience at a Honda dealer when shopping for cars. When he printed out the invoice for a cost of a new Civic he had an extra charge on there for nitrogen filled tires.

[aris]

Do you have winter tires on? Most winter tires are filled with nitrogen. You won't have to worry about filling them as often. In fact you can probably go the entire winter without touching them as they retain their pressure longer than air.

Do a search, there's lots of information about nitrogen (but there's also a lot of misinformation out there too). Some people say it's just a gimmick, and some people swear by it (like me).

And like I've said in other threads regarding nitrogen, I've never had to pay to fill them once. When you get your oil changes they should just top it up free of charge (doesn't cost them anything extra really to do it). Not sure where you got $45 from, that's outrageous and completely untrue. More like $15 at the MOST. And as stated above, there is no harm in mixing the two if you reeeeally need to put air in.

What does winter tires have to do with nitrogen?? If you buy your winter tires from any of the tire sponsers they use air..

Most dealerships now use nitrogen..and most tire shop still use air. I my self have never had any issues with my tires losing air..and my winter tires are filled with air and my summer tires are filled with air...even when they sit in my shed during the winter and i out them on in summer i got no issues with losing air and during summer when my winter tires sit i have no issues with loing air..the only time you lose air pressure is when their is a problem

[aris]

I had the same experience at a Honda dealer when shopping for cars. When he printed out the invoice for a cost of a new Civic he had an extra charge on there for nitrogen filled tires.

When i bought my mazda their was no added cost on the invoice for nitrogen filled tires

[el_rodento]

When i bought my mazda their was no added cost on the invoice for nitrogen filled tires

Yup, I didn't get nitrogen filled tires when I picked up my mz3 either. But some dealers like that Honda guy will fill the tires with nitrogen and then charge you.

[slam525i]

I'm going to quote myself from here (http://www.torontomazda3.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=32962):


Disclosure: I am a scientist.

Generally speaking, nitrogen does nothing.

1. Leakage: Yes, nitrogen will leak through the tire a little bit less, but I never needed to top up my tires more than once every 3-4 months anyway and I check it about once a month. Keep in mind "air" is mostly nitrogen already.

2. Expansion: Nitrogen expands with heat like any other gas. The benefit is that bottled nitrogen should be free of moisture, unlike compressed atmospheric air. The water moisture in air does expand significantly upon heating. However, unless you're racing, you won't heat up your tires enough to matter.

3. Corrosion: Not having oxygen and keeping the inside of the rim in a dry environment should reduce corrosion of the rim. But then again, the rim should be coated already to prevent contact with air. Before my 3, I was driving a 17 year old Bimmer with zero rim corrosion, but my parents had significant corrosion on their Acura when after 8 years. Neither were filled with nitrogen and the corrosion on the Acura rims were so bad, it would have worked it's way past the seal and under the tire regardless.

So, no, I don't use nitrogen filled tires. It can't hurt to use nitrogen, but it's not something I would pay for.

FYI: If you get dry nitrogen filled tires, there should be no harm in mixing it with regular air when you need to top your tires up a few PSI. You still benefit from having a low moisture, low oxygen environment, although I already said that the benefits are minimal.

[midnightfxgt]

Slam says it best. Its not worth the money or hassle IMHO. If you can get it done for free, then go for it :)

All of the THOUSANDS upon THOUSANDS of tires we have installed, we have never had any one complain of leaking with regular air unless there was a punture or VERY bad corrosion. Even most of the very badly corroded wheels are fine after we gring the seat and apply the high-end sealer.

-John

[SonicBoy]

well what concerns me is that i wont be able put a little air in if say the day before I head up to the cottage I check my pressure and ones a little low.

Where ever you bought your car or the tire shop that did your wheels will be able to top you up at no charge as I believe it's part of the package when it was installed.

Dig though your paperwork and find the policy.

Only hassle is to go back to the shop/dealership to have it done.

[grex]

Thanks for all the replies and info.

Im gonna stick with the nitrogen and just get it topped up at oil changes. Which I will be getting done at the dealership where I bought the vehicle.

And I don't have winter tires...just the all season birdgestones that came with my 3.

[Zoom Zoom Boy]

...

Only hassle is to go back to the shop/dealership to have it done.

Right there, you pegged the exact reason why most dealers have decided to use Nitrogen. It is yet another motivation tool they utilize to try and keep people coming back to the dealership for overpriced service. It is also another revenue stream for them...

[SonicBoy]

Everyone is waiting for the home units to be developed and available everywhere like compressors before you will see more Nitrogen on the road.

[m_bisson]

What does winter tires have to do with nitrogen?? If you buy your winter tires from any of the tire sponsers they use air..

Most dealerships now use nitrogen..and most tire shop still use air. I my self have never had any issues with my tires losing air..and my winter tires are filled with air and my summer tires are filled with air...even when they sit in my shed during the winter and i out them on in summer i got no issues with losing air and during summer when my winter tires sit i have no issues with loing air..the only time you lose air pressure is when their is a problem

Air pressure changes depending on temperature. Nitrogen does not. That means the pressure remains the same in the summer and winter, where if you only use air the pressure will change.

[slam525i]

Air pressure changes depending on temperature. Nitrogen does not. That means the pressure remains the same in the summer and winter, where if you only use air the pressure will change.

Nitrogen pressure increases with temperature just like any other gas (Ideal gas law: PV=nRT). The only difference is the presence of humidity in air, making thermo-expansion very slightly greater for air.

[stevenma188]

Also, nitrogen is more inert, so there will be no chance of oxidization of the inside of your rims (not that there should be any with oxygen).