Tyre pressure

I know this is probably a daft question. But what is the correct tyre pressure for my wind 17" wheels. I have Michelin pilot sport 3 on the front and continental on the rear. One of my friends said they need to be different pressures. Any help would be most appreciated 

On the door pillar are the recommended pressure. But not sure the effect of different tyres. Experts will be along shortly

Recommended tyre pressures are 35 Front, 35 Rear, & 40 Spare which is what I use on original spec Continentals.

That said I am not completely happy with that as the weight distribution of the car is such that, at these pressures, the rear tyres look normal but the fronts always look underinflated to me.

My wife's Captur is 33 Front & 30 Rear which you would expect for a FWD car & my mid engined MGTF was 26 Front & 36 Rear which also makes sense.

Have not noticed irregular tyre wear so far but would appreciate any info available.

I heard the Weight distribution is 52/48 I never ran my tyres above 34

This web site indicates that the weight distribution is 64% front for the 1.6.  http://www.carfolio.com/specifications/models/car/?car=216799
If this is the case it would certainly tie in with the way my tyres look as they are same pressure front & rear.

How about this then: Just closely studied the sticker on my door & the recommended pressures are:

Below 100mph: 35F 35R
Above 100mph: 40F 35R
"ECO":              44F 35R !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The Contisport 5 tyres do say max pressure 51psi so it is within the range of the tyres.

Contacted my local dealer & their reaction was NEVER inflate fronts to 44psi but they agreed it would be reasonable to inflate fronts to 40psi for a long trip with much autoroute cruising so, as we are off to the South of France on Sunday that's what I'll do.

+100mph?   I'm not sure Id want to go that fast in a Wind.  The 1.2 is a bit buffety a at 70mph

Performance figs for the 1.6 133 are: Top speed of 125mph & 0-60 about 8.5 secs.

Being tallish for a roadster, I agree that it certainly isn't as stable as my previous two cars: a V6 Alfa spider (220bhp) & an MGTF (160bhp). Both had top speeds around 140mph & 0-60 times of 6.4 & 6.9 secs respectively.

That said I'm getting used to exchanging outright performance for Auto Air Con, heated leather seats, pliant suspension & the refinement of a hard top when the sun isn't shining. It's all about compromises & the Wind is a good compromise for our long distance tours.

Anyway: back to the topic of this thread, I have now set my tyres to 40F & 35 R & will report back on how it feels in due course.

Well. Just been for a decent run at 40F 35R.

Steering feels fine & possibly slightly lighter at very low speeds.

Definitely less tyre noise at urban & motorway speeds.

When driving down a notoriously bad bit of road (The A2 through Sittingbourne) the level of feedback from the poor surface; which I would have expected to worsen with higher tyre pressure; is actually noticeably improved.

So far so good!!

The 1.6i engine is a heavier lump than the 1.2i so it looks a bit of a squeeze down on the fronts, at recommended pressures, so I have put an extra 2 PSI on the fronts.

So, I run my 1.6i at 37 PSI at front and 35 PSI at rear. 

I personally would not over inflate the front tyres to much, see info below (taken from a tyre website)....

"higher than normal PSI" is dangerous: once the tyre's get up to operating temperature, they will likely be increase of pressure as the air inside heats up. The ride will be harsher and jarring which is not good for the suspension or for you. Also, the tyre contact patch will be smaller, and they will wear in the middle.

I always assume that the clever bods who actually design the cars and tyres know best and I have always run my cars at recommends pressures without any problems

Re Renault's recommendations: their front pressures on the sticker vary from 35 to 44 so I'm comfortably within that range at 40. Will monitor tyre temps each time we stop on our trip to the South of France tomorrow as it is normal to up pressures about 10% for long distance cruising at AutoRoute speeds.
Terrible things have happened in the South of France recently but we can't let them change our lives.

Probably be safest time to travel but take care anyway. And if you see a Wind wave it might be one of the ones coming over May 2017....

colin565 wrote:I personally would not over inflate the front tyres to much, see info below (taken from a tyre website)....

"higher than normal PSI" is dangerous: once the tyre's get up to operating temperature, they will likely be increase of pressure as the air inside heats up. The ride will be harsher and jarring which is not good for the suspension or for you. Also, the tyre contact patch will be smaller, and they will wear in the middle.

Just to counter this a bit, manufacturers know that pressure can increase, which is why the recommended pressures should be set cold.  Also, if you use air from a foot pump then you will have a bigger pressure variation than using air from a compressor with an inline dryer, or using Nitrogen.

The pressure variation is less fom the air heating up, and more from any moisture in the tyre turning to gas.

I always run my pressures at around 40psi front and 35 rear.  The rear tyres hardly wear, and the fronts still wear on the shoulders from my bad driving style.

Well the concensus is that no-one is going above 40PSI at the fronts, and I have 37 PSI, and the official figure is 35PSI.

So I am happy with that, if you lot are happy

Car tyre pressures soon start dropping anyway as the weeks go on, just due to natural lossage, as long as you do not go underpressure.

Argh, no discusion on underpressure please

I've always gone 40f and 35r which gives a smoother drive on motorways and being low profiles tend to go flat quicker than regular tyres the extra bit of pressure saves me having to repump too regular

Hi everyone thanks for the advice. Tyres now adjusted!!! I get my wind up to 100 and it is amazing. However unlike everyone here I have nothing to compare to as all I have driven before is 1ltr micras and an aygo. (Hairdryers on wheels or go carts as my friends and family would say) 47

Looks like I'm going to have to increase my pressures - 34 front and rear for me.  Perhaps thats why I'm only getting about 33mpgs.

Just checked mine and they were at between 30 and 35 psi.   Set them all to 35 and let's see how we get on

Just received this from Renault: (My clarifications in brackets)

Thank you for replying to my email, and I would like to apologise for the delay in getting the clarification regarding the recommended tyre pressures for your Renault Wind. 
Re driving with a boot full of heavy luggage, as the vehicle handbook states, it is recommended that you do not exceed 60 MPH/100 KM while your Renault Wind is fully laden;heavy luggage in the boot, and the (all) tyre pressures increased by 2.9psi/0.2 bar.  
In regards to economical driving style, 44psi will be correct however it will make the tyre harder which will not give the Renault Wind the best ride for comfort. If you set your (front) tyre pressure at 44psi you will essentially be driving in ECO mode, and is recommended for fuel economy. If you drive hard;quick acceleration, hard braking, quick speeds; do not set your tyre pressure at 44psi as you will scrub your tyres when driving.  
So to confirm, the recommended tyre pressure for your Renault Wind will be 35psi under normal driving circumstances and below 100 MPH. If you are doing long distance driving with a boot full of luggage then it is advised to not exceed 60 MPH and increasing your tyre pressure by 2.9psi/0.2 bar.


 Interesting to know just how much luggage requires not exceeding 60mph perhaps a boot full of vino after a booze cruise. Wine's heavy stuff!!! It seems that 44psi is OK if you drive like a snail. A strange recommendation for a car developed by Renaultsport.

Why have I got so detailed re pressures? Because the handling & tramlining characteristics on my previous mid engine car could be drastically changed by tyre: pressure; make; & type. Believe it or not the original equipment tyres were phased out by Goodyear & replaced by an updated version which MG did not recommend!

Relax this will probably be my last word on the subject!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Its useful to know the 'official' Renault view.  Guess I'll have to pump them up just a little more.