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Originally Posted by mcrawford
The tyre pressure question is interesting. We have received conflicting advice from "leave it at 40 like I do' from the tyre guy in Innamincka to reduce to 25-28 from the tyre guy in Birdsville. I reduced the pressure to about 32-34. I believe this assisted in preventing punctures (however I could have just been lucky). I did not reduce the pressure more because, with a full load, I would then be more likely to scrape the bottom of my car. Prado had about 36, Rodeo and Cruiser did not reduce pressure at all.
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Thxs Mark.
I reckon you had it about right. That pressure you ran and just being careful not to let the speed creep up --- say, no more than 90 on the gibbers and creek crossings, protect the tyres from punctures.
If the Rodeo, Prado and the Cruiser maintained near 40+ pressure then that would have significantly multiplied the risk of puncture for those cars irrespective of the tyre used. At that pressure the tyres are like a brick butting up against the gibbers and it only takes one decent sharp stone for the stone to overcome the resistance of the tyre and piercing it.
Seems to be a common belief and/or piece of advice received that you have to run significantly higher pressures to avoid punctures on the outback tracks (eg. Oodnadatta, Strzelecki Tracks and up near Arkaroola). I think your experience between the three cars proves the reality however. 32 to 34 is about right (for starters) for a loaded Territory on gibbers and you would reduce them by a couple of psi if you noticed little nicks and cuts in the tread which is a sign that the tyres are over pressured and not adequately 'cushioning' the gibbers but rather bouncing off them and getting damaged.
After 16 odd thousand kilometres on my trip, my tyres were in perfect condition at the end other than normal wear off the tread for that distance.
I'm really surprised that the Birdsville guy suggested 25 to 28 especially given your payload. You wouldn't have them that low even on bitumen!! Maybe he was thinking you were doing the Simpson Crossing and the sand .... otherwise I'm not sure why he'd suggest so low. The last thing you need in the dirt/gibbers is a tyre overheating and either bursting or running its bead off the rim.
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