torque
Everyone seems to have a different opinion when it comes to tyre pressure.
Sure, tyre pressure varies from car to car, but according to chassis builder
Jerry Bickel, there are some basic guidelines you can follow.
Bickel notes this information is for tyres
designed for drag racing and that street car
radial tyres will react differently. He also
notes the temperature of the track surface
definitely affects how much heat you have
to put into the tyres – and we’ll get to that
too. Here are his insights:
Adjusting Front Tyre
Pressure
Bickel always starts with the front tyres.
“The more air you run in your front
tyres, the quicker your car will lift out
of the staging beams, but don’t exceed
the tyre manufacturer’s maximum
recommendation,” he explained. “This
can help your reaction times and reduces
rolling resistance.
“One exception to the high front tyre
pressure rule has to do with irregular track
surfaces. Hard inflated tyres may jump off
a bump and cause some loss of directional
control. Lowering the tyre pressure a couple
of pounds will often help minimise this
problem. You can expect slightly higher
driver reaction times and increased rolling
resistance as a result of this adjustment.”
Adjusting Rear Tyre
Pressure
Tyre pressure for your slicks is dependent
on the weight of the car, the tyre type
(radial or bias ply) and the wheel rim width,
amongst other things. Bickel offers this
advice:
“The wider the rim, the more tyre inflation
pressure you need. The narrower the rim,
the less inflation pressure you need. With
flexible sidewall drag slicks, the normal
pressure range is 4-12 PSI. Check with your
tyre supplier and talk to some successful
racers in your class to find a good starting
point,” he said.
“Drag slick inflation pressure must