Nitrogen Tire Inflation - It's A Gas

There are countless tricks of the trade we can use when it comes to building, equipping, and maintaining our street rods. One beneficial trick was recently brought to my attention by Dave Coker of Newstalgia Wheel. Newstalgia has recently begun offering a new level of technology as a free upgrade with its wheel and tire packages that offers the user a distinct advantage-using nitrogen gas instead of air as the inflation source for tires.

The advantage of using nitrogen rather than compressed air for tire inflation isn't really a new idea. The U.S. military, airplanes, the space shuttle, and Formula 1 and NASCAR race cars have been using it for years. So, why use nitrogen instead of compressed air in your tires? Well, the main reason is to take advantage of better pressure retention (especially in cases of extreme temperature fluctuation). You see, the single biggest reason for tire failure is lack of maintenance of tire pressure. In fact, 54 percent of all vehicles on the road (including street rods) are operating with low tire pressure at any given moment. This is because, above and beyond a lack of proper maintenance, the oxygen in compressed air permeates the tire wall, reducing tire pressure. Much to my surprise, that causes that weird brown haze you sometimes see on your sidewalls). With nitrogen, diffusion is 30 to 40 percent slower than oxygen. As a result, nitrogen maintains tire pressure longer than ambient air.

While both nitrogen and oxygen can permeate rubber, nitrogen does it much more slowly. It might take six months to lose 2 psi with nitrogen, compared to just a month with air. Now, if you're anything like me, you know that correct inflation is highly significant when considering tire life and performance; unfortunately, staying on top of tire pressure usually isn't foremost in our minds. A quick glance at our tires before hitting the road isn't sufficient because it's not always possible to look at a tire and detect under-inflation. However, under-inflation can cause many tire-related problems. Under-inflated tires operate at high deflection, resulting in increased drag and mechanical flexing of the tire. This often leads to excessive heat buildup, and may result in catastrophic tire failure-an event none of us need to experience at all, never mind in our street rods. Plus, maintaining tire pressure can boost fuel economy by as much as 6 percent.

Nitrogen disperses heat more quickly than ambient air, so by reducing the heat in the tire and reducing rolling resistance, you'll get that better fuel economy, extend tread life, and reduce tire failure. So in this respect, the benefit of nitrogen's value as an inflation source is a definite advantage.

Another advantage nitrogen has over compressed air is the fact that it's far less reactive. Oxygen is highly reactive; it causes rubber and synthetic materials used in tires to destabilize, oxidize, and break down-and heat generated by driving speeds up that oxidation process. Because nitrogen is very dry, it eliminates wheel corrosion from water vapor (humidity) found in regular air, and the oil and water found in most compressed air will definitely deteriorate tires from the inside out. Plus, since it's much more "pure" than compressed air, it doesn't cause rust or corrosion on steel or aluminum. Wheel surfaces stay smooth and clean, and rubber remains supple and resilient, which is important for street rods that sit unused while we pilot our daily drivers.

As I said, nitrogen also prevents oxidation, which cannot only lead to tread separation and belt failure, but it will corrode rims when combined with moisture as well. In fact, moisture can result in rust flakes that can fall into the valve stem, blocking the valve and causing under-pressurization. Heck, it can even cause the valve stem itself to rust. So, it's with this new realization that I'm going to make the switch to nitrogen myself. Lord knows I can afford to eliminate one more thing to worry about when it comes to my hot rod-and even my everyday driver too.