On 11/5/2014 9:34 PM, nestork wrote:

In fact, a good arguement can be made AGAINST the use of nitrogen in a
car's tires. Having the driver of the car acutely aware that ordinary
air leaks out of the car's tires a tiny bit faster helps to ensure the
driver pays attention to his car's tires and their inflation pressure,
and that alone is worth more than $10 in fuel savings and longer lasting
tires. With nitrogen in the tires, vehicle owners may be more
complacent about looking at and paying attention to their tires because
with nitrogen in them, they may feel they don't need to pay as close
attention.

That's a very weak argument. The driver today does not check oil,
coolant, or other fluids. They may add some windshield washer fluid
because they know when it's needed, and gasoline because there's a
warning light.

The way drivers know that there's a tire pressure issue these days is
the TPMS warning light, and at least on my vehicles that have this
system it's a very narrow range of pressure for which the light is off.
Dry nitrogen versus moist air makes a big difference in pressure changes
due to temperature. Of course a good tire store that doesn't use
nitrogen should at least have well maintained dryers on their
compressors but these still don't take out all the moisture.

The use of nitrogen in tires benefits both the consumer and the tire
dealer. It should be included at no extra cost because it costs almost
nothing to provide. The cost of a nitrogen generator is just part of the
cost of doing business, just like a compressor or a hydraulic lift.

The bottom line is don't pay extra for nitrogen and don't buy tires at
any store that doesn't include nitrogen at no extra cost.