Model 3 Tire Pressure

[Feathermerchan]

The tire pressure on the sidewall is the maximum allowable COLD tire pressure. Always has been.
Cold inflation pressure is the inflation pressure of tires before the car is driven and the tires warmed up.
NEVER inflate based on warm tire pressure unless refilling after a repair or leak to match other tires.
FYI I run 46 psi in my Model 3. No problems after ~25,000 miles.

 

[techlogik]

The initial 45 psi setting was to maximize range by reducing rolling resistance. 42 psi seems more reasonable for all-around use.

Not to disagree, serious question, but how do you know or assume a particular tire and running a higher psi will equal lower rolling resistance?

 

[Candleflame]

Not to disagree, serious question, but how do you know or assume a particular tire and running a higher psi will equal lower rolling resistance?

the higher the pressure the lower the contact area with the road and hence the lower the rolling resistance. with deminishing returns. there is quite huge efficiency gain moving from traditional 2.6 bar (36psi or so) to teslas 42 psi (3 bar). But the gain from 42 to 45 psi just isnt really as big.

 

[MentalNomad]

Not to disagree, serious question, but how do you know or assume a particular tire and running a higher psi will equal lower rolling resistance?

It's an old standard with tires.

The lower the pressure, some more the tire compresses at the bottom. The act of squishing the bottom of the tire as it rolls takes up energy and increases the resistance of the tire to rolling.

Tires at higher pressure don't compress at the bottom, so they can roll farther. But they are stiffer and give you more road noise.

Side note: if the tire is under inflated, it squishes at the bottom a great deal... And at highway speeds, the constant squishing and unsquishing as the tire rolls is energy that gets converted to heat, and can make it get hotter and hotter, which can make the tire fail disastrously. We commonly call that a "blowout," but it usually happens because of low pressures. That's why it's important to keep your tires properly inflated and not running them while they're low.

 

[Feathermerchan]

If you have a bicycle, inflate the tires to 80% of the sidewall and ride one mile. Then do the same for 90% and 100%. You will learn a lot.
Where does that extra effort go? It's turned into heat. That's why a low tire is likely to overheat and come apart.
It's so easy to check tire pressures, I use the voice command 'Show tire pressure' every morning when starting a leg of a long trip.