I have a 2013 Toyota Sequoia Platinum that I bought used primarily as a tow car. The tires that came on the Sequoia were Michelin 275 55 R20 111H which appeared to be in good shape. However, first trip out they failed---there were large chunks out of the rear tires. Unfortunately I was in the middle of nowhere at the mercy of one small town tire shop. I bought Nexen Roadian AT Pro RA8 LT 275 55 R20 120/117S 10 ply tires. After they were installed I was told I needed to inflate them to 50-55 psi vs. the Toyota recommended pressure of 30 on the front and 33 on the rear for OEM tires. I think this is because OEM tires have maximum pressure of 44 psi or so while the Nexen tires I bought have a maximum pressure of 80 psi and running them at 30 to 33 would overheat them. Two questions: Am I damaging the Sequoia or causing drivability or towing issues by inflating the tires to 50-55 psi vs. 30-33 psi? And second if there is no problem running them can my factory installed TPMS be set to trigger at say 50 psi rather than 30 psi? ( I am assuming the tire shop reinstalled the factory TPMS since I was not charged for new ones).
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Keep in mind tires heat and pressure increases as they are driven. This affect is greater with more flexing ( due to low pressure ).; I once started with 36 psi , after driving the pressure "pinned " my gage at 50 psi ( ie .the pressure was over 50 ) , it was a very heavy car. I generally put in more pressure than listed , some times much more depending on the situation. Not an answer because some will object.– blacksmith37Commented Apr 26, 2021 at 0:01
2 Answers
When you install new tires, go off of what the TIRE recommends vs what the CAR recommends. Because what the car says on your toyota is exactly what the tire says on the stock tires.
So with the Nexan Roadians, on the sidewill it will say what the max PSI is they can hold. So what you should do is inflate them to 50-55 psi, where theyre recommended to be inflated to and drive on them. It will not hurt the Seqouia, it will not hurt the tire, the only thing it might hurt is your MPG but ever so slightly.
Some vehicles' TPMS can be calibrated to acknowledge as "fully inflated" any pressure to which the driver has already inflated the tires. It's usually done through a "Settings" function on the car's instrument panel or infotainment screen. My 2019 VW Jetta does that.
Check the car's owner's manual to see if this can be done; if it can, the owner's manual will say how.
