Newbie tire pressure question

[nelamvr6]

Hi guys, long time lurker, first time poster.

Yesterday I finally moved my new bike from the dealer's lot to my lot. It's a Suzuki Boulevard C50. I have an appointment to take the MSF course starting June 8 and I have made up my mind (thanks a lot to the good advice in this forum) not to ride until after I've taken the course.

Of course since I won't ride it and it's just sitting there, I have plenty of time to fuss around a lot with it.

Last night after dark I checked the tire pressure. I always check the pressure on my car after dark since that's the coolest the tires are likely to be, so I figured that would be a good idea with the bike too.

Well last night my tires measured 36 front and 40 rear. In the owners manual it says they should be 29 front 36 rear. I know that tire pressures on cars a lot of times come down to personal preference, but I'm new to motorcycles and I just don't know if this is something I should be really concerned about. The bike just came from the dealer, they had given the bike a thorough going over (or at least should have), so they must have known that the tires were inflated to those pressures (or at least they should have known).

So now this brings up a few questions. If the tires are in fact over inflated should I trust this dealer with maintenance in the future? Are bikes like cars, can I get warrantee work done at any Suzuki dealer or do I have to go to the daeler I bought the bike from?

Are the tires in fact over inflated or can this be chalked up to the dealer knowing more about the tires installed on my bike?

Am I worried about nothing? Do I just need to relax and have a beer?

[stock28]

I would set the tires to the pressures the owners manual suggests. They built the bike and spent the time and money testing it. As far as the dealer, I wouldn't be too concerned about it. Mine were the same way.

[kyle]

If its a brand new bike, sure, go by the owner's manual. It'll still have the tires the factory put on there.

If its used, then the tires the factory uses aren't necessarily the ones the previous owner put on there, and the tire pressure for the new brand of tire on your bike may be different from the factory tires. Check the sidewall on your tires, it will have the recommended tire pressures for you right there.

[Lion_Lady]

THis is a tough one... ON the one hand I WANT to say go with what the manual says, but on the OTHER hand, it might be worth a call to the dealer to find out WHY the pressure is higher than recommended.

Every time I'd bring my bike home from service at the dealer, the tire pressures were higher than recommended, so I'd lower them. Then before a long trip I was informed that my tires had worn more than they ought to have, due to low pressure. They did look funny. So I replaced the tires and now keep them at the 'dealer set' pressure. To be honest the bike handles better on a higher pressure than the 'stated' pressure.

My new Rockster has been the same way... I started to think that maybe my guage at home was messed up. I asked the service guy what was up and his response was this: On my bike at least, the alloy rims are a softer metal, hence the higher pressure - to protect those $800 wheels from damage.

When I leave the pressure set where the dealer puts it, the bike handles MUCH better and the wear looks more even. I have no idea why there is such a BIG difference between what the manual recommends (32 front 36 rear) to what the dealer uses (35 front, 40 rear) for tire pressure. That would be an interesting thing to investigate.

Another source of info would be to go to the tire manufacturer and ask THEM what the recommended PSI is for the tires you have on the bike you've got. I'd regard THEIR recommendation as "the last word."

P

[nelamvr6]

Thanks for the advice guys.

I'll have a lot of time to investigate before I start to ride at least.