I went to check the tyre pressures on my wife's 500 1.2 Pop earlier, I knew the pressures were 2.2 bar and 2.0 bar, but can never remember which way round, as my BMW has the same pressures, but opposite to the 500. I checked the manual and discovered that the pressures were 2.0 all round - which really confused me. A bit more flicking through the manual gave me 2.2 at the front and 2.0 at the back. Which is right? The manual contradicts itself...

Fiat manual contradicting itself by Lewis Craik, on Flickr

I did tweet Fiat about this, but haven't heard back.

Craikeybaby said:

I went to check the tyre pressures on my wife's 500 1.2 Pop earlier, I knew the pressures were 2.2 bar and 2.0 bar, but can never remember which way round, as my BMW has the same pressures, but opposite to the 500. I checked the manual and discovered that the pressures were 2.0 all round - which really confused me. A bit more flicking through the manual gave me 2.2 at the front and 2.0 at the back. Which is right? The manual contradicts itself...



Fiat manual contradicting itself by Lewis Craik, on Flickr



I did tweet Fiat about this, but haven't heard back.

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2.2 on the front and 2 on the rear for normal load according to my manual

Craikeybaby said:

I went to check the tyre pressures on my wife's 500 1.2 Pop earlier, I knew the pressures were 2.2 bar and 2.0 bar, but can never remember which way round, as my BMW has the same pressures, but opposite to the 500. I checked the manual and discovered that the pressures were 2.0 all round - which really confused me. A bit more flicking through the manual gave me 2.2 at the front and 2.0 at the back. Which is right? The manual contradicts itself...

Fiat manual contradicting itself by Lewis Craik, on Flickr

I did tweet Fiat about this, but haven't heard back.

Click to expand...

i always do full load. I currently do 38/37 psi front rear (i check tires at petrol station so they are generally warm hence the 1 psi more per tire.

Mercky said:

2.2 on the front and 2 on the rear for normal load according to my manual

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Thanks, that's what I've been doing for the last 6 years, but only noticed the other page in the manual with 2.0 earlier.

Craikeybaby said:

Thanks, that's what I've been doing for the last 6 years, but only noticed the other page in the manual with 2.0 earlier.

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And use a decent gauge not petrol station rubbish which are invariably inaccurate, I use a pen type on cold tyres which seems pretty spot on or at least consistent anyway

Mine is 2.2 front and 2.0 rear. But our other 500 wants 2.0 all round, no mention at all of 2.2.

Strange!

Mercky said:

And use a decent gauge not petrol station rubbish which are invariably inaccurate, I use a pen type on cold tyres which seems pretty spot on or at least consistent anyway

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Yup, pen type gauge, when the tyres are cold.

Noxide said:

Mine is 2.2 front and 2.0 rear. But our other 500 wants 2.0 all round, no mention at all of 2.2.

Strange!

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That is strange, is one newer than the other? Same wheel size/engine etc?

Craikeybaby said:

That is strange, is one newer than the other? Same wheel size/engine etc?

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Aye. One is a '10 (2.2/2.0) and the other I believe was a 12 which wanted 2.0 all round.

Will check the book on our new one.

All same engine size, all on the same standard 14 inch steelies.

Higher pressures means better economy, it could just be an official MPG thing.

It's standard practice to run higher pressures with more load, since there's more load on the front of a 500, it makes sense to put a bit more air in them.

I run 41/35 psi.

UFI said:

Higher pressures means better economy, it could just be an official MPG thing.

It's standard practice to run higher pressures with more load, since there's more load on the front of a 500, it makes sense to put a bit more air in them.

I run 41/35 psi.

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wow thats a big variation between front and rear!

ahmett said:

wow thats a big variation between front and rear!

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There's a big variation in the front and rear axle weights, too. 41/35 sounds about right if you're going for maximum economy but it'll be a firm ride; that's about 2.8./2.4 in metric.

I generally run 2.5/2.2 when 1 or 2 up; that seems to be the sweet spot between economy, tyre life & comfort. If I'm doing a long journey 4 up, I'll run 2.5 all round.

You're right, it is confusing and contradictory. For example the 1st page gives different settings depending on whether it's a T or H rated tyre, AND (only for T rated) whether it's a 1.2 petrol or a 1.3 diesel. Traditionally a diesel had a heavier engine (is the 1.3 Multijet still a big lump?) and so would have tougher tyres, higher pressures, and bigger brakes. Conversely a TwinAir should be lighter. Plus if H rated tyres have e.g. stronger sidewalls I'd maybe expect to run lower pressures to give a better ride and less noise?

The logical "average" setting for a would seem to be 2.2 F and 2.0 R, but obviously there's unlikely to be any actual difference between tyres and engine with an earlier or later 1.2, so you should be fine with say 2.0 F and 2.0 R.

I don't think you'd actually lose any economy or handling performance going to a lower front pressure on a 1.2, and you may improve the ride a bit.

So depending on which page you believe and which tyres are fitted, just follow the manual!

jrkitching said:

There's a big variation in the front and rear axle weights, too. 41/35 sounds about right if you're going for maximum economy but it'll be a firm ride; that's about 2.8./2.4 in metric.

I generally run 2.5/2.2 when 1 or 2 up; that seems to be the sweet spot between economy, tyre life & comfort. If I'm doing a long journey 4 up, I'll run 2.5 all round.

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That's an interesting approach. Since I dont know exactly when I am running full loads, i do 2.6/2.5 generally just to cover all the bases. But now that you said that i'll do 2.6 2.4 next time I check the tires as it is rare for me to use the back seats of the car.

Yes I notice the ride is firm, but if i do below 2.3 on the tires, I notice the car slides around much more.

Another interesting change is that for the bigger wheel/tyre sizes (15" and 16") that the rear pressures on the LH page say 2.1 bar (an INCREASE) compared with the 2.0 given on the RH page.

Can you clarify where the 2 pages came from? Clearly not the exact same actual manual, but I can't see why that table would be repeated in one issue.

Are they from older and newer 500s? And why does the RH page say "Fiat Gr" next to your thumb? Is it "Fiat Group" or "Fiat Grande Punto" ???

Hi all, sorry for commenting on an old thread. I got 2 new rear tyres today and when washing my car today we checked pressure and both rear tyres were at 34, although for some reason I’ve always had all of mine at 29 (must’ve read this somewhere). Checked online again today and seen so many different answers contradicting each other but went with one that said they should be 31 front and 30 rear. Mine are 195/45/16. I can’t see anything in my manual. Anybody any idea what the correct pressure is so I can have them right? I only ever have me and my handbag in the car, a few times a week another 2 passengers. Thank you

JNAnderson said:

Hi all, sorry for commenting on an old thread. I got 2 new rear tyres today and when washing my car today we checked pressure and both rear tyres were at 34, although for some reason I’ve always had all of mine at 29 (must’ve read this somewhere). Checked online again today and seen so many different answers contradicting each other but went with one that said they should be 31 front and 30 rear. Mine are 195/45/16. I can’t see anything in my manual. Anybody any idea what the correct pressure is so I can have them right? I only ever have me and my handbag in the car, a few times a week another 2 passengers. Thank you

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Are the pressures not on the plate on the drivers door?

John202020 said:

Are the pressures not on the plate on the drivers door?

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Weirdly not. Only 1.2 Blackjack is all it says?

bluejohn125 said:

Another interesting change is that for the bigger wheel/tyre sizes (15" and 16") that the rear pressures on the LH page say 2.1 bar (an INCREASE) compared with the 2.0 given on the RH page.

Can you clarify where the 2 pages came from? Clearly not the exact same actual manual, but I can't see why that table would be repeated in one issue.

Are they from older and newer 500s? And why does the RH page say "Fiat Gr" next to your thumb? Is it "Fiat Group" or "Fiat Grande Punto" ???

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Sorry for the delay in getting back to you - both pages were from the same manual. The one supplied with my '09 500 when it was bought new - hence the confusion! I didn't ever get any help from Fiat on this, so have continued to run the tyres at 2.2 bar on the front and 2.0 bar on the rear.

JNAnderson said:

Hi all, sorry for commenting on an old thread. I got 2 new rear tyres today and when washing my car today we checked pressure and both rear tyres were at 34, although for some reason I’ve always had all of mine at 29 (must’ve read this somewhere). Checked online again today and seen so many different answers contradicting each other but went with one that said they should be 31 front and 30 rear. Mine are 195/45/16. I can’t see anything in my manual. Anybody any idea what the correct pressure is so I can have them right? I only ever have me and my handbag in the car, a few times a week another 2 passengers. Thank you

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I'd never trust a garage to set the right tyre pressures! 29psi would be 2.0 bar all round - which is what one page of my manual says, however I've been running the fronts at 2.2 bar - 32psi, as per the other page in my manual, and they have been fine.

John202020 said:

Are the pressures not on the plate on the drivers door?

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Not on my 1.2 Pop either.