How to Check Air Pressure in a Tire in a Dodge Intrepid

Everyone wants better handling and gas mileage when they're driving where they need to go. A great way to ensure these things is to keep the pressure in the tires of your Dodge Intrepid at the recommended level. Luckily, checking this is an easy do-it-yourself task.

Things You'll Need

• Tire gauge

Instructions

1. Get a tire pressure gauge. A gauge can be found in auto parts stores and many department stores. Decide between one with a dial or a pressure stick. There are even gauges that will simply tell you the pressure aloud.

2. Cool your tires by not driving. Friction from contact with the road will heat the air in your tires and artificially inflate the results. For best results, you should wait until morning to check the tires before you go out.

3. Unscrew the valve stem caps from each of your tires. You want to keep these in a safe place, as they have a way of disappearing.

4. Push the tire pressure gauge onto the valve stems of each of your tires to get the pressure reading. If you take down the number while hearing a hissing sound, the results won't be correct because you're not pushing the gauge hard enough or at the proper straight-on angle. Also, you should write the figures down and keep track of which tire has which pressure in case you have to add or remove air from any of them.

5. Ensure the results fall in line with the manufacturer's recommended pressure. This can be found on a sticker on your driver's side door. Dodge recommends the tire pressure for the Intrepid to be between 26 and 34 psi. The 2004 Dodge Intrepid ES comes with tires rated at P225/40ZR18/RF 92Y, while the 2004 Dodge Intrepid SXT has tires rated at P225/60R16 97T. The "P" means that the tire is intended for passenger car use. The "225" is the width of the tire in millimeters. The "92Y" means that each tire will be able to support 1,389 lbs., and the "97Y" means each tire can support 1,609 lbs. This means you should distribute the weight load in your car evenly. If you exceed this limit on any of your tires, you could experience reduced performance or even failure.