When to check tyre pressures?

[TiG]

With the weather being so changeable at the moment and heat obviously having an effect on the air pressure inside tires with the additional heat, WHEN is the best time to check the tyre pressures?.

Does it matter at all - I ask because i'm pretty sure that my car handles much better with the tyre pressures set to what they are supposed to be, 30psi (2bar) on the fronts 32 (2.2bar) on the rears.

Last time i checked in hotter conditions they had increased just by temperature increase to 32psi and 35psi respectively... which had a slight affect on the handling.

So best practise on checking tyre pressure people?

TiG

(on another note clocked 20K on my octavia finally )

[Tumble]

I tend to check em if they don't 'feel' right... I'm quite fussy with me tyres I must admit... and after 4 years of driving the Caddy van, I got to the point where I could say - "the rear left's gone down a couple of pound.." and I'd be right... mind you it had suspension carved from stone, so any tyre pressure change was quite noticable...

If they feel ok, and the car's doing what you expect - ie no excessive wallowing in corners or slower/faster turn in than normal - even the action of the suspension can be affected, then I won't check em.. if something niggles that aint quite right - I'll check and adjust as necessary

[Jiff Lemon]

Officially, pressure should be checked when the tyre is cold. In the real world, check them within the first five mins of setting off.

[Vimeous]

I usually check them cold. My reasoning being that I only check them to see if they're below a certain pressure and to make sure they're even. It doesnt matter as much that in hot weather the variation is 2-3psi above the base manufacturers level as long as it's consistant. Glad to see you notice it, shows your car isn't completely numb when it comes to sending your arse messages