Airing Down for Traction

When offroading, how much pressure should I let out for increased traction?

Will this affect my tire pressure sensor system?

 

depends on what tires/wheel size you have, it will set off the sensor but don't worry about that. Just fill up with air when you are done. I bring my tires down to 18 psi, but my tires hold 55psi. get a good gauge so you know how much air you have taken out.

 

18-20 psi is usually the standard for everyone i wheel with including me

EDIT: yeah..it will cause the TPMS light to come on, but will go away when aired back up...just something you gotta live with...i dont even pay attention to mine anymore when aired down....you can reset the light when you are aired down...following the procedure in the owners manual...but really not neccesary and it's kinda a pain in the ass

 

alright... I'm a little confused with the whole airing down thing

I understand the concept of more surface on the ground = more traction
But, I've also heard plenty of people recommending tire sizes like 255/85's, which are significantly thinner than what lots of people on here run, cause they say they get better traction
These two seem in opposition to me... what am I missing?

Maybe airing down is more of really rugged/rocky terrain type thing to conform around surfaces and prevent getting punctures/slices from jadded rocks; or from a surface that you'd want to "float" on: like sand?
And thinner tires are maybe better for digging and plowing their way through snow and such?


please excuse the newbness

 

a thinner tire will cut through mud/snow to the solid base layer (will support the weight of the vehicle, and will give solid traction)
At least that's my understanding.

 

yeah, that's my understanding too
(i actually just got done editing that post, before i caught yours)

so, it's really just an application type deal?
air down to conform and float
stay/go thin when you want to cut / be more aggresive?

 

Yeah, with something like rock crawling the slick face of a rock doesn't have a lot of grip per square inch, so when you air down you increase the amount of grip, same type of thing with sand.

 

got it, thanks