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Has anyone ever tried this?

"Filling his tires with nitrogen may help Mark Martin race his Ford Fusion at NASCAR's Brickyard 400 in Indianapolis today. But despite the claims of some retailers, it's not likely to do you much good when you drive to work tomorrow."

http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060806/BUSINESS01/608060522/1014  

it actually does good for the car.  Costco fills their tires with nitrogen due to the fact that it doesnt expand and compact like air.  once inside the tire, the PSI wont fluctuate due to road temps (ie wont expand in heat and drop when cold).  properly inflated tires (right PSI) means better gas mileage and better tire wear.  

Isn't nitrogen lighter then air too?  So that might factor in, wont' it?  I don't know since its been awhile since highschool chemistry.  

Nitrogen is lighter than air, but I don't think you will see a significant difference in weight. The bad thing is that when tire companies and vehicle manufacturers recomend a tire pressure they are recomending a cold pressure and so they are taking into account the increase in pressure you will get once up to temp. When I asked the guy at Costco to put my tires at a differnt pressure than what the factory recomends, he told me that they fill to factory recomended pressure only. I had to talk to the guy actually installing the tires to get him to do it.

Nitrogen is also better because it doesn't hold and attract moisture like regular compressed air, it is an inert gas, so it won't react with the rubber in your tires and it won't excape as fast as normal compressed air so you won't have to fill them as often.  

aquabat911:
Nitrogen is lighter than air, but I don't think you will see a significant difference in weight. The bad thing is that when tire companies and vehicle manufacturers recomend a tire pressure they are recomending a cold pressure and so they are taking into account the increase in pressure you will get once up to temp. When I asked the guy at Costco to put my tires at a differnt pressure than what the factory recomends, he told me that they fill to factory recomended pressure only. I had to talk to the guy actually installing the tires to get him to do it.

Nitrogen is also better because it doesn't hold and attract moisture like regular compressed air, it is an inert gas, so it won't react with the rubber in your tires and it won't excape as fast as normal compressed air so you won't have to fill them as often.

Bill Nye the science guy!  

i was thinking more along the lines of Mr. Wizard..  

I have a feeling they weren't intended this way, but I will take those as compliments since I have always been huge fans of both Bill Nye and Don Herbert(the original Mr. Wizard).

On a side note, while I was at the X Games for the Rallying, I made the NASA groups day because I think I was the only person that stopped and visited their tent in the display area. I even got a cool NASA pin!  

anytime the name Mr. Wizard is used, its a compliment