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-   -   Michelin Tyre Inflator Review (Model 12266) (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/modifications-accessories/258978-michelin-tyre-inflator-review-model-12266-a-3.html)

Anyone knows of a reasonably priced tyre inflator with long cable (around 5 metres) for XUV 700 as 12Volt Socket is located in the boot and its difficult to reach all 4 tyres from there.

I bought "GoMechanic Gusto T1 Digital Car Tyre Inflator" from Amazon as website description said wire length is 4.5 metres, but it was actually 3 metres in reality when measured. Product leaflet that came along also mentioned it as 3 metres as opposed to Amazon description which said 4.5 metres and I had to return it back.

I am in the same boat, I have a less expensive Windek Tyre inflator bought from Amazon 3 years back.



It has served well on multiple occasions with absolutely no issues encountered. Qualtiy is good but certainly not as good as of Micheline. But off late I have started to feel the inconvenience of handling its power cord which gets very stiff. storing it back into the groove provided too is a hassle. Inconvenience to me is so much that now a days I prefer to topup the air in my trusted Tyre shop rather than taking the inflator out and do it myself, keeping it only for emergency road usage.

But than I am a lazy person dealing with physical fitness issues and hence now planning to buy a Cordless Tyre inflator.

Apart from the above Xiaomi product, I am also considering one offered by Qubo which claims it to be made in India product & is a Hero group company.



Link here https://www.amazon.in/stores/page/5B...e-df88c2902539

In case anyone has used this I would appreciate the feedback.

Will it be better to run the inflator after switching on the engine?

Yes this is an appropriate solution for the tedium of connecting the pressure hose to the tyre valve by screwing and unscrewing. I have purchased this convenient adapter for my 70mai tyre inflator.Though a little bit on the pricier side,it’s sturdy and useful.

Is it because, the space saver needs more pressure than normal tyres?

Infact, it is always better to use tire inflator with engine switched on. These draw high current from battery and you may end up with full tires but drained battery.

Same can be true for using any such accessory, unless keeping engine turned on is not recommended.

I ended up ordering this and got ultra fast delivery within 1 day from Delhi to Bangalore. It's almost as if the seller does not want to give me a chance to cancel it lol:(the seller did have very bad ratings, but I took the plunge)

It does look sturdy, but not very heavy and weighs 25 gms.


It has a spring loaded mechanism to hold the nozzle in place while filling air.


I don't know if there is a difference in accuracy after fitting this nozzle, but didn't hear any hissing sound if I press firmly, so believe it's not leaking air.

Connecting and disconnecting the nozzle to tyre is now a breeze and lot easier than screwing mechanism.



It also fits in to the groove where the tube need to be stuffed in after use.

I used to use a tyre pressure gauge to check pressures after topping up with Viair. Now I don't do that and now just go by the Viair pressure gauge as I have found the reading on Viair and Moroso to be about the same. Similarly I have compared the Moroso with the Makita's inbuilt digital gauge and have found the difference negligible, about 0.5psi+/_. So when filling with Makita I use its gauge and when filling with Viair I go by its gauge.

Was USD43.38 eight years ago. Not sure about the country of manufacture of this gauge at present, mine was made in usa.


The gauge cover was bought separate. Was USD7.22 eight years ago. How prices have gone up? :Shockked:


Moroso analog tyre pressure gauge. I don't have any digital pressure gauge except whats there in Makita.


I haven't filled air in my tyres from a shop in the last eight years, except when changing tyres, but I will top up with inflator at home the next day. Why? Because I always fill higher than vehicle manufacturer recommended and don't have the patience to explain it to air filling person who is unsure of what he's doing when I ask him to set it at xxPSI. So thats why I stopped visiting tyre shops for air and why I went with Viair after wasting money on other inflators.

Fully agree that an inflator is a great buy. I picked one up before my long trip from Bombay to South India in December last year. Evaluated this model, but went for the 12310 which was advertised as being designed for 4x4 or SUV tyres. Was of course costlier but has given good service so far. Like many others, virtually all my top ups for the tyres on both the Tiguan and the X3 have moved away from petrol pumps to being done at home. The key benefit is that the tyres can be inflated when cold, which leads to more accurate inflation than when you drive to a petrol pump.

+1 to this inflator. Very sturdy and looks like it’ll last for decades. I purposely bought this one with an analogue display (there’s another model with everything same but a digital display) as I wanted something totally manual.
The analogue display is accurate and the double barrel model fills air fast- faster than most electronic air compressors in my opinion. The only downside- it doesn’t have an air release pin on the valve connector which would have come handy if you have an overinflated tire. I think Michelin has missed a trick here, else it’s a fantastic device to have.


You said it on portability aspect! I also have a Bell Aire 2000 electric air compressor which also gets the job done but inflating my bike’s tire and the tires of my little one’s bicycle, I always had to bring them closer to my car which was a bummer of sorts.

One tip- always start the engine while using an electric air compressor. This reduces the chances of blowing the fuse since the battery itself has an output of around 12-12.5v at max but when the engine is started, the socket will receive around 14v which reduces load.


I think for 28 to 32 psi, roughly 15 strokes should be enough for a car tire. Two wheelers: 4-5 strokes would do. No issues using it for two wheelers. And no issues for filling up to 40 psi in a car tire.

Regards,
Saket

I always found Viar reading is always off. Common review comments also states the same. Viar doesn't have auto cutoff, hence its easier to fill extra and remove excess, using own gauge.

What a coincidence, I too had Moroso gauge earlier. However its marker stuck at 10PSI (when not in use), needed to adjust reading accordingly. Thus changed it to JACO, it came with gauge cover, and its much cheaper.

Same here, I never use fill air from any shop or from fuel stations. My main reason for inflator was issues with fuel pump compressors, they aren't accurate. Each filling had different feel inside cabin. Once Lathangi Ford filled 50+ PSI during service, that too all 4 tyres with different PSI.

Further, I also fill slightly more PSI than manufactured recommended air (but withing limit set for high load). Even when tyre rotation is done/new tyres I always ask to put higher PSI, and adjust using my own gauge.

Having ability to fill air in early morning, I never felt a need a reason to pay 22% extra nitrogen. Tyre pressure never dropped a PSI, sometimes even 3 to 4 month (I check every week). The theory of Nitrogen filled tyres hold better for long time made sense, as I could do same with inflator.

My experience has been totally opposite of yours with respect to viair and moroso, and it probably would be too much of a coincidence for the makita to read the same as moroso and viair if the gauges were faulty.

I fill up 5psi over my preferred value and then on the next morning when it is cold I use moroso to bleed air. Has been doing this over the last eight years and has been allright.
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With the single cylinder medium duty (or any small tankless) compressors after the first tyre the compressor gets hot and that will influence the pressure reading. More so with the michelin type light duty compressors and even more so with ultra light duty compressors. So trying to set cold inflation pressure using any small light duty compressor is tricky. Correct cold inflation pressures can only be set from air tank with a cool tyre, or over inflate and remember to bring it down next cold morning.

Maintaining right cold inflation pressure is as important as using expensive fluids and putting other expensive stuff on the vehicle.
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To those who are using the foot pump there is a word of caution. Not all foot pumps are made alike and going for a top brand is not always the best choice. The piston inside the foot pump is generally of two types one is metal disc and the other is plastic disc. It is easy to open and check and if there is a choice opt for the metal disc. The plastic disc piston can give away where it is connected to the rod unexpectedly. With metal piston only the rubber ring wears out which can be replaced.

We (my dad's actually) had an old single cylinder foot pump many years ago which we used to fill air with. It stopped working after a long storage and on opening found that the leather seal on the piston (metal disc) had dried out. It didn't have a rubber ring like the current foot pumps instead the sealing surface was leather.

For the current rubber ring seal type foot pumps it will be good to inspect it once in a while and if necessary lubricate the rubber seal with silicone grease, don't use regular grease it will degrade the rubber. Silicone grease will keep the rubber ring in good health.

I do wish viair made an ultra compact regular compressor, like the resqtech. That foot size is perfect for motorcyclist.

I am using a similar product from Resqtech - https://resqtech.in/product/resqtech...tor-rsq-ac102/

I bought it in 2017 and it is performing well without any major issues.
Downsides - Auto cut-off doesn't work sometimes, so you have to manually switch it off.
Also there is a marginal difference in the PSI reading compared to Michelin digital gauge, not sure which one is showing the slightly incorrect value.

Try using one of these AC to DC converters. I've been using them for a few years and have no complaints so far. The only catch is that you need to have a normal power socket (wall socket) in the vicinity.

This will help you to power the inflator without any help from your car's battery, thus preserving the battery for it's primary use...:)