Just replaced 2 of my tires @ Costco and they handed me a flyer: "We take tire safety to the next level with... NITROGEN Tire Inflation"

Basicly, they will inflate your tires with dry Nitrogen!

More info on Nitrogen tire inflation

PLUS: at the bottom of the flyer, it stated "In fact, we'll inflate any Costco member's tire with NITROGEN, no matter where the tires were purchased"

Edited: They changed my valve caps from the old black one to the green (alien green stuff), has a N on it! Cool but it look weird on my alloy wheel with black tire! Take your valve caps off if you don't want to loose it!

Helium!!!!!

JK.

Read the nitrogen link it's funny:

"When oxygen reacts with things, the process is called oxidation. When oxidation is extremely rapid, the process is called “burning.”

Nitrogen is a race car "thing". We use it in the tires because it does not expand when it heats up. Nitrogen is an inert gas and does not contain any moisture. When regular air expands so does the size of the tire. Due to differing amounts of H2O is each tire they will expand at different rates from week to week. Race tires are not perfect from the factory, we need to eliminate as many variables as possible.

Dunno why Costco would advertise Nitrogen, it's not free or cheap.

ThE sHaDoW

shadow13x said:Nitrogen is a race car "thing". We use it in the tires because it does not expand when it heats up. Nitrogen is an inert gas and does not contain any moisture. When regular air expands so does the size of the tire. Due to differing amounts of H2O is each tire they will expand at different rates from week to week. Race tires are not perfect from the factory, we need to eliminate as many variables as possible.

Dunno why Costco would advertise Nitrogen, it's not free or cheap.

ThE sHaDoW

(N2) is really cheap...and why would costco advertise it? same reason any company advertises - to make money

shadow13x said:Nitrogen is a race car "thing". We use it in the tires because it does not expand when it heats up. Nitrogen is an inert gas and does not contain any moisture. When regular air expands so does the size of the tire. Due to differing amounts of H2O is each tire they will expand at different rates from week to week. Race tires are not perfect from the factory, we need to eliminate as many variables as possible.

Dunno why Costco would advertise Nitrogen, it's not free or cheap.

ThE sHaDoW


Well, there are several problems with what you're saying. Any gas expands as it heats, some less than others. Nitrogen is not completely inert either, it can tend to attract heavy metals (and who knows what is found in your set of belted radials). I suppose for the purposes of sitting in your tires, it is 'inert.' Any pure gas contains no moisture (read: water). As someone else pointed out, air is already mostly nitrogen and I highly doubt that Costco is giving you pure N2, which is very expensive for just filling tires. And once you have N2 in your tires, what happens when you try to fill them at the gas station? Therefore, I can't see any realy redeeming value in putting N2 into your tires. I certainly wouldn't pay anything for it.

Rgular compressed air is 89% Nitrogen....

and yes, you will run into a problem IF you have to add air anywhere other than Costco.... a regular air compressor fitting will not fit the new valve stem (thank you OSHA!!!).

This is probably due to the increase in popularity of gas station filling car tires with nitrogen in asia. The gas stations initially offer it for free and later they charge you for it.

Costco probably picked up this trend from its international bidness units. Maybe they will employee the same strategy.

If you do the research, nitrogen inflation is expensive in us. It's only done on big vehicles like airplanes, big construction equipements, and 18 wheelers.

According to the literature, regular automobiles won't receive any benefit from replacing air w/ nitrogen except one thing. Replacing nitrogen with air might allow you longer Gap inbetween topping off your tires.

But this is not really a gain if you maintain your vehicle regularly.

clearanceman said:I heard on the radio that Costco is test marketing coffins. They are trying it in the midwest, Chicago first. There would be a display in the store and you could order a coffin. $799 for any style they have which is actually very inexpensive for what they are. Local Pittsburgh radio guy talked to the vp of Costco about it today. Should change the funeral business a little, there is normally a huge mark up on coffins.

You think I am kidding but I am not.

There is a lot of money in that industry.

clearanceman said:

You think I am kidding but I am not.

We wouldnt think you are kidding at all, because 100 random idiots have posted about it on FW today in various places. Did it ever show up in FW Finance?

BTW, I think this might be a good idea for motorcycles. A rider with half a brain will always check his/her pressure before riding. Of all the bikes I've ever owned, they have all leaked slightly over the course of a few weeks/months except for one, and this may help prevent that according to the info link provided. Also, I assume it doesn't expand as much as normal air, so I can finally set my PSI at 48psi and have it stay roughly there, warm or cold?