Checking and Refilling Tires: Easier Than Ever

"That tire looks flat." More often than not, that statement from a stranger is what usually prompted me to check the air pressure on car tires for over 50 years. (I won't be too self-deprecating; I always checked the water, oil, and tires before leaving on an out-of-town trip.)

Fast forward to 2024. The dashboard on the Lexus flashed the warning light (right). One or more tires had low pressure. Sure enough, the tire pressure gauge showed all four tires to be in the 27-29 PSI range, when they all should have been at 33 PSI.

When I started driving, every service station had an air pump that customers used for free. When self-service became the norm, the air pumps began costing at least 50 cents, and if the customer wasn't quick the machine would turn off after 5 minutes, and he had to feed in more quarters.

Today there is only one service station in Foster City that has a free air pump, and there is usually a line of cars waiting to use it.

But refilling tires has also moved into the 21st century. The local Costco has installed two air pumps by the tire center. No ID required: just input the pressure target, in this case 33 PSI, affix the end of the green tube, and the machine fills the tire until it hits the mark, beeps, then turns off. Repeat three times, et voila, properly pressurized tires. The dashboard warning light switched off.

Costco even uses pure nitrogen gas, which causes less wear and tear than ordinary air.

I'd still shop at Costco even if it didn't have the fancy Nitrogen air pump, but amenities like these only make customer loyalties stronger.