I live in an area where i am finding it difficult to find a gas station with air filling station. Even if i find one, they don't seem to be working. I am planning to get one of those portable air pumps so that i do not have to drive around finding one. I was wondering if any one here on the forum uses one and if they can recommend some good ones. I found some air pumps online which have the 12V cigarette lighter adapters, but am not sure if i can use them in the Prius 12V outlets.
My dad and I use this one bought from Amazon.com and are quite pleased with it. It can be used via the 12vdc in the car, or through a regular 100v household outlet. The dial where you turn it to tell it how much PSI to cut off at is not totally accurate, but it stops within 1 or 2 psi or where you dial it into. I just make it a little higher and then release the air to get it where I want it. http://www.amazon.com/dp/product/B000IE0YIQ?tag=priuschatcom-20
You can find decent low cost pumps most anywhere--Walmart, Lowes, Home Depot. My personal preference is to use battery operated units because if find that if I have to hunt for an outlet or extension cord, I don't get around to checking the air pressure. I find the 12v outlet units a similar nuiscance, but better then 110v units. In addition, get a good pressure gauge so you can check the pressure once a week to be sure you are at 42/40-ish--if you are trying to get good mileage. My favorite is a round dial gauge as easier to read than the pencil types.
Bike pump! Heck, if you're masochistic, a portable bike hand pump (the 12-inch-long variety) will probably even do the trick. But a regular bike pump works quite well, as long as your tire isn't flat. If it is, well, you needed a bit of exercise anyway, right?
Thank you all for your replies. I purchased a Foot air pump used for bikes and will try it today. Will let you know how it works.
I've got one from VIAIR that I use on my RV and my cars, It's compact and runs off the car battery. Very good quality, quiet, and fast. Viair Also, if you want a really nice Air Guage that will balavce the tire pressure between the left and right tires and fill both at the same time, try the Vulcan PSIClops. I have one of these for my RV and it's great. I'm getting one for the cars soon... Vulcan PSIClops The combination of these two items makes checking and maintaining tire pressure a breeze...
Just a heads up because it's related: Be careful of those air compressors at gas stations. We have a Shell nearby and I was surprised by how much water come out the air lines. I thought I'll just purge it because it might have been sitting.........nope. Water keeps coming out. I'm gonna use a bike pump from now on. Exercise is good.
Just as an update, i purchased a air pump last monday. I was able to increase the tire pressure to 40/38 Psi. To my surprise, it was easy and did not take much effort to do that. Increasing the tire pressure seems to be working. I was getting more than 50mpg consistently and i attained 54.1mpg today after a long drive. The best since i purchased it in June.
A normal foot air pump to inflate cycle tires and other inflatables. Purchased it at Sports Authority.
