Each time you go to a tyre shop or a gas station to top up the tyre pressure in your vehicle’s tyres, what the attendant fills into the tyre is normal compressed air. But what exactly does compressed air contain? Compressed air is made up of 78% nitrogen, about 20-21% oxygen, and the balance one percent consists of CO2, and tiny concentrations of gases such as neon, argon and water vapour.

 When you specifically fill nitrogen gas into the vehicle's tyres, then you should have 100% dry nitrogen in your tyre. Dry nitrogen denotes that no        moisture content or any other gases are present in the tyre.

 Jay Chakraborty, who recently bought a second hand car, says, “After I bought my car, I changed the tyres and I’ve heard so many people talk about  how good nitrogen has been for them that I decided to get my new tyres filled with nitrogen air. The car feels a lot better on bumpy roads, and I don’t  have to worry about checking tyre pressure every week.”

Benefits of nitrogen Vs compressed air

Nitrogen as a gas is made up of big molecules, whereas oxygen molecules are much smaller in size compared to nitrogen molecules. When compressed air is put into a vehicle’s tyres, the moisture in the tyre seeps through the rubber over time and evaporates quicker as its molecules are smaller in size. But as nitrogen molecules are bigger in size, they do not permeate the tyres rubber so easily and hence will stay in the tyre for a longer duration. This means that your vehicle’s tyres will lose less pressure over time compared to regular compressed air filled tyres.

 

For example: An inactive vehicle, whose tyres are filled with normal compressed air will lose tyre pressure every week. But a 100% nitrogen-filled tyre will lose tyre pressure a lot slower and won’t need to be topped up as frequently. 

 

Titus Remedios, “I filled nitrogen in the new tyres that  I purchased for my Maruti Ecco in June 2019. That time the tyre pressure filled with nitrogen was 35Psi. I use the car once a week and after the lockdown, the car hadn’t been used in months. I recently went back in October 2020 to the place where I had filled the nitrogen in the car tyres and the tyre pressure after 14 months had only dropped to 22Psi. .

 

Another point to note, nitrogen filled tyres get a green or blue colour valve cap. This is a universal symbol that your vehicle's tyres are filled with nitrogen and not compressed air.

Is Nitrogen right for you?

Over-inflation and under inflation of tyres make a major difference on the race track. But on your normal city road does it make a huge difference? Under-inflated tyres normally lead to less mileage, uneven wear on the tyre treads and more tyre wear and tear overall. Over inflated tyres run the risk of burning out the contact patch on the tyre too quickly, while adding more bounce vs grip to a vehicle's stability. In hot climate conditions, your vehicle's tyre pressure can jump up tremendously. Highway running speeds coupled with a harsh sun beating down, can lead to a  tear in the tyre or in extreme conditions, a tyre bursting. This is where nitrogen-filled tyres shine the most. Due to their molecular build, nitrogen molecules stay at a constant temperature in a tyre. So even if the temperature outside decreases or increases, the nirotgen in the tyre will remain the same. That is why race cars and racing motorcycles only use 100% nitrogen in their tyres all the time.

 

Now we are all not professional racers, but we do commute on a daily basis and even go for the occasional weekend drive out of the city for some sightseeing and relaxation. Will filling nitrogen in your vehicle's tyre help you? There are many who swear by nitrogen-filled tyres and an equal amount who feel that regular compressed air works just fine.

Personal tyre maintenance

If you are someone who keeps a check on the vehicles tyre pressure weekly and tops up the air when needed, you won’t need nitrogen filled into your vehicles tyre. However, if you are someone who tops air pressure once a month or once in two months, then filling nitrogen in your vehicle's tyres will help you reap the benefits of it. If you constantly make long highway trips and most of your time is spent behind the wheel, then filling nitrogen in your vehicle's tyres will be a boon.

 

Yash Ramrakhyani from Palghar runs a big tyre shop which sells Apollo, Bridgestone, Continental, Michelin and Yokohama tyres for every vehicle from a scooter to a heavy duty tempo. He says, “I get an average of 300 customers a year who want nitrogen filled in their vehicle’s tyres. There was a big local demand in the area for nitrogen-filled tyres, hence my father and me invested in the nitrogen unit. Tyres don't get hot, and nitrogen level doesn't go down so fast is what I have heard from customers as feedback, but the fact that people think nitrogen levels in the tyre doesn't go down is false. Even nitrogen-filled tyres have to be checked for tyre pressure once a month.

Nitrogen myths busted

Myth 1: Your vehicle's mileage will increase.

 

Truth: Your vehicle’s mileage depends on a lot of factors, tyres being just one small part of that equation. Having nitrogen filled tyres only gives you the benefit of having a most constant tyre pressure. However compressed air and nitrogen filled tyres both will loose pressure after a certain amount of time.

 

Myth 2: Your vehicle's comfort will be better, it will be soft on bumps.

Truth: Compressed air or nitrogen filled tyres will react the same way when on bumpy roads. It is the rubber compound and the type of tyres that you have that will make a difference in the ride or drive quality. As long as you maintain the right air pressure in your vehicle's tyres, you’ll be good.

 

Myth 3: You won’t have to fill up the tyre pressure as frequently.

 

Truth: Well this is true. Nitrogen-filled tyres will retain the pressure in your vehicle's tyre for a longer time duration compared to tyres filled with compressed air. However, even nitrogen-filled tyres loose pressure over time and you have to get the pressure checked and topped up from time to time.

 

Myth 4: Your vehicle's tyre will last longer

 

Truth: The tyre on your vehicle rely on you to make sure you maintain the recommended air pressure inorder for it to do its job properly. Under inflated and over inflated tyres will wear out faster when compared to tyres that have been properly maintained.

 

Myth 5: The rims on your vehicle won't rust

 

Truth: There is some amount of truth in this. As nitrogen-filled tyres contain less or no water vapour, the moisture content in the tyre is less. Less moisture equals to less rust on the inside of the wheel. But that doesn’t stop the rest of the wheel from rusting due to everyday washing and climate conditions.

 

Myth 6: There are few tyre shops / fuel pumps that offer nitrogen.

 

Truth: Compressed air is mostly nitrogen gas. So even if you have nitrogen-filled tyres, but you’re running low on tyre pressure and there’s no nitrogen filling station around, you can still fill normal compressed air. It will not have any major impact on your vehicle's tyres. Maintaining the right tyre pressure is key.

The catch

The nitrogen that you get filled in your vehicle's tyres is not a 100% or even 99% pure nitrogen. A brand new or even an old tyre once deflated has some amount of air inside it. It is the atmospheric air that's already there all around us. So unless you drain all the air in the tyre out and refill it nitrogen and drain the tyre again 2-3 times, you’ll still be running your vehicle's tyres with 90% nitrogen and not 100% nitrogen. But even then you’re not guaranteed that your vehicle's tyres will be filled with 100% pure nitrogen. There is no way to measure how much nitrogen is there in your vehicle’s tyre. Nitrogen will cost you, whereas compressed air is free at most petrol pumps or Rs.1-2 at a tyre shop. Nitrogen costs on the other hand vary from place to place and the kind of machine they have. The machines that are at the tyre shops or petrol pumps that offer nitrogen, do not deliver pure 100% nitrogen! Some machines will have a percentage rating of how much nitrogen it provides to the tyre and some have no percentage levels at all. Filling nitrogen in your vehicle's tyres can cost you anywhere from Rs.150 for four tyres to Rs.50 per tyre and can go all the way up to Rs.1,500 for a set of four tyres.

Conclusion

Have you ever noticed that vehicle manufactureres never recommend nitrogen in their manuals or at their service centers. The reason behind this is your vehicle's tyres are manufactured to run on normal compressed air. As long as you maintain the right tyre pressure in your vehicle’s tyre, you’ll be fine.

The second Sustainable Development (ESG) Industrial Ecosystem Innovation Competition for Chinese and Foreign Enterprises in Shanghai’s Pudong New Area recently concluded, with Sailun Group emerging as a distinguished honouree. Recognised for its collaborative ESG efforts with Vale, a global leader in metal and mining, Sailun received the prestigious ‘Innovative Model’ award, standing out as the sole tire company to achieve this recognition.

Organised jointly by the Shanghai Pudong Foreign-Invested Enterprises Association and the Shanghai Pudong Domestic-Funded Enterprises Association, the competition welcomed participation from companies registered and operating in the area, along with their partners. Invited by Vale Metals (Shanghai), Sailun took an active role by meticulously organising and presenting its innovative achievements in sustainable development. Through a structured application process highlighting solid practices and creative excellence, the company successfully secured the award.

Vale, one of the world’s foremost iron ore producers, maintains a longstanding strategic partnership with Sailun. Driven by a mutual dedication to sustainable supply chains, the two organisations have intensified collaboration, particularly in mining tyre supply. By integrating Sailun’s low-carbon tyre technologies, they inject environmental vitality into operations while enabling Vale to achieve refined efficiency through cutting-edge solutions. Their partnership exemplifies a synergistic model that harmonises efficiency, safety and low-carbon practices, serving as a standout case of ESG-driven empowerment across the industrial chain.

Hankook Tire convened its annual Proactive Awards ceremony on 3 March 2026 at the Hankook Technodome, the company’s advanced research and development centre in Daejeon’s Yuseong District. This marks the 19th iteration of a programme that began in 2007, designed to acknowledge teams and personnel across its global operations for exceptional performance driven by innovative thinking and a willingness to take bold steps. The initiative stands as a key vehicle for embedding the Proactive Culture, a management philosophy championed by Hyunbum Cho, Chairman of Hankook & Company Group, throughout the organisation.

Around 100 people attended the gathering, including awardees from overseas and their families, alongside executives from the headquarters. The programme distributed accolades in four distinct classifications: Leadership, Performance, Challenge and Innovation. Ten groups and individuals, judged to have demonstrated the highest distinction in their respective fields, received trophies and monetary prizes reaching as much as KRW 20 million (approximately USD 13,568).

Within the Leadership category, honour was bestowed upon those who guided meaningful organisational transformation through adept communication and decisive action. Recognised here were Bonbae Koo, who heads the Gyeonggi Central PC/LT Team within the domestic sales division; Deokhee Ryu, leading the Material Machinery Team under Safety & Production Technology; Jiyoung Kim, who manages a manufacturing sub-team at the Keumsan Plant and Yue Peng, a line leader at the Chongqing Plant in China.

The Performance category, celebrating entities that have bolstered commercial competitiveness through remarkable achievements, saw awards presented to Manufacturing Team 2 at the Indonesian facility and the Romanian subsidiary representing European operations. Changmo Kang, a senior manager engaged in a real estate development project, received the Challenge honour for demonstrating significant results through an enterprising and bold approach.

Finally, the Innovation category recognised efforts producing substantial outcomes through transformative initiatives, particularly those involving digital advancements and practical, site-driven enhancements. Honourees included Nayoung Jeon, a manager within the Quality Digital Innovation Task Project; the Qingfeng Quality Control Circle from Manufacturing Team 3 at the Jiaxing Plant in China and the Oil Quality Control Circle, part of the DP PCR1 Sub-Team at the Daejeon Plant.

Through the consistent application of its foundational Proactive Culture, Hankook Tire continues to foster an environment where all employees are encouraged to evolve into proactive leaders capable of shaping the future of mobility. The company actively promotes open, horizontal communication to unlock individual creativity while simultaneously using the Proactive Awards to stimulate a healthy competitive spirit, thereby motivating both personal advancement and wider organisational progress.

American Honda Motor Company has honoured Maxxis with its 2025 Racing Spirit Award, recognising the tyre manufacturer's exceptional performance as a supplier. This accolade acknowledges Maxxis’ consistent ability to meet Honda’s stringent requirements regarding product quality, punctual delivery and cost efficiency.

The two companies have maintained a strong partnership since 2005, when Maxxis first began supplying original equipment tyres for Honda’s powersports division. Today, Maxxis tyres are fitted to popular Honda models such as the FourTrax Foreman Rubicon 4x4 and the Pioneer SxS. Expressing his gratitude, Andy Lee, President of Maxxis International – USA, conveyed that the entire organisation feels deeply honoured by the recognition. He attributed the achievement to the dedicated efforts of Maxxis employees, whose daily commitment ensures excellent products and service for their long-standing partner. Lee also reaffirmed the company’s dedication to upholding Honda’s expectations in the years ahead.

Lee said, “I know I speak for everyone at Maxxis when I say that we are truly honoured and delighted to receive this award. I’m also proud of the Maxxis employees who work hard every day to deliver excellent equipment and service to our OE partner of more than 20 years. We thank Honda and look forward to continuing to meet their expectations in 2026 and beyond.”

Michelin North America, Inc. has launched the Michelin XHA3 tyre at ConExpo 2026. The product is the next generation in the company’s loader and grader range, succeeding the XHA2 model.

The XHA3 replaces several previous lines, including the XHA2, XADN+, XAD65 and XLD. According to the company, this launch represents its most significant innovation in the earthmoving segment in over a decade.

The new tyre has been engineered to meet the requirements of modern construction machinery, which now operate with higher loads and longer duty cycles. The XHA3 features increased load capacity and improved tonne-kilometre-per-hour (TKPH) performance compared to its predecessor.

It is built to carry heavier loads for modern earthmoving equipment. A new tread pattern engineered for durability and traction in loader and grader applications. It is designed to increase TKPH performance and extend tyre life. Aimed at reducing the total cost of ownership for fleet operators.

Yahn Heurlin, VP of Marketing, Michelin North America, said, “With the Michelin XHA3 tire, we’re building on a heritage our customers trust while delivering the next level of performance they demand. Construction equipment continues to evolve with higher loads, longer duty cycles and greater productivity expectations. The XHA3 tire, is designed to help fleets unlock more ton-per-hour performance, carry heavier loads with confidence and extend tire life, all while reducing total cost of ownership.”