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The Truth About Tire Pressure

Motorists could save more than 1 billion gallons of fuel a year, right now. But expanded offshore drilling would eventually produce even more.

 

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Summary
We are issuing a split decision in the Obama vs. McCain dispute over whether proper tire inflation could save as much oil as expanded offshore drilling is likely to produce.

We find that proper tire inflation could save more than a billion gallons of fuel per year and do it several years sooner than expanded drilling could produce a single drop. McCain has exaggerated by representing Obama's suggestion as a silly notion or implying that it constitutes his entire energy policy.

But we also figure that expanded offshore drilling is projected to produce far more oil eventually than can be saved by proper tire inflation – nearly three times as much even by the conservative estimate of government experts, and more than 10 times as much if an industry-endorsed estimate is correct. And even taking into account additional fuel savings from tune-ups, which Obama also mentioned, he greatly exaggerated.

Analysis
We've been receiving a steady flow of inquiries about this matter ever since it was touched off by a remark that Sen. Barack Obama made on July 30:

Obama: Making sure your tires are properly inflated, simple thing, but we could save all the oil that they're talking about getting off drilling, if everybody was just inflating their tires and getting regular tune-ups. You could actually save just as much.

Sen. John McCain ridiculed Obama for that remark. His campaign launched a fundraising effort offering tire gauges with the words "Obama's Energy Plan" emblazoned on them. McCain said at a motorcycle rally in Sturgis, S.D., on Aug. 5:

McCain: My opponent doesn't want to drill, he doesn't want nuclear power, he wants you to inflate your tires.

McCain exaggerates. Obama's energy plan calls for much more than conservation measures (and, in fact, doesn't contain any language about tire inflation). It includes a proposal to spend $150 billion over the next decade to, among other things, improve fuel efficiency and develop new fuels and vehicles.

But was Obama exaggerating as well? Others have come up with conflicting answers.

  • ABCNews.com tossed off a quick piece quoting a single expert as saying that proper tire inflation could produce savings equal to "a tidy sum and a worthwhile target" but still "not equal" to the added production to be expected from expanded drilling.
  • TIME magazine concluded "Obama is right" after quoting a couple of general estimates about fuel savings.
  • PolitiFact.com drilled more deeply than either of those and concluded that Obama's statement is "true" even accepting the McCain campaign's preferred estimate for savings attributable to proper tire pressure.

We've continued to explore this subject. We conclude that Obama's statement is by no means as silly as McCain tried to make it sound, but it is a rather large exaggeration nonetheless.

Tire pressure: Wasting 1.2 Billion Gallons
Let's start with tire pressure. Even McCain finally admitted Aug. 5 that keeping tires properly inflated is a good idea and can save fuel:

McCain: Obama said a couple of days ago says we all should inflate our tires. I don't disagree with that. The American Automobile Association strongly recommends it.

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Member Comments

  • Posted By: mccainsupporter @ 08/29/2008 10:49:13 AM

    Democrats talk at the Denver convention about creating and keeping American jobs.
    Ironically the building that housed the largest research and development division of Arco Oil Company in Texas was sold by British Petroleum to Perot Systems and now serves as its headquarters. Perot Systems was founded by Ross Perot who previously created EDS Electronic Data Systems and who most importantly has been credited with throwing the 1992 Presidential election to Bill Clinton by drawing off many independent voters who would have voted Republican for George Bush senior. Perot Systems derives a significant amount of its business from state and federal contracts. A building that used to house American engineers, geologists, scientists, logistics people and ordinary employees who worked for an American owned oil company that strived to fill the gas tank for the average American now houses a company that focuses on giving computer support on state and the federal government social service contracts. This is the Democratic Party version of a success story. Outsourced government work under Bill Clinton replaces a former American owned world admired jewell of the oil industry that had provided gas for the American gas tank and many good American jobs for many years. So if you need reasonably price gas for your car, contact Bill Clinton and Perot Systems and ask them to give you a gallon of gas. This is the Democratic version of a success story, outsourced government work replacing a real company that produces a real needed product for the average American household.

    The second take home point from this comment is that nuclear power is a friend of the environment and does not emit green house gases.

  • Posted By: mccainsupporter @ 08/29/2008 10:48:46 AM

    Barack Obama complained at his acceptance speech in Denver about oil company tax breaks and praised the alleged jobs created under the administration of Bill Clinton.

    The following story should shed light on Obama???s praise of the economic policies of Bill Clinton.
    While camping and attending a bluegrass music festival, I took a tour of Comanche Peak Power Plant, the last nuclear power plant built in the United States. The plant is unobtrusive and is at perfect harmony with its environment. It is located near Glen Rose Texas a beautiful area that has bluegrass band festivals in the summer. It is a wonderful scenic country area and home to Dinosaur World and a state park. There are dinosaur tracks from 100 million years ago along the riverbed that can be seen in the water due to erosion and some say that the tracks are heading in the direction of New York City. The Brazos River flows through the area and the place is an environmental heaven. There used to be an old green Sinclair Oil Company dinasour statue that stood at the park. Ironically most of the stations and assets of Sinclair Oil Company was bought by Arco Oil Company. Arco Oil Company was considered the jewell of all American oil companies for having explored and developed the Alaskan North Slope and at one time owning eighty percent of our proven Alaskan oil reserves. Arco Oil Company was subsequently bought out later by foreign owned British Petroleum during the second administration of Bill Clinton. The point of this comment is twofold. The long-term hostility of the Democratic Party leadership toward United States owned energy companies has led to the sale of United States oil companies to foreign interests and that nuclear power plants can even be located next to wonderful wildlife and park areas and make good unobtrusive neighbors. Arco Oil Company with its substantial Alaskan oil reserves should have bought out British Petroleum instead of the other way around. Comanche Peak in Glen Rose the last nuclear power plant built in the United States symbolizes the death of the American owned nuclear power industry and the decline of United States owned oil companies due to the hostile business environment created by Democratic Party leadership.

    Sinclair Oil Company and Arco Oil no longer exist, British Petroleum has replaced them under the second Democratic administration of Bill Clinton.

  • Posted By: mccainsupporter @ 08/29/2008 10:45:45 AM

    Obama and the Democrats would never consider government loan guarantees or tax breaks for a sure thing that will produce energy for the American gas tank. Democrat loan guarantees and earmarks are only reserved for off the wall improbable future technologies such as hydrogen power that offer no short term chance of solution for our energy problems. Democratic disdain for energy production by US companies is evident with the current ownership of former US energy companies. Is it any surprise that the jewell Arco Oil Company which owned 80 percent of our Alaska Oil Reserves was bought out by British Petroleum Corporation at the end of the second administration of Bill Clinton due to the hostile Democratic attitude toward energy companies. It is no accident that the largest US builder of nuclear power plants, Westinghouse Nuclear Power Construction Division was bought out by Toshiba Corporation of Japan. While 80 percent of France electricity is generated by nuclear power, only twenty percent in the US is generated due to the successful efforts of Democratic party to kill the US nuclear power industry. Significantly, nuclear power is not considered a mainstay of Democratic plans to address our energy crisis. Not a single new nuclear power plant has been built in the United States in the last thirty years. Democratic leadership want to study the problem for another thirty years. There is also a worldwide shortage and backlog of orders for oil drilling platforms and oil drilling ships but US shipyards are not building these ships. Only one percent of the world's commercial ships are built in US shipyards. Hold your breath for the Democratic outcry and push for government help to US ship builders to build oil drilling ships in the US.

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