Electric Scooter Tire Pressure: Everything You Need to Know

What Tire Pressure Should You Use on an Electric Scooter?

This is the number 1 most common mistake riders make when it comes to tire pressure (other than not checking tire pressure often enough).

If you've lost the owner's manual, I’ve got good news: they're pretty much all online these days, especially if you bought from a good brand. Search the name of your scooter and the words “owner's manual” and you should be able to find a PDF version quickly.

So why not use the pressure written on the tire? I mean, the tire company knows tires, right?

That's true.

But they don't know your particular scooter.

The number printed on the side of the tire is generally the maximum pressure that tire is designed to handle. It isn't necessarily the optimal pressure for the best handling, traction and ride quality on your particular scooter.

For example, Segway recommends 42 to 48 PSI for the Ninebot MAX G2. The tire itself lists a maximum pressure of 55 PSI.

So don't automatically pump it up to 55 PSI just because that's the number written on the sidewall.

More pressure isn't always better.

As tire pressure increases, the contact patch with the road gets smaller, which can reduce traction, and if you exceed the maximum pressure listed on the tire you can put unnecessary stress on the tire itself.

So the best rule is to follow the pressure recommendation in your owner's manual; with one exception!

During my time at Electric Scooter Guide, we came across a fairly well-known electric scooter whose owner's manual actually recommended a higher pressure than the maximum printed on the tire.

If you ever run into something like that, don't guess. Contact the scooter company and ask which specification you should follow.

What Happens When Electric Scooter Tire Pressure Gets Too Low?

Now that we know too much pressure can be a problem, let's look at what happens when pressure gets too low.

I demonstrated this using a VMAX VX2 Pro. I rolled the same tire into the same obstacle repeatedly at the same speed while lowering the pressure so you can see how much the tire changes, starting with the recommended tire pressure for this scooter of 44 PSI.

At the correct pressure, the tire maintains enough shape to keep the rim well away from the obstacle. As the pressure drops, the tire compresses farther and farther.

Eventually, the rim gets dangerously close to hitting the curb.

If your electric scooter uses inner tubes, the tube can get caught between the rim and the obstacle and cut two little holes. That’s called a pinch flat.

So with low tire pressure, it’s completely possible to get a flat tire without ever running over a nail, screw, glass, or anything else sharp.

With a tubeless tire, there’s no inner tube to pinch, but there’s another problem. The tire has to seal against the rim.

If the pressure gets too low, an impact can push the tire away from the rim and break that seal.

Once that happens, you’ve got a flat even though there may not be a puncture anywhere in the tire.

Another side effect of low tire pressure is shorter range. Low pressure causes more sidewall flex, which increases rolling resistance. That can reduce top speed, hurt efficiency and make the scooter feel less stable in corners.

If you’re letting air out because you want a softer ride, stay within the manufacturer’s recommended pressure range. And if you’re running close to the lower end of that range, check your pressure more often.

You don’t want to trade a little more comfort for a flat tire or a crash.

Why Do Electric Scooter Tires Need Air So Often?

I’ve seen a lot of comments on electric scooter videos from people asking some version of this:

“Why do my scooter tires seem to need air all the time when I hardly ever put air in the tires of my car?”

It’s the same reason a mouse loses body heat faster than an elephant.

Surface area grows roughly as the square of size, while volume grows as the cube. That means a smaller object has much more surface area relative to the amount of volume inside it.

Electric scooter tires are tiny compared with car tires, so even a relatively small amount of air loss represents a much bigger percentage of the total air inside the tire.

The take-home message is simple:

It’s completely normal to need to add air to electric scooter tires about once a week.

Check Electric Scooter Tire Pressure Cold

Once you know the correct pressure, the next question is when to check it.

You’re generally supposed to check tire pressure when the tire is cold, before you ride. As you ride, the tire heats up and the air pressure inside increases.

If I’ve already ridden the scooter and have to check the tire warm, I keep in mind that the reading is going to be somewhat higher than it would have been cold, so on a hot day after riding hard, I’ll add as much as 10% to my usual tire pressure settings to account for the warmer tires. But whenever possible, just check it before the ride and make life easy and keep your pressure accurate.

The Easiest Way to Check and Inflate Electric Scooter Tires

The easiest way to check pressure and top up your tires is with a small portable electric pump with a built-in pressure gauge like this one. You simply set the pressure, hit go and let the pump shut itself off automatically when it gets there.

I’ve had this pump for about two years now. I feel like I’ve only charged it a few times, and I use it with everything, including scooters and cars.

There are plenty of other good pumps out there too. The big advantage of having a pump that makes checking your tires easy is that you’re much more likely to stay current on checking your tire pressure if you don’t have to pull out a hand pump and find your separate pressure gauge every time.

Tire Valve Extensions Make it Easier (if your scooter needs them)

Depending on the scooter and the pump, getting connected can be the most annoying part of the whole job.

Some electric scooter wheels have the Schrader valves buried pretty deep inside the wheels. If your pump has a large connector on the end like a typical bicycle pump it may not fit on wheels like these.

That’s what valve extensions are for.

This black rubber extension comes with all VMAX scooters. The other common type of extension are these small metal ones you can find on Amazon.

The nice thing about the metal style is that they lose almost no air when you connect or disconnect them, but being small, they are easier to forget. Be sure to take the extension off before you ride or you can damage your scooter.

If your air pump has a small enough connector on the end, you’re going to be able to reach just about any Schrader-valve directly and you don’t need an extension at all. The same is true if your valves stick out of the wheels far enough, like the do on all of the VMAX scooters.

Never Keep Riding on a Flat Electric Scooter Tire

The worst thing you can do after getting a flat is keep riding.

I have to admit, I’ve done this myself.

Years ago, when I was working at Electric Scooter Guide, I got a flat about four blocks from the office. I thought, “It’s only four blocks.”

So I leaned my weight forward onto the good tire and kept motoring back.

Learn from my mistake! Do not do that!

I damaged the sidewall of the tire shown above and destroyed the bead. If you keep riding on a flat long enough, you can also damage the rim or even the motor.

What would have been a simple flat tire repair can turn into a much more expensive wheel or motor replacement.

If you’ve got a flat and you have a pump with you, you can usually add some air and make it home. But if you don’t have a pump with you, or if it just won’t hold air, you need to get off and push.

Four blocks feels pretty short compared with spending hundreds of dollars replacing a motor.

What Happens When a Tubeless Tire Comes Off the Bead?

The reinforced section around the edge of a tubeless tire is called the bead. It fits against the edge of the wheel and creates the airtight seal that lets the tire hold pressure.

If your tire pressure gets very low, an impact can push the tire away from the rim. Now there’s a gap between the tire and the wheel.

At that point, even if you connect a small battery powered pump and the air will come out just as fast as the pump puts it in. The tire never inflates because there’s no seal between the tire and wheel.

That doesn’t mean you need a new tire. It probably just needs to be reseated onto the wheel.

How to Reseat a Tubeless Electric Scooter Tire

Unfortunately, this is where the job gets a little more involved.

If there’s a large gap between the tire and the rim, a small portable pump usually can’t move enough air quickly enough to create a seal.

You’re going to need a larger air compressor. If you don’t have one at home, you may be able to use one at a gas station.

Remove the Valve Core

The first step is removing the valve core. That’s the small removable piece inside the Schrader valve. You’ll need a special tool for this. Some metal valve stem caps have a small pointy tool on the end. If you have one of these, you’re in luck.

Removing it lets much more air flow into the tire at once. That’s exactly what you need when you’re trying to get the tire to expand quickly enough to contact the rim.

Lubricate the Bead

A little soapy water around the tire bead can help the rubber slide into position.

I actually like using glass cleaner. It works well, and once it dries it doesn’t leave much slippery residue behind.

Just apply a little around the part of the tire that needs to move and seal. Then connect the compressor and let it rip.

If you’re lucky, the tire will expand, catch the rim and pop right back into place.

Sometimes it works immediately.

A lot of the time, it doesn’t work at all.

The Ratchet Strap Trick

If the tire still won’t seal, the go-to solution is a ratchet strap.

Wrap the strap around the circumference of the tire and tighten it.

The idea is to squish the center of the tire inward. That pushes the sidewalls outward toward the rim.

Once the tire is touching the wheel well enough to start forming a seal, hit it with compressed air again. Now the air has somewhere to build pressure.

Once the bead seats, disconnect the airline, reinstall the valve core, and inflate the tire to the manufacturer’s recommended pressure.

Make Sure the Tire Bead Is Seated All the Way Around

Most tubeless tires have a small molded ridge near the edge of the sidewall. That ridge should be evenly spaced from the rim all the way around the tire on both sides.

If the line suddenly dips toward the rim or disappears behind it in one spot, that section of the bead may still not be seated properly.

Don’t ride until it is. You may need to add more pressure to get it to seat. Some tires have a maximum riding pressure and a higher maximum seating pressure, though the seating pressure won’t be listed on the side of the tire.

If reseating a tubeless tire sounds like a lot of work, that’s because it is.

So the moral of the story is simple. If you get a flat tire, stop riding right away and there’s a good chance you’ll never need to learn how to do any of this.

What About Tire Sealant?

Tire sealant can help a lot, but isn’t a substitute for monitoring your tire pressure.

There are a couple common types of sealant.

Some electric scooter tires come from the factory with a thick black shiny self-sealing gel bonded to the inside of the tire. These sometimes seal punctures and sometimes turn a fast leak into a slow leak

There are also liquid sealants that you add yourself. I’ve personally had very good luck with the liquid sealant Armor-Dilloz. In fact it’s something we sell on the VMAX site because of the good results I have had both in my scooters and my cars (though it’s not made for cars!). It has worked every single time I’ve needed it, with zero leaks. For the types of punctures it’s designed to repair, I consider it a permanent repair.

But remember, being puncture resistant is not the same thing as being maintenance free. You still need to put air in them regularly.

A Very Important Warning About Self-Sealing Tires

If you have tires with the black self-sealing gel bonded to the inside, there’s something you really need to know.

Do not treat them like run-flat tires. They’re basically the opposite.

If the tire pressure gets extremely low and you keep riding, the tire can deform enough for the sticky gel to get squished against the inside of the wheel or hub motor. The gel can peel away from the tire and bond itself to the motor, permanently!

You can end up with a huge sticky mass of black sealant stuck inside the wheel.

And it is incredibly difficult to remove.

So if your scooter uses this type of self-sealing tire and you notice that the pressure is very low, stop riding before you cause a big mess!

Check Your Tire Pressure After Storage Too

Tires gradually lose air even when the scooter isn’t being ridden.

So if you pull your scooter out after it’s been sitting for weeks or months, check the tire pressure before you ride it.

Actually, I’d go one step farther. Check the pressure before you even put your full weight on the scooter.

A tire that has lost a lot of air while sitting can potentially get knocked off the bead just from being loaded. Storage is one of the most common times to discover that a tire has gone very low.

How Much Air Loss Is Normal?

Having to add air to your electric scooter tires once a week is normal.

Losing a large amount of pressure overnight is not.

If you inflate the tire in the evening and it’s noticeably low again the next morning, you probably have a leak and you need to fix it right away.

Don’t get into the habit of simply adding air every morning. Eventually, that approach is going to leave you stranded.

The Bottom Line: Check Your Electric Scooter Tire Pressure Once a Week

Electric scooter tire pressure is one of those maintenance items that always feels like it can wait until the next ride, but getting it wrong can be expensive and dangerous, so follow these tips!

• Use the pressure recommended in your owner’s manual rather than the maximum pressure printed on the tire.
• Check the pressure when the tires are cold.
• Add air about once a week.
• Check again anytime the scooter has been sitting for a while.
• If you’re losing a lot of pressure overnight, find and fix the leak.

And most importantly:

If you get a flat, stop riding.

Those few habits can help prevent pinch flats, keep tubeless tires seated properly, improve range and handling, and keep a simple puncture from turning into a much more expensive repair.

It only takes a minute or two.

So if you haven’t checked your electric scooter tire pressure lately, go check right now, before you forget again. And, if you haven’t been keeping up on it because you don’t have the right pump here’s the link.