Q: “How should I adjust my tire pressures before and during a day at the track for the best results? I have not been able to get a consistent answer from the coaches that I have met.”

A: There’s a LOT to your question! In fact, that’s probably the reason you’ve not gotten a consistent answer from the coaches you’ve met: because there is not a single one-size-fits-all answer (in this case, not a single one-pressure-fits-all answer).

The goal is to find a cold tire pressure that results in the ideal hot pressure, and if anyone claims that you should set your pressures to X psi and they will always be right, I can almost guarantee that they’re wrong because there’s more to it than that.

I strongly recommend reading the info that my friend, Samir Abid, in the UK has written about this at https://www.yourdatadriven.com/?s=tyre+pressure. On this page are many separate articles, all with the goal of helping you understand and figure out what the right pressures, cold and hot, are for your car. But notice that even Samir, who I consider to be an expert around this topic, does not simply tell you to set your tires to, let’s say, 33psi and be done with it. But he gives you the knowledge and resources to figure out what pressures you should use, and how to adjust them from different track conditions and handling issues.

Samir and I did an online course all about tires (“tyres” in his case!), and his approach is by far the best I’ve ever seen. I think you can get most of what you need from the info on his website, but if not, I’d recommend contacting him.

Oh, and his Tyre Pressure spreadsheet and method is absolutely brilliant.