Why is it possible for 120 pounds of pressure to hold up a car or truck?

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chris

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I'm just wondering, wouldn't it require more, or is the fact that there is no where for the pressure to go, and the tire is full?
 
Good question.

Take my truck for example. The footprint (area of tire that touches the ground) is about 9 x 10 inches, or 90 square inches. The PSI (pounds of air pressure per square inch) is 35. In other words, for each square inch of tire touching the ground, 35 pounds of the truck are held up, and there are 90 square inches on each tire. I have 4 tires.

So, 4 tires x 90 square inches x 35 PSI = 12600 lbs.

This is the weight my tires could support (in theory). The actual weight of the truck is around 5000 lbs.

That's how it works! Hope that clears things up.
 
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