Haha : ) Do you ever have to refill it (does nitrogen like um... expire/has a best before date) ya 10 dollar for sure but I just can't believe dealership can get away with charging 799. So the main benefit of nitrogen comes down to two things you mentioned? Less leaking (still does just way slower) and less response to temperature fluctuations. That said, isn't air already 78% nitrogen though? I guess you can kind of compare it to oxygen we breathe in, I mean not all the air we breathe in is oxygen and if it is pure 100% oxygen can be fatal, oxygen must be diluted.

 

Just remember that air is 78% nitrogen. The benefits of nitrogen in a road car are extremely limited.

 

You nailed it and responded to your original hypothesis (air is 78% N2) which isn't wrong but technically adds nothing to the discussion. Air is air, and N2 is still N2. Urine is 90%+ water, lol, but still isn't water. That's why I don't see the %s as a point of reference. In most applications they are extremely different cause N2 is inert; air isn't. Air has moisture, N2 doesn. Those are the parts that cause most of the variability. Of course for tires, the differences are small but they do exist. Racing cars fills N2 cause it's 100% dry, on top of the lower pressure changes I mentioned. For the average driver like us, the only measurable benefit is the lower leakage throughout the year and less PSI changes between seasons. When I get N2 fill as a treat, I do notice that year that I never have to adjust my tire pressure throughout the year (pressure drop with time is lower, and changes between seasons is less). Like I said I wouldn't pay to get N2 fill and never paid for it, but I did notice the difference when I got N2 filled as a treat from my dealer.

 

If only you can get your MBs filled at that said dealer (I assume since you said your MB dealership doesn't offer it for free, you are talking about another brand say bmw?) or is it because you have an Alpina it is the added value the dealership is providing?

 

I am not sure why; just a good gesture by the SA who I know. Yes, it was a bmw dealer. The best "added value" type of treatment for owning a specific model/trim was actually with Lincoln for the Navigator Black Label trim. Lincoln corporate specifically says that black Label trim owners get their car picked up from their home garage at no charge to them by the service team, including for annual service, with a loaner also brought to their home driveway. It's part of their premium concierge services for Black Label trim. Also, when you call corporate number, you get assigned automatically a higher tier customer service individual. Alpina or M-car owners also get automatically assigned a higher tier customer service agent when calling the corporate number (known as Premium Team... dedicated support service for owners of exclusive BMW vehicles or long history). My guess is that Mbenz AMG has something similar but am not sure. Regardless, these phone number delegations are nothing compared to Lincoln Black Label benefits, in my opinion.

 

If somebody will give me nitrogen for free, thats great...but I'm not spending even $10 on it. There just isn't any benefit over regular air worth any money in a street driven vehicle. Race car? Different story.

 

I seen MB dealerships offering pickup your car for service and drop off loaner similar to what you described reported on the forums before but forgot if it was in the USA. Most likely, though, because a lot of folks on the forums are from North America it seems. So for those lucky fellas that is within the region of those dealerships, they are in for a treat. That said, I am just not sure if I like the idea even though it is convenient, I mean, you have some random person (lot attendant?) driving the vehicle to the dealership. Depending on the dealership, those lot attendant are possibly high school graduates that are hired for co-op or intern (at least lot attendants at my local dealership are in where I live). I don't really have trust they are respect the vehicle and drive carefully to the dealership. Ideally if they can just flat bed it to service and flat bed it back but looks like I am just getting too greedy right now.

 

To be fair I never tried filling with nitrogen at all maybe I should at least give it a try and decide if it makes sense. That said, since I do seasonal swaps so summers to winters, I don't think I can benefit from the minimal pressure loss/slow pressure loss that nitrogen brings.

 

Ive had it, Costco always fills tires with nitrogen (for free!). Theres a slight benefit to not losing and gaining pressure with temp, but it’s not really noticeable.

 

Hmmm costco, I will take a look out of curiosity.

 

Pickup for service and leave a loaner was included with my 2016 Jaguar. I lived 350 miles from the dealership I purchased the vehicle at. Never heard one word of complaint though the dealership was probably relieved when I traded the car after 2 years of ownership. Do not know if Jaguar still has that same level of service.

 

My Lexus dealers also used to do that back in the day

 

There is a difference between dealers offering it optionally as a treat, vs being an official service that they are obligated to follow and written on paper. They can't tell you I don't have an available personal to come pick up your car when it's a formal service that comes with your car as part of the warranty contract. I agree by the way about someone else driving your car all the way from home to the dealership, but also keep in mind that after every service event, anyway, they have to drive it. I had no issues for a car like the Navigator to let them pick it up from my work office or home (it's a truck SUV...). Maybe I would have felt different if it was my luxury sedan; I don't know. It's still nice to know that you have that as a service regardless of where you live and regardless of your local dealer. +

I wouldn't : ). It's useless experience to use the pumps in their parking lot (the free self-service stations), because you'd be just adding some N2 to a mostly air filled tire. To get a full dry N2 fill in your tires you'd need to go there buy tires, or bring new set of tires with you, or at least let a technician fully deflate your tires for no reason or other real service-related appointment, and then inflate it with N2 from scratch (swapping tires is NOT a free self-service; but you can get free N2 as part of that service). Can you just book an appointment and ask them to deflate your tires fully, and fill them with N2 at the shop even if you are not their for a true service, and still get all of that done for free? hmmm, sounds too sneaky, but even then I don't know if they'll do it for free. The self-service stations are free though, but again it's not N2 fill if you are topping off an air-filled tire. N2 is not a big deal after-all, but personally I'd welcome anything that saves me from one time re-fill throughout the year. I still fill my GLS with air in my home garage once or twice a year, and don't mind it nor that I miss the N2 fill as in my other cars that get it for free, but would be happy if my dealer gets me N2 in my GLS.

 

Remember to get the necessary purity of N2 the tire fill needs to be cycled 2/3 times. So there is added time and product to do the service properly.

 

Otherwise you might wind up with only 78% Nitrogen

 

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I understand but after the service, the foreman or service advisor drives it and not just a lot attendant. I am not denying it is nice to have the service, it is good to have options, can always choose not to use it if don't feel comfortable with it but at least the option is there.

Hmmm ah so that is the process, well, sounds quite tedious, I guess if it was the tires I swapped out (seasonal swap) can just deflate the tires and fill them when they are off the vehicle. That way, it might be less of a hassle.

 

I seriously would not bother. The times I have had it have been when I have had fires installed at Costco.

 

I guess it is those fear of missing out (fomo) things for me.

 

You will notice zero difference, I promise!

 

Alright I will take your word for it 😀

 

I could just be imagining it but my suspension became really stiff as well today in comfort mode. It felt fine yesterday. It felt really unsettled like it was skipping over rough surfaces. I’ll see if it goes away tomorrow after a shutdown. Oh, you know what, I just noticed I got a software update today 2.6.1. I wonder if that is the cause. I’m going to start a new thread.

 

My office is close to a BMW dealer—a dealer that I do not patronize—and I often see their “porters” driving brand new cars like they are at a race track. I never allow any dealer to pick up & return my vehicles unless they send a flatbed.

I am a great fan of Costco tire services and go there for tires whenever I can. The nitrogen is a nice touch for brand new tires, but I’ve never noticed any difference with it.