How Tire Pressure Affects Rolling Resistance on Carbon Rims

When it comes to optimizing performance on carbon wheels, tire pressure plays a crucial yet often misunderstood role. Striking the right balance not only affects comfort and traction but also has a measurable impact on rolling resistance—the energy loss that occurs when your tire rolls over the road. Here’s how tire pressure interacts with rolling resistance and why your setup matters more than you might think.

1. Understanding Rolling Resistance

Rolling resistance is the friction that occurs between the tire and the surface it's rolling on. It’s influenced by:

Tire deformation: How much the tire squishes as it rolls.

Contact patch: The size and shape of the area touching the ground.

Surface roughness: Smooth tarmac vs coarse pavement.

Tire construction: Casing thickness, rubber compound, and tread.

Minimizing rolling resistance can make you faster with the same amount of effort—something every rider can appreciate.

2. How Carbon Rims Come Into Play

Carbon rims, being lighter and stiffer than their aluminum counterparts, are designed to enhance speed and efficiency. However, their performance is closely tied to how you set up your tires:

Wider internal rim width: Increases the effective tire volume, which means lower pressure is needed.

Tubeless compatibility: Many carbon rims support tubeless setups, which reduce rolling resistance by eliminating the inner tube friction.

Heat resistance: While less relevant for rolling resistance, modern carbon rims resist heat buildup, which helps maintain consistent tire pressure on long descents.

3. High Pressure ≠ Low Rolling Resistance (Always)

There’s a common myth that higher pressure always means less rolling resistance. While that’s partially true on perfectly smooth surfaces, the real world introduces texture and vibration:

On rough surfaces, high pressure causes the tire to bounce and skip over imperfections, increasing energy loss through vibration and reduced traction.

Lower pressures allow the tire to conform to the surface better, improving grip and reducing energy lost to micro-impacts.

Studies have shown that there is an optimal pressure range where rolling resistance is minimized—going above it doesn’t help and may hurt.

4. Tubeless Setup Advantage

Running tubeless tires on carbon rims offers several rolling-resistance benefits:

Eliminates tube friction between the tire and inner tube.

Allows lower pressures without increasing pinch-flat risk.

Improves compliance, especially helpful on imperfect roads.

Combined with a supple tire casing, this setup can dramatically enhance both comfort and efficiency.

5. How to Find Your Ideal Pressure

To dial in the perfect tire pressure for rolling resistance on carbon rims:

Start with general pressure guidelines: ~85–100 psi for 25–28mm tires on smooth roads, lower for wider tires or rougher conditions.

Factor in your weight, tire width, and rim internal width.

Experiment and observe: Slightly lower your pressure in small increments and track your ride feel, speed, and comfort.

Use pressure calculators like SRAM’s or Silca’s online tools, which take into account rim and tire specs.

6. Key Takeaways

Tire pressure greatly impacts rolling resistance, and the optimal range varies by surface and rider weight.

Carbon rims often allow lower pressures, especially with tubeless setups, enabling smoother rides with less energy loss.

High pressure isn’t always faster—too much can increase vibration and energy loss.

Testing and fine-tuning are essential—what works best for one rider might not be ideal for another.

By understanding how tire pressure interacts with your carbon wheels, you can ride smarter, faster, and more comfortably—without spending another dime on upgrades.