Hi Folks -

Here's a newbie question; couldn't find the answer in the website FAQ so 
I'm jumping in to ask it here.  Apologies if this was just discussed 
yesterday...

My '84 plain-jane Van came with four, count-em, four *different* tires. 
Yesterday I finally popped for a matched set of light truck tires,  
Bridgestone 603 (load range C, 6 ply rating, 50 psi).  So finally I can 
pay attention to the tire pressure placard inside the driver's door, and 
what it says is this: Front 36 psi, Rear 48 psi.

Well, I might try those pressures if I was going to run at max GVW, and 
I'm sure my gas mileage would be happy if I ran them all the time, but 
what I'm wondering is what pressures folks have found to give even 
treadwear under around-town, grocery-hauling conditions.  This again is 
a bare-box, non-camper van that usually carries 3-4 people.  I'm having 
a hard time thinking that the Van needs 48 psi in the rear when lightly 
loaded, and I don't want to be looking at tires that are bald in the 
center in 20,000 miles!

thanks,
Ed Mellinger
meed@mbari.org
'84 Vanagon