# Car question - Tire pressure in Honda CRV?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-question-tire-pressure-in-honda-crv/942752>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [May 23, 2021, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-question-tire-pressure-in-honda-crv/942752 "2021-05-23T18:26:13Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 20\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\
**Post date:** [May 23, 2021, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-question-tire-pressure-in-honda-crv/942752/1 "2021-05-23T18:26:13Z")

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I had the snow tires taken off and the summer tires put on the CRV this week.

And when I drove away from the dealership, the tire pressure gauge came on.

Went to put air in the tires this morning, and they were all at about 22 psi.

I know that’s way low and will call dealership.

I filled them all to about 35 psi.

Is that about right?

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**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\
**Post date:** [May 23, 2021, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-question-tire-pressure-in-honda-crv/942752/2 "2021-05-23T18:29:24Z")

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There should be a label on the door jamb that specifies the tire pressure.

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**Author:** ![Acierocolotl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acierocolotl/32/6241_2.png) [@Acierocolotl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acierocolotl)\
**Post date:** [May 23, 2021, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-question-tire-pressure-in-honda-crv/942752/3 "2021-05-23T18:57:23Z")

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> [@Northern\_Piper](#):
>
> I filled them all to about 35 psi.
> 
> Is that about right?

Suggested tire pressure is not a function of the car, per se, but of the tire itself. The max suggested pressure will be listed on the tire itself, likely in raised rubber near the inner circumference. Go a few psi lower than that and you’ll be set (higher pressures in general give better fuel economy).

As an example:  
[![](https://e4t2w9q2.stackpathcdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/How-to-find-maximum-tire-pressure-on-the-sidewall-of-your-tires.png) ](https://e4t2w9q2.stackpathcdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/How-to-find-maximum-tire-pressure-on-the-sidewall-of-your-tires.png)

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**Author:** ![Bootb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e19b73/32.png) [@Bootb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bootb)\
**Post date:** [May 23, 2021, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-question-tire-pressure-in-honda-crv/942752/4 "2021-05-23T18:59:17Z")

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> [@Acierocolotl](#):
>
> Suggested tire pressure is not a function of the car, per se, but of the tire itself. The suggested pressure will be listed on the tire itself, likely in raised rubber near the inner circumference.

That’s the maximum safe pressure of the tire itself. That pressure may or may not coincide with the car manufacturer’s recommended pressure, which is what @Dewey_Finn was talking about.

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**Author:** ![Acierocolotl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acierocolotl/32/6241_2.png) [@Acierocolotl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acierocolotl)\
**Post date:** [May 23, 2021, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-question-tire-pressure-in-honda-crv/942752/5 "2021-05-23T19:00:31Z")

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To be fair, I’d caught my own brainfart in the span of your own posting.

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**Author:** ![Tired\_and\_Cranky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a87d85/32.png) [@Tired\_and\_Cranky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tired_and_Cranky)\
**Post date:** [May 23, 2021, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-question-tire-pressure-in-honda-crv/942752/6 "2021-05-23T19:10:30Z")

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@Dewey_Finn is right. Check the sticker on the door jamb. The dealer’s service was really shoddy. They should have checked the pressure before the mounted them.

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**Author:** ![Dallas\_Jones](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dallas_jones/32/3277_2.png) [@Dallas\_Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dallas_Jones)\
**Post date:** [May 23, 2021, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-question-tire-pressure-in-honda-crv/942752/7 "2021-05-23T19:15:19Z")

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This. Check the sticker, which should be on the door jamb just inside the driver’s side door.

There have been many instances of people putting too much air pressure in their tires just to get the light to go out. I would use a manual tire pressure gauge and ignore whatever automated readings that your car’s system gives. But that is just me, I am old school. Instead of the idiot lights we used to have that would tell when we need to have something looked at, we now have sensors that in themselves are often idiots.

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**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\
**Post date:** [May 24, 2021, 9:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-question-tire-pressure-in-honda-crv/942752/8 "2021-05-24T09:53:29Z")

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> [@Bootb](#):
>
> That’s the maximum safe pressure of the tire itself. That pressure may or may not coincide with the car manufacturer’s recommended pressure, which is what @Dewey_Finn was talking about.

This. They can be vastly different. I used to have a car with a jamb sticker that wanted maybe 34 psi in the tires, whereas the sidewall rating was 51 psi. Probably would have been like riding on wagon wheels if I’d filled them up that hard.

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**Author:** ![Santos\_L\_Halper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/santos_l_halper/32/1_2.png) [@Santos\_L\_Halper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Santos_L_Halper)\
**Post date:** [May 24, 2021, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-question-tire-pressure-in-honda-crv/942752/9 "2021-05-24T15:46:28Z")

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Set it to the pressure on the door jamb sticker. That’s what the car manufacturer recommend for your specific model car. The pressure listed on the tire itself is what the tire manufacturer is saying is structurally safe for the tire itself. The tire manufacturer isn’t recommending that’s what you actually pump it up to to drive on.

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**Author:** ![Dancer\_Flight](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dancer_flight/32/7601_2.png) [@Dancer\_Flight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dancer_Flight)\
**Post date:** [May 24, 2021, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-question-tire-pressure-in-honda-crv/942752/10 "2021-05-24T17:32:34Z")

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I know you checked and the pressure was way low, but sometimes the light comes on when there is no sensor at all \<— learned the hard way.

When my mom bought her car it came with the new fangled tire sensors and she spent a couple of seasons switching the tires on and off the same rims. A few seasons of this and it saves money to have a second set of rims, which I got her for her birthday one year.

The next time she had her tires done, she brought the winters on the old rims home and put them in the garage. She drove off the next day, a few klicks down the road, and when she got out of sensor range of the garage, the sensor light came on and panic ensued. The new rims didn’t have sensors and the car was not happy about it.

Having seen that in action, when I bought my second set of rims I made sure to buy the sensors as well. The shop cloned the existing ones so the car doesn’t even need to do a relearn to sense the other set when they get swapped.

-DF

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**Author:** ![Jasmine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jasmine/32/2964_2.png) [@Jasmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasmine)\
**Post date:** [May 24, 2021, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-question-tire-pressure-in-honda-crv/942752/11 "2021-05-24T17:38:11Z")

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To be safe, I’d call the dealership and ask for their maintenance department. They’ll know right off the top of their heads what it should be.

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**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\
**Post date:** [May 24, 2021, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-question-tire-pressure-in-honda-crv/942752/12 "2021-05-24T18:13:48Z")

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Or, just look at the label on the door jam which will say the same thing.

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**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\
**Post date:** [May 24, 2021, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-question-tire-pressure-in-honda-crv/942752/13 "2021-05-24T18:46:14Z")

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> [@Telemark](#):
>
> Or, just look at the label on the door jam which will say the same thing.

The door jamb label will know for sure; the random service tech who answers the phone at the dealership might have to go look up the specifics for your particular model and year.

> [@Northern\_Piper](#):
>
> I filled them all to about 35 psi.
> 
> Is that about right?

In the absence of any particular spec, 35 psi is a decent safe number for now. I’ve never heard of a car tire with a sidewall that lists a max pressure lower than that, and I’ve never heard of a passenger car with a door jamb that lists a pressure higher than that. At worst, your tires will be slightly overinflated.

Note also that tire pressures should be measured “cold,” i.e. at whatever the ambient temperature is. Tires get warm when you drive, so if you’re going to check pressures, do it before you hit the road, not just after you get back.

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**Author:** ![Jasmine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jasmine/32/2964_2.png) [@Jasmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasmine)\
**Post date:** [May 24, 2021, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-question-tire-pressure-in-honda-crv/942752/14 "2021-05-24T18:58:47Z")

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Hmm … The CR-V doesn’t seem to be that much bigger than my HR-V, but the recommended tire pressure is quite different. Mine is 32 front and 28 back as opposed to 35-40.

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**Author:** ![brad\_d](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/50afbb/32.png) [@brad\_d](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brad_d)\
**Post date:** [May 24, 2021, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-question-tire-pressure-in-honda-crv/942752/15 "2021-05-24T20:08:49Z")

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Another thing worth noting is that it’s quite common for the front and rear axles to have different recommended pressures - even when the tires and wheels are identical.

Many posters have mentioned it in specific cases, but I want to emphasize that it’s not unusual.

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**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\
**Post date:** [May 24, 2021, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-question-tire-pressure-in-honda-crv/942752/16 "2021-05-24T20:21:07Z")

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> [@Jasmine](#):
>
> Hmm … The CR-V doesn’t seem to be that much bigger than my HR-V, but the recommended tire pressure is quite different. Mine is 32 front and 28 back as opposed to 35-40.

I’m not seeing where anyone in this thread has reported on the Honda-spec tire pressure for CR-V tires.

For the record, my older CR-V’s door jamb specifies 30 psi for al four tires. Not terribly different from your HR-V.

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**Author:** ![Melbourne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5e925/32.png) [@Melbourne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melbourne)\
**Post date:** [May 24, 2021, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-question-tire-pressure-in-honda-crv/942752/17 "2021-05-24T22:37:10Z")

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> [@Jasmine](#):
>
> 32 front and 28 back

That’s the ‘empty’ pressure, right? The ‘fully laden’ pressure (all seats filled) is 32-32 or 35-35?

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**Author:** ![USCDiver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/uscdiver/32/354_2.png) [@USCDiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/USCDiver)\
**Post date:** [May 25, 2021, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-question-tire-pressure-in-honda-crv/942752/18 "2021-05-25T01:13:41Z")

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Recommended pressures on my Tesla Model3 are 42psi

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**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\
**Post date:** [May 25, 2021, 10:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-question-tire-pressure-in-honda-crv/942752/19 "2021-05-25T10:10:32Z")

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Duly noted, and I suppose there are probably other efficiency-minded vehicles that want high pressures too. I see now for example the Nissan leaf wants 36 psi, and the Chevy Bolt wants 38.

35 psi is still probably safe for any of these vehicles, but given that it’s trivially easy to find out the pressure spec (just open the driver’s door and read the jamb sticker), nobody should ever have to wonder.

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**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\
**Post date:** [May 26, 2021, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-question-tire-pressure-in-honda-crv/942752/20 "2021-05-26T03:56:22Z")

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Thanks for the comments and replies everyone.

So I checked the CRV door jamb today. It said 30 psi, back and front, cold measurement.

That means the dealer was about 10 psi short for each tire, which is not performance.

Since I filled them to ~ 35 psi each, they’re over-inflated. I’ll let a bit out of each one tomorrow.

Much appreciated!

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