I am not sure if it was the dealer or as it came from the factory, but after several weeks I got around to checking tire pressures at ambient temp of about 70 degrees Fahrenheit. I found that all four tires were at 38 lbs, when according to the label on the door it should be 32 and 35. This is on the touring model. I corrected the pressure and re-calibrated. Owners might want to check just to make sure. The dealer should have done the check.
Optimal Tire Pressure
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Mine checked out right on the button. So far my dealer has performed very well for me.
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Yes check the tire pressures. Mine were all set at 32.
Yes, the car had been sitting for several hours.
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Driving out of town for Thanksgiving = QUESTIONS
Hi All;
What's the exact proper tire pressure for the 2019 Insight TOURING? Want to be sure tires are properly inflated.
Secondly, what's BEST for real-time highway traffic information? Need your experience!
Should I use Google Maps through Android Auto OR the Garmin Navi onboard my Touring?
What has your experience been with real time traffic and alternate routes if there is congestion on the roads, etc.??
Thanks and an enjoyable Holiday to everyone!
Hi All;
What's the exact proper tire pressure for the 2019 Insight TOURING? Want to be sure tires are properly inflated.
Secondly, what's BEST for real-time highway traffic information? Need your experience!
Should I use Google Maps through Android Auto OR the Garmin Navi onboard my Touring?
What has your experience been with real time traffic and alternate routes if there is congestion on the roads, etc.??
Thanks and an enjoyable Holiday to everyone!
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454 Posts
The tire pressure is on the drivers side door frame. As for the navigation, I went from a Tomtom to the Insights Garmin. I used the Garmin exclusively on a 3000 mile trip and found it to be good. It took a while to get used to hone it works, but once I got the hang of it I liked it. The is a separate navigation manual for it online that helped me get going. Owners Manual for | 2019 Honda Insight | Honda Owners As an extra bonus, you get turn by turn directions on the Driver Information screen.
For reference, the manual quotes 35 PSI for the front tires on all trims, 33 PSI for the rear tires on LX/EX, and 32 PSI for the rear tires on Touring. On my Touring, the 35 PSI / 32 PSI values are also on the driver's side door frame, like Mr. Natural indicated.
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What's the recommended PSI? If you over inflate by a lot, the chances are greater that you damage your tires if you hit a curve or pothole because the pressure becomes greater when something pushes into the tires. Not worth it for a slightly better MPG. I mean, 50 mpg is good enough at normal PSI.
Recommended pressure is 35/32. I've always run a little higher (40/40). The sidewall states limit is 44. I'm getting 60mpg average over the last 5000+ miles.
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I can appreciate your mpg, but at what cost? Overinfating is going to cause your tires to wear faster in the center and need to be replaced sooner. That aside, in Minnesota where I live you need maximum traction and control because of wet or snowing conditions. Following the Honda specified pressure settings is the best way to do that.
I like to run around 35 psi, 40 might be pushing it, especially if your 40 is cold, it may be 42 when hot on the highway
Also as winter comes you may want more rubber on contact with the road, I always drown the psi in my bike in the winter for extra traction
Also as winter comes you may want more rubber on contact with the road, I always drown the psi in my bike in the winter for extra traction
Thanks guys. I've pretty much always run higher PSI in my cars. I've had two local mechanics explain over-inflation tactics. Both recommended going higher as long as I don't exceed the sidewall specs. In the last 20 years, I haven't noticed any difference in tire wear. On the contrary, most of my wear is on the sidewall, which would not be expected from over-inflated tires. The ride is a bit firmer, but the roads I drive are well-kept. I do not drive in harsh conditions as I'm able to work from home whenever the weather is bad. I likely will never drive the Insight in snow, and my speeds rarely go over 45mph on my work commute, so hydroplaning is less of a concern. In a nutshell, I drive like my grandpa's grandpa. While 40psi may not be for everyone, a few extra psi would add some benefit. It's just a matter of finding a balance that works.
With that said, most drivers would benefit from simply checking and maintaining proper tire pressure. Most people don't check their pressure (much less own a gauge to do so) and rely on their oil change service to have it done for them. With a 10K-between-oil-changes Insight, 1+ years is way to long! I check/adjust every two weeks or after extreme temperature changes.
With that said, most drivers would benefit from simply checking and maintaining proper tire pressure. Most people don't check their pressure (much less own a gauge to do so) and rely on their oil change service to have it done for them. With a 10K-between-oil-changes Insight, 1+ years is way to long! I check/adjust every two weeks or after extreme temperature changes.
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My experience with tire pressures is very similar to Hasard above, since 2010 when I got a gen2 Insight. I've watched tire wear closely and its always been even across the tread. However for each car, I've spent an afternoon testing handling characteristics to find the best cold tire pressures, for me. The maximum pressure on the tire sidewall is a cold tire number. I use my own pressure gauge and electric air pump ( available at auto parts store for around $50).
The best pressure for me is the highest pressure that gives me great control while hard cornering, and also allowing for straight line tracking at 70 mph. (With too much air at high speed, the car will drift right or left, requiring correction; in order to travel in a straight line, due to slipping off a high spot in the center of the tread.) With my past two cars the sweet spot has worked out to be 3 to 4.5 psi above recommended.
Like Hasard the roads are very smooth where I drive. It has always been my habit to look for and avoid bumps wherever possible, and I don't mind slowing for a bumpy patch. Were I to drive in NYC, I'd under-inflate cause there's no avoiding them. Unlike Hasard I'd lower the rear tire pressure the two pounds recommended difference between the front and rear. That's because like my 2002 Saturn SL the '19 Insight has 60%+ weight on the front axle. A little less air in the back, then in the front, makes for a more evenly balanced car, in the nose up / down direction. It also helps prevent the back end from wanting to rise up, and off to the side during hard cornering. (The Vehicle Sability Assist (VSA) helps prevent this, but why push the system?)
The best pressure for me is the highest pressure that gives me great control while hard cornering, and also allowing for straight line tracking at 70 mph. (With too much air at high speed, the car will drift right or left, requiring correction; in order to travel in a straight line, due to slipping off a high spot in the center of the tread.) With my past two cars the sweet spot has worked out to be 3 to 4.5 psi above recommended.
Like Hasard the roads are very smooth where I drive. It has always been my habit to look for and avoid bumps wherever possible, and I don't mind slowing for a bumpy patch. Were I to drive in NYC, I'd under-inflate cause there's no avoiding them. Unlike Hasard I'd lower the rear tire pressure the two pounds recommended difference between the front and rear. That's because like my 2002 Saturn SL the '19 Insight has 60%+ weight on the front axle. A little less air in the back, then in the front, makes for a more evenly balanced car, in the nose up / down direction. It also helps prevent the back end from wanting to rise up, and off to the side during hard cornering. (The Vehicle Sability Assist (VSA) helps prevent this, but why push the system?)
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Hello all. Like many, I've never paid much attention to my tire pressure in previous cars. I have noticed a decrease in my gas mileage as the temperature dropped so I'm going to start paying more attention and see if that helps. Since I drive Pennsylvania potholes, I'm not going to try running at higher pressure. There's just no way to avoid them all and I'd rather lose a little mileage than blow out a tire.
It might help, but I have to let you know I've never owned a hybrid that didn't drop in fuel efficiency when it got cold. The batteries aren't as efficient in the cold and you tend to use more heat and the engine runs longer to keep it's temp. Good luck but I'm afraid it's just the nature of the beast.
I agree. I go with the vehicle manufacturer suggestion. Safety, durability, and drivability are tested with these pressures.
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It is my understanding, and I am no expert, you should always use the values the manufacture recommends, not the max pressure of the tire.
The tire tread should be flat and in full contact with the road. If you overinflate, the tire rounds reducing tread contact. But over/under inflation is a factor of the air pressure and the weight of the car. The heavier the car, the more tire pressure needed. The car manufacture recommends a tire pressure that is correct for the weight of your car. The max pressure is simply saying "Hey if your car manufacture is recommending more than 44 PSI … this is not the correct tire for your car". It is not a recommendation of tire pressure used.
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I can assure you that the increased tire pressure is giving you / us substantial mpg increase. I read a long discussion on this topic at InsightCentral.net. Its a site where many gen1 enthusiasts discuss their modifications and highest mpg competitions (winners in the 185 mpg range). Very high tire pressure is part of how they got there. Having followed the discussion, I slowly, step by step, increased tire pressures on the gen2 Insight, that I was driving at the time. With each step I did various maneuverability and ability to drive in straight line without steering input tests, with safety and driver control criteria in mind. I did these tests in order to discover how much extra air is too much for my safety and handling concerns. When a concern arose I then of course lowered the tire pressures down to a safe and secure figure. I continue to check my tire pressures monthly, and have got to a point where I can pick up subtle reductions in tire pressure along with noticing a decline in mpg. In addition to improved mpg, over the long term, tire tread life has been excellent and wear pattern has been even and lacking any visible rounding at the edges.
What I've learned is that the max tire pressure number on the sidewall is a figure determined by the tire manufacturer and is the maximum safe cold tire pressure figure. The Honda recommend figures represent a compromise between a large number of factors including the need to reduce tire pressure to cope pot holes / very rough roads.
At some point in my quest to meet the high mpg challenge, I took a detailed look at all the stuff I was doing to get above EPA mpg with the goal of estimating how much various things I was doing were impacting the net mpg gain. What I found (with the gen2) was that all the subtle stuff around terms like "hypermiler" or similar stuff like using normal mode vs econ mode vs sport mode was only worth about 20% of my mpg improvement. Another 40% improvement came from good basic high mpg driving style (ease up on acceleration, steady speed etc etc that I've used in non-hybrid cars.). The final 40% of the improvement came from increasing the tire pressures alone!
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