Pressure, at a glance
Find the target. Check the conditions.
Match the tire size, front/rear positions, load and units.
The tire sidewall’s maximum is not your cold-pressure target.Cold check
Not driven for at least 3 hours
- Measure with a gauge.
- Compare with the specified cold pressure.
- Adjust, then recheck.
After driving
Tires may be warm
Do not release air to reach the cold target.
If clearly low, add air according to the vehicle’s guidance, then check and adjust again when cold.
TPMS: no warning light does not confirm correct pressure.
The correct starting point is the vehicle manufacturer's recommended cold tire pressure for your car and its fitted tires. Look for the Tire and Loading Information label, usually at the driver's door opening, then check the owner's manual for any conditions that apply. The maximum pressure molded into a tire's sidewall is not a substitute for that recommendation.
That distinction answers the common question at an air pump: which number should you enter? First identify the right specification. Then measure under the conditions that specification requires.
Read the whole label
Find the tire size, front and rear pressures, and units. Do not assume all four tires share one setting. Some vehicles also specify different settings for particular loads or operating conditions; use the relevant instructions only when they apply to your vehicle.
This quick reference is a way to read your own label, not a pressure chart for every car:
| What you find | What to do |
|---|---|
| Separate front and rear figures | Keep the two targets separate when inflating. |
| More than one tire size | Match the installed, approved size to its correct entry. |
| Normal/full-load settings | Use the setting for your actual load, as the manual defines it. |
| A separate spare-tire specification | Check the spare against its own requirement. |
| PSI, kPa or bar | Select the matching unit on the inflator before entering the number. |
Michelin's pressure guidance explains why front/rear and load recommendations can differ. Not every vehicle provides a full-load alternative. Do not invent an increase because the trunk looks full, and do not treat extra pressure as permission to exceed the vehicle's load limits.
A model name alone is not enough
The 2025 Mazda CX-5 manual, in its U.S.A./Canada/Israel table, lists 34 psi front and rear for P225/65R17 100H, and 35 psi front and rear for P225/55R19 99V. Those are two specific factory fitments, not universal CX-5 settings.
The same page also contains a separate Mexico table and different spare-tire specifications. Copying a number without its tire size and market can therefore give you the wrong instruction even when the model name matches.
If your car's specification is uncertain, first identify its exact version. Check the actual vehicle label rather than relying on a search result for a similar car.
Cold means before driving has heated the tire
NHTSA defines a cold check as one made after the vehicle has not been driven for at least three hours. “Cold” does not mean winter weather. A tire can be cold for this purpose on a warm day.
Driving raises tire temperature and pressure. Consequently, a reading taken after a highway journey is not directly comparable with the cold figure on the door label.
For a routine adjustment, check before driving or after the required rest. If you drive to a service-station pump first, remember that the tires may already be warm.
A repeatable checking routine
Michelin's checking instructions use a pressure gauge and the vehicle's specification. Build a simple habit around that:
- Record the correct front, rear and spare targets, including their units.
- With the tires cold, remove a valve cap and seat the gauge firmly on the valve. Read the pressure; repeat if the gauge did not seal properly.
- Compare that reading with the target for that wheel position. Add air if low; if genuinely above the specified cold pressure, release a little and measure again.
- Recheck after adjusting, replace the cap and continue around the car. Include the spare, if fitted, using its separate specification.
NHTSA recommends checking at least monthly. Michelin also recommends a check before a long trip. Add that task to your maintenance schedule, rather than waiting until a tire looks soft.
Do not bleed a warm tire down to the cold target
The Mazda manual explicitly warns against releasing air from warm tires to reach the recommended pressure. Their pressure normally rises during use. Removing that increase can leave the tire underinflated when it cools.
But “check cold” is not a reason to ignore a low reading while traveling. Michelin advises adding air when a warm tire is clearly below the recommendation, then checking and adjusting again when cold. Follow your vehicle's instructions for that situation; this article does not prescribe one hot-pressure correction for every car.
If one tire repeatedly needs topping up, have it inspected. Mazda specifically identifies frequent reinflation as a reason for inspection.
TPMS is a warning, not your target
NHTSA says a tire-pressure monitoring system generally warns when a tire is significantly underinflated. An unlit warning lamp does not establish that every tire is at its recommended pressure.
Check a warning promptly. A lamp that appears on a cold morning and disappears after driving still calls for a pressure check; warming can raise the reading above the warning threshold without resolving the underlying low cold pressure.
Changed wheels or tire sizes need another check
If the fitted tires do not match an approved specification, do not choose a pressure from their sidewalls or copy another owner's setup. Confirm the fitment and inflation requirements with the vehicle manufacturer or a qualified tire professional.
Michelin recommends the manufacturer's original size or approved alternatives, with adequate load capacity. Our guide to bigger wheels explains the wider trade-offs. The pressure question belongs in that decision, before the new wheels go on.
Sources checked September 27, 2026. This is a source-based ownership guide, not a hands-on tire test.
For a separate check of manufacture dates and the questions age leaves open, use our tire date-code guide and record table.
Sources
Our approach: clear sources, clear limits, useful conclusions.
