You might be concerned if your Honda Civic displays an alert that says “Tire Pressure Monitor Problem.”.
The issue has come up many times for me as an experienced technician. It’s usually a simple fix, which is good news.
Here is an article that explains the causes and solutions to turning off that pesky light. It’s time to get started!
How Honda Civic Tire Pressure Monitoring Works
Your Honda Civic may be receiving a “Tire pressure monitor problem” message. Before we investigate the causes, here are a few things to keep in mind. TPMS (Tire Pressure Monitoring System) is important to understand.
In your Honda Civic, a tire pressure monitoring system is integrated into the vehicle in order to monitor the pressure of your tires. Indirect TPMS technology (also known as Passive TPMS) is used in modern Honda Civics, Tires without tire pressure sensors (TPS) are not equipped with sensors.
By measuring the rate at which each wheel rotates, the Honda Civic’s TPMS system determines whether your tires are low on air by utilizing wheel speed sensors that are integrated into the ABS system.
As soon as a tire loses air pressure, this system notifies you and you can avoid blowouts.
Indirect tire pressure monitoring systems are used in Civics for a variety of reasons
- Due to the absence of tire pressure sensors, it is relatively inexpensive.
- Maintaining, programming, or performing maintenance less frequently
- The rate of revolution is used to measure tire pressure.
My personal objection to tire pressure monitoring systems as a mechanic stems from a number of factors, including the following:
- It will be hard to monitor the pressure of a Honda Civic if you install a different tire size from the rest of the tires.
- It will have to be recalibrated if the tire size is larger than stock.
- You can lose accuracy in tire pressure measurements if your tires wear unevenly.
- When inflating your tires, it needs to be reset continuously
How Do I Diagnose a Honda Civic “Tire Pressure Monitor Problem”?
Many people mistakenly assume that the “Tire pressures low” alert is synonymous with the “Tire pressure monitor problem.” I don’t think so. If one or more of your tires are underinflated, you will receive the former alert rather than the latter. Putting it simply. When your Civic TPMS system becomes unable to monitor the tire pressure, it will display a problem alert.
When a Honda Civic tire pressure monitor malfunctions, what is the cause?
Honda Civic tire pressure monitor problems can be caused by a number of things:
1. Sensor malfunction:
In most cases, a bad wheel speed sensor is the cause of a tire pressure monitor problem. Your car’s ABS monitors the rotation of each wheel through the wheel speed sensor, commonly known as the wheel speed sensor.
The device can detect traction loss or skidding based on this information. Due to the indirect tire pressure system used in recent Civic models.
The TPMS system will be triggered falsely if the wheel speed sensor is bad. A dashboard message will appear indicating there is a problem with the tire pressure monitor.
2. Problems with old Honda models (Tire Pressure Sensor):
A bad tire pressure sensor is another common problem with a tire pressure monitor. Prior to 2014, Honda Civics were equipped with direct tire pressure monitoring systems. Tire pressure is measured with the help of tire pressure sensors (TPS).
Every tire is fitted with a pressure sensor that looks like a small, black plastic cylinder. When the pressure inside your Honda Civic’s tires drops below or rises above normal limits, the sensors send a signal to the computer. Unless one or more TPS on your Civic tire pressure monitoring system fail, your PCM will alert you to this issue.
3. Tire sizes that are different:
Your Honda Civic’s factory manual specifies the tire size for each tire, but you changed one or more tires recently. Your car may then display a tire pressure monitor problem alert due to this problem.
When the tire size in your Honda vehicle differs from the one expected by the TPS, it may not function properly. Your Honda Civic’s spare tire (donut) will not fit properly if you put it on, since the spare is smaller than the original tires.
4. Problems with calibration:
Recalibration of your Honda Civic’s tire pressure monitoring system is essential when you install new tires, rotate your tires, or correct tire pressure. Each tire’s pressure should be calibrated to ensure accurate readings. If you don’t have it, you may receive warnings like the “tire pressure monitor problem.”
5. Imbalanced tire pressure:
Last but not least, tire pressure imbalance is a common cause of TPMS warning lights. A Honda Civic with a substandard tire is one with a significantly lower tire pressure than the others.
Due to lack of air, driving over a nail, or any number of other reasons, this tire was flat-spotted. It is possible for your TPMS system to be triggered even if you are using the recommended tire pressure levels.
Discrepancies between front and rear tires: for example, 30 PSI for front tires and 34 PSI for rear tires can cause alerts to sound. Each tire should have the same air pressure according to the TPMS system.
By interpreting differences between them as problems, the system interprets them as anomalies. An indirect TPMS detects 4 PSI differences between tires as a warning sign even though you may think it is insignificant.
Tire Pressure Monitor Problem: How can it be fixed?
If you get this alert, here’s what you should do:
- At the recommended PSI level, check the pressure of all four tires.
- Try overinflating and recalibrating: Check your door jam sticker and inflate all the tires about 2 psi higher than recommended. TPMS must then be calibrated after this is done. The warning light issue can often be resolved with this simple tweak.
- The battery should be disconnected and reconnected. The tire pressure sensor will be reset as a result.
- If the alert persists, visit your nearby Honda dealer for a check of your wheel speed sensors and bearings.
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Your Civic’s TPMS needs to be reset
It varies slightly from model year to model year how you recalibrate your Honda Civic’s tire pressure monitoring system.
A touchscreen display on a newer Civic is as follows:
- From the home screen, open the Settings menu
- Choose the vehicle settings
- Calibration of TPMS should be chosen
- Choose Calibrate from the menu
Civics without touch screens from the newer generation:
- To access the Vehicle Settings menu, use the steering wheel buttons
- Calibration of TPMS should be selected once you scroll down
- To calibrate, select Calibrate
The steering wheel buttons on older Civics are as follows:
- Click on Menu
- Configure your settings by selecting Customize
- Calibration of TPMS selected
- Initialize is picked
- Select Yes to confirm
- You can exit by hitting the Menu button again
The old Civics without touchscreens:
- To access the Vehicle Settings screen, use the steering wheel buttons
- Select TPMS Calibration from the menu
- Select Calibrate from the menu