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TPMS - Error?

12K views 29 replies 13 participants last post by  DJ Hemi 
#1 ·
Just before heading out on the road to drive to in-laws this weekend, I checked my tire pressure and found that all four were low a few lbs. Went to local gas station and filled all four tires to exactly 33 lbs. Drove away and within 15 seconds the TPMS warning flashed on my dash, indicating low tire pressure. Never had this warning flash on my dash before.

I drove the rest of the way home, which is less than 1-1/2 miles, and carefully checked all tire pressures again. No low pressure indicated on any of the four tires. I figured that maybe it was a fluke and that the warning would just go away.

Drove 150 miles to in-laws and just got back today. Warning never stopped glowing on my dash.

I am guessing that either a sensor is bad in one of the tires or there is a bad total sensory system (?). Trying to decide whether to take it to the dealer (vehicle is well past the warranty period) or take it to a tire-specialty shop or my regular independent shop---I don't know if it's a vehicle issue or a tire/monitor issue. :scratchhead:

Anyone ever have this issue?
 
#2 ·
Yes. But not on my Challenger. The TPS units are located inside the rim and can be replaced by a tire shop. I paid about $120. I think that I WAY overpaid, but I was in a hurry to get it fixed.


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#3 ·
On my wifes Beetle we had this as an issue. Someone suggested over inflating it by about 7lbs then deflating it back to what it should be. That actually worked. Remember that after you drive the car for a few miles the friction will heat up the tire a little and will cause the air pressure to be higher than when you check them before you have driven any.
 
#4 ·
Wednesday night mine came on and showed 3 tires at 28 - 29 and my right rear at 40! I went to a gas station and set them all at 32 and on short drives home and around town Thursday the light stayed on. Today, on a 60 mile round trip it went off on it's own <shrug>. I wish I knew how that black magic worked.
 
#6 ·
People have said that once the low pressure indication comes on (about 27 PSI) it will not go off until the tire(s) pressure is 35 PSI or greater. If you set yours to 32 PSI, the 60 mile trip likely raised the pressure to over 35 PSI.

I can't confirm or deny this personally since I always run 35 PSI or greater.
 
#5 ·
Thanks for the replies.

Ironic----and freakin' annoying----that the warning glows on my dash only immediately AFTER I adjust the tire pressure on all four tires rather than before, when they'd been low for who knows how long.
 
#7 · (Edited)
When you start the car, does the light come on solid and just stay on? Or does it blink on and off a bunch of times before staying solid?

There is only a malfunction if the light blinks. Otherwise the issue actually is low tire pressure.
 
#8 ·
Here are the facts:

Never had tire pressure warning light flash or glow on my dash before.

Checked tire pressure in all four tires Thursday at 7:30am; found all four tires low-----28-30 lbs each.

Drove 1-1/2 miles to fueling station and filled all four tires to 33 lbs.

Warning on dash began to glow, not flash, about 15 seconds after I began my 1-1/2 mile trip back to my house.

Double-checked pressure in all four tires once home; all pressures good at 33 lbs.

Drove 300-mile round trip to in-laws and back; warning on dash never stopped glowing.

Something is whack.
 
#9 ·
I don't think anything is whack just yet. A lot of people tend to assume there are issues with TPMS systems. At work, when a customer complains the light won't go out, 9 times out of 10 (At least) it actually is just low tire pressure.

Not saying you don't know how to check tires. Don't take this the wrong way. I just think it's possible that your gauge is inaccurate or some other variable like temperature is messing with you. It's unusual for sensor batteries to die when they're only 3 years old.
 
#11 ·
I'm a big boy and don't get my feelings hurt when my steps are questioned in a nonsensical scenario.

My fueling station has a fairly high-tech air-filling station---the user sets the pressure on the device and then adds the air; the digital readout on the device displays the actual pressure as it fills the tire, and when the actual pressure matches the user's setting for pressure, it stops and beeps. Neat little system.

The air pressure gauge I use is a fairly high-quality device, too. Rather than the pen-type gauge, it's a round dial with a stem; the measured pressure is indicated on the dial with a needle, which is locked in place until I depress a button to release it back to the zero position. Been using it for a few years and am sure I know how to operate & read it.

I always compare the air-filling readout to my gauge readout; when they match, as they always do, I'm confident that the indicated pressure is a true reading.

Something's whack.
 
#12 ·
I hate these devices, regardless of car. On my '04 Infiniti, the warning light would come on every time after driving on highway for an hour; invariably my tire gauge (as well as the one on the air pump) would show proper air pressure.

These devices malfunction easily and are expensive to replace. Unfortunately, the state of Virginia is considering making rule that would fail you at inspection if the light is on


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#19 ·
I hate these devices, regardless of car. On my '04 Infiniti, the warning light would come on every time after driving on highway for an hour; invariably my tire gauge (as well as the one on the air pump) would show proper air pressure.

These devices malfunction easily and are expensive to replace. Unfortunately, the state of Virginia is considering making rule that would fail you at inspection if the light is on


Steel Curtain Challenger
I'm right there with you in hating these. And thanks for the heads-up regarding Safety Inspection.

Let's link up in the near future. I live in the Chantilly area, so we're not far apart.
 
#16 ·
OK. Thanks for the replies. I appreciate the effort to help. I'll try over-inflating then deflating and see what happens.

If the workaround is successful, I'll be relieved to get rid of the constant glow. If so, it's quite ironic that this supposedly sophisticated sensor might not be so sophisticated. lol
 
#17 ·
Another possibility - do you have any aftermarket electronics hooked up? Tuner, Trinity, USB charger/converter, Cell Phone charger, HIDs, etc? These can generate RFI/EMI and interfere with the TPMS signal.
 
#18 ·
Just to set the record straight, TPMS triggers "low pressure" at at 24-25 psi and will reset at 29+ psi. This is the setup for door placard that recommends 32 psi. For a 34 psi placard the low pressure trigger is 25-26 psi with the same reset.

With that out of the way, my TPMS triggers a random warning at 29-32 psi because I have one or two wheel sensor that are messed up and send a random "low pressure" flag to the system when there is no problem. This is an aftermarket Dorman wheel sensor set that I installed on my new wheels this summer. My original wheels with the Mopar sensors work just fine.

Bottom line, replace the sensors.
 
#21 ·
Thus far, I'm inclined to believe you are correct. It's illogical to believe that my low-pressure tires (27-29 lbs of pressure) would NOT trip the dash warning, whereas the corrected pressure would cause a warning. Perhaps it's a fluke, but the fluke persists even after playing with over-inflation and deflation.

And, by the way, if my warning scenario is how the system is engineered/designed to perform, it's a crap system. I'd sooner yank it out of the vehicle altogether and rely on my own (human) periodic review & inspection.
 
#22 ·
I think we all would rather go without it. Us enthusiasts anyway. Unfortunately too many people over the years neglect to check pressures, too many blowouts happened, too many tire companies and/or automakers got sued, and now we all have to put up with the quirks of TPMS.
 
#24 ·
I read somewhere that the US govt asked Ford to develop these after the Explorer/Firestore tire disaster. I DO tend to agree... virtually no one checks air pressure in their tires ever... but to have it mandated that these systems be in all cars is overkill.
 
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#23 ·
I'm right there with you in hating these. And thanks for the heads-up regarding Safety Inspection.

Let's link up in the near future. I live in the Chantilly area, so we're not far apart.[/QUOTE]

Depending on the weather, I periodically attend the Dulles South Cars n Coffee Sundays at 7:00 am; it's the only Car Meet still around.
 
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#25 ·
I saw a show on the speed channel where it showed how easy to replace a sensor was. I think the sensors were about $20. Getting the tire off the rim is the hard part. I think your sensor is bad. They frequently go bad. I had 2 replaced on my 09 Saturn Vue.


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#27 ·
Sensors $20..... I had to replace one and it was $100... I have heard folks on here say $80 to $100.
 
#28 ·
With tax $250.00 CAD set of four. around $175 U.S.

I bought them from the place I got my tires from. They were Dodge, NOT Dorman.

$57 CAD each from Dodge (online parts place very similar to Steve White here on this forum) and $54 each from the tire place. Same Dodge part number.

They are pretty big too. Our cars use the type that looks like a butterfly.
 
#30 ·
UPDATE:

I overinflated all four tires to 37 lbs, drove for less than a mile and then the dash warning light went out. Drove another ten miles to be sure that the warning light would not trigger again, then drove home and parked her. After three hours, I carefully set all four tires to 33 lbs pressure.

I'm still puzzled by this scenario. I definitely ADDED air way back when this whole issue started, so it doesn't make sense that the sensor would trigger the dash warning thereafter and never before. Oh well, all's well that ends well.

P.S. I still need to get new tires before snowfall here in Northern VA, and I'm looking at the BF Goodrich Comp TA all-seasons....
 
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