Anyone Installed AfterMarket TPMS ?

[Dangermouse]

Has anyone any experience with aftermarket Tire Pressure Monitoring Systems (TPMS) on their D or other car.

I was recently caught out with a slow air leak in one of my DD (I assumed it had TPMS but it didn't) and I was wondering about retrofitting something like this:

http://www.amazon.com/Schrader-SCH-W.../dp/B008YQP2NW

which looks like it is installed when getting tires fitted,

or this

http://www.gizmag.com/fobo-bluetooth...-system/33754/

which seems to be mounted externally on the valve

[DMCMW Dave]

If I could remove it from my DD cars I would. Huge PITA and expensive when it fails. I'd rather keep a tire gauge in the glovebox than a bunch of electronics spinning in my tires.

[currently driving around in a Honda with 4 perfectly inflated tires and the "TPMS" light on.]

[micmak]

If I could remove it from my DD cars I would. Huge PITA and expensive when it fails. I'd rather keep a tire gauge in the glovebox than a bunch of electronics spinning in my tires.

[currently driving around in a Honda with 4 perfectly inflated tires and the "TPMS" light on.]

I totally agree with you, Dave. My daily driver is a Chev Malibu and my TPMS light blinks at me every time I put the key in the ignition, and the Driver Information Center tells me to check my tire pressures, even though my tires are perfectly inflated. And I have searched and searched and I cannot find any way to disable the system. It is a pain in the ass - no question. I check my tire pressures regularly as part of my ongoing maintenance of my cars. I don’t need a stupid light and an annoying text message on my instrument cluster to tell me that I need air in my tires.

......Mike......

[Dangermouse]

Fwiw, it's my wife's car that I am thinking about...........

I'd rather "there's a light on the dash" than "the tires been flat all day"

[vwdmc16]

The Globe trotting team being built by "Deloman" in Germany has installed tire monitors in his fleet.

[ccurzio]

Fwiw, it's my wife's car that I am thinking about...........

I'd rather "there's a light on the dash" than "the tires been flat all day"

If the thing cries wolf all the time, you'll end up with an all-day flat anyway.

[David T]

Many of the new cars no longer have spare tires. What you get is an electric inflator pump with a canister of goo to seal up any small leaks. Once you use it though you ruin the monitor, the goo plugs up the tiny hole in the monitor and they are around $100. The canister of goo is only good for a few years so you have to replace it when it gets old or after each use. They are not cheap. Also on many of the new cars you need a special tool to initialize the monitors so the car knows which one is on which wheel. There are monitoring systems that screw on the valve stem like a cap so it is not inside the wheel. They can get stolen, broken off or leak. Get a good tire pressure gauge and check your tires at least once a month and before a long drive. Remember for every 10 degrees change your tire pressure changes about 1 PSI. It is not unusual to lose 1 PSI per month too. With this cold weather you could be 5 PSI low and that is a lot. Most warning systems do not warn till you are over 10% above-below the target pressure. That's a LOT. Enough to wear your tires badly, decrease your gas mileage, reduce your load-carrying capacity and on cars with a high center of gravity allow them to roll over easier. Bottom line, even if you have TPMS you should STILL check your tires regularly.

[micmak]

Fwiw, it's my wife's car that I am thinking about...........

I'd rather "there's a light on the dash" than "the tires been flat all day"

I think that was probably the initial idea, Dermot. Sure - there is a light flashing so the tire pressure needs attention. They were/are a good idea in principle, but the fact is that they are not reliable and notorious for breaking or giving false readings. If they could be made to be more dependable and more exact, then they would be trusted and believed more, and accepted more too. In the meantime, I hate mine and I would love to be able to disable them, but aside from the fact that nobody claims to know how to disable them, I hear that it is apparently illegal to do so too!

......Mike......

[Flicky]

How about something like these?
http://www.amazon.com/iSaddle-Pressu...A14W2Y48R6JAGN

They are not electronic. Just little springs that will turn green, yellow, or red depending on air.

I had a flat yesterday on my DD coming back from a 2800 mile trip. Ran over something, 10 seconds later the TPS goes off, 45 seconds later -flop-flop-flop. Luckily I was in GA so there was a waffle house right there for me to stop at and put on the spare.

[Shep]

I totally agree with you, Dave. My daily driver is a Chev Malibu and my TPMS light blinks at me every time I put the key in the ignition, and the Driver Information Center tells me to check my tire pressures, even though my tires are perfectly inflated. And I have searched and searched and I cannot find any way to disable the system. It is a pain in the ass - no question. I check my tire pressures regularly as part of my ongoing maintenance of my cars. I don’t need a stupid light and an annoying text message on my instrument cluster to tell me that I need air in my tires.

......Mike......

Did you check your spare? I just had the light come on in my Mom's car, and all the tires are fine at 32 PSI. Checked the spare, and sure enough, it was 26 PSI. Filled it up to 32 PSI, and the light turned off.

Moral of the story: TPMS isn't always to blame, and raising a red flag is better than no red flags at all

EDIT:
Actually Dave, I ask you the same question, since you said "4 perfectly inflated tires" and not "5"