Tire Pressure Monitor Systems

[PJ2016]

I have Tire Minder TPMS's on my 3500 Sprinter, three cars, a pickup and a small tandem axle utility trailer; that's six sets; the three cars and pickup range from 1997 to 2009 all together are not worth a down payment on a late model pickup;

after buying the first set; kept buying Tire Minder to keep things simple;

[mkguitar]

Originally Posted by mkguitar

I just ordered this for the van- similar unit same brand 99 psi, $40:


https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Arrived & installed, the sensors just fit into the cutouts on my Chevy wheel covers


Quite accurate for psi ( checked against a gauge I trust, all 4 sensors read same and within 1 pound of my gauge on an air tank I own)


I run 80 rear and 55 front


Tire Temps appear to be right


The set up is fiddly as the instructions were written by a white house speech writer-

But easy enough-

I am set for high alarm at 90#, low alarm at 40# and high temp at 150º



The read out and the position of the solar sensor don;t make much sense in my van, easy to plug it into USB- I'll think on that.


For $40 I 'm satisfied


Mike

[rowiebowie]

Originally Posted by mkguitar

Arrived & installed, the sensors just fit into the cutouts on my Chevy wheel covers


Quite accurate for psi ( checked against a gauge I trust, all 4 sensors read same and within 1 pound of my gauge on an air tank I own)


I run 80 rear and 55 front


Tire Temps appear to be right


The set up is fiddly as the instructions were written by a white house speech writer-

But easy enough-

I am set for high alarm at 90#, low alarm at 40# and high temp at 150º



The read out and the position of the solar sensor don;t make much sense in my van, easy to plug it into USB- I'll think on that.


For $40 I 'm satisfied


Mike

Appreciate the update.

[JohnC]

I have a Class B on a RAM ProMaster 2500 and have used the following low cost TPMS for fifteen months with no problems so far, and still on the original button cell batteries. The only issue is that it has a single setting for alarm for low/high tire pressure, so I can't use it effectively since I'm running 65 psi on front and 80 psi on the back.

CACAGOO Wireless TPMS https://www.amazon.com/CACAGOO-Wirel...dp/B074WKVG6J/

[peteco]

TechnoRV has the TST TPMS on sale. I am still very happy with my TST TPMS system.

https://technorv.com/?insNltCmpId=61...utm_term=email

[N147JK]

Picture of my new TPMS. Very accurate American-made gear and never fails. Bonus feature: it gets me out of the vehicle so I can keep an eye on things.

[booster]

Originally Posted by N147JK

Picture of my new TPMS. Very accurate American-made gear and never fails. Bonus feature: it gets me out of the vehicle so I can keep an eye on things.

You got a long hose so it can tell you if you are losing pressure as you drive?

[mkguitar]

that's where I do count on the TPMS ( $40)


while driving if the road is scattered with debris I can watch for, and have an alarm set, for deflation

[jrobe]

This week on my SUV, my TPMS showed one of my tires was down 5 psi. I pulled into the next rest stop and, sure enough, I had picked up a nail in that tire. I drove to the nearest tire shop and had the tire patched in 30 min and went on my merry way.

I don't have a TPMS on my RV. If that would have been the RV I would have woke up the next morning with a flat tire in the campground probably far from a town. I would have had to change the tire (luckily I carry a spare) and drove to the nearest town for repair. Of course, a fairly high percentage of Class B's don't even have spare tires anymore so that is an even bigger hassle. There is clearly some value in an accurate TPMS system.

[mkguitar]

Originally Posted by jrobe

I don't have a TPMS on my RV.

Easy enough to remedy with many options starting at about $30 going into the hundreds



Check that the system will register the psi you use. Solar is handy.

[jakegw2]

I purchased and installed a cheap TPMS system on my Promaster-based RV shortly after purchasing it and used it for a few years. This summer when I went to remove the sensor caps on the front tires they wouldn't move. No problem, the tires still had enough pressure I could deal with it later. This weekend I decided to deal with it and used a wrench to try and remove one of the sensors.

The valve stem broke off. The sensor had fused so tightly to the valve stem that the stem broke before the sensor would unscrew. I had a tire shop replace the valve stem for about $35. I still need to get the other one off the other front tire. I am trying WD-40, but will likely need to replace the valve stem on that side as well. The sensor threads appear to be brass, so I'm not sure why they corroded so badly.

The reason I only had them on the front wheels is because the internal rubber seal that keeps air from leaking from the stem had degraded / been damaged on both the rear sensors and created a slow leak situation when the sensors were in place, so I had to remove them. The kit came with replacement gaskets for the battery cover, but not for the gasket at the valve stem so the damaged sensors were irreparable.

So buyer beware - discard your TPMS sensors before they get too old! Mine fused to the stems about 3 years after purchase (they were removed regularly to add air at times, so it's not like they were left in place for years at a time). It must have happened quickly as I was regularly adding air when needed right up until I couldn't remove them.

[peteco]

Originally Posted by jakegw2

I purchased and installed a cheap TPMS system on my Promaster-based RV shortly after purchasing it and used it for a few years. This summer when I went to remove the sensor caps on the front tires they wouldn't move. No problem, the tires still had enough pressure I could deal with it later. This weekend I decided to deal with it and used a wrench to try and remove one of the sensors.

The valve stem broke off. The sensor had fused so tightly to the valve stem that the stem broke before the sensor would unscrew. I had a tire shop replace the valve stem for about $35. I still need to get the other one off the other front tire. I am trying WD-40, but will likely need to replace the valve stem on that side as well. The sensor threads appear to be brass, so I'm not sure why they corroded so badly.

The reason I only had them on the front wheels is because the internal rubber seal that keeps air from leaking from the stem had degraded / been damaged on both the rear sensors and created a slow leak situation when the sensors were in place, so I had to remove them. The kit came with replacement gaskets for the battery cover, but not for the gasket at the valve stem so the damaged sensors were irreparable.

So buyer beware - discard your TPMS sensors before they get too old! Mine fused to the stems about 3 years after purchase (they were removed regularly to add air at times, so it's not like they were left in place for years at a time). It must have happened quickly as I was regularly adding air when needed right up until I couldn't remove them.

I assume you have the flow-through TPMS sensors, otherwise you would be removing the sensors every so often to add or remove air as needed due to seasonal temperature change or leaks. Mine are not the flow-through type. I have had no problem removing mine, which I do about every 3-4 months to adjust the air pressure.

Regarding the valve stem gasket, when I first installed the sensors i put a very thin film of dielectric grease on the top of the valve stem that the sensor gasket contacts. That provides lubrication so the gasket won't possibly tear as it rubs the stem while tightening. In 2 years I have had no leaks or gasket damage at the valve stem.

[jakegw2]

They were just the standard screw-on cap sensors (not flow through). I removed them every time I added air, which worked great until it didn't.

The dielectric grease idea sounds like a good one. It would protect from corrosion and from the gasket getting torn.

[avanti]

Could it have been an attack of road salt since you opened it last?

Given the various hassles and safety issues around TPMS systems, I think I agree that this isn't the place to cheap out. There are several well-established brands that cost a bit more but are known quantities, TST being one of them.

TPMS is now standard on all Transits. Does Mercedes still leave them off on duallies?

[peteco]

Originally Posted by jakegw2

They were just the standard screw-on cap sensors (not flow through). I removed them every time I added air, which worked great until it didn't.

The dielectric grease idea sounds like a good one. It would protect from corrosion and from the gasket getting torn.

A thin coat of Never Seez on the valve stem threads would likely have prevented the corrosion problem. In fact, I may have done that when I installed 2 years ago due to reports of corrosion issues. I just can't remember. Maybe I need Never Seez on my brain.

[Ken Allan]

Promaster 2500 @ max load of 7600#. Tires F & R are 65#

I bought a $30 TPMS. It worked well. At one year the reading for one tire went blank. Then another. I removed and checked all batteries with my tester. All were well into the "good" reading and about 3.0 volts. Then all tires went blank. I liked the unit as it was easy to read and I found it accurate. I ordered an exact replacement.

THEN I got messing around with the first unit. I just happened to have a spare #1620 battery and put it in one sensor. It lit up! Tried it in another and it lit up too. Then I put in an original battery that checked good at 3.0 volts. No good. ??? I found that the unit worked fine IF the battery was ABOVE 3.1 volts. Under that and sensors would not send.

New #1620 batteries were between 3.2 - 3.3 volts.

Now I have a spare unit. ♦♦♦ KenA

[peteco]

Originally Posted by Ken Allan

Promaster 2500 @ max load of 7600#. Tires F & R are 65#

I bought a $30 TPMS. It worked well. At one year the reading for one tire went blank. Then another. I removed and checked all batteries with my tester. All were well into the "good" reading and about 3.0 volts. Then all tires went blank. I liked the unit as it was easy to read and I found it accurate. I ordered an exact replacement.

THEN I got messing around with the first unit. I just happened to have a spare #1620 battery and put it in one sensor. It lit up! Tried it in another and it lit up too. Then I put in an original battery that checked good at 3.0 volts. No good. ??? I found that the unit worked fine IF the battery was ABOVE 3.1 volts. Under that and sensors would not send.

New #1620 batteries were between 3.2 - 3.3 volts.

Now I have a spare unit. ♦♦♦ KenA

I just found the same thing with my TST sensors. The sensor farthest from the display unit had stopped reading. Like you I checked the battery and it was 2.98 volts, which I thought should be good enough to work. Put in a new battery at 3.2 volts and now the display senses it.

[booster]

Originally Posted by peteco

I just found the same thing with my TST sensors. The sensor farthest from the display unit had stopped reading. Like you I checked the battery and it was 2.98 volts, which I thought should be good enough to work. Put in a new battery at 3.2 volts and now the display senses it.

I think it probably has to do with the way the sensors send information in bursts to the main display. That probably takes fairly high current for a very short time and that would drop the voltage too much to generate a strong enough signal to cover the range needed.


I had that kind of issue on the new Tire Minder when I put it in a couple of years ago. System worked well without the signal amplifier unit so I did not put it in at first. The batteries only lasted about 6-7 months. I put in the amplifier and now life seems to be more normal but haven't had it this way long enough to know how long they will go. The DST batteries the Minder replaced lasted several years, but the unit died at about 9 years.



In other products I have noticed that there seem to be a lot of low quality coin batteries out there these days. The major brands work best but even they can be a bit spotty sometimes.

[avanti]

Originally Posted by booster

In other products I have noticed that there seem to be a lot of low quality coin batteries out there these days. The major brands work best but even they can be a bit spotty sometimes.

Yes. And, not just coin batteries. Almost all of the super-cheap lithium batteries you can buy on eBay and Amazon are junk. I am not generally a big "you get what you pay for" kind of guy -- there are a lot of good deals out there. But in this case, I have totally given up on bargain batteriess.

[Boxster1971]

Originally Posted by avanti

. . .
. . . TPMS is now standard on all Transits. Does Mercedes still leave them off on duallies?

Yes - they have still left them off the duallies as they are not required by US Federal Regulations. Kudos to Ford for putting them on all Transits.