|
TPMS sensors
Hi Guys,
I realized the 2014 BRZ im getting pre-owned has aftermarket wheels. I dont know how the TPMS sensor system works but form what i've read, aftermarket wheels would make it light up the dash and you have to re-program. I am assuming for now, the owner probably had someone turn it off and kept the stock rims and sensors. But I plan to revert the car back to all stock even wheels. How do I go about this? Do I ask him up front, "how did you manage the TPMS sensor after swapping tires? did you keep the stock sensors?" And is it as simple as going back to another wheel shop, handing them over the stock wheels and sensors to reinstall again? Thank you! |
Aftermarket wheels without having a TPMS sensor would make it light up. If you find a set of stock wheels and sensors you will have to get them programmed for your car. I believe you can do this yourself with Toyota Techstream. The cable to do so is around $25USD.
|
Quote:
Hi sir! The owner did mention that he kept the stock wheels so i assume stock sensors are there too right? Just not sure what to ask and expect when i meet him. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk |
I can't answer that question, you would have to ask the owner. If the wheels still have the stock tires on them I would assume that the TPMS sensors are there. It would have cost more to unmount the stock tires from the stock wheel and put the TPMS sensor on the new wheel and tire, most people would opt to leave them off for the sake of saving money.
|
Quote:
So basically, the TPMS sensors are little devices attached to the tires, and he could have placed them on old/new tires, but point is i will need to bring it by a shop to have reprogramed when i install old tires again? |
You're pretty much correct. TPMS sensors are mounted inside of the wheel.
|
Quote:
|
Quote:
|
I had an odd thing happen with my 2013 BRZ. I bought a whole new set of tires and rims from Tire Rack along with the recommended TPMS sensors. Long story short, could not get the car to read them. The dealer tried twice as well as my friend's tire shop. Luckily I keep the stock tires. After going back and forth Tire Rack agreed to pay for me to swap them with the sensors in the stock tires and return the ones I bought.
Here is the strange part. When they removed the sensors in the new tires, they were the same exact make and models of the ones in the stock tires. Exactly the same. Yet the car would not read them. So after putting the original sensors back in bam, they worked! The dealer had no problem re-syncing the original sensors. So no idea why that happened, puzzling??? |
Quote:
|
On my tribeca so I would assume the brz is similar....Each sensor has a hex address that needs to be programmed into the body control module.
New sensors are 'asleep' and must be activated to conserve the battery. This can be accomplished before or after installation. The address is labeled on the sensor or it can be read electronically. Once activated and synced, some sensors ping every 90 seconds and/or are activated by the car moving more than X miles per hour. |
Assuming Subaru uses valve stem type TPMS sensors they have internal non replaceable batteries. The service life is not known with certainty but is thought to be about 5-7 years, coinciding with expected tire life (nobody should be running tires that are over 7 years old).
They are shipped in dormant or hibernating state to maintain this service life from date of activation. Different TPMS software activates these sensors differently. Some self activate and some require activation codes to be inputted to the TPMS ECU. Self activating sensors respond to pinging from the TPMS ECU and wake up after a few pings. That's how the sensor and ECU communicate from then on. The codes are different for each sensor in order that the TPMS ECU detects which corner the wheel is on and that combo of sensor code and TPMS code follows that wheel until the code is overwritten by a new sensor install. I know for sure the TPMS ECU can store at least 8 codes and probably more before it will forget a code. Garage door openers have a similar memory (different coding system) which can fill up if you have programmed too many homelink codes into the same receiver over time. These have an internal code clearing system. I discovered this during a particularly frustrating homelink coding session with a newly acquired car. If you have trouble with TPMS not activating then perhaps the correct wake up call has not been sent or perhaps your car has had three sets of TPMS equipped wheels installed and the TPMS ECU needs to be cleared. I do not know if Subaru TPMS has a maximum memory capacity for codes but I suspect it might. |
I installed my rims a couple months back and the light has been flashing every day since, I don't even notice it lol. I'm supposed to take the car in to get them programmed but I'm too lazy.
|
Replacing valve stem type TPMS should not be expensive. The repair shop just needs to break one bead, remove and replace the valve stem and reseat the bead. Make sure the shop knows the correct install torque. It is given in inch pounds, overtorquing is the number one cause of leaking TPMS valve stems.
|
Doesn't the OFT have the ability to disable the TPMS light?
|
The TPMS sensors look like this:
https://cdn3.volusion.com/3mf6a.ds5n.../S122-02-2.jpg If you realize that long part is a valve stem, it should be pretty obvious how this is installed inside the rim. See that number on the right hand side? That's the address that tells the body control module how to talk to that sensor. The BCM only stores one set of sensor addresses at a time and doesn't store old ones if you replace your TPMS sensors. When you first get one of these cars new, there's one of these in each full sized rim/tire. If you install aftermarket rims, you have several options: 1. You can just ignore them, in which case you'll get a TMPS light on the dash. Thank the US federal government for that. 2. You can swap your original TPMS sensors to the new rims. This requires your tires to be removed temporarily from your old rims to retrieve them. Once the new rims rotate a few times, the car will recognize its old friends still programmed into the body control module. 3. You can get another set of TPMS sensors (new or used) and have them programmed to the car in place of the originals, leaving your original sensors in the original rims. Most tire shops can program in the new addresses when they install the tires, or you can do it yourself with something like an ATEQ Quickset tool. Techstream is also alleged to be able to do it, but I haven't used it myself. However, to do that, you or the installer needs those numbers on the sensors to be able to address them in your body control module. If you buy a set of rims and tires that already have the sensors inside them, but you don't have the numbers, the installer has to pull the tires off to get that number. The car can't just "detect" those numbers if they're not already in its memory. If you just install rims and sensors without addressing them, you'll get the federal government light on your dash. Thanks Obama. Quote:
Are you getting the original rims and tires with the car? If the original sensors are still in them, ask him if he has the numbers of those original sensors. If he does, they can be programmed in without having to take the tires off the rims. Some of us use something like that ATEQ Quickset tool I mentioned above to program the TPMS system ourselves. It will store four sets of TPMS sensors in it. When I put my rims on my car, I got a second set of sensors and stored both sets in the ATEQ so I can flash them back quickly if I ever need to swap back to the stock rims. If you're getting the original rims and tires and the seller used something like that to program them himself, he may have the addresses still stored in the tool. If you want your own ATEQ, they're about $120 new, but occasionally they pop up on Ebay for $50. Quote:
|
Quote:
It's cost me about 130.00 to transfer the sensors from my stocks to aftermarket. Not sure the average. But yes the car can only save one set of (4wheels) Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk |
Quote:
|
Quote:
The valve core inside the stem is most likely replaceable. Those are usually just standard generic Schrader valves that screw right in and out. Auto parts stores and even WalMart carry little kits with replacement cores and a little tool to remove and install them. Be sure to let the air out completely before unscrewing a valve core and wear eye protection or at least turn your face away. Unscrewing one with pressure remaining behind it is a good way to shoot your eye out. |
Quote:
my 2017 86 has those tpms , i finally decided just use the oem tpms which is one piece type. so i need use the oem valve stem tooo. let me know if anyone has find a sensor fit those valve stem come with rpf1 :iono: |
Quote:
|
| All times are GMT -4. The time now is 10:43 PM. |
Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.11
Copyright ©2000 - 2026, vBulletin Solutions Inc.
User Alert System provided by
Advanced User Tagging v3.3.0 (Lite) -
vBulletin Mods & Addons Copyright © 2026 DragonByte Technologies Ltd.