TPMS Battery Died After Tire Change? Meineke Screwing Me?

This is all pretty strange. The whole bit about the sensors activating when the tire is deflated is a crock. The sensors are constantly transmitting the pressure and temperature. The sensors don’t tell the truck to turn on the light. The sensors don’t know if the light is on. The truck decides when to turn on the light based on the pressure info it receives compared to the pressure it perceives as normal. (The pressure that was in the tires when you last pushed the reset button).

If you do your research, you can replace the sensors for a lot less than $500.

 

Honestly I’m going to try and replace the batteries. I know they’re sealed units and all that but I’m going to give it a go. If it doesn’t work then I wouldn’t have lost anything. Projects like this are fun for me. I know circuit boards and soldering and electronic potting and stuff so I’m going to see what happens.

 

I recently bought a 2011 Tacoma 4x4 and am going to replace my tires and wheels with some 285-75-16 K02s. Will the ECU reset if I disconnect the battery for a few minutes, or do I have to disable the system by grounding out the 4th pin as shown earlier in the thread? The TPMS are brand new, it would be nice if the ECU could be reset or forced to relearn the new sensors. This seems like a license to steal for the Dealerships and it's Bull Shit in my opinion. Options? Thoughts?

 

My unde

My understanding is if you want to keep the sensors functioning don’t disable anything for a tire/wheel change. When the wheels are swapped over they should bring the old sensors with it. The dash light may flash since the sensors sensed low pressure but then you can look in the owners manual to see the procedure to set it back to normal (if it doesn’t set back to normal on it’s own).

Unless I’m misunderstanding you and maybe the tires are already mounted to the new rims with new aftermarket sensors installed and you’re just swapping the wheels. In that case you would need a scan tool to have the TPMS control unit learn the new sensors OR slightly deflate both new and old sets of wheels and put in your existing sensors that are already programmed to the ECU. People change TPMS sensors in the tires at home. Search YouTube. One guy used a couple 2x4’s to pop the bead, reach in and pull out the sensors and you’re good to go.

 

So, did you take a sensor apart?

 

Me? I never did. I just disabled the light.

 

that sucks

 

I had new sensors put in my brand new wheels. It's time to find a scan tool that will make the sensors work without breaking the bank. Cuz I don't have "a liquid cooled wallet".

 

Don't you put that evil on us Ricky Bobbie.

After 10 yrs. I'd say you're due a problem with an expensive near worthless system.

 

If you wrote down the numbers off the sensors, you can program them with a $40ish pirated version of Techstream and a laptop. If you didn’t write down the numbers, go to Discount Tire and have them program the truck.

 

Walmart will replace a sensor with a new one for around $20. You don't need a Toyota or special Denso sensor. Just saying for under $50 you can have 2 new functioning sensors installed and no light on. I've had it done with no issues in 2 years.

 

Balanced and rotated tires at Discount.

Low tire pressure light came on immediately. Flashed for a bit, then went on solid for about 3hrs. Light went off the next day but tire pressure reads “---“. Took it back to Discount, they told me none of the 4 sensors are working and need to pay for new ones.

They said the batteries probably died since my truck is 6 years old. I think that’s total bull sh¡t.

 

The sensors are inside the tires. Pretty hard for them to break a sensor if the tires were never dismounted

 

TPMS Life Expectancy
The estimated life expectancy of an OE TPMS sensor is 5 to 12 years, with the average lifespan being 7 years. TPMS life expectancy is directly related to the number of radio frequency transmissions the sensors make. Driving habits greatly influence the number of RF transmissions a sensor makes in its lifetime. For example: sensors usually transmit when the vehicle is stopped and transmit more often when in motion. Maintaining a constant speed, such as when you're on a highway, reduces the demand on TPMS sensors and allow the sensors to transmit less often. Drivers who often find themselves driving in start-and-stop type traffic will have a greater impact on the vehicles tire pressure monitoring sensors. Weather can also have an impact on tire pressure sensor battery life. Cold conditions allow batteries to last longer. Warmer conditions take more of a toll on TPMS battery life.