Winter tyres - TPMS Light is on!

[Devon Aygo]

54 minutes ago, Kingsway said:

I was talking about the auxiliary 12v battery.   They are only  guaranteed for 3 years despite selling for as much as £280!   (I believe Toyota willl sell one for £100 however)

The 12 v Battery has the full 5 year / 100 k cover as the rest of the car.

[Heidfirst]

12 hours ago, Kingsway said:

I was talking about the auxiliary 12v battery.   They are only  guaranteed for 3 years despite selling for as much as £280!   (I believe Toyota willl sell one for £100 however)

If looked after they should still last more than 3-4 years. You could buy a non-Toyota replacement but it probably wouldn't have any better warranty (& quite possibly worse).

[Heidfirst]

12 hours ago, Kingsway said:

Given that I'd then have two sets of sensors having to be replaced every few years,

I haven't seen any groundswell of issues on forums etc. re. having to replace old sensors - admittedly they only became mandatory in 2013 so 4 years (but some cars had them before they became mandatory).

[Kingsway]

7 hours ago, Heidfirst said:

If looked after they should still last more than 3-4 years. You could buy a non-Toyota replacement but it probably wouldn't have any better warranty (& quite possibly worse).

Mine is 3 years old, and puzzles me a bit. After a good charge the tester tells me its state of health is 95% - but after a drive, the voltage can be as low as 12.3 dropping to just below 12v if I turn on the headlights.  I'd normally expect a healthy Battery to be 12.6v when fully charged, but maybe AGM batteries are a little different?

Euro car parts offer a normal 054  flooded Battery for this application.  If what I've heard is true, Toyota are offering the correct  AGM Battery for £100. Double the average price of a normal FLA battery - but the same battery is offered elsewhere for as much as £289!!  So getting it from Toyota would seem to be a no-brainer.  Interesting that their price is so good, considering the very high prices they ask for some of their accessories for the Yaris.

[Kingsway]

NB:  I  haven't tried doing any of the following, so please do your own research!   I may have given details of the wrong sensor - I've just read where the correct freq is  315Mhz  !!   So make sure to ask the supplier before ordering!

 

A cheap-er solution for the TPMS problem?   (if you want TPMS for your second set of wheels - or to replace sensors whose Battery has run out)

Rather than pay £100 per sensor to the main -stealer, get 4 sensors for £99   https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B0748CBZDY/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Then to clone them  - ie make them appear to the system like your old ones :   (Includes PC software)

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Autel-MaxiTPMS-PAD-Sensor-Accessory-Device-Program-MXSensor-TPMS-Activation-Tool/122617309065?hash=item1c8c8fa789:g:5a8AAOSwgv5ZSzN5

You can also use an Android app to read your sensors:   https://play.google.com/store/search?q=tpms&c=apps&hl=en

 

... and here is how to clone your sensors!    

 

[PeteB]

11 hours ago, Heidfirst said:

If looked after they should still last more than 3-4 years.

Indeed.  My 2nd Gen 1 Prius (2002) still had a 12V Battery that had been in the car for 9 years when I sold the car with 163,000 on the clock.

However, my Gen 4 Excel needed a new one (under warranty) after just over one year and just under 17,000 miles.  No probs since (touch wood!).

[YarisHybrid2016]

On 11/24/2017 at 10:34 AM, CPN said:

From the bumpf I've read, indirect sensing was not seen as "good enough" by the Euro NCAP wizards. To be fair, the direct TPMS system is capable of detecting a slow puncture over time as long as it's calibration is kept updated. Personally, I have found that the system on the Toyota is puzzling slow to respond to even a "fake" pressure drop...

I found out the hard way (3 months after I got it, we hit winter) and I had neglected to do the tyre pressures for some time... I got the light for the TPMS one freezing night. When I checked the pressures (thinking I maybe had a puncture) the tyres were down at around 20 psi. 

It would seem, the TPMS is not an indicator of a slight drop, but a more serious problem only, before it becomes a total flat/dangerous.

Before the light came on, I was aware of the car not driving so well (fuel economy completely tanked, and the steering was heavy), but with it being new AND winter, I wasn't aware that it was a sign of a problem. I've since discovered the steering is a pretty good indicator of low tyre pressures, and that it is quite noticeable even for a 5 psi drop (though I have since also been more diligent at checking the pressures when the temperature changes as they are generally very good at holding their pressures over time).

[Kingsway]

On 11/25/2017 at 9:33 PM, Kingsway said:

NB:  I  haven't tried doing any of the following, so please do your own research!   I may have given details of the wrong sensor - I've just read where the correct freq is  315Mhz  !!   So make sure to ask the supplier before ordering!

 

A cheap-er solution for the TPMS problem?   (if you want TPMS for your second set of wheels - or to replace sensors whose battery has run out)

Rather than pay £100 per sensor to the main -stealer, get 4 sensors for £99   https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B0748CBZDY/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Then to clone them  - ie make them appear to the system like your old ones :   (Includes PC software)

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Autel-MaxiTPMS-PAD-Sensor-Accessory-Device-Program-MXSensor-TPMS-Activation-Tool/122617309065?hash=item1c8c8fa789:g:5a8AAOSwgv5ZSzN5

You can also use an Android app to read your sensors:   https://play.google.com/store/search?q=tpms&c=apps&hl=en

 

... and here is how to clone your sensors!    

 

NB - It looks like Toyotas use 315mhz sensors!!!!    The Battery life is apparently 4 to 5 years. They then have to be replaced - which is an expesove business at main-steal prices!

 

 I'm thinking it might be cheaper to ditch the idea of a second set of winter tyres, and just have one set of All-Season tyres!   https://www.mytyres.co.uk/All-Season_Tyres.html

 

 

 

[Automotive]

I love the statement there Kingsway:

"Until today, I must admit I didn't even know the car had a TPMS - and I'd happlily do without it, having done so successfully for over 40 years"

To precede that with going to the garage and identifying your pressure was very low, means you haven't been doing it successfully and have actually been driving dangerously, you've just been very lucky.

To then try and get around it so you can take someone else in the car for a test when the car is deemed 'not road worthy' for a good reason, is crazy.

The reason the law has been brought in is because of people being blasé about their tyre pressure and resulting in blowout's and deaths. Not to mention burning substantially more fuel, so your plan for saving money would have been better with good tyre pressure and you'd probably save the cost of the sensors pretty quickly had you fitted them. The figures is 0.4% higher fuel, for every 1 psi under-inflated just FYI.

So the irony is that you've probably burned more fuel than the sensors would cost you.

And the ability to buy aftermarket sensors for these vehicles and cheap OE sensors has been around since 2006 so shouldn't be any issues with price.

 

[Automotive]

On 11/27/2017 at 5:48 PM, Kingsway said:

NB - It looks like Toyotas use 315mhz sensors!!!!    The battery life is apparently 4 to 5 years. They then have to be replaced - which is an expesove business at main-steal prices!

 

 I'm thinking it might be cheaper to ditch the idea of a second set of winter tyres, and just have one set of All-Season tyres!   https://www.mytyres.co.uk/All-Season_Tyres.html

 

 

 

Hi all, 

Just so the incorrect information isn't in this forum, the 315MHz sensors are for US vehicles, or if they're in the UK, then they have been imported. 

Correct TPMS sensor frequency is 433MHz for Europe. 315MHz sensors shouldn't even be sold in Europe or the UK as NATO use this frequency. So I would highly recommend not getting involved with 315MHz sensors.