Do I need TPMS?

Wheels coming in today. Tires already here. Don't really want to spend more, or wait to take out the old ones... what to do, what to do? Advice?

 

I managed to survive 65 years without it. You should be fine as long as you check your tire pressure and condition regularly.

And learn to live with the TPMS Light on the dash.

 

^^^same.
Like I mentioned in the other post about all the sensors going bad at once, my TPMS module went bad and didn't want to spend the coin to replace it. Screw the sensors and use an air gauge.

 

I lived with the TPMS light on. There are ways to keep it off without the sensors. Stuff the sensors in a wheel barrow tire or an air tight pipe, cover the light with tape or there's an electrical mod on here somewhere. Even if you only cover the light, it won't show up on the inspection report through the ODBII port.

 

Are you planning on getting rid of the old wheels or swapping them every winter/spring?

 

If you want to reuse your existing sensors, you should get a fit kit / service kit for it (new valve stems and O-rings). Otherwise there's a 30% chance the sensors will leak when transferred to new wheels.

Typical battery life of TPMS sensors is 7 years, give or take a couple. If the sensors are original to your truck (i.e. 5 years old), they will fail before your new tires wear out.

 

If the original TPMS are still working, just transfer them to the new wheels, DIY and free! No reprogramming required.

 

That can't be good for the tire. Couldn't that ruin the belts on some tires?

 

How will you know if there is air in your tires?

 

Just another thing to fail and annoy me. I keep a tire pressure gauge in my truck and check the tires myself.

 

Appx. 18 mo. ago installed new wheels, tires, & tpms. Last wk. the stupid light came on, all tires, including spare, still at, or very near, 35 psi. Can't get light to go off. Aggravating bashterds!!!!

 

TPMS is built into the valve stems. It is a simple job to replace valve stems when installing tires. You can simply remove the old ones and put them in new rims. But the batteries on TPMS typically last 7-10 years. In some cases longer, they are still working on my 07.

If the old ones are over 5-6 years old I'd just buy new ones and have them installed. They run $15-$30 each on Amazon. You can usually get a discount if you buy a 4 pack and if the spare doesn't need one you should be able to get a set for $60-$80. Tire stores won't charge any extra to install them at the time you mount tires. They have to put a valve stem in anyway. If they have to break down a tire and install them later it will cost $10-$20 per tire extra. That's why I advise replacing them when you get new tires even if they are still working if they are close.

TPMS isn't designed to replace an air gauge. They are there to warn of a rapid tire deflation while driving. Lots of people lived without them, lots died when tires blew out while driving at highway speeds too. For no more than it costs, ($60-$80 every 7-10 years) it seems like cheap insurance. About the price of a meal at McDonalds once per year.

How do you manage that at 70 mph

In 2011 I was driving 70-75 on an intestate highway when my warning light came on. I was able to get to the shoulder and stopped in under a minute. By the time I was stopped the right rear was completely flat from a 1/2" hole in the tread. With TPMS I had a few seconds warning to get stopped. Without TPMS I'd have had a tire come apart at 75 mph.

 

I'll never be convinced the TPM system is a safety feature.

I'm more inclined it's in place to insure the listed mpg is maintained for that vehicle.

I figure if I spend north of a grand for new rubber on a vehicle I intend to keep for 10+ years, I'm damn well going to watch my tire pressure closely.

 

I was talking about the way they broke the bead on the tire to get access to the sensor.

 

To jimmyh's point - I drove a 1950 Chevy in high school and somehow managed to live w/o TPMS. If you live in a state that requires it to pass inspection, then you'll need it.
Until recently, none of my other vehicles had it either.

For older people like myself, TPMS and ABS are unnecessary. I wonder how much longer it will be before we have automated anus wipers installed in toilets.

 

Mine is bypassed thru the TPMS ECU. The computer is fooled into believing all are present, but there are non in any of my wheels.

I don't know if this can be done on a 3rd gen, though.

 

There will always be people that say, "When I started driving we didn't have TPMS and I'm still alive". I'll agree that you have a much higher chance of dying from covid than dying from a flat tire, but there is still a good possibility that having TPMS could mean the difference between airing up a tire and driving to get it repaired vs. blowing out the tire on the freeway, putting on the spare on the busy freeway, and then buying a new tire. I would bet that more than 1/2 of low/flat tires are from something stabbed into the tire causing a slow leak overnight. Do you get out your tire gauge every morning and check the pressure in the tires? I seriously doubt it. If you have a Scangauge, all you have to do is look at it and see what the pressures are in each tire. But, people that believe that TPMS is a nanny for dumb people, will not be convinced otherwise.

 

That's exactly what it is. Most people are completely incompetent. That's why stupid nanny laws keep getting passed.

 

Need it? No. Is it nice to have? Yup.

On two separate occasions the system notified me of a rapid leak thanks to picking up construction debris on the highway, and that absolutely meant the difference between a patch job and a new tire.

If your truck is already equipped with it, why not take advantage of it? Keeping the truck operating like it should is more important to me than my tough-guy ego of "I'm smarter than the machine." It's like asking "my tach quit working, do I really need it to keep driving?"

 

this. i have a tire pressure gauge in every vehicle. i still love the sound of a a properly used gauge..that double "pffth" sound.

having said that, i dig the new system. i like the warning advantage. we had an oil pressure indicator for decades..doesnt mean i dont go and check the oil with the dipstick..bit it is nice to know if things have gone awry while driving. i love redundancy.

if if got new wheels, i would move heaven/earth to get TPMS on the new shoes.