TPMS - Did its Job?

Yes, I brush the stones away, often some quite big ones, and generally view the tyres. I do this regardless before a long journey; otherwise its every 4 - 6 weeks. Tedious but only a few minutes.

Lawrence

 

Next time do a recalibration even with a known leak. It's smart enough to know something is happening again. (Have an indirect TPMS on our '04 Sienna and a few miles from home just after starting calibration it lit up. Sure enough there was a leak. The Clarity knows even when all four are relatively low. (Checked the next morning with my digital gauge 0.5 PSI resolution with all four exactly the same down to that). I'm currently running 30.5 PSI.

 

Hi. Unfortunately on my 2002 Volvo XC40 Recharge with the “Ultimate” package the TPMS does not display individual tire pressure, nor does any feature in the on-screen vehicle information display. I suppose tHis means they used the less expensive “indirect” TPMS, without internal pressure sensors in the tires. I’m a little disappointed about considering a $27 aftermarket device with cap sensors on a top of the line Volvo but most of the reviews are looking pretty good. I’m glad to see the Kona EV (as well as my 2018 Nissan Leaf) do provide individual tire pressure readings on the dash.

 

Call me sensitive but I can feel the larger rocks stuck in the treads while driving.

There are aftermarket internal TPMS kits. That's what I will put when I switch to RunFlats. If your Volvo already has RunFlats you don't really need it unless the inconvenience of checking all four when a light occurs must be avoided. It is imperative to do a calibration every single time you do a tire pressure adjustment, meaning letting out or adding air to at least one tire. I found out the hard way with the Sienna...

 

Here’s on that alerts when the sensor isn’t detected. Also shows it on the screen

Tire Pressure Monitoring System with Intelligent Voice, Universal Wireless Smart Car Tire Safety Monitor with Solar and USB Charge, Real-Time Pressure & Temperature Alerts, 6 Alarm Modes, Install Tool https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09TT8DY1B/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_KW5AWVA4Y2DNXKM1DM9H?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

I just ordered one. Will report back after testing it out

 

Does take long to rcalibrate? I think it just recalibrates to the new state of rotation soon after you start driving.

 

I had a tire with a slow leak also. I would air up the tire and do the tpms calibration. the warning light would go off and be good for 2 or 3 weeks but then eventually come back on. I never worried about the system. On another occasion i had a worse leak. I was on a road trip and no tire shops around. So i would air up the tire then do the calibration, and about 2 hours later the tpms light came on again. I had to air the tire up a couple times to make it home. But the system seemed to recalbrate promptly. I think that on a leak much worse, the light would soon come on and you should be able to hear the leak. I do agree that being able to see the actual tire pressures would give more peace of mind.

 

It is unfortunate that the Clarity does not identify which tire is the culprit.

 

For the XC40 Recharge I am guessing that "2002" is a typo and they have a new 2022. I think that is a pure electric car if not PHEV.

@MrFixit I progressively lowered the pressures because of terribly/visibly obvious center tread wear. Then more recently I am tracking it with an Autel TBE-200. I hope to find the sweet spot for even wear then I'll report. Nearing 58k mi on the original tires.

I actually have 2 aftermarket systems but have not tried them yet. One allows changing tire positions with tire rotation but the other I found out does not. (The other actually connects to the OBD 2 port to display other parameters, but sadly does not support tire rotation)...

A neighbor's late model Audi has indirect TPMS. Not surprising everyone switching to indirect. Too bad self programming sensors didn't catch on...

EDIT- I have confirmed that eBay Item # 144180386208 does allow configuring tire placement for rotation. I am still waiting for when we need new tires to try it though so I can't really comment that I like it or not yet beyond that it does. (Important for internal sensors that is).

 

I tested this product out this weekend. First, the good news. It's surprisingly accurate, within 1lb of my Acutire gauge. And for some reason, I can't get a tight seal w/ my Acutire on my right rear tire, so I can't even get a decent pressure reading on that tire w/o this add-on TPMS.

Now, the bad news and concerns:
1. The product is not as described. Like the other products people have tried, it doesn't detect when a sensor is offline... the reading just freezes up. Also, it doesn't have voice output, and just beeps instead. I am certain that they sent me the wrong model, and have contacted the seller for a replacement.
2. It didn't occur to me until I installed it.. having these things on the wheels makes it inconvenient to add air to the tires. If you use the locknut, you better make sure you put the wrench in a safe place, because it's difficult to remove the sensors w/o it.
3. I wonder how badly they affect the tire balance.
4. Even though I have a compressor in the trunk, I still worry about them getting loose and bleeding out my air while I'm driving.

 

I assume you meant to say don't lose the locknut removal tool.

I gave up using the locknuts on mine. Mine has weatherproof rubber boots on the sensor that are optional to use. I like using the boots, maybe it's not necessary but it just seems better to keep out moisture. But I found it's either/or, as using the boots makes it very difficult to loosen or tighten the locknuts. Even without the boots it's a slight hassle to loosen the locknuts whenever I want to add air. So I decided to not use the locknuts and I just use the boots. The boots by themselves doesn't make it any harder to remove or reinstall the sensors. And the boots might help keep the sensor from getting loose when not using the locknuts. Also someone said they experienced (or they read somewhere) that using the locknuts contributes to leaks because it prevents screwing the sensors in fully tight. Of course by not using them you give up whatever security the locknuts provide, but I would think that would be mainly effective against teenagers or others who would remove them just for fun. Someone who steals the sensors for intended resale would likely have no problem removing the locknut.

I agree and gave my thoughts about how I think it should work in post #16.

 

Yes, thanks for the correction. I edited my post above, too.

 

Thanks for this great discussion and I'm sold.

Any ideas which of the two recommended in this thread is better to purchase since they're about the same price? Pros and cons of each?

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09TT8DY1B/

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07Q5ZFG4F

 

The second link looks like the ones I use (light background and black text). I’ve had good luck with them so far on two different cars.