TPMS in winter tires?

[nzwasp]

So i just got a brand new Toyota Highlander 2013. And im a little unsure about the whole TPMS when it comes to purchasing winter tires.

According to tirerack there are TPMS sensors in the tires and in the wheels. But if I want to get steel wheels for my car do i even bother buying tpms sensors for the tires. I was thinking of just getting my tires from tirerack because i'll save a few hundred instead of getting it in canada.

[Kloubek]

Be aware that if you require warranty work, they may not honour it. So you save now, but may not in the long run.

Anyway, you don't NEED to put the sensors in the winter tires. But you can expect the dash light to be on the whole time. TPMS often fails in the winter anyway when the pressure inside the tires is reduced from the cold.

[Aleks]

On some vehicles if your TPMS light is on all the time you won't be able to turn off traction control. Probably not a huge issue if you have AWD.

[top_speed]

If your Vehicle has self initializing tpms then i would recommend u get it, if not you would have to reprogram sensors everytime u swap your wheels or you light would just stay on which would cost you more in a long run.

[GoChris]

You can reprogram your winter TPMS wheels in about 1.5 minutes. I've been doing it for years on my wife's vehicle. It's super simple. For $50/wheel and a one time purchase, why not. It would be good to know if one is low. It's not as fun checking tire pressure when it's -20 out.

[RickDaTuner]

Toyotas are quite combersum to reprgrams TPMS, unless goChris has verified his tool to work with toyotas, I would totally not even bother with installing a set in your winters.

Most places that do have multi vehicle programers, charge between $50-$80 for every relearn, and at that price, whatS really keeping you from not just switching over your tires every season as there are places that will do a mount/balance for $14/tire.

The easiest vehicles to relearn TPMS on are actually GMs.
on most vehicles all you need to do is have a source for air to fill up your tires, turn the vehicle to the on position, hold down the lock and unlock buttons on the remote, wait untill it honks twice, once it confirms it's in learn mode, let air out of each tire starting with the front left till you hear a honk, continuing clockwise ending at the rear left. Once it has relearned each position you fill your tires to correct pressure as stated on the drivers door sill, and you're done.

I believe dodge functions similarly.

At any rate TPMS are a nucence to people and shops, I can't recall how man times a person has brought their vehicles in because the light is on, and all it required was checking the tire pressure and filling it to the correct pressure.

Come to think of it, it would be more beneficial to run the sensors in the winter tires, being that they are the ones that see the greatest amount of time on the vehicle.

[mrsingh]

I had a 2011 Toyota Highlander Sport that came with the factory 19" wheels, I ended up trading in the vehicle this year.

When I bought the vehicle new I also purchased a set on Nokian Hakkas on aftermarket 17" wheels for the wintertime. The dealer advised me that they could install the sensors, but they weren't really worth it if I was willing to deal with the light being illuminated on the dash during winter. I decided it wasn't worth the extra cost and just dealt with the light, no issues whatsoever.

On a side note, the Highlander was great in the snow and ice with the winter rubber, never had any regrets! :D

[mikestypes]

When I bought winter wheels and tires last fall, Tunerworks price was so close to the total Tirerack price to my door that it was a no brainer to go with Tunerworks and have somewhere to go if there is a problem.

I got the TPMS sensors included and my Ford Edge automatically recognized them. No reseting of the system required.

[ercchry]

Originally posted by Kloubek
Be aware that if you require warranty work, they may not honour it. So you save now, but may not in the long run.

i'd love to hear the reasoning behind this one...

[Kloubek]

Originally posted by ercchry


i'd love to hear the reasoning behind this one...

I bet you would. Just think about the logistics for a moment and perhaps you can come up with the answer on your own.

[ercchry]

Originally posted by Kloubek


I bet you would. Just think about the logistics for a moment and perhaps you can come up with the answer on your own.

nope, i cant come up with much... unless you had an issue with your tires.... which basically no vehicle manufacture covers anyway

[Kloubek]

Ok... I see where I went wrong. I wasn't blatantly explicit, and led you astray. I'm sorry.

I didn't mean the *vehicle* warranty work. I mean that there is a warranty on the tires which will usually not apply here if you purchase from the USA - which is the purchase he was considering in his original post.

[ercchry]

Originally posted by Kloubek
Ok... I see where I went wrong. I wasn't blatantly explicit, and led you astray. I'm sorry.

I didn't mean the *vehicle* warranty work. I mean that there is a warranty on the tires which will usually not apply here if you purchase from the USA - which is the purchase he was considering in his original post.

aaaah, so not due to lack of sensors... then yes i agree

[benyl]

My 2010 F150 just recognizes the sensors in each set. No need to reset.

My mom's 2010 Dodge Grand caravan does as well.

I am so glad My civic uses the ABS sensors. Just have to reset the system in the dash and drive away.

[msommers]

I have TPMS sensors in both my summer and winter tires on my Toyota. Despite how cold it got some days, the light never came on. Note this may be because the factory PSI is around 30 (I think), while my E-load tires are kept around 40-45PSI so it may never dip down to the warning range.

[BokCh0y]

TPMS sensors in my opinion are a waste of money and time.

Buy a car in Alberta, need winter tires obviously. Go out and pick up a 2nd set of rims with rubber, reason for this? 1) to be able to drive safely in the Canadian winters, all seasons just aren't good enough for Alberta winters. 2) Save money and time from having to book an appointment every say 6 months to swap rubber from summers to winters. 3) Ease of change, swap them out whenever you want.\

Then they come out with this TPMS bullshit. And the killer is that NOT all vehicles come with the ability to store 2 sets of sensors, which is just a cash grab for the manufacturers in my opinion.

Now when I swap between summers and winters, I still have to bring the fucking thing to the dealership for programming and pay anywhere from $70-120 depending on the service advisor and their mood. :facepalm:

Anyway, sorry, just ranting. I'm pretty sure the Highlander doesn't store a 2nd set of sensors, but worth checking. My IS350 had a main and a secondary storage for tpms so you can alternate between each.

It all really comes down to this to this though...can you put up with a big yellow light shining in your face the whole winter? My IS, when I had it, it would come up with a huge ass RED exclamation mark and shine in your face until you resolved the issue, no way to turn it off. Drove me nuts so I picked up the 2nd set. Not sure if they fit, but I have spare set from the IS just sitting around, check to see if they fit your car, if so, will sell to you if you want them, they are OEM.

Otherwise...try this:

http://www.scionlife.com/forums/showthread.php?t=144818

Never have to re-program TPMS sensors ever again.

[seer_claw]

Or you make friends with the guys at UrbanX and they have a reprogrammer that they will use to reprogram your tires at a minimal or no charge. Also the prices they charge are hard to beat from anywhere.

[nzwasp]

Originally posted by mrsingh
I had a 2011 Toyota Highlander Sport that came with the factory 19" wheels, I ended up trading in the vehicle this year.

When I bought the vehicle new I also purchased a set on Nokian Hakkas on aftermarket 17" wheels for the wintertime. The dealer advised me that they could install the sensors, but they weren't really worth it if I was willing to deal with the light being illuminated on the dash during winter. I decided it wasn't worth the extra cost and just dealt with the light, no issues whatsoever.

On a side note, the Highlander was great in the snow and ice with the winter rubber, never had any regrets! :D

Which dealer told you that? why did you trade it in?

[mrsingh]

Originally posted by nzwasp


Which dealer told you that? why did you trade it in?

Country Hills Toyota.

I traded it in because I found that I'd only used the third row once. I happened to walk into the Lexus dealer one day on my day off, got a great trade in price on the Highlander and left with a 2013 Lexus RX350 Ultra Premium. I have ADHD when it comes to cars...