Seriously...TPMS?

[sparc]

I think it would be hard to prove, but most people driving with low tires probably aren't aware of it. The light tells them about it, and many/most will probably get it corrected. I'm a car guy, pay attention to my tires, etc, and I've picked up a screw in a tire while driving, and had the TPMS alert me that the pressure had dropped. I didn't find out after the sidewall had been damaged, or I had control problems, so I thought that was pretty helpful. I also have a work vehicle that seems like a magnet for nails, and screws....I don't do a pressure check every morning, but 7, yes 7, times in the past year I've had the TPMS alert me to a problem that you couldn't notice visually. Sometimes I could kick the tires and figure out which one was low, but not always. Each time, there was a nail, screw, or even once a pinhole with no obvious cause.

Seems the government has studied this, and ound that cars with TPMS are more likely to have properly inflated tires....generally, a good thing.

http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/Pubs/811086.pdf

http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/Pubs/811681.pdf

Why TPMS - Tire Pressure Monitoring Systems Usergroup - Key Statistics of TPMS

I think a vehicle with TPMS would be very easy to prove an underinflated tire after a collision. That other piece of technology that the government has forced into every vehicle will rat you out. Remember that the computer when it senses a 'accident' (for lack of a better term) grabs the last 30 seconds or so of data and records any status messages such as a low tire pressure warning. If they read this information as part of the accident investigation then in might be used to prove the vehicle was being operated in an unsafe condition KNOWINGLY.

 

[wmonroe]

I think a vehicle with TPMS would be very easy to prove an underinflated tire after a collision. That other piece of technology that the government has forced into every vehicle will rat you out. Remember that the computer when it senses a 'accident' (for lack of a better term) grabs the last 30 seconds or so of data and records any status messages such as a low tire pressure warning. If they read this information as part of the accident investigation then in might be used to prove the vehicle was being operated in an unsafe condition KNOWINGLY.

Very true, the "black box" in new vehicles records quite a bit of information.

 

[rsallen]

It is not the feds per se to be getting all bent out of shape about.
Do you really think YOUR legislators in Washington thought up black boxes etc all on their own?

Stop tilting at wind mills and turn your eyes to the real culprits in the fiasco called government today which in this one case happens to be the insurance industry.
Follow the money.

 

[tractorshopper]

Bought my wife a new fusion this year. It is my first vehicle with TPMS and I didn't even know I had this or that this was a requirement now. It has the larger 20" rims and low profile tires (51 PSI max cold fill). The light came on the other day for the first time. I looked at every wheel and could not tell at all that any were low because of the low profiles. I put air in all tires and it went away. Lowest tire had over 30 lbs in it.

My truck has regular truck tires with much larger profile and I can tell visually at ~25-30 lbs or less that they need a boost back to 44. I picked up a screw one day and could only tell it by feel when I was probably under 20 PSI.

I check my vehicles regularly because we transport our kids in them and nothing on Earth is more precious to me and I believe the most important part of the vehicle is the tire since it's what connects to the road and controls everything else. I'm just saying that while these may be idiot lights, my first experience with one caught it before I would have on my own. I'm very small government minded, but this one really doesn't bother me so much. I thought since the car was a Titanium that it was an added option. Maybe it shouldn't be mandatory, but with my daughters nearing driving age, I'm thinking this really could be a good thing if it helps their safety.

 

[timswi]

Bought my wife a new fusion this year. It is my first vehicle with TPMS and I didn't even know I had this or that this was a requirement now. It has the larger 20" rims and low profile tires (51 PSI max cold fill). The light came on the other day for the first time. I looked at every wheel and could not tell at all that any were low because of the low profiles. I put air in all tires and it went away. Lowest tire had over 30 lbs in it.

My truck has regular truck tires with much larger profile and I can tell visually at ~25-30 lbs or less that they need a boost back to 44. I picked up a screw one day and could only tell it by feel when I was probably under 20 PSI.

I check my vehicles regularly because we transport our kids in them and nothing on Earth is more precious to me and I believe the most important part of the vehicle is the tire since it's what connects to the road and controls everything else. I'm just saying that while these may be idiot lights, my first experience with one caught it before I would have on my own. I'm very small government minded, but this one really doesn't bother me so much. I thought since the car was a Titanium that it was an added option. Maybe it shouldn't be mandatory, but with my daughters nearing driving age, I'm thinking this really could be a good thing if it helps their safety.

I don't really have a problem with TPMS per-se..However, as owners we should be able to maintain the system without having to buy specialty tools, that's my whole point of the thread.

I actually am happy the wife's Hummer has it as she and my daughter are the most important things in my life and she does pay attention to warning lights thankfully...

 

[aczlan]

I don't really have a problem with TPMS per-se..However, as owners we should be able to maintain the system without having to buy specialty tools, that's my whole point of the thread.

Yes. They have a "information center" built into the cluster, why in the world can't it read/reset the OBD-II codes, TPMS values, etc.

Aaron Z

 

[timswi]

Yes. They have a "information center" built into the cluster, why in the world can't it read/reset the OBD-II codes, TPMS values, etc.

Aaron Z

Agreed..Can't be that hard to integrate...I'll bet it will require a dealer visit (in the future) to reset the oil life too..Just a guess but they obviously want the DIY-ers to step back....This has been a mission creep for years as I've seen it...All manufacturers are doing it to one degree or another...Some high-end cars require a dealer visit just to CHANGE the oil...That's pathetic.

 

[mjcountrybumpkin]

All I'm going to say about it is , Honda odyssey PAX system. Takes tpms to a whole new pita level.

 

[timswi]

All I'm going to say about it is , Honda odyssey PAX system. Takes tpms to a whole new pita level.

Please explain

 

[aczlan]

Please explain

See Michelin PAX System - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Aaron Z