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

 

[timswi]

See Michelin PAX System - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Aaron Z

Thanks..Just wanted a real life experience from an owner.

 

[sld]

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.

I don't see a problem with this. Why should the insurance pay huge settlements if some idiot drives with under inflated tires....or 100 mph...or without a seat belt and has a bad wreck. It's about time society started looking at personal accountability instead of stick it to the big bad corporation.

 

[rsallen]

Ha, that's a laugh. When was the last time any major industry in the US got it so called got it stuck to it?

I along with most thinking people that use the roads are happy with the modern development of the autos in our lives. They're safer, longer lasting, cheaper to operate and less troublesome than anything produced in the past (you know, the good old days).

Much of what is the complaint of the op'er has more do to with the manufacturer than any regs coming out of Washington.
Some manufacturers claim it and some don't but the laws litigated some time ago allowed the manufacturers to claim proprietary property of the information about the operation and repair information related to your car. So even as owner of said car, even you must pay for that information if the manufacturer decides to play it that way. Ergo some autos can be read out and reset from a dash display and others can't.

Personally I'd like to mandate blocking of all phone, texting and live gps mapping while the car is moving. There isn't a day go by that I don't have to take some kind of evasive action because someone isn't paying attention to driving.

 

[aczlan]

Much of what is the complaint of the op'er has more do to with the manufacturer than any regs coming out of Washington.
Some manufacturers claim it and some don't but the laws litigated some time ago allowed the manufacturers to claim proprietary property of the information about the operation and repair information related to your car. So even as owner of said car, even you must pay for that information if the manufacturer decides to play it that way. Ergo some autos can be read out and reset from a dash display and others can't.

I understand that there are propitiatory codes, but per the EPA ALL vehicles made after 1996 need to supply certain basic info via the OBD-II port. That I all that I am looking to have made available via the information center.

Personally I'd like to mandate blocking of all phone, texting and live gps mapping while the car is moving. There isn't a day go by that I don't have to take some kind of evasive action because someone isn't paying attention to driving.

By "Live GPS mapping" do you mean entering an address while driving?
IMO, it aint gonna happen as I've said it many times.
For it to be work it would have to do the following:
1. Block the driver from calling, etc
2. Allow the passengers (be they on a train, boat, car, truck, van, bus, etc) to use their devices as normal
There isn't anything available that will do both 1 and 2.
Also, what if my wife is driving and someone calls/texts to her phone which I am holding? I am then having a conversation, not her, so you will need to allow for that as well.

Aaron Z

 

[Soundguy]

By "Live GPS mapping" do you mean entering an address while driving?
IMO, it aint gonna happen as I've said it many times.
For it to be work it would have to do the following:
1. Block the driver from calling, etc
2. Allow the passengers (be they on a train, boat, car, truck, van, bus, etc) to use their devices as normal
There isn't anything available that will do both 1 and 2.
Also, what if my wife is driving and someone calls/texts to her phone which I am holding? I am then having a conversation, not her, so you will need to allow for that as well.

Aaron Z

i agree. no way to do it.. yet anyway..

 

[aczlan]

i agree. no way to do it.. yet anyway..

Its simple to lock out the touchscreen when the car is in gear (what will you do about re-routing for traffic slowdowns though?) but for his other problems, I see no way (current or future) to lock out a phone without also locking out the passengers and that wont fly.

Aaron Z

 

[Soundguy]

Its simple to lock out the touchscreen when the car is in gear (what will you do about re-routing for traffic slowdowns though?) but for his other problems, I see no way (current or future) to lock out a phone without also locking out the passengers and that wont fly.

Aaron Z

that's my point.. anything you lock out locks out the passangers ability to use..e tc..

 

[David_Kb7uns]

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

Not sure if it has changed since Fiat bought Chrysler but the 2004 Town & Country, 2005 Dodge Ram and 2006 Jeep Commander all will display major OBD codes in the odometer window after cycling the key on and off 3 times.

They would all also program extra keys by themselves with out the programming tool provided you had the original 2 but that was taken out because of fraud at dealers by lot people programming extra keys and selling them to crooks.

David Kb7uns

 

[yelbike]

Not sure if it has changed since Fiat bought Chrysler but the 2004 Town & Country, 2005 Dodge Ram and 2006 Jeep Commander all will display major OBD codes in the odometer window after cycling the key on and off 3 times.


David Kb7uns

That's almost makes me want to buy dodge product.....almost.
As for the key thing ford is the same way.