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Hey guys, I just had the FR z06 18/19 combo installed on my c5, and the fronts leak terribly fast. The rears might be, (lost about 2lbs overnight, but had a 25-30 degree temp drop also), but not like the fronts. The tpms are rebuilt, and it seams the new rubber O-rings are not doing their job. I had wheels n tires installed at the local Chevy dealer, and have to take it back to learn the tpms tomorrow. (we forgot to do that) What to do? Anyone ever get aftermarket wheels and have tpms leak, and what did you do to fix it? RTV? Silicone? Find bigger O-rings? I did notice when I put the tpms on the wheels before going to have them mounted that it seemed that the rim surface did not quite accommodate the O-ring, as in the aluminum body made contact with the wheel before any tightening was done. So, the problem has to be that.
Last edited by inauguralfbody; Dec 22, 2013 at 10:34 PM.
On the early style TPMS there is an o-ring that fits in a groove in the TPMS. I really doubt that RTV or similar will be a good long term fix.
It sounds like your aftermarket wheels will not work with your sensors, since you said the aluminum body made contact before tightening. Some people have used a band strap to hold the TPMS in the center of the wheel like the C4's did although it may be difficult to train/program them to the car after mounting (you can train/program before mounting also). Another option is to go back to regular valve stems without TPMS. You will get an error message every time you start the car that can be cleared with the reset button. On a '98 I don't think the TPMS can be tuned out. I think only the '01-'04 can be tuned out like the Z06's.
OK,,, here is some information that may be useful:
there is a difference between the seal on an EARLY (97-2000) and late (2001-2004) TPS Seal. The early sensor used an O ring on the stem to seal against the rim.
Here is the early TPS and O ring seal on the stem
The late model used a formed seal and it fit into a beveled area in the rim:
I have no idea if you can purchase the formed seal seperately. You might want to look up / google supliers of sensors and see if they gave any seals to sell you.
If all else fails, go to the pluming supply store and see if you can find any fauset valve seal that you can modify to fit.
There is a way to UP-GRADE your FOBs TPS and RFA module to the newer style FOBs and TPS...
Not all wheels accept tpms. you can always glue and stainless steel band the sensor in place. the sensor gets epoxied to the center of the wheel, half way between the front and rear of the rim. its epoxied at a place that is oriented to the valve stem hole so you know where the sensor is located when it comes time to learn them. You use a standard valve stem in the valve stem hole when using this method.
This practice has been well known and many post where discussed on this procedure over the early years here.
Bill aka ET
This GOOGLE link has a TPS repair kit. Im at work and open the exact link but, its the Standard Motor Products kit (the third one down.) It has a replacement seal
The OP's info page shows he has an early car ('98).
If you were trying to find the seal for a later set, try Rock Auto. They have a repair kit for $1.15 that includes the seal, stem, nut,and cap. This is the Schrader set. (Schrader made the OEM TPMS, so it is the same as OEM GM parts.
Thanks Bill... that's a nice design.. very simple... I was using the Sherman way back machine to remember those early issues with wheels that were not designed for sensors.
Merry Christmas
Bill aka ET
Hey guys, I just had the FR z06 18/19 combo installed on my c5, and the fronts leak terribly fast. The rears might be, (lost about 2lbs overnight, but had a 25-30 degree temp drop also), but not like the fronts. The tpms are rebuilt, and it seams the new rubber O-rings are not doing their job. I had wheels n tires installed at the local Chevy dealer, and have to take it back to learn the tpms tomorrow. (we forgot to do that) What to do? Anyone ever get aftermarket wheels and have tpms leak, and what did you do to fix it? RTV? Silicone? Find bigger O-rings? I did notice when I put the tpms on the wheels before going to have them mounted that it seemed that the rim surface did not quite accommodate the O-ring, as in the aluminum body made contact with the wheel before any tightening was done. So, the problem has to be that.
Chad.
Your profile says you have a 98 if this is true, all you need is a trip to Ace Hardware with your sensor in hand all you need is fatter O rings that will still fit the sensor.
The issue is most aftermarket wheels fail to make the hole round like the factory wheels.