My Vette has Michelin run flats, less than 2 yrs old and probably not 1500 miles on them and like a lot of Vettes mine sits in garage a lot more than I like

Drove it Friday night to local HS where I am PA announcer (less than 2 miles from my house ) and all is well (always drive Vette to home games , our team is on a 20 game win streak and ranked No 1 in SC so I am afraid to change what I do(but. tell folks I am NOT superstitious ) LOL).

Anyway after game friday night I get in car to come home and see low pressure light on for tires but temp is upper 40’s and thought nothing of it but hit button to check. 3 tires 29 lbs but right front said 0 on read out .

Drove home carefully and parked it. Checked air pressure w gauge next day and reading 30 cold

My thought is bad sensor but just want to make sure. Brother in Law owns local Goodyear shop (yep he put Michelins on for me instead of Goodyears ) . Going to take it to them first of week but just more curious than anything is if tire is actually flat I would always assume it would show on tire gauge ???

 

I'm voting for a bad sensor. They randomly fail with no rhyme or reason.


Bill S.

 

Forgot to add when i backed it out of garage at lunch on Friday battery was some what weak so I put charger on it till time to go to game

Battery was installed same time as tires and normally leave trickle charger on it but last time I drove it I did not

Would the low battery have caused anything ?

 

They generally display "XX" on the DIC when the battery fails. At least that has been my experience. Maybe there was some type of rfi interference that didn't allow that sensor to be picked up. Maybe it somehow lost the calibration and needs to be reset. Take it out for a 15 minute or so drive and see what happens. If it still reads 0, go back to the store where you bought the tires and ask them to relearn the sensors. They won't be able to do the relearn if the sensor is bad.

 

Agree with above..

Are the sensors also 2 years old? Or original? My sensors last years, like 10 or more.. But I did just have several newer ones not read right on one ride.. Were all dropping down to 26, then would come up. Never had that happen, and it went away and all is good, but I suspect the car, not the sensors, and possibly just interference from some radio source. Happened in a way that it could not have been another car interfering.

I agree, XX is what the car shows if it gets no reading.

I would just revert to old fashioned pressure testing for a while before I would take it in, unless there is a warranty deadline or it keeps showing one sensor is no good.

I bet it will go away and was due to the cold, or just a sign you should have had new sensors placed when you got new tires (been there done that) in which case you will eventually need all four done. But two years on a sensor seems way too soon.

 

Your car battery does not power the sensors. They have their own battery built in. Lifespan is somewhere between 7-10 years. Did you change sensors when you put the Michelins on? How old is your Vette?
If the sensor failed, it may be time for new sensors all around.

 

2008

I “assume” sensors were replaced, I will ask them . Had Vette in for the leaking fuel issue to be corrected and ended up getting new tires as well while it was there

In back of my mind he said they replaced them but not positive

Thanks for the help folks

So to make sure I am understanding , if tire pressure gauge is reading ok then it is good

 

Generally, tire stores will not replace the TPMS sensors while replacing tires without approval and consulting with you due to the cost. However, the tire replacement will include a TPMS rebuild kit which does not include the actual sensor.

GD

 

Your receipt will say if they did because the cost will be about 250$ minimum for 4 installed added..

Yes, if a mech tire pressure gauge says 30 it is 30. Don't believe the sensor, believe your gauge. if you are throwing codes though, like low PSI it will affect your performance, I believe, and I would get it fixed. Honestly, if they are orig you need new ones by now, I did a few years ago on my backup rims. But a sensor usually doesn't read wrong, it either reads or not at all. I think when my multiple tires sensor readouts said 26 suddenly then corrected, it was the car getting bad info somehow, not the sensors. When my sensors failed they just showed XX and would not bind to car. Not to say a sensor could be inaccurate, but it won't just make up numbers usually I think.

If your mechanical tire pressure gauge reads 30 all around, you have no leaks and are ok to drive, but with RF tires, you would not know if you got a flat until the handling was effected some, but we lived like that for decades before TPMS! If you drive on a RF tire without pressure the tire is ruined, if you don't, it can be possibly be patched and plugged (lowering speed rating but that may not be an issue)... Another reason to have TPMS.

 

On the C6 the TPMS is now integrated with the Active Handling System and you should no longer ignore problems with the TPMS system. Shortly after purchasing my 2013 GS with run-flat tires, I was running on the highway at a speed of 70-75mph and the TPMS flashed that I had a left rear flat tire and the AHS darn near jerked the steering wheel out of my hand and then indicated that I am limited to 55mph. That was quite the welcome to the C6 Corvette with all the electronic nannies that try to keep the car in check for you. When I had my TPMS system checked-out by my local tire store, it was discovered that my right rear was actually flat (no air pressure) and had a bolt stuck in the tire. The tire was repaired and the TPMS relearn procedure performed to ensure that the system was reporting tire location accurately. Evidently, prior to my ownership someone switched the two rear tires and didn't perform the TPMS relearn procedure. I suggest you have the TPMS system checked and fix any problem with it so it continues to perform as expected and not throw any "curve *****" your way.

Good luck...GD

 

Loaded question, and going to answer is in two parts.

If you try to start the car with battery drained down, can low volt glitch the modules. To solve this problem and battery charged back up and amp load testing fine, remove both battery cables from the battery, touch the cables together away from the battery a few time, then reconnect the battery. Once you have started the car up again, then don't forget to reindex the windows.

If still having problems with the sensor,and not getting XX, then e brake up, car is ACC mode, press both the lock and unlock button on the fob with it in the car, horn will honk/RCDLR will be in TPMS relearn mode, and staring with TPMS trip tool, start with front driver side tire, then passsenger front tire, passenger rear tire, and ending with drivers rear tire, each time you trip the tpms sensors in that order, will get a horn honk, and when you trip the last tire on the driver rear side, will get a double horn honk.

So again, could be low voltage glitching of the RCDLR, or could be that the RCDLR just forget the full serial number of that TPMS instead. If battery is dead in a TPMS, then will get a XX on the dash for that sensor isntead.

As for TPMS trigger tool, where you go.
Note, the T5 ones with the rounded dome tops, are the newer design models,since pretty sure that all of the basic ones are made in the same shop to begin with.