Forum Discussion

mikestock's avatar
mikestock
Explorer
Jul 04, 2018

I hope most of you are smarter than I; but just in case

I have a tire pressure monitor system with sensors on all 6 coach wheels plus 4 for my towed.

The mistake I made was going through an automatic car wash with the sensors still on the valve stems. I was lucky in that it only sheared the left front stem. I exited the car wash with the tire completely flat.

I had the stem replaced at a tire shop next door and that started the problems I had with my CR-V's monitoring system. It took 3 return trips plus a trip to the Honda dealer to finally get the programming fixed.

If you have sensors on your towed vehicle, remember this.
  • whemme's avatar
    whemme
    Explorer II
    Jul 10, 2018
    I guess I don't understand the manufacturers desire to equip cars these days with low profile tires. They subject the rims to easy curb damage and both the tires and rims to frequent pothole damage. Also those tires are more expensive to replace when worn out than the earlier normal 15" or 16" rim size tires.

    Rim sizes exceeding 18" also cause a more stiff ride - all in exchange for the supposed sexy look of those taller rim sizes.
  • mikestock's avatar
    mikestock
    Explorer
    Jul 10, 2018
    jplante4 wrote:
    I bought sensors for the toad but I think they're too far away to read. I guess I need a booster.


    They should work. Mine work on my CR-V behind a 40' DP.
  • eheading's avatar
    eheading
    Explorer
    Jul 06, 2018
    Unfortunately the only Toyota Corolla which is towable is one with a manual transmission. The only model that has the manual transmission is the SE sport model. It has low profile tires because they have a wider tread which grips the road better (and I am sure costs some amount of mpg loss). So ---- I ended up with low profile tires. My solution is just to not keep the TPMS transmitters on the wheels unless I am actually towing the car. Small price to pay (now that I have learned a VERY EXPENSIVE lesson) for a car that I am VERY fond of.

    Ed Headington
  • j-d's avatar
    j-d
    Explorer II
    Jul 05, 2018
    mikestock wrote:
    ...I bought my granddaughter a small Lexus with low profile tires and she twice had tire and rim damage from potholes...


    Buy ME one and I promise to be careful!

    To actually contribute to the discussion, I don't like LP tires either. It's interesting they're so popular, as fuel mileage is a big deal these days and the taller narrower tires roll easier. I guess the deal is, the bigger the wheels, the less flexing of the low profile tires. Takes some of the variability out of the vehicle's cornering etc.

    Our Corolla and Frontier take "ordinary" 15" tires. A good replacement set is around $500. That doesn't happen with 17's/
  • mikestock's avatar
    mikestock
    Explorer
    Jul 05, 2018
    eheading wrote:
    I am definitely not smarter than you. Just remember not only car washes do you have to watch out for, but also curbs. We never had a problem until our newest car with low profile tires. Before the transmitters never stuck out past the tire - now they do!!!

    Ed Headington


    I would never again buy a car with low profile tires. I bought my granddaughter a small Lexus with low profile tires and she twice had tire and rim damage from potholes. Once even had $2800 in damage to the front end suspension and steering. My son bought a 5-series BMW and destroyed so many tires he finally bought lifetime road hazard protection, which has paid off more than once
  • eheading's avatar
    eheading
    Explorer
    Jul 04, 2018
    I am definitely not smarter than you. Just remember not only car washes do you have to watch out for, but also curbs. We never had a problem until our newest car with low profile tires. Before the transmitters never stuck out past the tire - now they do!!!

    Ed Headington
  • jplante4's avatar
    jplante4
    Explorer II
    Jul 04, 2018
    I bought sensors for the toad but I think they're too far away to read. I guess I need a booster.
  • RoyF's avatar
    RoyF
    Explorer
    Jul 04, 2018
    I also have taken my truck though car washes without a problem to the TST sensors. I do have steel valve stems.
  • Dutch_12078's avatar
    Dutch_12078
    Explorer II
    Jul 04, 2018
    We've been through many car washes with our standard TST sensors on our toad without any problems. We do have pretty short metal stems though, and I removed the rotating security covers, leaving the sensors not much larger than some of the fancy valve caps.

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