Winter wheels (not just tyre replacements) and TPMS

[raymie]

ok tried to order new wheels with winter tyres but there seems to be a concern from the supplier that the car would insist that a TPMS sensor was included (which they can supply for £180 but are not sure if it would be compatible).

I assumed that all would be ok and just a warning light would appear but they think that in some cases this is not the case,

Anyone with a newish car tried a replacement wheel without TPMS?

 

[jaapv]

Why don't you let your dealer handle this? Most of them are happy to supply winter wheels at competitive prices.

 

[raymie]

Dealer is too far away and too hard to get to, and then i would need to transport 4 extra tyres.

Much easier to get them delivered, a service the dealer does not offer

 

[raymie]

oh and the dealer themselves suggested going elsewhere, but the place they suggested has the same issues

 

[Bilbo59]

Worth reading the TPMS thread in this forum if you haven't already done so. http://www.myoutlanderphev.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=10&t=822

I ordered TPMS sensors and had them sent to the wheel/tyre supplier who fitted them. You then need to have them paired to the car by a Mitsubishi garage. make sure they leave the summer wheels TPMS sensors paired to A or B and use the other for the winter wheels.

Extract from the thread below.

TPMS Sensors
Cost £121.87 from Celtic Mitsubishi - 01792 659555 - Mark or Ceri

Wheels & Tyres
Cost £1109.00
Tekno RX7 Silver 18" 8J ET40
Vredestein Wintrac 4 Xtreme - 225/55/18 98V
Wheelbase (G.B.) Limited - 0845 500 4001 - Damian
http://www.wheelbasealloys.com/

TPMS sensors being sent to Wheelbase who will put it all together and I should get them next week. Quick visit to my local Mitsubishi garage to have them calibrated and hopefully happy winter motoring!

 

[raymie]

What happends if you use a wheel without the sensor or an uncalibrated one?

 

[jaapv]

Dealer is too far away and too hard to get to, and then i would need to transport 4 extra tyres.

Much easier to get them delivered, a service the dealer does not offer

Most dealers will store your wheels, at least over here.

 

[Bilbo59]

What happens if you use a wheel without the sensor or an uncalibrated one?

If you fit wheels with sensors that are not calibrated to the car you get a TPMS sensor warning which remains as a fault warning until you get the sensors calibrated. I assume that if you fit wheels with no TPMS sensors at all the fault still comes up but I haven't tried that one. I ran with the warning all summer when I took the winter wheels off. The garage hadn't left the original wheels on setting A where they were so I left them alone and suffered the fault warning until I had it serviced. The fault is irritating when you use the sat nav as the warning has to be cleared again after every turn instruction.

Worth getting sensors and getting them calibrated to the car - Get the summer ones to A and the winter ones to B then you can swop each year with no visit to the dealer.

 

[raymie]

Thanks Bilbo, that's what I needed to know.

Living so far from the dealer and having plenty of space it always make sense for me to store the other set of wheels at home and switch them myself when the time comes but while I can get the tyres fitted with the sensor getting them calibrated may take a while since I am hoping to not be at the dealer until mid July now.

 

[greendwarf]

I very much doubt, jaapv, that UK dealers supply anything at competitive prices and certainly wouldn't store customers wheels :lol:

 

[jaapv]

Well, there are things to be learnt from the Continent then... :mrgreen:

 

[maby]

I very much doubt, jaapv, that UK dealers supply anything at competitive prices and certainly wouldn't store customers wheels :lol:

I'm sure they would if there was any demand for it. I don't think many people in the UK are even aware of the existence of winter tyres.

 

[greendwarf]

I think the problem stems from the proliferation of tyre fitters in the UK. Not only does this dissuade dealers from maintaining expensive stocks (most people want a replacement NOW) tyres are not model/make specific (in general) but your nearest outlet is almost certainly an independent - or even a Kwikfit (I have dozens closer in Sarf Lundun than either of the 2 Mitsu dealers who are not open on Saturday PM or Sunday )

Also dealers are greedy because of the way they are squeezed by the manufacturers so that given the option of providing a non-standard part/service they will charge the maximum - certainly the full list price for a tyre which they would get, at discount, from Kwikfit anyway.

We also have a particular set up in the UK with Mitsu. AFAIK the UK market is still exclusively controlled the Colt Car Co. who licence the dealers, rather than Mitsu itself. This effectively prevents any competition between dealers - so no innovation in marketing.

 

[maby]

I think the problem stems from the proliferation of tyre fitters in the UK. Not only does this dissuade dealers from maintaining expensive stocks (most people want a replacement NOW) tyres are not model/make specific (in general) but your nearest outlet is almost certainly an independent - or even a Kwikfit (I have dozens closer in Sarf Lundun than either of the 2 Mitsu dealers who are not open on Saturday PM or Sunday )

Also dealers are greedy because of the way they are squeezed by the manufacturers so that given the option of providing a non-standard part/service they will charge the maximum - certainly the full list price for a tyre which they would get, at discount, from Kwikfit anyway.

We also have a particular set up in the UK with Mitsu. AFAIK the UK market is still exclusively controlled the Colt Car Co. who licence the dealers, rather than Mitsu itself. This effectively prevents any competition between dealers - so no innovation in marketing.

I don't think it would ever have occurred to me to go to the main dealer for a replacement tyre for any car I've ever owned! They are the place that sells me cars, does annual services and sells replacement parts for the engine, not rubber on the road.

 

[raymie]

I very much doubt, jaapv, that UK dealers supply anything at competitive prices and certainly wouldn't store customers wheels :lol:

I'm sure they would if there was any demand for it. I don't think many people in the UK are even aware of the existence of winter tyres.

I suspect this depends on where you live, in Aberdeenshire especially the rural areas most people I know fit winter tyres, far too icy for the next few months to not do so but you know the ones that don't, they are the ones that can't get up wee hills.

Anyway for me, wheelbase got back in touch after I passed them the info provided and are fitting the TPMS sensors to the wheels I ordered for £120 extra, so all I need to do eventually is get the wheels to the dealer to have them setup for set b for the car and that should cover me for my ownership of this one (If I replace it around the time of the first MOT).

 

[HiJack]

I have bought set of winter tyres on steel rims for my PHEV without realising my car has got TPMS fitted, so now have to buy and refit the sensors

Does anyone know if the MMC TPMS sensors work with steel rims?

 

[raymie]

My understanding is that the active TPMS work by being basically a pressure sensor and a radio transmitter so I can't see why the type of wheel would really matter, it would all be in the calibration.

Personally in your situation I would live with the pressure warning and not bother to fit them unless changing tyres later

 

[TC1978]

I've had good and bad experiences with TPMS over the years, bad is with an old Lexus where the previous owner had changed tyres and not kept the valve sensors :roll: , but good with a barge BMW which has run flats - I would ALWAYS have TPMS for run flats, you just can't very easily see or feel that you've lost pressure, and (obviously) running on the run flat sidewalls is purely a temporary, low speed measure (and they aren't supposed to be repairable).

But, if you're not running run flats, I think the systems are a bit unnecessary, as you can usually visibly see and feel any drastic loss of pressure anyway, and if they have a spurious issue (such as the aforementioned valve sensors being thrown out), it can start driving you nuts with the constant warnings...

 

[Swiftly]

My understanding is that the active TPMS work by being basically a pressure sensor and a radio transmitter so I can't see why the type of wheel would really matter, it would all be in the calibration.

Personally in your situation I would live with the pressure warning and not bother to fit them unless changing tyres later

Not a good idea, TPMS is a legal requirement.

As of 1st November 2012, all new-type vehicles will be required by EU law to have a pressure based tyre pressure monitoring system installed. This applies to the road wheels, not the spare
By November 2014, all new passenger vehicles will have to have TPMS installed by the manufacturer
The law is not currently retrospective, and does not apply to older vehicles
This law applies to passenger vehicles only, with no more than 7 seats
TPMS is now part of the annual vehicle test, and applies to all newly registered cars from January 1st 2012. This means that a car with a faulty TPMS will fail the vehicle test from January 2015
Until 2015, a faulty TPMS will only be an advisory and be listed on the testing certificate (UK).
There are hundreds of thousands of cars on European roads with sensors removed. The cost of replacement is high, circa €40.00 to €80.00 for the sensor, and €65.00 for updating the ECU where required. Rubber tyre valves are used to replace the sensor and the warning light disabled, however this practice will be prohibited on new-type 2012 cars.
Insurance implications will be the same as for disabling an airbag or ABS.
Disabling a safety system on a vehicle may become an offence

 

[raymie]

Good point about the MOT but I would tend to a) have that while still on summer tyres (the factory fitted ones) and b) don't plan on keeping the car that long hopefully.

In my case the wheels I got are meant to have the sensors already fitted, but they only arrived this week so not got them on the car or tried to get to the dealer to get them calibrated yet