My Dealer-less TPMS Tire Change Story

[redmed]

I would settle at disabling the TPMS system.

If you really, really want to do it--swap your ECU for one from Canada--Canadian cars didn't have tpms.

Update on my own tpms issues. Looks like the pressure release method took the second time around. It's really weird, but I seem to have to re-program the sensors more than once with every tire swap, even if I use the vt30. Speaking of the vt30, I emailled ateq with no reply and tried to call them but no one was available. I'm not going to have time to chase them so looks like this unit will sit unfixed for a while.

Mine took the first time.

[SamirD]

I would settle at disabling the TPMS system.

If you really, really want to do it--swap your ECU for one from Canada--Canadian cars didn't have tpms.

Update on my own tpms issues. Looks like the pressure release method took the second time around. It's really weird, but I seem to have to re-program the sensors more than once with every tire swap, even if I use the vt30. Speaking of the vt30, I emailled ateq with no reply and tried to call them but no one was available. I'm not going to have time to chase them so looks like this unit will sit unfixed for a while.

Mine took the first time.

Seems like everyone's car seems to take but mine.

[redmed]

Maybe you need to be more assertive.

[SamirD]

Maybe you need to be more assertive.

I figured out how to do the relearn without the dealership so I thought the car would be happy that it's not being ravaged by techs. I guess I'll have to lower my expectations.

[moojin]

Since my post, I drove the car on a single trip of 150 miles. The (!) light in the speedometer did not disappear.

I will say that when I had my tire valve and tpms sensor replaced, drove away, then the 3 warning lights appeared again, drove back to the auto repair shop, they tried to do some unusual steps to get the warning light to disappear, including using some type of handheld "computer" to "talk" to my car. Is it possible to reset the 38psi on the TPMS within the car's computer to a different value, such as 20 psi or even 45 psi?

I will attempt to inflate to 45psi, set to relearn mode and drain to 40psi tomorrow evening.

Well that sucks.

I recently tried the inflate/deflate method and after about 15 miles the lights came back on again. Looks like I'll have to do it again.

I must say it's quicker than the tool method though as the tool takes longer to trigger the sensors than letting air out.

Last week, I inflated the tires to 45psi, relearned and drained the tires to 40 psi. Within about 10 minutes, the blinking (!) in the speedometer returned. I drove the car for about 200 additional miles and the light continued to appear. The light turns on for almost one second and then turns off for about 1.5 to 2 seconds and repeats in this pattern.

Today, for the first time the light disappeared. The first time, it disappeared for about five minutes (until the end of trip). The second time, it disappeared for about 10 minutes (until the end of the trip). Unfortunately, it is not consistent as this occurred on my 3rd and 5th trip of the day. The light reappeared on the sixth trip.

Could the blinking light (!) indicate that one of the TPMS sensors is running out of batteries?

I will visit the dealership to take care of the recalls on my Suzuki Kizashi. At the same time, I'd like to see if they can help me with this issue, but I'm hesitant, I don't want them to accidentally put me back into the 3 warning light mode. (And then charge me money on top of that.)

Should I try the relearn mode again?

Is there a difference between dropping the tire pressure 5 psi and using a handheld computer to reset each TPMS sensor?

[SamirD]

Since my post, I drove the car on a single trip of 150 miles. The (!) light in the speedometer did not disappear.

I will say that when I had my tire valve and tpms sensor replaced, drove away, then the 3 warning lights appeared again, drove back to the auto repair shop, they tried to do some unusual steps to get the warning light to disappear, including using some type of handheld "computer" to "talk" to my car. Is it possible to reset the 38psi on the TPMS within the car's computer to a different value, such as 20 psi or even 45 psi?

I will attempt to inflate to 45psi, set to relearn mode and drain to 40psi tomorrow evening.

Well that sucks.

I recently tried the inflate/deflate method and after about 15 miles the lights came back on again. Looks like I'll have to do it again.

I must say it's quicker than the tool method though as the tool takes longer to trigger the sensors than letting air out.

Last week, I inflated the tires to 45psi, relearned and drained the tires to 40 psi. Within about 10 minutes, the blinking (!) in the speedometer returned. I drove the car for about 200 additional miles and the light continued to appear. The light turns on for almost one second and then turns off for about 1.5 to 2 seconds and repeats in this pattern.

Today, for the first time the light disappeared. The first time, it disappeared for about five minutes (until the end of trip). The second time, it disappeared for about 10 minutes (until the end of the trip). Unfortunately, it is not consistent as this occurred on my 3rd and 5th trip of the day. The light reappeared on the sixth trip.

Could the blinking light (!) indicate that one of the TPMS sensors is running out of batteries?

I will visit the dealership to take care of the recalls on my Suzuki Kizashi. At the same time, I'd like to see if they can help me with this issue, but I'm hesitant, I don't want them to accidentally put me back into the 3 warning light mode. (And then charge me money on top of that.)

Should I try the relearn mode again?

Is there a difference between dropping the tire pressure 5 psi and using a handheld computer to reset each TPMS sensor?

This is the one thing I do like about the vt30--it will tell you the battery level of the sensor that its triggering as well as the sensor temperature, model, serial and of course, current psi. If my unit was working correctly and if I'm close enough, I'd really like to see what the vt30 is saying about your sensors. At the age of our cars, it could be the battery in the sensor. I'm sure it will be a matter of time before we starting have issues with sensor batteries.

[moojin]

Here is my update:

I took my Suzuki to my friend's service center. They relearned the TP sensors. However, the result was the same in that the blinking light (!) in the speedometer reappeared within minutes of driving.

I did have a twenty minute period of time where the light did go off. It even stayed off after I parked the car (and turned it off) for a few hours and then started another trip. However, it reappeared about 10 minutes into my second trip.

My next steps will be to order a new TP sensor online and have the original service center replace the one they installed with the one I bought online.

Have we come to a consensus as to which sensors can be ordered online and work with a high degree of certainty. I remember seeing the Schraeder and Chrysler brands as being the way to go. Can somebody send me specific model number details on the "good" TP Sensors? An Amazon (or other store) link would be great.

A few notes:

I would probably continue to drive with the blinking light if it were not for the fact that the wheel that the problem sensor is connected is the wheel that slowly leaks air (more so in frigid temperatures). So I do need a good sensor on that wheel just in case.

To get the Suzuki into relearn mode, I followed the instructions available in this thread. But I will add one additional note. Between each of the steps, when the cabin light switch is not depressed, do not pause at all. So when you hold the button, then let it go, immediately press the button again for the following step.

Well that sucks.

I recently tried the inflate/deflate method and after about 15 miles the lights came back on again. Looks like I'll have to do it again.

I must say it's quicker than the tool method though as the tool takes longer to trigger the sensors than letting air out.

Last week, I inflated the tires to 45psi, relearned and drained the tires to 40 psi. Within about 10 minutes, the blinking (!) in the speedometer returned. I drove the car for about 200 additional miles and the light continued to appear. The light turns on for almost one second and then turns off for about 1.5 to 2 seconds and repeats in this pattern.

Today, for the first time the light disappeared. The first time, it disappeared for about five minutes (until the end of trip). The second time, it disappeared for about 10 minutes (until the end of the trip). Unfortunately, it is not consistent as this occurred on my 3rd and 5th trip of the day. The light reappeared on the sixth trip.

Could the blinking light (!) indicate that one of the TPMS sensors is running out of batteries?

I will visit the dealership to take care of the recalls on my Suzuki Kizashi. At the same time, I'd like to see if they can help me with this issue, but I'm hesitant, I don't want them to accidentally put me back into the 3 warning light mode. (And then charge me money on top of that.)

Should I try the relearn mode again?

Is there a difference between dropping the tire pressure 5 psi and using a handheld computer to reset each TPMS sensor?

This is the one thing I do like about the vt30--it will tell you the battery level of the sensor that its triggering as well as the sensor temperature, model, serial and of course, current psi. If my unit was working correctly and if I'm close enough, I'd really like to see what the vt30 is saying about your sensors. At the age of our cars, it could be the battery in the sensor. I'm sure it will be a matter of time before we starting have issues with sensor batteries.

[BLyons]

That's what I ordered for my second set of wheels. They are supposed to work, but I have not installed them yet so I can't verify that.

[RedGeminiPA]

You need to hurry up and get them done so we can order them before they're gone... LOL

[SamirD]

The genuine Suzuki part number is 43130-57L00 and is available even cheaper on ebay:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Suzuki-tire-pre ... 67&vxp=mtr

This is what I'd get. You can also get single sensors on ebay. As these cars age (and many get totaled by insurance companies), parts like this have drastically come down in price as supply increases and demand decreases.