TPMS Programing
#16
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I've got a 2014 CTTS with summer and winter wheel/tire setups. I can usually get about 5 years on the winter tires and 3-4 on the summer. When changing between summer and winter setups, the TPMS system needs to be reset for wheel size (19, 20 or 21") and tire type (summer, winter, all season), and can also set full/partial load and comfort/standard settings; all of these can be done on the dashboard display. I've never needed an OBD tool to switch between summer and winter tires.
Most tire manufacturers recommend replacing tires at 6 years, regardless of mileage and, to make it one less thing I have to think about, I usually opt to replace the TPMS sensors at around 6 years. If a sensor battery dies, it's not hazardous if you check your tire pressures manually at regular intervals (like us old timers used to do back when dinosaurs roamed the planet), but it can be annoying to get the error message every time you drive. If you've just put on new tires, you'll probably bite the bullet eventually and pay to have them replaced while you kick yourself for not just replacing them when you got new tires.
Regarding TPMS sensors, here are some observations/opinions from my personal experience. Bear in mind that I'm no expert on TPMS systems and these are my opinions only.
I'd stay away from the inexpensive sensors offered on places like Amazon that advertise broad compatibility across many years, makes and models. My understanding is that these sensors can "clone" themselves to the TPMS monitor information already in the vehicles TPMS system so that sensor registration isn't needed. While this might work fine in many applications and it doesn't seem to be a problem when it works, it didn't work in my CTTS. Whoever replaces the TPMS sensors on your vehicle will need the unique registration number on the TPMS sensor to program it into your vehicle's computer system.
The second act to the above scenario is that in order to get TPMS sensors the same day, my tire shop had to source them from the local Porsche dealer. Predictably, the price gouging was insane as the dealer charged $240 PER SENSOR just for the part. And I didn't expect them to unmount and remount the tires for nothing so I had to pay for that too.
My advice is to go with reputable TPMS vendor who will check your VIN for compatibility before sending you a sensor. You can check with your local P-car dealer using the VIN for the sensor type needed for you vehicle. I used tpms.com and was happy with them; not a paid endorsement and I'm sure there are other vendors out there. Going this route, I was able to obtain all four sensors for my vehicle for a little over $200 (see "insane price gouging" above).
#17
RL Community Team
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Rennlist Member
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My advice is to go with reputable TPMS vendor who will check your VIN for compatibility before sending you a sensor. You can check with your local P-car dealer using the VIN for the sensor type needed for you vehicle. I used tpms.com and was happy with them; not a paid endorsement and I'm sure there are other vendors out there. Going this route, I was able to obtain all four sensors for my vehicle for a little over $200 (see "insane price gouging" above).
Can i verify new sensor compatibility before mounting by selecting alternate wheels via the PCM to see if they connect?
Last edited by lml999; 08-23-2021 at 12:57 PM.
#19
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My hunch is that you won't be able to check sensor compatibility before mounting, but a tire shop should be able to. My mistake was that the shop called and said they were having issues but I told them to go ahead and mount them anyway.