Gen 2 TPMS disable

You could just get new sensors, then if a tire gets low you will know.

 

Or a good tire pressure gage and skip the sensors.

 

Except when you have a small screw cause a leak on the highway like happened to me. How’s that tire gauge help then?

 

It doesn't until you hear the screw clicking on the pavement or notice the tire is low, then you can see how low it is. I don't run TPMS on any of our wheels mounted with snow tires, and just check the tires regularly.

Given that the OP wants to disable the light, it seems clear they aren't using TPMS, so a good gage is a good investment.

 

Yeah, son had a blowout on the highway partially due to stale TPMS light. I had aftermarket sensors sitting in the garage waiting to get installed.....

So, got them installed while getting new tires at walmart. They said they couldn't register the sensors since they weren't their brand (BS?) so I used techstream. It took a few tries since this was my first time with the process even after reading through a few similar threads here. FWIW

 

You would need a good gage either way. The light is set to go off at 26.5 psi. Way lower than you would want the tires to be. Newer systems tell you the pressure, and you can look up the pressure and tire temp in Techstream but that won’t typically help when you are putting air in the tires.

 

Not BS. They likely only have the TPMS tool for their brand of sensors. You can buy a less expensive TPMS tool that is brand specific, or a more expensive multi-brand tool. Many tire shops just get the tool that works with the sensors they sell. If they buy a large humber of sensors, the maker will usually include a tool for "free", or at least no additional line item cost.

 

Some of the newer cars beep the horn when you fill the tires to the correct pressure.

 

Yeah, he seemed sincere plus being walmart they're not the high-pressure commissions model like other businesses so I let it go.

 

My Clarity doesn't use internal sensors so no batteries to ever replace but instead somehow measures the circumference of the tire. I haven't yet looked into exactly how they do this.

I know it works because I installed a slightly smaller accord mini-spare and sure enough the indicator activated. Reinstalled the original and hit recalibrate in the setting menu=light off. NICE!

 

When I was getting new tires for my Tacoma before I got the Prius I asked the guy at America’s tire what TPMS sensors were because it asked when I was picking out tires. He said better you don’t have them, those older ones don’t work so well. Pretty obvious when your driving and a tire gets low on that truck. The Prius not so much.

 

They use the ABS sensors and look at the difference in rotational speeds. My 2011 VW had this and I had to reset it with each tire change to/from snow tires. Still, a better and cheaper system in my opinion. No $30 sensors in each wheel, each of which has a limited life.

It can't tell you the absolute pressures, but it will tell you when one tire is different from the others.

 

In my opinion, these are more trouble and expense than they are worth. Mandated by law since people weren't doing the basics of inspecting their tires and checking pressures, and were having blowouts as a result. Another work-around for stupidity and/or laziness.

 

This is the best tire gage I’ve owned. Worth every penny.

 

Has this question ever been resolved?

Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.

 

I'm wondering if OP needed the light out, say for an inspection? If not for that, I would just live with it, problem solved.

 

16 responses and no one has answered the original question.

 

And I wish someone would. My dealer tells me the TPMS ECU is bad in my 2006 Prius, and they CANT get a replacement. So, the light will stay on unless someone here can tell us how to disable the it on a Gen II. The only thing I've learned so far it that's it's "easy" on a gen III, and "hard" on a Gen II, but no more than that. Can anyone help us?

 

Working on it!!!!